Catalogue Number: 3638 Bailliart Ophthalmodynamometer, cased Category: Equipment Sub-Category: Tonometer Designer/inventor: Paul Bailliart (1877-1969) Year Of Publication/Manufacture: 1950's Time Period: 1940 to 1999 Place Of Publication/Manufacture: Paris, France Description Of Item: Direct contact pressure probe of white metal barrel and circular dial. The round dial has 2 blued steel pointers and a calibrated scale from 0 to 50. Marked 'OPHTALMO DYNAMOMETRE DU DR BAILLIART/ PARIS/ DEPOSE/ 326'. Housed in fitted case with black leatherette cover, faded red velvet lining and brass clasp. Instrument: 163 x 48 x 13 mm. Case: 175 x 63 x 33 mm. Historical Significance: The ophthalmodynamometer is used to infer the pressure of the central retinal artery and the internal carotid artery by observing the retinal vessels as the instrument is used to apply pressure to the globe. Bailliart's design dates to 1923.Bailliart joined the army in the ?cole du Service de Sante of Lyon to acquire an education in medicine. He completed his medical education in 1900 and defended his thesis Traitement chirurgical de la myopie, en particulier par la suppression du cristallin (Surgical treatment of myopia, in particular by removing the lens).He became a member of the Societe d'Ophtalmologie de Paris in 1909, of which he was the Secretary General from 1922 to 1938. Bailliart was a military doctor during WW I and in 1929 joined he Quinze-Vingts National Ophthalmology Hospital as department head and remained in that position until his retirement in 1943. He gained an international reputation for his work on the retinal circulation and his development of Bailliart's ophthalmodynamometer, Bailliart's goniometer, and Bailliart's tonometer. He also published works concerned with the education of the blind.Bailliart was made an Officer of the French Legion of Honor, was awarded the Ordre des Palmes Academiques, and won the Donders Medal (1939) and the Gonin Medal (1945). He was the mayor of Massy, Essonne from 1926 to 1935 and wrote a history of this town. How Acquired: Purchased by Kett Optometry Museum Date Acquired: August 2018 Condition: Good but surface corrosion Location: Archive room. East wall Unit 3 Cupboard |