Publication of the English version of the 1890s German Bruhl-Politzer atlas (Lehmann) in 1902 (Saunders) represented a landmark in the both detailed color graphic depiction of otic anatomy and pathology and, then state-of-the art, medical-surgical treatment of ear disease and defects. The original text has been a treasured possession since my undergraduate days in the 1950s. Of the thirty-nine color lithographic plates, (Lith. Anst. F. Reichhold, Munchen), four are of historic interest to the student and practitioner of otoscopy, video and otherwise. Plates 15 and 16 each contain macrographic shaded color lithographs of six cases each of "diseases of the auricle (five from Politzer)...". The remainder from Dr. Bruhl. Plates 38 and 39 each contain twenty-four 1/2" X 3/4" shaded color lithographic vignettes, according to Dr. Bruhl's prefatory remarks, from "..flash-light pictures taken from patients in my polyclinic, and slightly enlarged."

The Internet author has reproduced a segment this significant work in the history of otoscopy so that colleagues may more fully appreciate the value of video otomacroscopy and otoendoscopy as a clinical tool. Images were captured using a 1200X1200 dpi optical resolution scanner. Graphic files were saved in native 24 bit color bitmap (.bmp) format. Post scan image processing and preparation for Internet presentation were carried out using Ulead MediaStudio Pro; Corel PhotoPaint 8; LiveImage Pro; Caere Omnipage Pro 8 and MS Wordpad. Images were ultimately converted and saved in .jpg format. Considerable graphic enhancement was required to offset the literally postage- stamp size of the tympanic membrane pathology figures. Significantly less processing was required for the pinna pathology lithographs.

Images are best viewed with the 800 X 600 pixel resolution recommended for the entire Video Otoscopy site. The browser MUST be capable of supporting FRAMES. Each lithograph is reproduced as an imagemap with either 6 or 24 anchor segments. Click on any segment in the scrollable middle frame and title with description, scanned from Dr. Bruhl's own text, will appear in the scrollable bottom frame. All three frames are scrollable for those restricted by 640 X 480 screen resolution. Those with modest internet connectivity or less may suffer the download time for the major plates. The top frame provides access among any of the pages in this presentation.

Roy F. Sullivan, Ph.D. September 21, 1998
Garden City, New York