August Müller (1864 – 1949), born in Mönchengladbach, was a medical student at the University of Kiel, Germany, and a pioneer in the manufacture of contact lenses. In 1889, he presented at the university his doctoral thesis titled Eyeglasses and corneal lenses^[1][2] in which he described his efforts to grind scleral lenses from blown glass. Refinements in his process led him to be able to correct his own severe -14 dioptre myopia to within 0.50 D.^[3] 1864 (MDCCCLXIV) was a leap year starting on Friday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar or a leap year starting on Sunday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar. ... 1949 (MCMXLIX) is a common year starting on Saturday. ... Mönchengladbach is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. ... The University of Kiel, in full the Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel (in short: CAU), is a university in the city of Kiel, Germany. ... A contact lens (also known as a contact) is a corrective, cosmetic, or therapeutic lens usually placed on the cornea of the eye. ... 1889 (MDCCCLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... A scleral lens is a large type of contact lens that rests on the sclera and creates a tear-filled vault over the cornea. ... A dioptre (also diopter) is a unit of curvature equal to one per metre; that is, inverse metres, or 1/(metres). ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... A dioptre (also diopter) is a unit of curvature equal to one per metre; that is, inverse metres, or 1/(metres). ...

Müller's compatriot Adolf Fick had published his work on contact lenses earlier in 1887, but his lenses were heavy and could only be worn for short periods. Müller's lenses were lighter and shaped to match the curved contour of the cornea. He suggested that the lens would remain in place on the cornea due to capillary action lubricated by the tear film. Adolf Eugen Fick (1829-1901) was a German physiologist and inventor. ... The cornea is the transparent front part of the eye that covers the iris, pupil, and anterior chamber, providing most of an eyes optical power [1]. Together with the lens, the cornea refracts light and, as a result, helps the eye to focus. ... Capillary action or capillarity (also known as capillary motion) is the ability of a narrow tube to draw a liquid upwards against the force of gravity. ...

Müller called his development Hornhautlinsen or 'corneal lenses'. His efforts to develop a new corrective lens were ultimately unsuccessful, since a patient could only tolerate the lens for half an hour at a time, less than one of Fick's, as it bore down heavily on the the sclera. Moreover, the lens had to be inserted underwater to prevent trapping air bubbles, and cocaine administered to anaesthetise the eye,^[3] but he did however lay the groundwork for later researchers and his ideas and recommendations on fit, tear flow and rounded edges still form the basis for contact lens fitting today.^[2] A corrective lens is a lens worn on or before the eye, used to treat myopia, hypermetropia, presbyopia and astigmatism. ... The sclera is the white outer coating of the eye. ... This article is about the drug Cocaine. ... For the song (Anesthesia) Pulling Teeth by Metallica, go here. ... Tears are a liquid produced by the bodys process of lacrimation to clean and lubricate the eyes. ...

In 1932, Müller donated three lenses to the German Museum in Munich. These were the same lenses that he had discussed in his thesis. Deutsches Museum The Deutsches Museum is one of the worlds largest museums of technology and science. ... Munich and the Bavarian Alps Munich (German: München, (pronounced listen) is the largest city and capital of the German Federal State of Bavaria. ...

Further reading

• Heitz RF. The invention of contact lenses by August Muller (1887-1889). CLAO J. 1984 Jan-Mar;10(1):88-95. PMID 6368043
• Müller's 3 lenses at the Deutsches Museum ((German)) URL accessed 10 March 2006
• Image of Müller at Biblioteca Argentina de Oftalmología ((Spanish)) URL accessed 10 March 2006

Notes

1. ↑ Müller A. Brillenglaser und hornhautlinsen. Inaugural Dissertation, University of Kiel; p 20.(1889).
2. ↑ ^a b Pearson RM, Efron N. Hundredth anniversary of August Müller's inaugural dissertation on contact lenses. Surv Ophthalmol. 1989 Sep-Oct;34(2):133-41. PMID 2686057
3. ↑ ^a b Hard Contact Lenses Royal College of Optometrists. URL accessed 09 March 2006