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| ARTICLE |
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| Year : 1970 | Volume
: 18
| Issue : 4 | Page : 154 |
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Douglas Argyll Robertson (1837-1909)
Y.K.C Pandit
,
Correspondence Address:
Y.K.C Pandit
,
 Source of Support: None, Conflict of Interest: None  | Check |
How to cite this article:
Pandit Y. Douglas Argyll Robertson (1837-1909). Indian J Ophthalmol 1970;18:154 |
The year 1970 marks the centenary of yet another item of ophthalmic interest, the first description of Argyll Robertson Pupil by Douglas Argyll Robertson. A short bibliographical note will not be out of place at such a time, especially because of his death which took plaec in India.
Douglas Argyll Robertson 1837-1909 was born in Edinburgh and belonged to a family of distinguished surgeons. He received his medical degree from St. Andrew's University in 1857 and then worked under von Arlt and von Graefe. He was on return appointed to the eye dispensary at Edinburgh (founded by his father) and became a teacher in Ophthalmology at the Edinburgh University. In 1863 he wrote his paper on "Calabar Bean as New Agent in Ophthalmic Medicine". In 1869-1870 he directed his attention to Tabes bringing out the important eye finding - loss of pupillary reflex to light while the reaction to accommodation is retained. His name is associated in all text books and literature with this condition as Argyll Robertson pupil. He covered various aspects of ophthalmology writing a series of papers on diptheritic conjuctivitis, asteroid hyalitis, tenotomy of the superior rectus.
He was elected as President of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh in 1886, awarded an LL.D. by the Edinburgh University in 1896; was President of Section of Ophthalmology of the British Medical Association 1898; President of the Ophthalmological Society of the U.K. 1893-1895 and in 1594 he presided over the Edinburgh meeting of the International Congress of Ophthalmology.
On recreation side he excelled in archery, golf, shooting and fishing.
He retired in 1904 and settled down on the Jersey Islands. He visited India twice as friend of the Thakore Saheb of Gondal. On his second visit he escorted Thakore Saheb's son and daughter and suddenly died in India. He was cremated on the banks of Gondai river, the Thakore Saheb himself kindling the funeral pyre.
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