Otto Schirmer was a German

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 ophthalmologist from Greifswald

Greifswald

Greifswald , officially, the University and Hanseatic City of Greifswald is a town in northeastern Germany. It is situated in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, at an equal distance of about from Germany's two largest cities, Berlin and Hamburg. The town borders the Baltic Sea, and is crossed...

. He studied medicine at several universities including the University of Greifswald. In 1896 he attained the chair of ophthalmology at Greifswald, a position earlier held by this father, Rudolf Schirmer

Rudolf Schirmer

Rudolf Schirmer was a German ophthalmologist from Greifswald.He initially studied medicine at the University of Greifswald, then furthered his studies at Göttingen, Berlin, Paris and Vienna. Later he returned to Greifswald, where he was habilitated for ophthalmology in 1860...

 (1831-1896). Later he was a professor of ophthalmology at Kiel

Kiel

Kiel is the capital and most populous city in the northern German state of Schleswig-Holstein, with a population of 238,049 .Kiel is approximately north of Hamburg. Due to its geographic location in the north of Germany, the southeast of the Jutland peninsula, and the southwestern shore of the...

 and Strasbourg

Strasbourg

Strasbourg is the capital and principal city of the Alsace region in eastern France and is the official seat of the European Parliament. Located close to the border with Germany, it is the capital of the Bas-Rhin département. The city and the region of Alsace are historically German-speaking,...

, and in 1909 emigrated to New York

New York City

New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

, where he worked in several hospitals including the Herman Knapp

Hermann Jakob Knapp

Hermann Jakob Knapp was a German-American ophthalmologist who was born in Dauborn, Nassau. He earned his medical degree from the University of Giessen in 1854. As a young physician he studied with Franciscus Cornelis Donders in Utrecht, William Bowman in London, Albrecht von Graefe in Berlin and...

 Memorial Eye Hospital.

Schirmer provided a comprehensive description involving the pathology

Pathology

Pathology is the precise study and diagnosis of disease. The word pathology is from Ancient Greek , pathos, "feeling, suffering"; and , -logia, "the study of". Pathologization, to pathologize, refers to the process of defining a condition or behavior as pathological, e.g. pathological gambling....

 of sympathetic ophthalmia

Sympathetic ophthalmia

Sympathetic ophthalmia is a granulomatous uveitis of both eyes following trauma to one eye. It can leave the patient completely blind. Symptoms may develop from days to several years after a penetrating eye injury. See also the reviews by Damico et al. , Chu and Foster , and Friedlaender et al...

, a detailed study of rosacea keratitis

Keratitis

Keratitis is a condition in which the eye's cornea, the front part of the eye, becomes inflamed. The condition is often marked by moderate to intense pain and usually involves impaired eyesight.-Types:...

, and extensive research concerning the physiology

Physiology

Physiology is the science of the function of living systems. This includes how organisms, organ systems, organs, cells, and bio-molecules carry out the chemical or physical functions that exist in a living system. The highest honor awarded in physiology is the Nobel Prize in Physiology or...

 and anatomy

Anatomy

Anatomy is a branch of biology and medicine that is the consideration of the structure of living things. It is a general term that includes human anatomy, animal anatomy , and plant anatomy...

 of the eye's lacrimal apparatus

Lacrimal apparatus

The lacrimal apparatus is the physiologic system containing the orbital structures for tear production and drainage.It consists of:* the lacrimal gland, which secretes the tears, and its excretory ducts, which convey the fluid to the surface of the eye;...

. His work with ophthalmia and the lacrimal system were published in the Second Edition of the Graefe

Alfred Carl Graefe

Alfred Carl Graefe was a German ophthalmologist who was born in Martinskirchen. He studied medicine in Halle and Berlin, and later became a professor of ophthalmology at the University of Halle. He was cousin to famed oculist Albrecht von Graefe.Alfred Graefe was known for his work with ocular...

-Saemisch

Edwin Theodor Saemisch

Edwin Theodor Saemisch was a German ophthalmologist who was born in Luckau. In 1858 he received his medical doctorate from the University of Berlin, and afterwards was an assistant to Albrecht von Graefe in Berlin, and Alexander Pagenstecher in Wiesbaden...

 textbook of ophthalmology called Handbuch der gesamten Augenheilkunde.

Schirmer is remembered today for the eponymous "Schirmer test", which is a method used to measure the eye's lacrimal secretion with absorbent paper.