Wilhelm Uhthoff was a German ophthalmologist who was born in Klein-Warin. In 1877 earned his doctorate at the University of Berlin, and later became a professor of ophthalmology at the Universities of Marburg (1890) and Breslau (1896), where he succeeded Carl Friedrich Richard Förster

Carl Friedrich Richard Förster

Carl Friedrich Richard Förster was a German ophthalmologist who was born in the town of Lissa . He received his medical doctorate in 1849, and for most of his career was associated with the University of Breslau...

 (1825-1902).

Uhthoff specialized in the study of ophthalmological disorders that were related to the central nervous system

Central nervous system

The central nervous system is the part of the nervous system that integrates the information that it receives from, and coordinates the activity of, all parts of the bodies of bilaterian animals—that is, all multicellular animals except sponges and radially symmetric animals such as jellyfish...

. In 1890 he described a condition of temporary vision loss linked to physical exercise, and associated with optic neuritis

Optic neuritis

Optic neuritis is the inflammation of the optic nerve that may cause a complete or partial loss of vision.-Causes:The optic nerve comprises axons that emerge from the retina of the eye and carry visual information to the primary visual nuclei, most of which is relayed to the occipital cortex of the...

. This condition was to become known as Uhthoff's phenomenon

Uhthoff's phenomenon

Uhthoff's phenomenon is the worsening of neurologic symptoms in multiple sclerosis and other neurological, demyelinating conditions when the body gets overheated from hot weather, exercise, fever, or saunas and hot tubs...

, and was later found to be caused by a rise in body temperature.

In 1915 he published a treatise titled Augensymptome bei Grosshirntumoren in which gave an early description of a neuro-ophthalmic disorder that was to become known as Foster Kennedy syndrome

Foster Kennedy syndrome

Foster Kennedy syndrome refers to a constellation of findings associated with tumors of the frontal lobe....

. However, the disease was to be named after Robert Foster Kennedy

Robert Foster Kennedy

Robert Foster Kennedy was an Irish-American neurologist.Foster Kennedy studied medicine at Belfast University and took his final exams at the Royal University of Ireland/Dublin...

(1884-1952), who provided a more comprehensive account of the disorder.

Written works

• Untersuchungen über die bei der multiplen Herdsklerose vorkommenden Augenstörungen. Archiv für Psychiatrie und Nervenkrankheiten, Berlin, 1890, 21: 55-116 and 303-410. W. Uhthoff
• Die Augenstörungen bei Vergiftungen Handbuch der Augenheilkunde, 2nd edition, volume 11, 2 A. Leipzig, 1911.
• Über die bei der Syphilis des Centralnervensystems vorkommenden Augenstörungen. Leipzig, 1894.
• Über die Augensymptome bei den Erkrankungen des Nervensystems. Handbuch der Augenheilkunde, 2nd edition, volume 11, 2 B. Leipzig, 1915.
• Stereoscopischer ophthalmolog. Atlas. 2. Folge, Leipzig.
• Augensymptome bei Grosshirntumoren. Gräfe-Sämisch: Handbuch der Augenheilkunde, 1915. Volume I: 1143. (Foster Kennedy's syndrome).