Professor Alexander E. Rauer – one of the founders of maxillofacial plastic surgery in the USSR (on the 150^th anniversary of birthday)

The paper presents the main years of the life and scientific work of the prominent Russian surgeon and scientistinnovator Professor A.E. Rauer (1871–1948). Little-known milestones from the scientist's life are marked. The paper analyzes the fact that from 1922 to the end of life (26 years) Alexander Eduardovich headed the maxillofacial department of the Central Institute of Traumatology and Orthopedics (CITO). Since 1932, Professor A.E. Rauer was the head of the Department of Maxillofacial Surgery of the CIU, organized by him on the basis of the maxillofacial department of the CITO (Moscow). It is noted that Alexander Eduardovich is the author of about  100 scientific works. He summarized all his rich experience in his final work “Plastic Surgery on the face”, awarded in 1946. The Stalin Prize. The range of scientific and surgical interests of A.E. Rauer was wide and diverse. His main works were devoted to the problems of maxillofacial surgery. Rauer proposed a number of valuable ways to eliminate facial disfigurement, which have become widespread (for example, oblique osteotomy for ankylosis of the jaws, surgery for habitual dislocations, plastic surgery of through facial defects, etc.). Under the leadership of Alexander Eduardovich, the clinic also developed methods of plastic surgery for fan-shaped neck scars after thermal injuries and restoration of the pharyngeal arches with soft palate defects. It is noted that he worked a lot on plastic surgery of other organs and proposed methods of interventions for congenital malformations of the bladder, limbs, etc. During the Great Patriotic War, A.E. Rauer introduced into practice a method of treating granulating surface wounds by forming secondary plate ligatures. It is shown that after him there were many worthy students who continued his work on the further development of maxillofacial surgery, which has become an important and necessary branch of clinical medicine.

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