| | | | To Fool the Eye | Medical quackery is the practice of aggressively promoting an unproven medical treatment. Although some purveyors of quackery were fraudulent practitioners, many were simply misinformed and genuinely believed in their claims. Quackery is arguably as old as recorded history, but in America it dates back to colonial days. On the eve of the Revolutionary War the colonies contained an estimated 3,500 physicians, only 400 of whom had been trained, and about 200 of these actually held medical degrees. The zenith of quackery in the United States is said to have been in the 1800s when cure-alls in the form of patent medicines and devices abounded. |  | During this time, quacks were able to capitalize on the fears of the public and the disorganization of medicine to make large profits with few repercussions. Irregulars, merchants and quacks took advantage of traveling medicine shows, trade cards, newspapers and broadsheets to market their miracle cures directly to the public. Whenever physicians or patients complained about these treatments, quacks would respond that they were “scientists” ahead of their times.
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Special thanks go to the following individuals and institutions that helped to make this exhibit a reality:
Alcon’s Museum of Ophthalmology
Jay M. Galst, MD
John Q. Adams Center for the History of Otolaryngology—Head and Neck Surgery
Museum of Vision Exhibits and Educational Outreach Committee
Walter H. Marshall, MD
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