So he did not propose any treatment, and the lady thenceforth supported her infirmity with resignation. This most interesting case soon became generally known, and contributed, without doubt, not a little to attract the attention of medical men to the anatomical peculiarities which Highmore had pointed out in the upper maxillary bone, thus causing his name to become inseparably associated with the maxillary sinus. It is evident, however, that Highmore never even suspected to what very important practical applications his description would give rise. He knew nothing about the diseases of the antrum, and believed that, even in perfectly normal conditions, this cavity is often filled with liquid; the idea, therefore, of its being advisable, in certain cases, to extract a tooth and perforate the alveolus in order to give exit to the liquid contained in the maxillary sinus never occurred to him. About fifty years went by before a rational treatment for affections of the antrum was initiated, the merit of which, as we shall see at its time and place, was due to William Cowper. During that half century maladies of the maxillary sinus continued to be badly diagnosticated and badly treated. BERNARDO VALENTINI. In the year 1686, that is, thirty-five years after the publication of Highmore’s book, Bernardo Valentini, professor at the University of Giessen, described a case of tumefaction and abscess in the cheek, treated by him with emollient remedies, and in which, although according to him caries of the underlying bone did not exist, the separation of a sufficiently large osseous fragment took place. Without doubt the affection of the cheek was derived in this case from some disease of the antrum; however, it would appear that Valentini did not in the least perceive any such casual relation, as he makes no allusion whatever to it.[350] ANTONIO MOLINETTI, professor at the University of Padua, had, however, ten years previously, diagnosticated and cured an affection of the antrum by means of an operation. In his book _Dissertationes anatomico-pathologicæ_, published at Venice in 1675, Molinetti relates that in a case of abscess of the maxillary sinus, which caused the patient great suffering, he performed the operation of trepanning the upper maxillary bone anteriorly, after incision of the soft parts overlying it. In a certain way we may, therefore, consider Molinetti as a precursor of William Cowper. Having spoken of the very important anatomical fact illustrated by Highmore, we will now also speak briefly of those authors who, in the seventeenth century, occupied themselves with the anatomy of the teeth. Their number is sufficiently large; we will, however, only make mention of such as contributed to the development of this branch of science, or who, at least, expressed some opinion worthy of note.