Pediatric otolaryngology in the United States: Chevalier Jackson's legacy for the 21st century.

Chevalier Jackson and his disciples in pediatric bronchology and esophagology strove to conquer the 3 great illnesses of the early 20th century: lye ingestion with esophageal cicatrix formation, foreign-body aspiration, and tuberculosis. Jackson's successes and legacy were based on teaching through the use of clinical drawings and his improvements in instrumentation, which have saved generations of children. Clinical specialization and meticulous teamwork protected children's airways from the ravages of diphtheria. Jackson observed the mechanics of respiratory pulmonary function and gained a better understanding of the causes of pulmonary wheezes. A recent biography, Swallow, tells of Jackson's life and his important contributions to the care of all children.

Posterior commissure of the human larynx revisited.

The existence of the posterior commissure (PC) of the human larynx has been disputed (Hirano M, Sato K, et al. The posterior glottis. Trans Am Laryngol Assoc. 1986;107:70-75). "The term posterior commissure has no relevance to anatomical structure. The term commissure means a joining together. The bilateral vocal folds never join at their posterior ends. The posterior aspect of the glottis is a wall. The posterior lateral aspect of the posterior glottis is also the lateral wall of the posterior glottis" (Hirano M, Sato K, et al. The posterior glottis. Trans Am Laryngol Assoc. 1986;107:70-75). This study is intended to clarify the development of anatomical and morphological aspects of the PC in conjunction with a clinical classification of the larynx in sagittal view. This study uses human embryo and fetal laryngeal sections from the Carnegie Collection of Human Embryos (the world standard) and whole organ laryngeal sections from the Tucker Laryngeal Fetal Collection. Correlation of histologic and gross anatomical structure is made with the Hirano et al atlas, the Vidic Photographic Atlas of the Human Body, and the O'Rahilly Embryonic Atlas. Embryologic data clearly describe and illustrate the posterior union of the cricoid cartilage with formation of the PC. The anatomical functional aspects of the posterior lateral cricoid lamina as the supporting buttress of the articulating arytenoid cartilages are illustrated.