[Antonio Maria Valsalva (1666-1723) and his manoeuvre].

Valsalva studied and lived in Bologna, where he was a pupil of Malpighi and teacher of Morgagni. He wrote the first book detailing the structure and function of the ear. Valsalva advocated expiration against a closed mouth and nose as a method to evacuate purulent matter from the brain. His hypothesis of foramina between the intracranial cavity and the ear was eventually not confirmed. The phenomenon of weakening and slowing of the pulse by an increase in intrathoracic pressure was first described in the 19th century, but has also been named the 'Valsalva manoeuvre'.