Ambroise Paré and the king's mastoiditis.

In 1560, François II, King of France, died of mastoiditis. Ambroise Paré was among his attendants. Paré was technically capable of draining the king's post-auricular abscess; this paper examines some of the reasons why he did not attempt any surgical procedure. This was a time of extreme tension between Catholics and Huguenots in France. Paré was a Huguenot, and the king was Catholic. Paré was a "barber-surgeon" which was the lowest level in the medical hierarchy at that time. Paré believed in the humoral theory of disease and may have been discouraged by air in the mastoid sinus. He was also very worried about being accused of poisoning the king. There is no evidence to suggest that the king's mother refused to allow Paré to operate because she wanted to achieve power as Regent of France.