[100 years Heidehaus--from sanatorium for tuberculosis to a modern chest hospital].

When the sanatorium “Heidehaus” was founded on June 1, 1907 in the northern countryside of Hannover with Dr. Otto Ziegler as head about 120 beds for patients with tuberculosis were available. By 1914 about 200 patients were being treated by 4 physicians and 10 nurses. An operating theatre and a modern radiology unit were added in 1927. Shortly after the 2nd World War 400 patients with tuberculosis were hospitalised simultaneously. With the introduction of antituberculous triple drug treatment the number of patients dropped significantly. During this period many traditional facilities, used to care for patients with tuberculosis lost their financial basis and closed. However in the 1960s Prof. Schindler, the head of Heidehaus, widened the spectrum of the hospital into a modern chest hospital, focused on lung and airway diseases. In particular in the 1980s and 1990s this trend continued and 2 independent departments, i. e., pneumology and thoracic surgery were founded. In 2005 due to restructuring by the community of Hannover the “Heidehaus” moved completely and merged with another traditional hospital to become the new “Oststadt-Heidehaus”. In its new surroundings both departments for pulmonary medicine and thoracic surgery offer a broad spectrum of modern thoracic medicine in cooperation with other disciplines.