How Islam changed medicine
BMJ 2005; 331 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.331.7531.1486 (Published 22 December 2005) Cite this as: BMJ 2005;331:1486All rapid responses
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Introduction
We live in a pluralist world in the content of different historical
antecedents and glories. Certainly, openness to the narratives of others
and appreciation of the history of various communities could be not only
good way to achieve a pragmatic dialogue between civilizations, but also
it is a moral responsibility. The medical science has been constituted by
experiences of all human, all over the world and during the ages. The
Greece, Indians, Chinese, Persians, Arab and other nations have had
influences in medicine progress during different eras. However, the flag
of leadership has been handed over to different nations each epoch.
We read the article entitled "How Islam changed Medicine"(1),
the comments (2,3,4) and some rapid responses to it, with full of
interest. We would like to add some points. It is obvious that Medicine
has been highly developed and very productive under the Islamic Empire
(7th-13th centuries). The great advances were made by Muslim physicians in
Medieval that has been the source of inspiration of scientists during the
later centuries.
Islam and Medicine
Islam stressed the importance of learning, encouraged cleanliness and
personal hygiene, developed the respect of authority and discipline,
forbade destruction, and tolerated other religions (5). Other than some
verses in Holy Quran, there are many narrations of the Prophet Mohammad
(PUH) (570-632 AD) that express the emphasis Islam laid on science. Among
them are two famous phrases from the Prophet: "Seek knowledge from the
cradle to the grave" and "He who leaves his home in search of
knowledge, walks in the path of God". Based on these deep attentions,
the followers of the Muhammad (PUH) established elementary schools,
usually in the mosques (6).
Medicine in Islam passed through three stages (5): First, the stage
of translation of foreign scientific sources into Arabic (7th-9th
centuries); Second, the stage of excellence and genuine contribution in
which the Islamic physicians were the leaders and the source of new
chapters to medicine (9th-13th centuries); and third, the stage of
decline (after 13th century) (5). Hundreds of Greek, Syriac, Pahlavi, and
Sanskrit texts were rendered into Arabic in the first phase. However, this
knowledge was not only to become translated, but was to be expounded,
assimilated, exhaustively added to and subsequently codified, and
'Islamicized' (7). Numerous aspects of Islamic medicine were
unquestionably original (8).
It must be borne in mind that, as Lawrence I Conrad, in the book of
"Companion Encyclopedia of the History of Medicine" (8) has written:
"The language of the Arabs became the common cultural denominator of the
medieval Middle East and was spoken as the lingua Franca by not only
Muslims, but Christians and Jews as well" (8). He has stated that some
of the most prominent monuments of formal medical learning were written in
Arabic by Persian scholars (8).
Medical education was empowered in Islamic civilization era. Training
of physicians in basic sciences, providing and launching a clinical
training curriculum in internal medicine and surgery, and licensing of
physicians were established in this era (9). Also, employing inspectors to
inspect drugs and maintain quality control of drugs was carried out in
that period (8).
The development of efficient hospitals was an outstanding contribution of
Islamic medicine (9,10). The hospitals were run by government and the
directors of hospitals were physicians (9). All services were free and on
discharge, each patient received five gold pieces to support himself until
he could return to work (9). The first institutions for the care of the
insane were established in the ninth and tenth century AD in the Islamic
cities of Baghdad, Cairo, Fez and Damascus (11).
Medical description of differences between some diseases such as
smallpox and measles, and goiter and thyroid cancer, scientific definition
of hay fever (allergic rhinitis), identification of the properties of
sulphuric acid and alcohol, using silk sutures and alcohol for
homeostasis, using alcohol as an antiseptic, the use of the first
anesthetic drugs and a cauterizing iron in the control of bleeding,
emphasis on anatomy, implantation of dental prosthesis carved from cow's
bone, using cotton in surgical dressing, teaching lithotomy position,
description of tracheotomy and varicose veins stripping, the first
colostomy, and many other examples are some of the Muslim physicians'
innovations during ninth to eleventh century (AD) (9,12).
In same period, Abu Ali al-Husayn ibn Abdallah ibn Sina (Avicenna,
973-1037 AD) wrote the book "Canon" (Al Qanon fi al Tibb) in medicine
(in 5 volumes) which was an encyclopedia containing more than one million
words (5,13). It was translated to many languages and was the reference
for medical schools in Europe up to the 17th century AD. Likewise, the
other famous Iranian scientist, the Rhazes'(Mohammad ibn Zakariya al-Razi,
865-925) books "the al-Inclusive Work on Medicine" (al-Hawi fi al-
Tibb) and "the Mansurian Book of Medicine" (al-Kitab al-Mansuri fi al-Tibb) were among important books at that time (8,12).
Given the religious importance of moral virtues, Muslim physicians
have put much emphasis on ethical principles in their practice (13). Most
of Muslim physicians would allocate part of their books on medical ethics.
For thousands of years, ethics have been recognized as an essential
requirement in the making of a physician (14).
In the 9th century, Abu al-Hasan Ali ibn-e Raban Tabari (807-861 AD),
described in the book "the Paradise of Wisdom" (Ferdous al Hekmat) the
Islamic codes of ethics as: personal characters of the physician, his
obligation towards patients, his obligation towards the community, his
obligations towards his colleagues, and his obligations towards his
assistants (5,15,16). This book got printed in Berlin by Professor Edward
Browne in 1928 (17).
Rhazes was also strictly committed to the principles of medical
ethics. He made some manuscripts on principles of medical ethics and so
his book entitled "Spiritual Medicine" (Teb e Rohani) is about ethics.
Avicenna has also comprehensive moral advices about clinical medicine
and physicians' practice in his medical books. One of the most extensive
works dealing with ethics was written in the 10th century AD by Ishag ibn
Ali al-Ruhawi, a Christian who embraced to Islam (15,18). In his book,
"Ethics of a physician" (Adab al-Tabib), the subjects such as the
faith and the loyalthy of physicians, problems of responsibility, ethical
dilemmas in patient-physician relationships, what the physician must avoid
and beware of, manners of the visitors, medical art for the people's moral
values, and harmful habits were brought (15). This book translated to
English in 1960s (19,20). The book "Adab al-Tabib" is an illustration
of the fact that problems of responsibility, ethical dilemmas, and needs
of the society are nothing new to medicine (15). The medical
recommendations of Ali ibn Abbas Ahwazi, knows as Haly Abbas, to the
contemporary physicians, known as "Ahwazi Advises", highlighted the
ethics of medicine (13,21). He has included the exhortation in his book
"The Perfect Art of Medicine" (Kamel al-sanaat al-Tibbia) (12,21). It
is more comprehensive than the Hippocratic Oath.
In 931 AD, Caliph Al-Muqtadir ordered to examine all those who
practiced medicine (9). From That time on, licensing examinations were
mandatory. In 10th century, in addition to licensing, the Hippocratic Oath
was mandatory for medical practitioners in Islamic hospitals.
Prospect
The Islamic empire for more than 1000 years remained the most
advanced nation in the world. After the Renaissance in Europe (17th
century AD), the writings of Islamic physicians and philosophers were
eventually translated form Arabic into Latin and became the basis of the
development of modern medicine (6,7). Some believe that medical science
rests upon a Greek foundation (22,23), but it is certain that it was very
highly developed under the Islamic Empire (24). Between the epoch which
stretches from Pythagoras to Plato and the epoch comprised in the
seventeenth century of the modern world, nearly two thousand years elapsed
(25). This era was coincident with the "Islamic Empire". Muslims have
fostered the flame of civilization, and handed it over to Europe in the
best possible condition. Europe, in turn, passed it to the United States
of America, and the cycle continues (5).
Finally, it should be mentioned that in many Islamic countries,
including Iran, more emphasis on medical progress and medical ethics have
been made in recent decades (26,27). Likewise, Islamic viewpoints about
new technologies have been presented by religious scholars (28,29).
Compilation of the National Ethical Guidelines in the different fields of
biomedical research (containing ethical guidelines for clinical trial,
research on minors, genetic research, gamete and embryo research, organ
and tissue transplantation research, and research on animals) is one of
the best instances of such activities accomplished in our country in
recent years (30).
Acknowledgement: We would like to thank Dr. Javad Tavakoly Bazzaz for
his valuable comments and Dr. Fatemeh Bandarian for sincere cooperation.
References
1. Majeed A. How Islam changed Medicine. BMJ 2005; 331 (7531):1486-7.
2. Masoud MT, Masoud F. How Islam changed Medicine: Ibn al-Haytham
and optics. BMJ 2006; 332(7533):120-a.
3. Urquhart J. How Islam changed Medicine: Ibn sina (Avicenna) saw
medicine and surgery as one. BMJ 2006; 332(7533):120-b.
4. Cattermole GN. How Islam changed Medicine: Al-Nafis, Servetus, and
Colombo. BMJ 2006; 332(7533):120-C.
5. Abouleish E. Contributions of Islam to medicine. In Athar SH.
Islamic medicine. Available from: www.islam-usa.com/im3.html (access
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6. Magner LN. A history of the life sciences. New York: Medical
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7. Nagamia HF. Islamic medicine: history and current practice. JISHIM
2003; 2: 19-30. Available also from International Institute of Islamic
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8. Conrad LI. Arab-Islamic medicine. In: Bynum WF, Porter R.
Companion Encyclopedia of the history of medicine. Volume 1, London:
Routledge, First edition, 1993, pp. 676-727.
9. Syed IB. Islamic medicine: 1000 years ahead of its times. JISHIM
2002; 2: 2-9. Available also from: www.islam-usa.com/im4.html (access
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York: HN Abrams Inc. Publishers, 1978, pp. 295–317.
11. Duffin J. History of medicine: A scandalously short introduction.
Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2001, PP. 219, 246,279,307,310.
12. Elgood CL. Medicine in Persia. Brooklyn: AMS Press, 1934.
13. Bagheri A. A brief history of medical ethics in Iran. Available
from: www.lifestudies.org/ iranbiohist.html (access 5/2005).
14. Amine ARC, Elkadi A. Islamic code of medical professional ethics.
Bulletin of Islamic Medicine, Vol. 1: Proceeding of the first
International Conference on Islamic Medicine, January 1981, Kuwait, pp.
652-657.
15. Al Ghazal SK. Medical ethics in Islamic history at a Glance.
JISHIM 2004; 3: 12–13.
16. Hamarnesh S. The physician and the health professions in medieval
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treatment. Translated by Prof. Saeed Kanani Zanjani, Vol.1. Tehran: Homa
Prinitng House, First edition, 2002, P. 306.
18. Aksoy S.The religious tradition of Ishaq ibn Ali al-Ruhawi: the
author of the first medical ethics book in Islamic medicine. JISHIM 2004;
3:9-11.
19. Levy M. Medical deontology in ninth century Islam. J Hist Med
1966; 1: 358-73.
20. Levy M. Medical ethics of Medieval Islam with special Reference
to Al Ruhawis. Practical Ethics of the physician 1967, vol. 57, part 3.
21. Tajbaksh H. Medical ethics in the life and works of the great
Iranian scholars. The Experiences and challenges of Science and Ethics:
Proceedings of an American–Iranian Workshop (2003), Appendix I, PP.
86–91. Available from: wwww.nap.cdu/openbook/ 0309088909/html/87.html
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22. Burnham JC. What is medical history? Cambridge: Polity Press
First edition, 2005, pp. 17-20, 130-153.
23. Catholic Encyclopedia: history of medicine. At:
www.newadvent.org/cathen/10122a.htm (access 5/2005).
24. History for kids: Ancient medicine. At:
www.historyforkids.org/learn/science/ medicine/ (access 5/2005).
25. Witehead AN. Science and the modern world. UK: Cambridge
University Press, 1925, P.34.
26. Larijani B, Zahedi F, Malek–Afzali H. Medical ethics activities
in Iran. Eastern Mediterranean Health Journal (EMHJ) 2005; 11(5/6): 1061-
1072.
27. Larijani B, Malek–Afzali H, Zahedi F, Motevaseli E.
Strengthening Medical Ethics by Strategic Plan in Islamic Republic of
Iran. Developing World Bioethics 2006; 6(2): 106–110.
28. Larijani B, Zahedi F, Taheri E. Ethical and legal aspects of
organ transplantation in Iran. Transplant Proc 2004; 36(5); 1241-4.
29. Larijani B, Zahedi F. Islamic perspective on human cloning and
stem cell research. Transplant Proc 2004; 36(10): 3188-9.
30. Medical Ethics and Medical History Research Centre (MEHRC).
National Ethical Guidelines in the different fields of biomedical research
(in Farsi). Available from: http://mehr.tums.ac.ir/code.asp (access May
2006).
Competing interests:
None declared
Competing interests: No competing interests
I feel many learned responders to Professor Majeed's article are
confused in their understanding of Islam as a religion and Islam as a
civilization and way of life with a glorious past and its contribution to
science, medicine, philosophy,art and literature.I was astonished to read
comments that the Quran does not mention anything about medicine.I am sure
the writer has passed these comments without reading the Quran.In fact the
Quran has the most exhaustive references and recommendations in regard to
health ranging from breastfeeding, nutrition,to embryology and
reproductive health.In addition, there is invitation to humankind on each
and every page to think and do research on all topics including
medicine,science and the universe in general.Professor Majeed's article is
a timely reminder to present day scientists that history should be seen in
its true perspective without bias and the contribution to the development
of medicine and science by physicians of muslim era should be
acknowledged.
Competing interests:
None declared
Competing interests: No competing interests
Dr Azuonye’s assertion that the Qur’an did not suggest any medical
research ideas shows a lack of real knowledge and
understanding of Islam as a whole and the Qur’an in particular. There are
so many verses that call on man to observe and reflect on nature and
natural phenomena. This constant exhortation to the “men of knowledge and
understanding”, as the Qur’an calls “scientists”, no doubt served as the
catalyst that had inspired these early Muslims, who rightly saw this as a
religious duty, to explore the world around them and (thereby) make such
contributions to science and medicine which the BMJ and many others
recognize and appreciate.
Competing interests:
None declared
Competing interests: No competing interests
The author of the editorial has provided a concise but informative
review of medical landmarks in the history of Islamic civilisation.
However, The book entitled 'Al-Quanon fil'tib' is translated as the 'canon
of Medicine'.
In arabic 'Al-Quanon' means 'the Law'. Therefore, the book title literally
means 'The Law of Medicine' which refers to guidlines "not legal matters".
Competing interests:
None declared
Competing interests: No competing interests
How is change brought about in Medicine?
It is through research that leads to the development of new
theoretical knowledge, procedures and systems of management that Medicine
(meaning all the methods of prevention and treatment of human disease) is
changed for the better.
Islam is a religion based on the Koran and its derivatives such as
the Sharia Law. The Koran contains no information of a medical nature, and
does not suggest any medical research ideas or any procedures that would
improve the practice of Medicine.
Dr Majeed is completely misguided in his belief that Islam has
changed Medicine in any way. Medical practitioners and scientists who, in
their personal lives, subscribed to Islam may have made great
contributions to Medicine, but it is these individuals, not Islam, that
brought about the changes; just as it is not Christianity, Judaism,
Jainism, Sikhism, Hinduism, Taoism, Baha'ism, Confucianism, Atheism,
Satanism, Animism or any other faiths that have made the discoveries of
individual scientists who happened to subscribe to these religious systems
of belief.
Competing interests:
None declared
Competing interests: No competing interests
In his essay, Professor Majeed mentioned that "Arab" physicians and
scholars laid the basis for medical practice in Europe (1). Yet more than
two-third of Islamic scientists and physicians have originally been
Iranian (2) and some historians believe that the Iranians have taught the
Greeks the principles of what is called Greek medicine (3). It is true
that "the national medicine is part of the international medicine and
should never be affected by the excessive patriotism" (3) but it should
never be forgotten that "ignoring any member of the medicine family means
not considering the whole family as important as it is" (3).
References:
1. Majeed A. How Islam changed medicine. BMJ 2005; 331: 1486-1487.
2. Nafisi A. The preface of translator. In: Mohammad Ibn Zakarya
Razi. Man la yahzoroh-o-attabib. The first edition. Tehran: Iranian
Academic Center for Education, Culture and Research (ACECR); 1985.
3. Elgood C. A. A medical history of Persia and the Eastern Caliphate
from the earliest times until the year 1932. Cambridge University Press;
1921.
Competing interests:
None declared
Competing interests: No competing interests
Professor Azeem Majeed editorial is a gentle reminder that under
Islamic rule, people from all ethnic and religious backgrounds had the
opportunity to develop their full potential in all walks of life. It is
disheartening that some people have expressed their opinions influenced by
their prejudices against the religion of Islam.
Competing interests:
None declared
Competing interests: No competing interests
My editorial was about the contributions of Islamic societies to
medicine. Islamic societies were multi-ethnic and multi-religious, and
important contributions to science and medicine were made by scholars and
physicians who were not Arabs or Muslims. For example, much of the work of
translating Syriac and Greek texts into Arabic was carried out by
Christians. Similarly, not all the great physicians of the Islamic era
were Arabs and two of those mentioned in the editorial, Al Razi and Ibn
Sina, were born in present day Iran and Uzbekistan respectively. To have
avoided confusion, I should have been clearer in separating out the
contributions of Arabs from non-Arabs. However, the length of the article
precluded a lengthy discussion of the ethnic background of any of the
physicians discussed.
Competing interests:
None declared
Competing interests: No competing interests
Dear Editor,
I read the article entitled" How Islam changed medicine" [1] and I felt
very sorry about it.
I called it "Politics in Medicine". The author mixed two things at a
glance: Islam and Arabs, at the same time he prides Arabs on two eminent
Iranian scientists, Avicenna and Rhazes.
As everyone knows today and it can also be simply retrieved from search
engines [2], both are purely Iranians.
Avicenna, born in 980, Bukhara, Iran and died 1037, Hamadan, Iran, the
great anatomist[3], physiologist [3], psychologist [4], surgeon [5],
internist [6], pharmacologist [7], cardiologist [8], gynecologist [9],
philosopher [2], mathematician [2], poet [2], astronomer [2], chemist [7],
has numerous up-to-date ideas on neurosurgery [3], anesthesiology[10],
orthopedics [3], nephrology [11], pulmunology [12], and many other fields
in medicine and other sciences. He was particularly noted for his
contributions in the fields of Aristotelian philosophy and medicine [2].
He composed the Shafa “Book of Healing”, a vast philosophical and
scientific encyclopedia, and the Canon of Medicine, which is among the
most popular references in the world of medicine.
The so called Prince of Medicine, Avicenna, the most famous and
influential of the philosopher-scientists of Islam, as is clearly
described in detail in the Encyclopedia Britannica [2], and in numerous
other non-Arabic indexes, is an Iranian scientist.
The other eminent Iranian physician, the great founder of alcohol, is Rhazes
(pertaining to Rayy, his birth place) [13-14].
Born in 865, Rayy, Persia [2] died 925 or 935, Rayy, he was the Iranian
heir of Socrates in philosophy and of Hippocrates in medicine. In his
comprehensive books, he collected Greek, Syrian, Arabic, and Indian
medical sciences and criticized many of them. Several of his works were
translated into Latin and other languages. The Spiritual Physic of Rhazes,
is a popular ethical treatise and major alchemical study. He was
considered one of the greatest physicians of the early Islamic world [2]
His genus works on chemistry, biochemistry and many interesting areas of
medicine made his works and books the most important and reliable
references of medicine for centuries in both poles of the globe [14-16].
As is noted in the letter of Azeem Majid [1], Arabic language was the
scientific language of the area in the epoch of Rhazes and Avicenna and it
is why they published their works in Arabic.
The tombs of Avicenna in Hamedan Province and that of Rhazes in Rayy both
near the Capital of Iran, Tehran, are the places visited by tens of
thousands of tourists annually.
As one can see, by omitting these two "stars in the sky of medicine" from
the letter of Azim, the worth of the article largely diminishes.
1-Britannica.com
2- Azeem Majeed: How Islam changed medicine. BMJ 2005;331:1486-7
3-Naderi S, Acar F, Mertol T, Arda MN: Functional anatomy of the spine by
Avicenna in his eleventh century treatise. The Canons of Medicine.
Neurosurgery. 2003 2(6):1449-53.
4: Namazi MR: Avicenna. Am J Psychiatry. 2001;158(11):1796.
980-1037.
5: Qayumi AK: Avicenna: a bright star from the east. J Invest Surg.
1998;11(4):243-4.
6: Masic I, Ridanovic: Avicenna: a great physician and thinker. Z Med Arh
1993;47(1-2):43-6.
7:Denisenko PP, Nuraliev IuN: Abu Ali Ibn-Sina and pharmacology; on the
millennium of the birth of Avicenna. Farmakol Toksikol. 1980;43(6):753-4
8: Ali MI: Avicenna's approach to cardiac diseases. Bull Indian Inst Hist
Med Hyderabad. 1993;23(2):137-41.
10- Haddad FS: Ibn Sina (Avicenna) advocated orotracheal intubation 1000
years
Ago: documentation of Arabic and Latin originals. Middle East J
Anesthesiol. 2003 ;17(2):155-62.
11: Hussain S: Body fluids according to Avicenna. Bull Indian Inst Hist
Med Hyderabad. 1983;13(1-4):52-8.
12: Rasheed BM: Avicenna's influence on European medicine. Bull Indian
Inst Hist Med Hyderabad. 1981;1-4:99-102.
12:Sharma OA: Avicenna's description of tuberculosis. Bull Indian Inst
Hist Med Hyderabad. 1981;1-4:83-6.
13:Tan SY: [Some questions about the Greek sources of Rhazes' Continens]
Med Secoli 2002;14(2):383-406.
14:Haddad FS: Rhazes (835-925 A.D.): medical scholar of Islam.
Singapore Med J. 2002;43(7):331-2.
15: El Gammal SY: Pioneers of Arabian medicine.Bull Soc Liban Hist Med.
1993;(3):74-83.
16: Haas LF: The public health of Rhazes.Hist Sci Med. 1982;17:105-10.
Competing interests:
None declared
Competing interests: No competing interests
"never perform an operation without first watching it performed by others and without having experience of the technique ..."
EDITOR - We would like to congratulate Dr. Majeed on his interesting
article on the role of Muslim physicians and scholars in modern
medicine,[1] and all the authors who responded to it.[2,3,4] We have
thoroughly enjoyed reading it and wish that more historical articles of
the same standard could find a place in the BMJ Journal. At any rate, we
would also like to underline some information that we consider stricking
to make the due worth to the contribution of Islam to modern medicine.
It is too often forgotten that the Arabs were responsible for
preventing much of the well known medical practices from antiquity being
lost. This is especially true of surgery which was neglected by the church
for centuries.
Religious reasons constrained a group of Aramaeans belonging to the
Nestorian sect to emigrate from Syria to Persia around the 5th century
A.D. Aimed to transmit the medical knowledge acquired studying the
numerous treatises inherited from the legendary library of Alexandria,
they founded Gandi-Sopor,[5] the world’s first teaching hospital. In this
way Arabs received translations of Greek and Latin medical literature
adopting in particular the Galenic medicine principles and the Nestorian
system of teaching. New hospital institutions were then established in
Bagdad, Cairo, Aleppo and Damascus, where for the first time the medical
specialties of psychiatry and ophthalmology were taught.
Embracing scientific knowledge received from the Nestorians allows
muslim medical culture to grow up exponentially, reaching its peak with
the encyclopaedic work on medicine and surgery El Tariff or Tasrif (The
Method) by Abul Quazim Halaf Ibn’Abbas az-Zahrawi, better known as
Albucasis (936–1013 A.D.) the greatest Arab surgeon in history.[6]
Albucasis is considered to be one of the moving spirits behind the rebirth
of surgery, because it was through his teachings that the practice spread
from Cordoba across Western Europe. The book became rapidly the leading
medical text in all European universities during the later Middle Ages.
Its section on surgery contains illustrations of surgical instruments of
elegant, functional design and great precision. Other chapters describe
amputations, ophthalmic and dental surgery, and the treatment of wounds
and fractures. He developed new surgical technologies and invented several
devices used during surgery. “… Never perform an operation without first
watching it performed by others and without having experience of the
technique” was the basic principle of his modern medical teaching.”[5]
The most free-thinking of the major philosophers of Islam al-Razi
(Rhazes) (860–932) with his magnus opus Kitab Al-Mansuri (The Great
Medical Compendium) and Ibn Sina (Avicenna) (980–1037) who gained a
reputation as “father of the modern medicine”[7] with his two masterworks
al-Qanun fi’l tibb (The Canon of Medicine) and Kitab al-shifa (The Book of
Healing) brought fame and immortality to the medical Arab School of that
time.[1] Despite their most loved field of study was philosophy, they were
speculatively interested in the art and profession of medicine. Ibn Rushd
(Averroe) too wrote an important book on medical theories and precepts.
The contribution to optics of Ibn al-Haytham (Alhacen or Alhazen) has
been already reported.[4] However in this field we cannot neglect to
mention another great muslim physician who gave important contribution to
medical development. The Iraqi/Egyptian surgeon Ammar ibn Ali al-Mawsili
(al-Musali) created a syringe in the 9th century using a hypodermic
needle, a hollow glass tube, and suction to remove cataracts from
patients' eyes, a practice that remained in use up until at least the 13th
century and which came into renewed use in the 20th century.
Ibn Zuhr, known as Avenzoar, was the first to describe pericardial
abscesses and to recommend tracheotomy when necessary as well as being a
skilled practical physician. He is considered the father of experimental
surgery, for introducing the experimental method into surgery in his Al-
Taisir.[8] He was the first to employ animal testing in order to
experiment with surgical procedures before applying them to human
patients.[8] He also performed the first dissections and postmortem
autopsies on humans as well as animals.[8]
In his book De Gradibus the Arab Iraqi polymath Abu Yusuf Yaqub ibn
Ishaq (Al-Kindi) demonstrated the application of mathematics to medicine,
particularly in the field of pharmacology. He introduces mathematical
scale to quantify the strength of drugs, and a system that would allow a
doctor to determine in advance the most critical days of a patient's
illness.[9]
Ibn al-Lubudi (1210-1267) rejected the theory of four humours,
discovered that the body and its preservation depend exclusively upon
blood, rejected Galen's idea that women can produce sperm, and discovered
that the movement of arteries are not dependent upon the movement of the
heart, that the heart is the first organ to form in a fetus' body (rather
than the brain as claimed by Hippocrates), and that the bones forming the
skull can grow into tumors.[10]
When the Black Death bubonic plague reached al-Andalus in the 14th
century, Ibn Khatima and Ibn al-Khatib proposed the theory of contagion
hypothesizing that infectious diseases were caused by ‘minute bodies’:
"The fact infection becomes clear to the investigator, whereas he who is
not in contact remains safe," and described how transmission is effected
through garments, vessels, and earrings.[11]
The Tashrih al-badan (Anatomy of the body) of Mansur ibn Ilyas (ca
1390) contained comprehensive diagrams of the body's structural, nervous
and circulatory systems.[12]
Other medical innovations first introduced by Muslim physicians
include the discovery of the immune system, and the combination of
medicine with other sciences (including agriculture, botany, chemistry,
and pharmacology).[13]
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Competing interests:
None declared
Competing interests: No competing interests