The Modern Medical Science: a Journey Through History

Al-Tasrif, which is an encyclopedic work comprising all branches of medicine and surgery. This book, unparalleled in the medieval times, is considered to be the only source of modern surgery. It is divided into two parts; theoretical and practical. Each part consists of 15 chapters. The last section of the book sums up the entire surgical knowledge of that time, and contains illustrations of more than 300 surgical instruments which are used even today. This section is divided into three parts. The first part deals with cauterization (of wounds) and the instruments used for that purpose. This type of treatment was very popular in Arabia. The advantages of fire have also been fully explained in it.
The second part deals with common surgical operations. It gives the methods for crushing and removing the stone from the urinary bladder, the operations of eyes and teeth, and cutting the organs of the body. It also discusses bandages and the treatment of ulcers and wounds.
The third part deals with bone fractures and the problems of joints. An account of the paralysis caused by some defect in the spinal cord has also been given. In this part the author has given a discussion on midwifery and a description of various stages of the embryo in the womb of the mother, and has mentioned the method for taking out the child from the womb of the mother with the help of instruments.
In the 12th century the book Al-Tasrif was translated into Latin by Gerard of Cremona; and its various editions were published at Venice in 1497, and at Basel in 1541. In 1778 it was published at Oxford along with the original Arabic text. One copy of this edition is present in the British Museum and one in Bodleian Library. Its English translation was published in

Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30