Ibn Zuhr
Ibn Zuhr ابن زهر Avenzoar | |
---|---|
Almohad empire, now Province of Seville, Spain | |
Academic background | |
Influences |
|
Academic work | |
Era | Medieval Islamic civilization |
Notable works | Kitab al-Taisir fi al-Mudawat wa al-Tadbir |
Influenced | Averroes, Maimonides, Pietro d'Abano, Guy de Chauliac |
Abū Marwān ‘Abd al-Malik ibn Zuhr (
Ibn Zuhr performed the first experimental tracheotomy on a goat.[4] He is thought to have made the earliest description of bezoar stones as medicinal items.[5]
Biography
Avenzoar was born in
Avenzoar started his medical career as court physician for the
According to Leo Africanus, ibn Zuhr heard Averroes lecture, and learned physics from him. He was a great admirer of Galen, and in his writings he protests emphatically against quackery and the superstitious remedies of astrologers.[10]
Works
Kitab al-Iqtisad
"The book of moderation," this was a treatise on general therapy written in his youth for the
Kitab al-Aghdhiya
The book of foods, as its name indicates, is a manual on foods and
Kitab al-Taysir
Kitab al-Taysir seems to be the last book of Ibn Zuhr before his death. As mentioned in the introduction, the book was authored at the request of his friend,
The book, which contains 30 chapters, provides clinical descriptions and diagnosis of diseases starting from the head. Ibn Zuhr provided an accurate description of the
Ibn Zuhr is also credited with providing one of the earliest recorded evidence of the Scabies mite, which contributed to the scientific advancement of microbiology.[14] In his Kitab al-Taysir, he wrote the following:
There are lice under the hand, ankle and foot like worms, and sores affecting the same areas. If the skin is removed, there appears from various parts of it, a very small animal which can hardly be seen.[15]
Perhaps Ibn Zuhr's greatest contribution to medicine was his application of experimental method by introducing animal testing. He is known to have performed medical procedures on animals before doing them on humans to know if they would work.[16] Most notable was his approval and recommendation for the surgical procedure of tracheotomy, which was a controversial procedure at the time. In trying to sort out the controversy, Ibn Zuhr described the following medical experiment which he performed on a goat:
"Earlier on in my training when I read those opinions (controversies), I cut on the lung pipe of a goat after incising the skin and the covering sheath underneath. Then I completely cut off the substance of the pipe, an area just less than the size of a tirmisah (lupine seed). Then, I kept washing the wound with water and honey till it healed and it (the animal) totally recovered and lived for a long time."[17]
Other works
- Fi al-Zinah (On Beatification).
- Al-Tiryaq al-Sabini (On Antidotes).
- Fi Illat al-Kila (On Diseases of the Kidney).
- Fi Illat al-Baras wa al-Bahaq (On Leprosy and Vitiligo).
- Al-Tadhkirah (The Remembrance).
Legacy
The Jewish physician-philosopher Maimonides admired Ibn Zuhr,[19] describing him as "unique in his age and one of the great sages". He frequently quoted him in his medical texts.[20] Averroes praised him as the greatest physician since Galen.[citation needed] Both his daughter and granddaughter also became physicians,[21] specializing in obstetrics.
See also
- Islamic medicine
- List of Muslim scientists
- List of Arab scientists and scholars
Notes
- ^ Also Abumeron, Abhomeron, Alomehَn or Abhomjeron.
References
- ^ https://brill.com/previewpdf/book/9789004406452/BP000007.xml [bare URL PDF]
- ^ Thomas, Joseph (1870). Pronouncing Dictionary of Biography and Mythology. Vol. 1. p. 222.
- ^ Azar 2008, p. 1.
- S2CID 3121262.
- ISBN 978-1598842531.
- ^ Selin, Helaine (1997). Encyclopaedia of the History of Science, Technology, and Medicine in Non-Western Cultures. Springer Science & Business Media. p. 440.
- ^ Azar 2008, p. 1.
- ^ The Art as a Profession, United States National Library of Medicine
- ^ Glick, Thomas F.; Livesey, Steven; Wallis, Faith (2014). Medieval Science, Technology, and Medicine: An Encyclopedia. Routledge. p. 259.
- ^ public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Avenzoar". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 3 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 54. One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the
- ^ Glick, Thomas F.; Livesey, Steven; Wallis, Faith (2014). Medieval Science, Technology, and Medicine: An Encyclopedia. Routledge. p. 260.
- PMID 20499087.
- ^ "2 Early concepts of cancer", 2000, Cancer and metastasis reviews, vol. 19, no. 3, pp. 205-205.
- ^ Microbiology in islam http://www.diwanalarab.com/spip.php?article34512
- ^ Grove, David (2014). Tapeworms, Lice, and Prions: A Compendium of Unpleasant Infections. OUP Oxford. p. 72.
- PMID 21731811.
- ^ "Ibn Zuhr and the Progress of Surgery | Muslim Heritage". muslimheritage.com. Archived from the original on 2018-10-18. Retrieved 2017-03-15.
- ^ Selin, Helaine (2008) Encyclopaedia of the History of Science, Technology, and Medicine in Non-Western Cultures, page 1126, Springer Science & Business Media.
- ISBN 978-0385512008.
- ^ Azar 2008, p. 2.
- ^ "Ibn Zuhr and the Progress of Surgery | Muslim Heritage". muslimheritage.com. Archived from the original on 2018-10-18. Retrieved 2017-03-15.
Sources
- Azar, Henry (2008). The Sage of Seville: Ibn Zuhr, His Time, and His Medical Legacy. Cairo: ISBN 978-9774161551.
- Millán, Cristina Álvarez (2005). "Ibn Zuhr". In Glick, Thomas F.; Livesey, Steven John; Wallis, Faith (eds.). Medieval Science, Technology, and Medicine: An Encyclopedia. Routledge encyclopedias of the Middle Ages; v. 11. New York: ISBN 0415969301.
External links
- Hamarneh, Sami (2008) [1970-80]. "Ibn Zuhr, Abū Marwān ʿAbd Al-Malik Ibn Abiʿl-ʿAlāʿ (Latin, Abhomjeron or Avenzoar)". Complete Dictionary of Scientific Biography. Encyclopedia.com.