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Abu al-Qasim al-Zahrawi

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Abu al-Qasim Khalaf ibn al-Abbas Al-Zahrawi

(9361013), (Arabic:
) also
known in the West as Albucasis, was an Arab Muslim
physician and surgeon who lived in Al-Andalus. He is
considered the greatest medieval surgeon to have appeared
from the Islamic World, and has been described by many as
the father of modern surgery.[1] His greatest contribution to
medicine is the Kitab al-Tasrif, a thirty-volume encyclopedia
of medical practices.[2] His pioneering contributions to the
field of surgical procedures and instruments had an enormous
impact in the East and West well into the modern period,
where some of his discoveries are still applied in medicine to
this day.[3]

Abu al-Qasim Khalaf ibn al-Abbas

Al-Zahrawi

He was the first physician to describe an ectopic pregnancy,

and the first physician to identify the hereditary nature of
haemophilia.[3]

Contents

Born

936 CE

1 Biography

Died

1013 CE

2 Works

Ethnicity

Arab

2.1 Kitab al-Tasrif

Era

Islamic Golden Age

2.2 Liber Servitoris

Region

Al-Andalus, Caliphate of Crdoba

3 Legacy

Jurisprudence Sunni Islam

4 On Surgery and Instruments

Notable

Founder of modern surgical and

idea(s)

medical instruments; Father of

4.1 Tone

Surgery

5 See also
6 Notes
7 Sources
8 External links

Notable

Kitab al-Tasrif

work(s)
Influenced

Biography
Ab Al-Q sim was born in the city El-Zahra, six miles northwest of Crdoba, Andalusia. The nisba (attributive
title), Al-Ansari, suggests origin from the Medinian tribe of Al-Ansar.[4]
He lived most of his life in Crdoba. It is also where he studied, taught and practiced medicine and surgery until

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shortly before his death in about 1013, two years after the sacking of El-Zahra.
Few details remain regarding his life, aside from his published work, due to the destruction of El-Zahra during
later Castillian-Andalusian conflicts. His name first appears in the writings of Abu Muhammad bin Hazm (993
1064), who listed him among the greatest physicians of Moorish Spain. But we have the first detailed biography
of al-Zahraw from al- umayd 's Jadhwat al-Muqtabis (On Andalusian Savants), completed six decades after
al-Zahraw 's death.
He was a contemporary of Andalusian chemists such as Ibn al-Wafid, Maslamah Ibn Ahmad al-Majriti and
Artephius.

Works
Ab al-Q sim was a court physician to the Andalusian caliph Al-Hakam II. He devoted his entire life and genius
to the advancement of medicine as a whole and surgery in particular. His best work was the Kitab al-Tasrif,
discussed below.
Ab al-Q sim specialized in curing disease by cauterization. He invented several devices used during surgery,
for purposes such as inspection of the interior of the urethra, applying and removing foreign bodies from the
throat, inspection of the ear, etc. He is also credited to be the first to describe ectopic pregnancy in 963, in those
days a fatal affliction.[3]
Al-Zahrawi was the first to illustrate the various cannulae and the first to treat a wart with an iron tube and
caustic metal as a boring instrument. He was also the first to draw hooks with a double tip for use in surgery.[5]

Kitab al-Tasrif
Ab al-Q sim's thirty-chapter medical treatise, Kitab al-Tasrif,
completed in the year 1000, covered a broad range of medical topics,
including dentistry and childbirth, which contained data that had
accumulated during a career that spanned almost 50 years of training,
teaching and practice. In it he also wrote of the importance of a positive
doctor-patient relationship and wrote affectionately of his students,
whom he referred to as "my children". He also emphasized the
importance of treating patients irrespective of their social status. He
encouraged the close observation of individual cases in order to make
the most accurate diagnosis and the best possible treatment.
Al-Tasrif was later translated into Latin by Gerard of Cremona in the
12th century, and illustrated. For perhaps five centuries during the
European Middle Ages, it was the primary source for European medical
knowledge, and served as a reference for doctors and surgeons.
Not always properly credited, Ab Al-Q sim's al-Tasrif described both
Page from a 1531 Latin translation by
what would later became known as "Kocher's method" for treating a
Peter Argellata of El Zahrawi's treatise
dislocated shoulder and "Walcher position" in obstetrics. Al-Tasrif
on
surgical and medical instruments.
described how to ligature blood vessels almost 600 years before
Ambroise Par, and was the first recorded book to document several
dental devices and explain the hereditary nature of haemophilia.[3] He was also the first to describe a surgical
procedure for ligating the temporal artery for migraine, also almost 600 years before Pare recorded that he had

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ligated his own temporal artery for headache that conforms to current descriptions of migraine.[6] Ab al-Q sim
was therefore the first to describe the migraine surgery procedure that is enjoying a revival in the 21st century,
spearheaded by Elliot Shevel a South African surgeon.
Ab al-Q sim also described the use of forceps in vaginal deliveries.[7] He introduced over 200 surgical
instruments.[8] Many of these instruments were never used before by any previous surgeons.[8]
His use of catgut for internal stitching is still practised in modern surgery. The catgut appears to be the only
natural substance capable of dissolving and is acceptable by the body. Ab al-Q sim also invented the forceps
for extracting a dead fetus, as illustrated in the Al-Tasrif.[9]

Liber Servitoris
In pharmacy and pharmacology, Ab al-Q sim al-Zahraw pioneered the preparation of medicines by
sublimation and distillation. His Liber Servitoris is of particular interest, as it provides the reader with recipes
and explains how to prepare the "simples" from which were compounded the complex drugs then generally
used.[10][11][12]

Legacy
Al-Zahrawi was the "most frequently cited surgical authority of the Middle Ages".[13]
Donald Campbell, a historian of Arabic medicine, described Al-Zahrawi's influence on Europe as follows:[14]
The chief influence of Albucasis on the medical system of Europe was that his lucidity and method
of presentation awakened a prepossession in favour of Arabic literature among the scholars of the
West: the methods of Albucasis eclipsed those of Galen and maintained a dominant position in
medical Europe for five hundred years, i.e long after it had passed its usefulness. He, however,
helped to raise the status of surgery in Christian Europe; in his book on fractures and luxations, he
states that this part of surgery has passed into the hands of vulgar and uncultivated minds, for
which reason it has fallen into contempt. The surgery of Albucasis became firmly grafted on
Europe after the time of Guy de Chauliac (d.1368).
In the 14th century, the French surgeon Guy de Chauliac quoted al-Tasrif over 200 times. Pietro Argallata (d.
1453) described Ab al-Q sim as "without doubt the chief of all surgeons". Ab al-Q sim's influence continued
for at least five centuries, extending into the Renaissance, evidenced by al-Tasrif's frequent reference by French
surgeon Jacques Delechamps (15131588).[15]
The street in Crdoba where he lived is named in his honor as "Calle Albucasis". On this street he lived in house
no. 6, which is preserved today by the Spanish Tourist Board with a bronze plaque (awarded in January 1977)
which reads: "This was the house where Abul-Qasim lived."

On Surgery and Instruments

On Surgery and Instruments is an illustrated surgical guide written by Al-Zahr w . On Surgery and Instruments
contributed many technological innovations, notably which tools to use in specific surgeries. In On Surgery and
Instruments, he draws diagrams of each tool used in different procedures to clarify how to carry out the steps of

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each treatment. The full text consists of three books, intended for medical students looking to gain more
knowledge within the field of surgery regarding procedures and the necessary tools.
Al-Zahr w claims that his knowledge comes from careful reading of previous medical texts as well as his own
experience: whatever skill I have, I have derived for myself by my long reading of the books of the Ancients
and my thirst to understand them until I extracted the knowledge of it from them. Then through the whole of my
life I have adhered to experience and practiceI have made it accessible for you and rescued it from the abyss
of prolixity.[16]

Tone
Throughout the text, Al-Zahr w uses an authoritative tone to declare his expertise on the topic. For example,
when introducing topics or describing procedures, Al-Zahr w often warns the reader of the skills necessary to
complete the task. In chapter forty-eight, On cauterization for numbness, he defines the required knowledge for
the procedure in a commanding tone: This should not be attempted except by one who has a good knowledge
of the anatomy of the limbs and of the exits of the nerves that move the body.[17] He invents a criterion to
generate a standard of skill level, indicating that he himself has surpassed it due to training and experience. As
such, he reiterates his preeminence by implying that he is part of an exclusive group of learned surgeons capable
of correctly completing this cautery. In another instance, he states that the procedure should be avoided
completely by incompetent surgeons: However, no one should attempt this operation unless he has had long
training and practice in the use of cautery.[18]
Al-Zahr w was not afraid to depart from old practice, for example, he openly disparages the opinion that
cauterization should only be used in the spring season: the Ancients[affirmed] that spring was the best.
Myself, I say that cautery is suitable at all times.[19] Four pages later, he again opposes the opinion that gold is
the best material for cauterization, stating that iron is actually his preferred metal: therefore in our own opinion
cauterization is swifter and more successful with iron.[20] In chapter twenty-nine, On cauterization for pleurisy,
he states: Now one of the Ancients mentioned that there were some people who used an iron cautery shaped
like a probe, and introduced it red hot into the intercostal space until it reached the abscess itself and evacuated
the pusbut in this perforation with the cautery there is a danger either that the patient may die on the spot or
that an incurable fistula may raise at the place.[21]

See also
Islamic medicine
Islamic science
List of Arab scientists and scholars
Islamic Golden Age

Wikisource has the text of

the 1911 Encyclopdia
Britannica article Abu-lQasim.

Islamic scholars
Muslim inventions
Timeline of historic inventions
Avicenna

Notes

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1. ^ Ahmad, Z. (St Thomas' Hospital) (2007),

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abu_al-Qasim_al-Zahrawi

9. ^ Ingrid Hehmeyer and Aliya Khan (2007). "Islam's

"Al-Zahrawi - The Father of Surgery", ANZ Journal

forgotten contributions to medical science",

of Surgery 77 (Suppl. 1): A83,

Canadian Medical Association Journal 176 (10).

doi:10.1111/j.1445-2197.2007.04130_8.x
(https://dx.doi.org
/10.1111%2Fj.1445-2197.2007.04130_8.x)
2. ^ al-Zahr w , Ab al-Q sim Khalaf ibn Abb s;

10. ^ Levey M. (1973), Early Arabic Pharmacology, E.

J. Brill, Leiden.
11. ^ A Pharmaceutical View of Abulcasis Al-zahrawi in
Moorish Spain (http://books.google.com

Studies, Gustave E. von Grunebaum Center for Near

/books?id=v88UAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA19). Brill

Eastern (1973). Albucasis on surgery and

Archive. pp. 19.

instruments (http://books.google.com

12. ^ See:Luisa Arvide

/books?id=mjVra87nRScC&pg=PR8). University of

13. ^ Mikaberidze, Alexander, ed. (2011). Conflict and

California Press. ISBN 978-0-520-01532-6.

Conquest in the Islamic World: A Historical

Retrieved 16 May 2011.

Encyclopedia: A Historical Encyclopedia.

3. ^ a b c d Cosman, Madeleine Pelner; Jones, Linda

Gale (2008). Handbook to Life in the Medieval

ABC-CLIO. p. 586. ISBN 1598843370.

14. ^ Campbell, Donald (2001). Arabian Medicine and

World. Handbook to Life Series 2. Infobase

Its Influence on the Middle Ages: Trubner's Oriental

Publishing. pp. 528530. ISBN 0-8160-4887-8.

Series. London: Routledge. p. 88.

4. ^ Hamarneh, Sami Khalaf; Sonnedecker, Glenn

(1963). A Pharmaceutical View of Abulcasis

ISBN 0415244625.
15. ^ Badeau, John Stothoff; Hayes, John Richard

Al-Zahr w Moorish Spain: With a Special

(1983). Hayes, John Richard, ed. The Genius of Arab

Reference to the "Adh n". Brill Archive. p. 15.

civilization: source of Renaissance (2nd ed. ed.).

5. ^ Missori, Paolo; Brunetto, Giacoma M.;

Domenicucci, Maurizio (7 February 2012). "Origin

MIT Press. p. 200. ISBN 0262580632.

16. ^ Ab Al-Q sim Khalaf Ibn abb s Al-Zahr w .

of the Cannula for Tracheotomy During the Middle

Albucasis on Surgery and Instruments. Berkeley:

Ages and Renaissance". World Journal of Surgery

University of California Press, 1973. (676)

36 (4): 928934. doi:10.1007/s00268-012-1435-1

17. ^ Ab Al-Q sim Khalaf Ibn abb s Al-Zahr w .

(https://dx.doi.org/10.1007%2Fs00268-012-1435-1).
6. ^ Shevel, E; Spierings, EH (April 2004). "Role of the
extracranial arteries in migraine headache: a

Albucasis on Surgery and Instruments. Berkeley:

University of California Press, 1973. (146)
18. ^ Ab Al-Q sim Khalaf Ibn abb s Al-Zahr w .

review.". Cranio : the journal of craniomandibular

Albucasis on Surgery and Instruments. Berkeley:

practice 22 (2): 1326. doi:10.1179/crn.2004.017

University of California Press, 1973. (8)

(https://dx.doi.org/10.1179%2Fcrn.2004.017).

19. ^ Ab Al-Q sim Khalaf Ibn abb s Al-Zahr w .

PMID 15134413 (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Albucasis on Surgery and Instruments. Berkeley:

/pubmed/15134413).

University of California Press, 1973. (10)

7. ^ Assisted delivery has walked a long and winding

20. ^ Ab Al-Q sim Khalaf Ibn abb s Al-Zahr w .

road, OBG Management, Vol. 19, No. 6, June 2007,

Albucasis on Surgery and Instruments. Berkeley:

p. 84.

University of California Press, 1973. (14)

8. ^

ab

Holmes-Walker, Anthony (2004).

21. ^ Ab Al-Q sim Khalaf Ibn abb s Al-Zahr w .

Life-enhancing plastics : plastics and other

Albucasis on Surgery and Instruments. Berkeley:

materials in medical applications. London: Imperial

University of California Press, 1973. (90)

College Press. p. 176. ISBN 1-86094-462-0.

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Sources
Al-Benna, Sammy (29 September 2011). "Albucasis, a tenth-century scholar, physician and surgeon: His
role in the history of plastic and reconstructive surgery". European Journal of Plastic Surgery 35 (5):
379387. doi:10.1007/s00238-011-0637-3 (https://dx.doi.org/10.1007%2Fs00238-011-0637-3).
al-Zahr w , Ab al-Q sim Khalaf ibn Abb s (1973). "# !

: A Definitive Edition of the Arabic

Text (http://books.google.com/books?id=mjVra87nRScC&pg=PR5). University of California Press.

ISBN 9780520015326. Retrieved 7 December 2012.
Pormann, Peter E. (2004). The Oriental Tradition of Paul of Aegina's Pragmateia
(http://books.google.com/books?id=SszCRRlW5asC). BRILL. ISBN 9789004137578. Retrieved
7 December 2012.
Hamarneh, Sami Khalaf; Sonnedecker, Glenn Allen (1963). A Pharmaceutical View of Abulcasis
Al-Zahr w in Moorish Spain: With Special Reference to the "Adh n," (http://books.google.com
/books?id=v88UAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA17). Brill Archive. Retrieved 8 October 2014.

External links
Wikimedia Commons has
media related to Albucasis.

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Categories: 936 births 1013 deaths Medieval Moorish physicians 10th-century physicians
Physicians of medieval Islam Anatomists
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