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    Abu Al Qasim Al Zahrawi (Albucasis) : Pioneer of Modern Surgery

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    Abu Al Qasim Al Zahrawi, known in the West as Albucasis or Zahravius, was an Arab physician and surgeon who lived from 936-1013 AD in Al-Zahra, Spain. He wrote an influential 30-volume medical encyclopedia called Al-Tasreef that described over 200 surgical instruments and techniques. Al Zahrawi is considered the father of operative surgery and made pioneering contributions in fields like orthopedics, urology, and neurosurgery. His medical writings were highly influential in Europe for many centuries.

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    Abu Al Qasim Al Zahrawi (Albucasis) : Pioneer of Modern Surgery

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    Abu Al Qasim Al Zahrawi, known in the West as Albucasis or Zahravius, was an Arab physician and surgeon who lived from 936-1013 AD in Al-Zahra, Spain. He wrote an influential 30-volume medical encyclopedia called Al-Tasreef that described over 200 surgical instruments and techniques. Al Zahrawi is considered the father of operative surgery and made pioneering contributions in fields like orthopedics, urology, and neurosurgery. His medical writings were highly influential in Europe for many centuries.

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    Abu Al Qasim Al Zahrawi, known in the West as Albucasis or Zahravius, was an Arab physician and surgeon who lived from 936-1013 AD in Al-Zahra, Spain. He wrote an influential 30-volume medical encyclopedia called Al-Tasreef that described over 200 surgical instruments and techniques. Al Zahrawi is considered the father of operative surgery and made pioneering contributions in fields like orthopedics, urology, and neurosurgery. His medical writings were highly influential in Europe for many centuries.

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    Abu Al Qasim Al Zahrawi (Albucasis) : Pioneer of Modern Surgery

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    Abu Al Qasim Al Zahrawi, known in the West as Albucasis or Zahravius, was an Arab physician and surgeon who lived from 936-1013 AD in Al-Zahra, Spain. He wrote an influential 30-volume medical encyclopedia called Al-Tasreef that described over 200 surgical instruments and techniques. Al Zahrawi is considered the father of operative surgery and made pioneering contributions in fields like orthopedics, urology, and neurosurgery. His medical writings were highly influential in Europe for many centuries.

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    Abu Al Qasim Al Zahrawi (Albucasis): Pioneer of Modern Surgery

    Article  in  Annals of Saudi medicine · May 2007


    DOI: 10.5144/0256-4947.2007.220 · Source: PubMed

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    Arab and Muslim Physicians and Scholars
    Abu Al Qasim Al Zahrawi (Albucasis): Pioneer
    of Modern Surgery
    Samir S. Amr,* Abdelghani Tbakhi †
    From the *Dhahran Health Center, Saudi Aramco Medical Services Organization, Dhahran, Saudi Arabia and †Department of Pathology, King
    Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

    Correspondence and reprint requests: Samir S. Amr, MD Saudi Aramco P.O. Box 8341 Dhahran 31311, Saudi Arabia T: +966 3 877-6789 F:
    +966 3 877-6783 [email protected]

    Ann Saudi Med 2007;27(3): 220-221

    A
    bu Qasim Khalaf Ibn Abbas Al Zahrawi, or open abscesses. He applied cauterization procedure
    known in the West as Albucasis or Zahravius, to as many as 50 different operations.
    was born in 936 AD in Al-Zahra’, a suburb, • Application of ligature for bleeding vessels and intern-
    six miles northwest of Cordoba, the capital of Muslim nal stitching utilizing catgut. He preceded the famous
    Spain (Al-Andalus). His ancestors were from the Al French military surgeon Ambroise Pare (1510-1590),
    Ansar tribes of Al Madina Al Munawwarah who came claimed to be the first European to utilize sutures, by
    from the Arabian peninsula with the Muslim armies five centuries.
    which conquered and lived in Spain. Al-Zahrawi trave- • Treatment for anal fistulas.
    eled rarely, and spent most of his life in his hometown • Setting dislocated bones and fractures. His method
    as a practicing physician-pharmacist-surgeon.1 for setting and reducing a dislocated shoulder was cent-
    He served as the court physician to Caliph Al- turies before Kocher introduced his similar technique
    Hakam-II, at a period considered as the “Golden Age” to European medicine.
    of Arab Spain when natural and mathematical science- • Removal of urinary bladder calculi. He advised that
    es reached their peak. After a long and distinguished the treating physician has to insert a finger into the rect-
    medical career, he died in 1013 AD at the age of 77. tum of the patient, move the stone down to the neck of
    Around the year 1000 AD, he wrote his famous
    book “Al Tasreef Liman ‘Ajaz ‘Aan Al-Taleef”, (The
    Clearance of Medical Science For Those Who Can
    Not Compile It). It was a summation of about fifty
    years of medical education, training, practice and exp-
    perience. The thirty volumes of the medical encyclop-
    pedia covered various aspects of medical knowledge.
    In addition to sections on medicine and surgery, there
    were sections on midwifery, pharmacology, therapeut-
    tics, dietitics, psychotherapy, weighs and measures,
    and medical chemistry.1
    In Al-Tasreef, three chapters were devoted to surg-
    gery. Some of the procedures and techniques detailed
    in these chapters include the following:
    • Surgery of the eye, ear, and throat. He fully de scribed
    tonsillectomy and tracheostomy.
    • He devised instruments for internal examination of
    the ear.
    • He devised an instrument used to remove or insert
    objects into the throat.
    • He described how to use a hook to remove a polyp
    from the nose.
    • He described the exposure and division of the temp-
    poral artery to relieve certain types of headaches. Page from a 1531 Latin translation by Peter Argellata of Al Zahrawi’s treat-
    • He utilized cauterization, usually to treat skin tumors tise on surgical and medical instruments.

    220 Ann Saudi Med 27(3)  May-June 2007  www.kfshrc.edu.sa/annals


    Arab and Muslim Physicians and Scholars
    the bladder, then make an incision in the rectal wall or headache and many other conditions.6 He described
    the perineum and remove the stone. vividly a case of hydrocephalus due to congenital def-
    • He devised instruments for inspection of the uret- fect of drainage of cerebrospinal fluid: “I have seen a
    thra. baby boy whose head was abnormally enlarged with
    • He is credited to be the first to describe ectopic pregn- prominence of the forehead and sides to the point that
    nancy. the body became unable to hold it up”.1
    • He devised several dental devices and artificial teeth In addition, he made significant contributions to
    made of animal bones. pediatric surgery. In addition to his description of hyd-
    drocephalus, he described harelip, adenoids, ranula,
    Al Zahrawi is considered the father of operative imperforated external urinary meatus, perforated
    surgery.2,3 He is credited with performance of the first anus, hermaphrodites, gynecomastia, supernumerary
    thyroidectomy.4 The last chapter of his comprehensive and webbed fingers.7 He was the first to describe in
    book, named “On Surgery”, was dedicated to surgical detail the medical aspects of hemophilia.
    instruments. He introduced over 200 surgical tools, a His medical writings were highly regarded in the
    staggering number by all standards. He gave detailed West particularly after being translated by Gerard of
    descriptions of for using probes, surgical knives, scalp- Cremona, Rogerius Frugardi, Ronaldus Parmensis and
    ples, and hooks. He also devised and invented surgical others. His surgical teachings were the most advanced
    scissors, grasping forceps and obstetrical forceps. His in the Middle Ages until the thirteenth century.1
    illustrations of surgical instruments were the earliest Al-Tasreef was an essential component of the medi-
    intended for use in teaching and in methods of manuf- ical curriculum in European countries for many cent-
    facturing them.1 turies.8 The famous French surgeon Guy de Chauliac
    Abdel-Halim et al gave a detailed study of Al (1300-1368) quoted him over 200 times in his book
    Zahrawi’s technique of cystolithotomy after inventing appended its Latin edition to his own book on surgery.
    operative instruments not known in the Greco-Roman Several editions of this book (surgical chapters) were
    era.5 They reviewed his operative technique in women, published including one at Venice (1497), at Basel
    his recommendations of two -stage operation in comp- (1541) and at Oxford (1778).
    plicated cases and his contributions to lithotripsy by Finally, he emphasized child education and behavi-
    introducing a crushing forceps (Al-Kalaleeb forceps) ior, school curriculum and academic specialization.
    and a driller fragmenting forceps (Al-Mishaab) to rem- He advised that gifted and intelligent students be
    move impacted stones.5 encouraged to study medicine after completing their
    Al Zahrawi contributed early descriptions of neur- primary education in language, grammar, mathemati-
    rosurgical diagnoses and treatment including managem- ics, astronomy and philosophy.1 This article is just a
    ment of head injuries, skull fractures, spinal injuries glimpse of the medical and surgical contributions of
    and dislocations, hydrocephalus, subdural effusions, this great Arab physician from Andalus to the world.

    References
    1. Hamarneh S: Al-Zahrawi, Abul-Qasim Khalaf great Arab surgeon. Med Arh 2000; 54: 187- 6. Al-Rodhan NR, Fox JL: Al-Zahrawi and Arab-
    Ibn Abbas. In: Dictionary of Scientific Biograp- 188. bian neurosurgery, 936-1013 AD. Surg Neuol
    phy.Vol. XIV. Edito-in-Chief: Charles Coulston 4. Ignjatovic M: Overview of the history of thyr- 1986; 26: 92-95.
    Gillispie. Charles Scribner’s Sons Publishers, roid surgery. Acta Chir Iugosl 2003; 50: 9-36. 7. Montagnani CA: Pediatric surgery in Islamic
    New York 1976. Pp584-585. 5. Abdel-Halim RE, Altwaijiri AS, Elfaqih SR, medicine from the Middle Ages to the Renaiss-
    2. Nabri IA: El Zahrawi (936-1013 AD), the fat- Mitwalli AH: Extraction of urinary bladder sance. Prog Pediatr Surg 1986; 20: 39-51
    ther of operative surgery. Ann R Coll Surg Engl stones as described by Abul-Qasem Khalaf Ibn 8. Hamidan Z: Abu-Al-Qassim Al-Zahrawi ; the
    1983; 65: 132-134. Abbas Alzahrawi (Albucasis) (325-404H, 930- Founder of Science of Surgery (Book in Arab-
    3. Masic I, Domres BD, Hadziahmetovic Z, 1013 AD). A translation of original text and a bic) 1993, Dar Magallat Al-Thaqafa, Publisher,
    Toromanovic S: Abu al-Qasem Az Zahrawi-a commentary. Saudi Med J 2003; 24: 1283-1291. Damascus, Syria.

    Ann Saudi Med 27(3)  May-June 2007  www.saudiannals.net 221

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