Ibn Zuhr

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Abū Merwān ’Abdal-Malik ibn Zuhr (Arabic: أبو مروان عبدالملك إبن زهر ) (also known as Ibn Zuhr, Avenzoar, Abumeron or Ibn-Zohr) (1091–1161) was an Arab Muslim physician, pharmacist, surgeon, Islamic scholar, and teacher. He was born and died in Seville, and studied at the University of Córdoba. He belonged to the Banu Zuhr family, which produced five generations of physicians, including two female physicians who served the Almohad ruler Abu Yusuf Ya'qub al-Mansur. Ibn Zuhr was also the teacher of Averroes.

He is considered as the father of experimental surgery, for introducing the experimental method into surgery, introducing the methods of human dissection and autopsy, inventing the surgical procedure of tracheotomy, performing the first parenteral nutrition of humans with a silver needle, discovering the cause of scabies and inflammation, and refutating of the theory of four humours.

Al-Taisir

Ibn Zuhr's most famous work is his Al-Taisir, in which he introduced the experimental method into surgery, for which he is considered the father of experimental surgery. He was the first to employ animal testing in order to experiment with surgical procedures before applying them to human patients. He also performed the first dissections and postmortem autopsies on humans as well as animals.

He invented the surgical procedure of tracheotomy, as he was the first to give a correct description of the tracheotomy operation for suffocating patients. He perfected this surgical procedure through his experiments on a goat. He also performed postmortem autopsies on a sheep during his clinical trials on the treatment of ulcerating diseases of the lungs. He also wrote on the prophylaxis against urinary tract infections and described the importance of dietary management in maintaining the prophylaxis.

He established surgery as an independent field of medicine, by introducing a training course designed specifically for future surgeons, in order that they be qualified before being allowed to perform operations independently, and for defining the roles of a general practitioner and a surgeon in the treatment of a surgical condition.

The Method of Preparing Medicines and Diet

He performed the first parenteral nutrition of humans with a silver needle, and wrote a book on it entitled The Method of Preparing Medicines and Diet.

Anatomy and Physiology

During his medical experiments on anatomy and physiology, Ibn Zuhr was the first physician known to have carried out human dissection and postmortem autopsy. He proved that the skin disease scabies was caused by a parasite, which contradicted the erroneous theory of four humours supported by Hippocrates, Galen and Avicenna. The removal of the parasite from the patient's body did not involve purging, bleeding or any other traditional treatments associated with the four humours. His works show that he was often highly critical of previous medical authorities, including Avicenna's The Canon of Medicine.

He was one of the first physicians to reject the erroneous theory of four humours, which dates back to Hippocrates and Galen. Avenzoar also confirmed the presence of blood in the body.

Drug therapy

Ibn Zuhr (and other Muslim physicians such as al-Kindi, Ibn Sahl, Abulcasis, al-Biruni, Avicenna, Averroes, Ibn al-Baitar, Ibn Al-Jazzar and Ibn al-Nafis) developed drug therapy and medicinal drugs for the treatment of specific symptoms and diseases. His use of practical experience and careful observation was extensive.

Pharmacopoeia

Ibn Zuhr wrote an early pharmacopoeia, which later became the first Arabic book to be printed with a movable type in 1491.

Etiology

Ibn Zuhr was the first to provide a real scientific etiology for the inflammatory diseases of the ear, and the first to clearly discuss the causes of stridor. He also proved that the skin disease scabies was caused by a parasite.

Neurology and Neuropharmacology

Ibn Zuhr gave the first accurate descriptions on neurological disorders, including meningitis, intracranial thrombophlebitis, and mediastinal tumours, and made contributions to modern neuropharmacology.

Anesthesiology

In anesthesiology, modern anesthesia was developed in Islamic Spain by the Muslim anesthesiologists Ibn Zuhr and Abu al-Qasim al-Zahrawi. They were the first to utilize oral as well as inhalant anesthetics, and they performed hundreds of surgeries under inhalant anesthesia with the use of narcotic-soaked sponges which were placed over the face.

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