''The Complete Book of the Medical Art'' (, ''Kitāb Kāmil al-Ṣināʻa al-Ṭibbīya''), also known as ''The Royal Book'' (, ''Al-Kitāb al-Malakī''), was written by

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

ian physician

'Ali ibn al-'Abbas al-Majusi 'Ali ibn al-'Abbas al-Majusi (; died between 982 and 994), also known as Masoudi, or Latinized as Haly Abbas, was a Persian physician and psychologist from the Islamic Golden Age, most famous for the '' Kitab al-Maliki'' or '' Complete Book of ...

during the 10th century. He dedicated the book to king

'Adud al-Dawla Fannā (Panāh) Khusraw (), better known by his laqab of ʿAḍud al-Dawla (; 24 September 936 – 26 March 983) was an emir of the Buyid dynasty, ruling from 949 to 983. At the height of his power, he ruled an empire stretching from Makran ...

, whom he was serving at the time. This book was considered one of the most necessary texts for

medical student A medical school is a tertiary educational institution, professional school, or forms a part of such an institution, that teaches medicine, and awards a professional degree for physicians. Such medical degrees include the Bachelor of Medicine, ...

s of that era, and the importance of his book was mentioned several times in views of different medicine historians, such as

Lucien Leclerc Nicholas Lucien Leclerc (1816 in Ville-sur-Illon – 1893) was a French military doctor, translator, and influential early western historian of medicine in the medieval Islamic world. He was an assistant military surgeon in Algeria from 1840–44 ...

and Arturo Castiglioni. This book consists of 20 treatises. The first 10 treatise describe mostly the theories of medicine, while the second 10 treatise are focused on the practice of medicine. The 9th treatise in the second part is focused on surgery, and consists of 110 different surgical subjects, including techniques of treating

aneurysm An aneurysm is an outward :wikt:bulge, bulging, likened to a bubble or balloon, caused by a localized, abnormal, weak spot on a blood vessel wall. Aneurysms may be a result of a hereditary condition or an acquired disease. Aneurysms can also b ...

, excising

cyst A cyst is a closed sac, having a distinct envelope and division compared with the nearby tissue. Hence, it is a cluster of cells that have grouped together to form a sac (like the manner in which water molecules group together to form a bubb ...

s and

tumor A neoplasm () is a type of abnormal and excessive growth of tissue. The process that occurs to form or produce a neoplasm is called neoplasia. The growth of a neoplasm is uncoordinated with that of the normal surrounding tissue, and persists ...

s and treating

hernia A hernia (: hernias or herniae, from Latin, meaning 'rupture') is the abnormal exit of tissue or an organ (anatomy), organ, such as the bowel, through the wall of the cavity in which it normally resides. The term is also used for the normal Devel ...

s. This part was at the center of attention of western and eastern researchers. Al-Majūsī is well known for his accurate description of

pleurisy Pleurisy, also known as pleuritis, is inflammation of the membranes that surround the lungs and line the chest cavity (Pulmonary pleurae, pleurae). This can result in a sharp chest pain while breathing. Occasionally the pain may be a constant d ...

circulatory system In vertebrates, the circulatory system is a system of organs that includes the heart, blood vessels, and blood which is circulated throughout the body. It includes the cardiovascular system, or vascular system, that consists of the heart ...

, and the importance of

diet Diet may refer to: Food * Diet (nutrition), the sum of the food consumed by an organism or group * Dieting, the deliberate selection of food to control body weight or nutrient intake ** Diet food, foods that aid in creating a diet for weight loss ...

and

physical exercise Exercise or workout is physical activity that enhances or maintains fitness and overall health. It is performed for various reasons, including weight loss or maintenance, to aid growth and improve strength, develop muscles and the cardio ...

in maintaining

health Health has a variety of definitions, which have been used for different purposes over time. In general, it refers to physical and emotional well-being, especially that associated with normal functioning of the human body, absent of disease, p ...

. In the introduction of his book, Al-Majūsī criticizes many of

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

and

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

physicians and their books. For example, in review of

Hippocrates Hippocrates of Kos (; ; ), also known as Hippocrates II, was a Greek physician and philosopher of the Classical Greece, classical period who is considered one of the most outstanding figures in the history of medicine. He is traditionally referr ...

and his works, he writes: "

didn't describe most of the illnesses as comprehensive as he should, making them difficult to understand ...", although he also mentions the positive aspects of these books as well. The book was partially translated to

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

in 1089 and then was widely circulated in Europe.

References

Iranian books Iranian literature Medical works of medieval Iran Medical works of the medieval Islamic world 10th-century Arabic-language books {{med-book-stub

See also

References