Physiological and Pathophysiological Aspects in Herophilos Writings
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Lovesickness: Erasistratus Discovering the Cause of Antiochus
ART AND IMAGES IN PSYCHIATRY SECTION EDITOR: JAMES C. HARRIS, MD Lovesickness Erasistratus Discovering the Cause of Antiochus’ Disease When the erotic appetite provokes a melancholy brooding, fires the passions, burns the humors and wastes the strengths of the body, love “is not merely behavior resembling sickness, but it is a true disease, virulent, and dangerous.” Battista Fregoso (15th century).1(p3) ESPAIRING WHEN HIS SON the object of his love was unattainable. The terminology for lovesickness has Prince Antiochus was des- Antiochus’ love could never be grati- changed over time. Erotic melancholy perately ill, Seleucus, king fied because he was in love with Erasis- is not a subtype of mental disorder but of Syria, summoned the tratus’ very own wife. Seleucus quickly erotomania is. Erotomania is the delu- Ddistinguished Greek physician Erasistra- sought to persuade Erasistratus to give sional belief that another person, gen- tus (circa 330-255 BC) to diagnose his her up to save his son. The cagey phy- erally of higher social status, is in love malady. Erasistratus and his colleague sician replied “[t]hou art his father and with you. There are primary forms, pure Herophilis from Alexandria in Egypt were yet thou wouldst not have done so if An- erotomania, and secondary forms, part renowned for their medical treatments tiochus had set his affections on [your of a broader psychiatric category (for ex- that were based on their understanding wife] Stratonice´.”3(p95) With great emo- ample, schizophrenia or bipolar disor- of human anatomy and neuroanatomy, tion, the king said that, if heaven would der). -
The Contribution of Alexandrian Physicians to Cardiology
Hellenic J Cardiol 2013; 54: 15-17 Historical Perspective The Contribution of Alexandrian Physicians to Cardiology 1 1 2 GEORGE ANDROUTSOS , MARIANNA KARAMANOU , CHRISTODOULOS STEFANADIS 1History of Medicine Department, 2First Cardiology Department, Hippokration Hospital, University of Athens, Medical School, Athens, Greece Key words: lexandria was an important Greek and pharmacology; physicians knowing Alexandria, cultural and intellectual center theory enjoyed a reputation far surpassing Herophilus, and its famous library used to that of other practitioners.”2 Erasistratus, A cardiology, blood contain more than five hundred thousand This development could not have circulation. papyri. However, the medical school of reached its full extent without the medical Alexandria flourished as a result of the institutions founded in Alexandria by king progressive decline of Cos medical school. Ptolemy I Soter (367-282 BC). Medicine Its fame was founded on the ancient Egyp- left the medical families, in favor of state tians’ access to medical knowledge, and run institutions from which graduated a mainly the practice of human dissection. class of medical practitioners freed from Prohibited by Greeks, human dissec- the constraints of usual medical practice.2 tion was authorized in Alexandria during the first half of the third century BC. This The protagonists of the golden age of parenthesis to history was closed after the Manuscript received: Alexandrian medicine August 22, 2011; renewed influence of religion opposed the Accepted: handling of human corpses.1 However, the That medical revolution had four protago- April 2, 2012. period during which human dissection was nists: two teachers, Praxagoras of Cos and authorized remains one of the most defin- Chrysippus of Cnidus, and their pupils, Address: itive moments in the development of med- Herophilus of Chalcedon and Erasistra- Marianna Karamanou ical thinking. -
The Evolution of Anatomy
science from its beginning and in all its branches so related as to weave the story into a continu- ous narrative has been sadly lacking. Singer states that in order to lessen the bulk of his work he has omitted references and bibliog- raphies from its pages, but we may readily recognize in reading it that he has gone to original sources for its contents and that all the statements it contains are authoritative and can readily be verified. In the Preface Singer indicates that we may hope to see the work continued to a later date than Harvey’s time and also that the present work may yet be expanded so as to contain material necessarily excluded from a book of the size into which this is compressed, because from cover to cover this volume is all meat and splendidly served for our delectation and digestion. Singer divides the history of Anatomy into four great epochs or stages. The first is from the Greek period to 50 b .c ., comprising the Hippocratic period, Aristotle and the Alexan- drians. Although, as Singer says, “our anatom- ical tradition, like that of every other depart- ment of rational investigation, goes back to the Greeks,” yet before their time men groped at some ideas as to anatomical structure, as evinced by the drawings found in the homes of the cave dwellers, and the Egyptians and the The Evo lut ion of Ana to my , a Short Histo ry of Anat omi cal an d Phys iolo gica l Disc ove ry , Mesopotamians had quite distinct conceptions to Harve y . -
Vascular Function and Structure in the Rat Aorta
Vascular Function and Structure in the Rat Aorta Vascular Function and Structure in the Rat Aorta By Keith Wan Kee Ng Vascular Function and Structure in the Rat Aorta, by Keith Wan Kee Ng This book first published 2013 Cambridge Scholars Publishing 12 Back Chapman Street, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE6 2XX, UK British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Copyright © 2013 by Keith Wan Kee Ng All rights for this book reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the copyright owner. ISBN (10): 1-4438-4823-9, ISBN (13): 978-1-4438-4823-7 To My parents My best friends TABLE OF CONTENTS List of Figures............................................................................................. xi List of Tables ............................................................................................ xiii Acknowledgements ................................................................................... xv Preface ..................................................................................................... xvii List of Acronyms ...................................................................................... xix Chapter One ................................................................................................. 1 Introduction Chapter Two ............................................................................................... -
'(V Tfj Aiaet0nti Kpoias'-Aristotle*
THE PARADOXICAL TEXT 'ON THE HEART' PART II by I. M. LONIE '(V Tfj aIaeT0n tI Kpoias'-Aristotle* ERASISTRATUS AND THE VALVES Erasistratus described all four valves, 'On the Heart' describes only two. Is 'On the Heart' using the discovery which Galen emphatically attributes to Erasistratus, and to no-one else, but using it only in part? This question prompts a further one: what was the real nature ofErasistratus' discovery? References to Erasistratus on the valves are scattered throughout the corpus of Galen's works, and Galen, it is salutary to remember, was not writing history but defining his own views and defending them against rival views. Polemic is ofthe essence of Galen's mode of exposition, and in this he was a true Greek. We may at times suspect his accuracy, and in any case the removal, intact and undistorted, of a par- ticular doctrine from among the complicated tissues of Galenic controversy is an operation which requires some care. Thus the locus classicus on Erasistratus' discovery of the valves occurs in de Placitis 6.6 (V, 549K), and the context of this passage is Galen's development and defence of his own view that not the heart, as Aristotle and Erasistratus said, but the liver is the ARCHE or starting point ofthe veins. The context is further complicated by the fact that Galen opposes his own view not only to that of Aristotle and Erasistratus but to that of certain followers of Erasistratus who appear to have 'developed' Erasistratus' views on the function of the liver in line with Aristotelian doctrine. -
“And Her Heart Fluttered”: the Psychopathology of Desire in the Argonautika
“And Her Heart Fluttered”: The Psychopathology of Desire in the Argonautika Julia Simons A thesis submitted to Victoria University of Wellington in fulfilment of the requirement for the degree of Master of Arts in Classics 2014 School of Art History, Classics and Religious Studies 1 Frontispiece: Medea contemplating the death of her children, from the House of the Dioscuri: Pompeii, Museo Archeologico Nazionale, Naples. Gurd (1974), fig. 2. 2 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to extend my greatest thanks to Dr. Mark Masterson, my supervisor, whose advice and guidance was much required and appreciated. I would also like to thank my parents for their support and unwavering belief in me. Thank you as well to Alex Wilson and James McBurney for their help. A special thanks goes to James McLaren for constantly supporting and encouraging me. 3 ABSTRACT This thesis investigates the way that Apollonios constructs Medea’s psyche and body in response to contemporary medical and philosophical influences in order to portray realistically the way that erōs manifests itself in Medea as both sickness and mental illness. Apollonios delves into Medea’s psyche and exposes how it functions in moments of intense desire, pain, indecision and introspection while under the powerful sways of erōs. Medea’s erōs manifests as erratic and dangerous behaviour and crippling indecision, the analysis of which is done in light of Chrusippos’ discussion of Euripides’ Medea’s akrasia. Apollonios draws from Euripides’ version to depict Medea in a different stage of her life, making a similar life-altering decision: whether or not to help Jason and betray her family or stay at home and watch him die. -
The Thorax in History 2. Hellenistic Experiment and Human Dissection
Thorax: first published as 10.1136/thx.33.2.153 on 1 April 1978. Downloaded from Thorax, 1978, 33, 153-166 The thorax in history 2. Hellenistic experiment and human dissection R.K. FRENCH From the Wellcome Unit for the History of Medicine, University of Cambridge The first anatomical revolution occurred in Alex- the dead body was essential to the ancient practice andria in the third century before Christ. To that of embalming, an Egyptian technique well known period we can trace the continuous historical line to the Greeks. The Greek philosophers, Plato and of our own ideas on the structure and function of Aristotle, emphasised the distinction between soul the body, important among which are those on the and body:' it was the immaterial soul that sur- thorax. For the first time, the human body was vived the death of the corporeal body, and the systematically explored in an attempt to under- soul, sharing no characteristics with the body, stand its structure, and, with some notable errors could not be affected by the postmortem mutila- from animal anatomy, the only source for 'human' tion of the body; there was no quasi-material after- anatomy in the preceding period, these anatomical life in human form, as so many cultures believed. ideas are recognisably similar to those of to-day. In a word, the old religious taboos no longer The physiological ideas of the Alexandrians, on applied. the other hand, are strikingly different from ours, Of fundamental importance in the development and their subsequent transformation will be exam- of human dissection in Alexandria was the exist- http://thorax.bmj.com/ ined in later articles. -
Kwast Chapter 1 MCB 244 2013
1 An Introduction to Anatomy & Physiology PowerPoint® Lecture Presentations prepared by Jason LaPres Lone Star College—North Harris NOTE: Presentations extensively modi6ied for use in MCB 244 & 246 at the University of © 2012 Pearson Education, Inc. Illinois by Drs. Kwast & Brown (2013-2014) Chapter 1 Learning Objectives • Describe the basic functions of organisms. • Define anatomy & physiology and the various specialties of each. • Identify and understand the major levels of organization of our bodies. • Identify and describe the 11 organ systems of the body. • Understand and be able to explain the concept of “homeostasis” and describe the roles of negative and positive feedback in regulating body functions. • Identify the major body cavities using proper anatomical terms. © 2012 Pearson Education, Inc. Anatomy & Physiology: The study of structure- function relationships in biology • Anatomy • Describes the structures of the body including • What they are made of • Where they are located • Associated structures • Physiology • Is the study of the function of biological systems including, of course, anatomical structures • It includes both individual and cooperative functions • Anatomy & Physiology: forms the foundation for understanding the body’s parts and functions in concert. © 2012 Pearson Education, Inc. Introduction – A Brief History of Anatomy • Anatomy (anatome = to cut up): study of “cutting up” of the structural parts • Oldest medical science; cadaver dissection (dis = apart; secare = to cut) Egypt: • Anatomical or Edwin Smith Surgical Papyrus (1600 BCE): • Contains 48 case histories of medical trauma and their treatment; describes closing wounds with sutures, preventing and curing infection with honey, stopping bleeding with raw meat as well as immobilizing the head and neck to prevent spinal cord injuries during transport. -
From the Heart to Heart Failure”
25/06/2019 “FROM THE HEART TO HEART FAILURE” “CONCEPTS, MISCONCEPTS AND KIWI CONNECTIONS” REMINISCENCES OF AN OCTOGENARIAN CARDIOLOGIST MY SINCERE APOLOGIES TO MANY UNACKNOWLEDGED- TIME!! HAMID IKRAM 1 2 WHAT WAS I DOING WHEN THE 20TH CENTURY ENDED? -GIVING 2 SIMILAR LECTURES FROM DIFFERENT PERSPETIVES So Why Study History? West East Wellington Lahore 3 4 In the Bible, it is the most frequently mentioned internal organ, being referred to over 850 times. (often in a psychic sense) Wilkinson,J : Evangelical Quarterly; 63:3 (1991), 195-210 Olmec Heart effigy1300 BC Neolithic cave drawing in Spain Oldest depiction of Heart -about 30,000 yrs ago 5 6 1 25/06/2019 Imhotep- The True ‘Father of Medicine’ Importantly, Egyptians recognized that the peripheral pulse resulted from the heart and that assessing the beat ofthe heart and vessels provided insight into the patient’s condition. Some scholars go so far as to assert the ancient Egyptians actually measured the pulse, but the lack of any time- keeping device probably precluded this practice. The Step Pyramid-Saqarra’ Nonetheless, it was a remarkably advanced understanding that predated similar Greek knowledge by over a 1000 years “ The first figure of a Physician to stand out clearly from the Mists of Antiquity” – Sir William Osler Vascular Medicine and Surgery in Ancient Egypt- A commoner by birth that laid the foundations for the medical profession over 4500 Barr J. (J Vasc Surg 2014;60:260-3.) years ago and over 2000 years before the birth of Hippocrates. His legacy affected the great civilisations that followed and without him, medicine may not be where it is today. -
The Apodictic Method in the Tradition of Ancient Greek Rational Medicine: Hippocrates, Aristotle, Galen
GENERAL ASPECTS OF HISTORY AND PHILOSOPHY OF MEDICINE History of Medicine. 2016. Vol. 3. № 4. DOI: 10.17720/2409-5834.v3.4.2016.37z The apodictic method in the tradition of ancient Greek rational medicine: Hippocrates, Aristotle, Galen Dmitry A. Balalykin1,2, Nataliya P. Shok1,2 1Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University 8 Trubetskaya St., building 2, Moscow 119991, Russia 2Institute of World History, Russian Academy of Sciences 32A Leninsky Prospekt, Moscow 119334, Russia The authors suggest a definition of the apodictic method that can be applied to the history of medicine and reveal its development in the works of Hippocrates, Aristotle, and Galen. The apodictic method of proof in medicine is anatomical dissections, the rational doctrine of general pathology and clinical systematics. The particular approach to using this method of rigorous proof in the works of ancient authors allows us to distinguish three stages in the development of ancient medicine’s methodology. The first was the period of the apodictic method’s birth, which determined the foundations of Greek rational medicine based on the principles of Hippocrates. Under these principles, an explanation for the phenomena of nature, and the human body as a part of it, is based on the search for, and study of, natural causes. The foundation period of the apodictic method is associated with the works of Aristotle, which are devoted to the theory of argumentation, contain a formulation for the strict requirements for proof, movement theory, and systematic dissections of animals based on this practice. They also include the formation of the principles of comparative anatomy, which subsequently influenced the development of Herophilos’ practice of systematic anatomic autopsies and the development of his health concepts. -
FROM EPIDAUROS to GALENOS the PRINCIPAL CURRENTS of GREEK MEDICAL THOUGHT* by A
FROM EPIDAUROS TO GALENOS THE PRINCIPAL CURRENTS OF GREEK MEDICAL THOUGHT* By A. P. CAWADIAS, O.B.E., M.D. DURH., AND PARIS, M.R.C.P., LOND. LONDON HE object of this paper is to that unites the irrational medicine of show the evolution of Greek the ancient Eastern people to the medical thought from the scientific medicine of the Greeks. practices of religious medi- In the scientific medicine of the cine, as symbolized by the Faith-healGreeks- four periods can be distin- Ting of Epidauros, which forms the guished. Every period is based on link with the pre-Hellenic or irra- physiological work, and it is in part tional medicine, to the death of the application of this physiological Galenos which marks the end of the work to medicine, and its develop- creative period of Greek medicine. ment through special clinical methods For the understanding of this im- of diagnosis and treatment that char- portant period of the history of acterizes the medical work of every medicine, the history of the Greeks, in period. Physiology, taken in its large general, must be taken into considera- sense, that is, including anatomy, is tion; and principally the work of the the scientific basis of medicine, and physiologists and philosophers, who thus the only way to understand the mark the various stations of Greek evolution of Greek medical thought thought, must be studied. Greek medi- will be to place distinctly at the cine bound with Greek thought, in beginning of each period, the physio- general, shows a remarkable progres- logical work on which this period is sion, from the first conceptions of based. -
Anatomy, Physiology, Medicine in the Ancient World Hippocrates 460 to 370 BC
Anatomy, Physiology, Medicine in the ancient world Hippocrates 460 to 370 BC Born on isle of Kos. Two schools of medicine: the Knidian School and the Koan School (Hippocrates and his followers). x The Hippocrac bench Hippocrates categorized • Endemic, epidemic • Acute, chronic • Crisis, resoluHon, relapse, convalescence • Diagnosed pulmonary diseases: e.g., clubbing of fingers • Cauterized wounds • Importance of exercise Herophilos b 335 to 280 BC • Born in Chalcedon. x • Educated in Alexandria under Praxagoras (Koan). • Greatest Physician of x AnHquity Herophilos’ wriHngs • None exist: perhaps lost in Alexandrian fire (4th C). • Galen (129 to 200+ AD) le[ detailed comparave references to his work (and that of Erasistratus) • Von Staden, H. 1989 Herophilus: the Art of Medicine in early Alexandria. Cambridge U DisHnguished arteries/veins Classified and categorized pulse variaons Did first detailed study of brain Studied the eye and its connecHon with the brain How did he do it? • Herophilus and Erasistratus • Von Staden, H. 1992. The discovery of the body: human dissecHon and its cultural contexts in Ancient Greece. Yale Journal of Biology and Medicine 65: 223-241. Empiricism • Knowledge comes uniquely from sensory experience. • Early empiricism: advocated data collecHon for things as they present themselves. • More acHve intervenHons became associated with empiricism in and aer the Renaissance Erasistratus 304 BC to 250 BC. • David Leith 2015. Erasistratus’ triplokia of arteries veins and nerves. Apeiron 48: 251– 262. • Arteries carry vital pneuma: basic bodily funcon • Veins carry blood; nutriHon and growth • Nerves carry psychic pneuma; sensaon and movement. Disease occurs when substance of one vessel is allowed to enter another vessel type.