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Avicenna (980-1037 AD)

ARTICLE in JOURNAL OF NEUROLOGY SEPTEMBER 2011
Impact Factor: 3.38 DOI: 10.1007/s00415-011-6219-2 Source: PubMed

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J Neurol
DOI 10.1007/s00415-011-6219-2

PIONEERS IN NEUROLOGY

Avicenna (9801037 AD)

Arman Zargaran Alireza Mehdizadeh
Mohamad M. Zarshenas Abdolali Mohagheghzadeh

Received: 21 June 2011 / Revised: 4 August 2011 / Accepted: 9 August 2011

Springer-Verlag 2011

Avicenna (Ibn-e-Sna), a Persian physician, was arguably

one of the most outstanding medical scientists and practitioners ever, and had a deep influence on medical science
in the golden ages of Islamic medicine (912th century
AD) and in Europe as well. He contributed to various
aspects of medicine including neurology, a discipline that
was very well known and widely accepted in that period
[5, 8]. Avicenna was born in Afshaneh, near the city of
Bokhara (in old Persia) in 980 AD. His father, Abdollah, was a
local governor and his mothers name was Setareh. His
cleverness was obvious since his childhood. He finished
learning the Quran and important Persian writings when he
was only 10 years old, started to learn philosophy and
medicine, and became a famous physician when he was
just 18. When the prince of the Samanid dynasty (Nuh) had
been treated by him, he gave Avicenna permission to use
the royal library as a reward. It was a great chance for him
to get access to many important and unique books and
complete his knowledge. After the Samanid dynasty was
defeated by the Turkish leader (Mahmood Ghaznavi),
Avicenna went to Jorjan, in the north of Iran. He also lived
in other parts of Iran such as Ray (near Tehran), Hamedan
(west of Iran), and Isfahan (central Iran). After he became
involved in politics he had a tough life, becoming a prisoner as well as prime minister. He wrote more than 450
treatises on medicine, philosophy, logic, and astronomy,
many of these manuscripts were created in prison [3].
A. Zargaran
A. Mehdizadeh
A. Mohagheghzadeh
Research Office for the History of Persian Medicine,
Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran
A. Zargaran (&)
M. M. Zarshenas
A. Mohagheghzadeh
Department of Traditional Pharmacy, Faculty of Pharmacy,
Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran
e-mail: zargarana@sums.ac.ir

His great medical manuscript, Al-Qanun-fi-al-Tibb (The

Canon of Medicine) was translated in Latin by Gerard of
Cremona in the 12th century AD [9]. Avicennas The
Canon of Medicine became a main reference work for
medicine in the Western countries until the 16th century
[1]. The book in divided into five volumes on medical
science, neuroscience being described in the third volume
[4]. The chapter begins by explaining the structure and
function of the nervous system, viz. parts of the brain, the
spinal cord, ventricles, meninges, nerves and roots, followed by a description of neurological and neuropsychological disorders, including signs and symptoms and
treatment strategies. Among the specific conditions in the
field of neurology and neuropsychiatry, he mentions epilepsy in children and adults (Omo-al-sabian and sare),
apoplexy and stroke (sakteh), paralysis (falej), vertigo
(davar), spasm (tashanoj), wry mouth (laghve), tremor
(rashe), meningitis (lisarghos, gharanits, sarsaam),
amnesia and dementia (nosyan and fesad-al-zekr), head
injuries and traumas (shekastegi-e-sar), hysteria and conversion disorder (ekhtenagh-e-rahem), fainting and stupor
(ghash), nervous tic (ekhtelaj), sexual disorders (jemae),
love sickness (eshgh), delusion and hallucination (vahm),
insomnia (sahr), sopor (sobat), nightmare (kabus or bakhtak), mania and psychosis (mania and dae-al-kalb or
Jonoun), melancholia (malikhulia), paranoia (ghotrab),
asthenia (kheder), hydrocephalus (mae-fi-al-ras) and
sciatica (ergh-al-nesa). All his descriptions are precise and
detailed [4]. To arrive at a diagnosis, Avicenna applied
apart from the historysimple methods such as observation of eyes, tongue, nails, skin color conditions, and
feeling the pulse [4].
Recent publications have highlighted Avicennas views
on the treatment of impotence [7], management of spinal
disorders and trauma [2], vasovagal syncope [9], and on

123

J Neurol

peripheral nerve disorders and their treatment [1]. He also

classified 15 kinds of headaches (ojae-al-ras) and
explained their mechanisms; he hypothesized that bloodhumor disturbances or hyperemia could lead to headache.
He also described headaches after coitus, unilateral, bilateral and wine-induced headaches, and he noted that transient lip paralysis and paresthesia may be associated with
unilateral headache attacks [4, 6].
Avicennas approaches to treatment are generally divided into three main steps. Change of life style is the first
step, including modification of nutrition, diet, taking
moderate physical exercise, massage of the head and body,
swimming in natural waters, etc. Avicenna believed that
many disorders were related to errors in the dietary regime.
Moreover, he attributed an important role to sleep management in the treatment of neuropsychiatric disorders
[4, 10]. Simple medicines (mofradat) are mentioned as a
second step. Simple medicines consist of an active ingredient, such as a herbal, animal, or mineral substance.
Avicenna considered compound medicines (morakabat) as
a third step; these include more than a single active
ingredient, in traditional dosage forms (gharabadin). In his
view, simple remedies were always preferable to complex
drugs because they had fewer side-effects. Over 300 simple
and compound medicines are recorded in The Canon of
Medicine for neurological conditions [4]. He also suggested surgical procedures or other nonpharmacological
strategies, if necessary. For example, he recommended
electrical shocks by applying electrical fish (raadeh; torpedo or crampfish) to treat neurological diseases such as
epilepsy [4, 10].
Avicenna gave a great impetus to medical science in his
time. Muslims in the first period of the Islamic era gathered
knowledge from neighboring civilizations, such as Persian,
Greek, and Roman medical texts by translating their
manuscripts and so promoted medical knowledge in the
medieval period. Therefore, Avicennas contribution to
improving medical knowledge is far-reaching. He was
called Sheikh-al-Raeis in Persia and Prince of Physicians in the West. When he died in 1037 AD, he was only
57 years old; he was buried in the city of Hamedan [3]. It is
in this town, at the center of the Hamedan province, in the
west of Iran, that nowadays his tomb as well as a memorial
statue can be found (Figure). Also in the field of neuroscience, Avicenna created major advancements [8], so that
modern neurology is indebted to his work. Understanding
his book and his knowledge about disorders of the nervous
system can help in understanding the development of

123

medical knowledge and the views about the nervous system in medieval times.
References
1. Aciduman A, Er U, Belen D (2009) Peripheral nerve disorders
and treatment strategies according to Avicenna in his medical
treatise, Canon of Medicine. Neurosurgery 64:172178
2. Ahmet A, Deniz B, Serkan S (2006) Management of spinal disorders and trauma in Avicennas Canon of Medicine. Neurosurgery 59:397403
3. Amr SS, Tbakhi A (2007) Ibn Sna (Avicenna): the prince of
physicians. Ann Saudi Med 27:134135
4. Avicenna (1998) Canon of Medicine. Translated into English by
Hameed HA. S. Waris Nawab, Senior Press Superintendent,
Jamia Hamdard Printing Press, New Delhi
5. Diamantis A, Sidiropoulou K, Magiorkinis E (2010) Epilepsy
during the Middle Ages, the Renaissance and the Enlightenment.
J Neurol 257:691698
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medieval Persian medicine. Lancet Neurol 1:510515
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impotence in medieval Persian medicine. Int J Impot Res
16:8083
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Medieval neurosurgery: contributions from the Middle East,
Spain, and Persia. Neurosurg Focus 23:E14
9. Shoja MM, Tubbs RS, Loukas M, Khalili M, Alakbarli F, CohenGadol AA (2009) Vasovagal syncope in the Canon of Avicenna:
the first mention of carotid artery hypersensitivity. Int J Cardiol
134:297301
10. Vakili N, Gorji A (2006) Psychiatry and psychology in medieval
Persia. J Clin Psychiatry 67:18621869