Write an essay of the history medical in ancient africa 7 pages
With AMA references 6-8 sources
-Time New Roman 12
Here’s an Example: Surgery in Ancient India -Ayurveda
Surgery in Ancient India dates back to Vedic Periods which is mentioned in Rigveda, which is about 5000 Years ago. Ancient Surgical Science is called Shalya (Broken A
ow) Tantra (Maneuver). Shalya Tantra involves removal of all things that is responsible for pain or that which is causing harm to the body or mind. In Rigveda, there is a mention about first plastic surgery to rejoin the head and trunk of Saint Chyavana when Dakshya cut his head1. Other classic works in Rigveda also explains about the eye operation, implantation of teeth in the toothless mouth and the transplant of head of elephant on Ganesh. They have also mentioned about transplantation of an iron leg on Bispala – the wife of King Khela who lost her leg in war(1). Ashwini Kumaras had performed both homo and hetero transplantation during the very ancient time of Rigveda, 5000 years ago. Surgical Skills have traversed through the rich tradition from Ashwini Kumaras, Chavana, Dhanvantari through Atereya Agnivesh and Sushrutaa. This formed the basis of Ayurveda, the Fifth Indian Veda, the Classical medical system of India. Ancient medical practitioners such as Acharya Atreya and Acharya Agnivesh of 800BC are mentioned in the earliest compendium of medical science of India that contains the principle of Ayurveda. They were followed by Sushruta, who is the specialist in cosmetic, plastic and dental surgery (also known as Sanatana Karma around 600 BC). Three main pillars of Ayurveda are Charaka Samhita and Ashtanga Samhita deals with medical knowledge while Sushruta Samhita mainly elaborates on the Surgical Knowledge.
Sushruta is called the father of Surgery1. Sushruta lived during 600 BC, about 2000 years ago and a descendent of Dhanvantri, the mythological god of medicine from the ancient city of Varanasi. Varanasi is also the place and home of Buddhism. Sushruta Samhita is the most important ancient medical treatises and is one of the fundamental texts of medical tradition in India along with Charaka Samhita even today. In ancient India, for easy learning and memorizing, the works of art, science or scriptures were done in verse form, as printing was non existent at that time5. It’s amazing and impressive to know that many techniques that are in practice today have been derived from the practices of the ancient Indian Scholars.
Sushruta had categorized surgery into Excision (Chedya), Scarification (Lekhya), Puncturing (Vedhya), Exploration (Esya), Extraction (Ahrya), Evacuation (Vsraya) and Suturing (Sivya). In his works, there is mention about 60 types of Upakarma1 for treatment of wound, 120 surgical instruments and 300 surgical procedures and classification of human surgeries in eight categories. Sushruta not only believed that health is a combination of physical and mental well-being, but also maintenance of balanced humors, good nutrition, proper elimination of waste and contended state of body and mind. It is also interesting to note that anesthesia was used in Sushruta’s Surgeries using wine and Cannabis indica. He had treated numerous cases of Rhinoplasty (Nasa Sandhan), Lobuloplasty (Oshtha Sandha) and Otoplasty (Karna Sandhan). Rhinoplasty, even till today is being refe
ed to as Indian Flap that is described by Sushruta in 600BC. These are some of the amazing early works especially in Surgery 2000 years ago, that had no bounds and hard to even explain how people had performed with no modern tools whatsoever. In his work, there is a description of the treatment of 12 varieties of fracture and six types of dislocation, and also mentioned is inducing growth of lost hair and removal of unwanted hair. Sushruta was the first to suggest human discectomy of the dead for student who are learning surgery1,2.
Talking about Head and Neck Surgeries in Sushruta Samhita vedic literature, Sushruta Samhita is divided into six major sections – the Sutrasthanam (Su), Nidana Sthanam (Ni), Sharera Sthanam (Sh), Chikitsa Sthanam (Ci), Kalpa Sthanam (Ka) and the Uttara Tantram(Ut). Out of these above 8 sections - Shalya Tantra (General Surgery) and Shalakya Tantra are specifically notable subdivisions which are specific to dealing with surgeries. Shalakya Tantra is specific to diseases above the clavicles that is of the eyes, ears, the nose, the oral cavity etc. There is also mention about general measures in managing surgeries including surgical procedure, medical, dietetic, application of eye drops, ear drops and medicated snuff, incantations, divination and prognostics3. Uttara Tantra explains specifically with diagnosis and management of head and neck diseases. Uttara Tantra explains the details of the Cataract Surgery and how the operation was performed. Prior to the operative procedure, the patient was recommended to have oil massage (Abhyanga) followed by hot bath. During the procedure, while the patient looks at the surgeon’s nose, a sharp pointed needle was inserted while the operator placed the top of his little finger on the bony margin of the outer angle of the o
it, between his thumb, index and middle finger. The point entered the anterior chamber at the junction of the medial and lateral two-thirds of the outer portion of the white layer (sclera) of the eyeball. If a sound with a gushing of watery fluid was produced, then the surgeon’s needle was Surgery in Ancient India -Ayurveda considered to be in the co
ect part of the eyeball, but if the puncture was followed by bleeding, then the incision was inco
ect. Care was taken to avoid blood vessels present in that region. For the post operative care, it seems like they used he
s of the plants. Either roots and leaves of the parts of plants were used with a bandage. The patient was monitored for ten days during the post operative care and if the whitish mass appears in the pupillary area, then the procedure is repeated again4.
Specifically, talking about Uttara Tantra, chapter twenty two enumerates Thirty one types of nasal diseases. Chapter Twenty of Uttara Tantra deals with ear diseases. Although the detailed anatomy of the ear is not described, it is extremely mind boggling on the medical procedures that were mentioned without use of any modern sophisticated methods or tools. Till date this remains a mystery. They mainly used pulse (Nadi Yantra) as a means of diagnosing diseases as mentioned in Sushruta Samhita. Twenty eight types of ear diseases not limited to infections of the pinna, otitis externa etc, which can be apparently easily identified and diagnosed. For extraction of foreign bodies, a rod shaped metallic probe (Salaka Yantra) or one resembling a modern forceps, Swastika Yantra is recommended3. Regarding the Oral diseases, Sixty-Five Varieties of Oral diseases has been mentioned and could arise in seven different anatomical locations – eight on the lips, fifteen on the alveolar margin, eight in connection with teeth, five on the tongue, nine of the palate, seventeen in the oropharynx and three in a generalized form. Cancer of the lip and hemangioma, sublingual cystic swelling is also mentioned in Sushrutaa Samhita as part of the Uttara Tantra3. They have also performed wisdom tooth extraction as early as Surgery in Ancient India -Ayurveda 6th Century BC. The tantra mentions about the cautiousness that we need to employ while extracting the tooth, if the person has sinus, that could potentially cause hemo
hage or cause the disease to spread upwards to the cheek and eyes or may even cause blindness3. Sushruta Samhita is an extremely sophisticated text of surgical procedures that is being documented in Sanskrit.
Nidana Stanam is a section that is part of the Sushruta Samhita that explains the diseases arising in the structures of the neck. Small and large hard swellings arising in the neck, the armpits and waist (groin) are named as Apachi3. Apachi can be tuberculous lymphadenitis, or nodes involved by lymphoma or secondary metastases. Pyriform swellings in the front of the neck in connection with the two main muscles (the sternomastoids) are termed Galaganda (goiter)3. Regarding Goiter, there is a mention about slow growing and has dark colored veins on the surface versus the fetid smell and rumbling that can be heard in the throat which could be indicative of advanced cancer of and also specifies that if the Goiter have lasted more than a year, it is difficult to treat3.
Similar to Yin Yang imbalance in Chinese Medicine, Ayurveda has the concept of element imbalances called Dosha imbalances and figuring out and interpreting the derangement of one or more these Doshas is believed to cause disease and therefore diagnosis and treatment is largely dependent upon the co
ect interpretation of the Dosha or Doshas at fault.
Surgery was the first surgeon in the world to describe the surgical instruments and other related subjects in the detailed treatise called Sushruta Samhita5. Sushruta Samhita, the text had six sections in various
anches of surgery which includes military medicine, medical ethics, teaching methods, dissection of human body, dissection practices and operative surgical exercises on vegetables and other models like fa
ic etc. Out of these, chapter seven and eight details about the 121 types of surgical instruments used and further classified as 101 that are blunt and 20 Sharp instruments. Endoscopes were also used and were categorized under tubular instruments (Nadi Yantra) of the main group of blunt instruments5. Sushruta describes the method of extraction of a foreign body from the throat using a heated iron probe or sound through a copper and made to touch the foreign body, which will melt and stick to the probe. This is then cooled by sprinkling cold water through the speculum and then foreign body is extracted. Arsho Yantra called Rectal speculum for piles were performed using an instrument may be made of iron, ivory, horn or wood. The measurements are described differently for male and female patients.
Sushruta was the first surgeon to classify and describe in detail about the surgery, surgical instruments, different types of surgical procedures and diseases etc. Sushruta Samhita remained preserved for many centuries exclusively in Sanskrit. Around the 8th Century, Sushrutaa Samhita was translated into Arabic “Kitab Shah Shun al –Hindi” and “Kitab – I – Susurud.”. In the early 19th Century, the first European translation was published in Latin and also in German by Muller. In 1907, Kaviraj Kunja Lal Bhishagratna translated to English literature in three volumes. Although the science of medicine today has grown exponentially with sophisticated tools and instruments and technology, we should not forget that many techniques that are practiced today are derived from the practices of the ancient Indian Scholars1. While much of Sushruta Samhita remains in Sanskrit, there are parts of the texts and versus that are slowly getting translated to English literature, and much of the text is yet to be unraveled.
Bibliography:
[1] Singh V. Sushruta: The father of surgery. Natl J Maxillofac Surg. 2017;8(1):1-3. doi:10.4103/njms.NJMS_33_17
[2] Sharma HS, Sharma HI, Sharma HA. Sushruta-samhitA - A critical Review Part-1: