Biography of Hippocrates

Biography of Hippocrates
Hippocrates is referred to ‘father of medicine’ in recognition of his lasting contributions to the field as the founder of the Hippocratic school of medicine.

Hippocrates was born to Heraclides, a physician and Praxitela, daughter of Phenaretis in year of 460 BC on the Greek island of Cos. He learned medicine form his own father and grandfather. He also studied other subject with Democritus the Abderite and Gorgias of Leontini. Democritus was famous Greek materialist philosopher while Gorgias was famous philosopher and rhetorician at that time. Hippocrates also trained at asklepieion (healing temple) of Kos and took lessons from Thracian physician Herodicus of Selymbria. Herodicus was Greek physician famous as the first person use of therapeutic exercise for treatment of disease and maintenance of health. Herodicus was described as gymnastic master.

Hippocrates later became a famous physician and teacher of medicine. He was regarded as the greatest physician of his time. He based his medical practice on observations and on the study of the human body. He held the belief that illness had a physical and a rational explanation. Hippocrates held a belief that the body must be treated as a whole and not just a series of parts. Hippocrates was the first to give the physician an independent standing, separate from the cosmological speculator, or nature philosopher. Hippocrates confined the medical man to medicine.

He soon developed an Oath of Medical Ethics for physician. He died in 377 BC at the age of 90 years old. Some says at the age of 83 or 106 years He lies buried between Gyrton and Larissa.
Biography of Hippocrates

Abū Bakr Muhammad ibn Zakarīya Rāzi (Rhazes)

Abū Bakr Muhammad ibn Zakarīya Rāzi (Rhazes)
He was a Persian physician. He was known as Rhazes in Europe. He also was alchemist, philosopher, and scholar. He was born in Rayy, Iran in the year 865 AD and died in 925 AD.

Al-Razi made contributions to the field of medicine, chemistry and philosophy and have written 184 books and articles in various field. He practiced medicine for over 35 years and his medical commentaries contributed mainly to the fields of ophthalmology, obstetrics and gynecology. He also wrote in other subjects, such as physics, mathematics, astronomy and optics.

He travel intensively and rendered service to several princes and rules, especially in Baghdad, where his laboratory was located. Al-Razi only started studied medicine at the age of thirty. He did chemistry experiment until he got eye disease, obliging him to search for physicians to cure. He took up study in medicine after first visit to Baghdad.

He became Director of Rayy hospital during the reign of Mansur ibn Ishaq, Governor of Rayy. Soon he moved to a similar position in Baghdad and became head of its famous Muqtadari Hospital. A special feature of his medical system was that he encouraged cure through healthy and regulated food. This method was combined with his emphasis on the influence of psychological factors on health. Razi was an expert surgeon, and was the first to use opium as anesthesia.

The most sought after of all his composition was The Comprehensive Book of Medicine. It is a large private note book into which he placed extracts from earlier authors regarding disease and therapy and also recorded clinical cases of his own experience. His Comprehensive Book of Medicine was translated into Latin in 1279 under the title Continens by Faraj ben Salim. Another book ‘Book of Medicine Dedicated to Mansur’ was translated to into Latin by Gerard of Cremona and was known as Liber ad Almansoris. It became one of the most widely read medieval medical manuals in Europe.
Abū Bakr Muhammad ibn Zakarīya Rāzi (Rhazes)