Medical Compendium in Seven Books

Overview

The Medical Compendium in Seven Books or Epitomes iatrikes biblio hepta was a medical treatise of seven books written by Paul of Aegina in the 7th Century BC. Although Byzantine medicine drew largely on Ancient Greek and Roman knowledge, however, his works also contained many new ideas as he was a teacher from Alexandria. For example, in several volumes Paul of Aegina talks about bone structure and fractures, as shown below:

"The case of a broken thigh is analogous to that of the arm, but in particular, a fractured thigh is mostly deranged forwards and outwards, for the bone is naturally flattened on those sides. It is to be set by the hands, with ligatures, and even cords applied, the one above and the other below the fracture. When the fracture takes place at one end, if' at the head of the thigh, the middle part of a thong wrapped round with wool, so that it may not cut the parts there, is to be applied to the perinaeum, and the ends of it brought up to the head and given to an assistant to hold, and applying a ligature below the fracture, we give the ends of it to another assistant to make extension. If lt is fractured near the knee, we apply the ligature immediately above the fracture, and give the ends to an assistant, with which to make extension upwards; and while we put a ligature round the knee to secure it, and while the patient lies thus, with his leg extended, we arrange the fracture. Pieces of bone which irritate the parts, as has been often said, are to be taken out from above; and the rest of' the treatment we have already described in the section on the arm. The thigh gets consolidated within fifty days. The manner of arranging it afterwards will be described after delivering the treatment of the whole leg."

On Fracture and Contusion of The Thigh and The Nose

The work became a standard text throughout the Arabic World for the next 800 or so years. It was the most complete encyclopaedia of all medical knowledge at the time.