E. Poulakou-Rebelakou

Aretaeus on the Kidney and Urinary Tract Diseases

Hippocratic medicine based on rational thought and clinical observation was the first to develop the speciality of nephrology. Five centuries later, Aretaeus of Cappadocia incorporated in his writings the achievements of anatomy and physiology from the flourishing Alexandrian School of Medicine. His work comprises two books on acute and two books on chronic diseases and this classification is extended into the field of treatment. Nephrological diseases are examined according to the above division and healing methods include, in particular, herb therapy.

Renal terminology from the Corpus hippocraticum

Accessible online at: www.karger.com/journals/ajn Hippocratic writings have not lost their nephrologic interest, despite the enormous recent advances in renal biotechnology. The present-day nephrologist can still learn not only from Hippocratic clinical observations but also from the prognostic thoughts, the ethical principles, the philosophic concepts and the humane messages of the ‘Father of Clinical Nephrology’ [1]. The Corpus Hippocraticum (Hippocratic Collection) represents the major source of the classical Greek world’s medicine. The 60 treatises of this work contain the theories of Hippocrates and the medical school of Kos about various diseases and the accurate description of the symptoms and signs, also including a great deal of information on renal and bladder affections. Focusing on the vocabulary used to characterize the organs of the urinary tract and their function as well as the nosology of this system, Hippocratic renal terminology reveals interesting linguistic parameters and mainly the adoption of the ancient Greek terms in contemporary languages, especially English. There are also many Latin terms, on account of the fact that medicine originates in Greek and Roman antiquity. Besides Hippocrates (fig. 1), the writings of Galen [2] and Aretaeus of Cappadocia [3], as well as Celsus and Plinius, remain the principal sources of the elements for medical terminology and the basis for the correctness of the Western scientific onomatology. However, the number of Latin terms, with the exception of the vocabulary for medical law matters, is inferior to the Greek number of scientific words in all the specialties of medicine. Moreover numerous hybrid formations, i.e. words composed of both Greek and Latin elements, exist in Western medical terminology. Fig. 1. Hippocrates the Koan (460–377 BC) by the Hungarian artist János Kass.

Kidney Disease in Byzantine Medical Texts

The most significant contribution of the great Byzantine physicians to the evolution of medicine is their effort to summarize all the medical knowledge of the Greco-Roman world, which included earlier sources in antiquity, lost forever in our days. The transition from ancient to medieval medicine included the adoption of Christian spiritual values, which took place in the early Byzantine period (4th to 7th century). In the field of nephrology, under the influence of Hippocratic and Galenic doctrines, the most prominent medical personalities, Oribasius of Pergamum, Aetius of Amida, Alexander of Tralles and Paul of Aegina, performed the role of the researcher and healer, as well as that of the encyclopedist. Their works on kidney disease are presented in this paper.

Suicidal behaviour in the ancient Greek and Roman world

OBJECTIVE We attempt to present and analyze suicidal behaviour in the ancient Greek and Roman world. METHODS Drawing information from ancient Greek and Latin sources (History, Philosophy, Medicine, Literature, Visual Arts) we aim to point out psychological and social aspects of suicidal behaviour in antiquity. RESULTS The shocking exposition of suicides reveals the zeitgeist of each era and illustrates the prevailing concepts. Social and legal reactions appear ambivalent, as they can oscillate from acceptance and interpretation of the act to punishment. In the history of these attitudes, we can observe continuities and breaches, reserving a special place in cases of mental disease. The delayed emergence of a generally accepted term for the voluntary exit from life (the term suicidium established during the 17th century), is connected to reactions triggered by the act of suicide than to the frequency and the extent of the phenomenon. CONCLUSIONS The social environment of the person, who voluntary ends his life usually dictates the behaviour and historical evidence confirms the phenomenon.

The Byzantine Empress Zoe Porphyrogenita and the quest for eternal youth.

The diachronically continuous struggle for eternal youth as represented by the Byzantine Empress Zoe Porphyrogenita (978–1050). The presentation of a beautiful empress, trying to keep her youth appearance until a prolonged age, applying on herself cosmetic essences and fragrances made in her personal laboratory into the imperial palace. The review of the relevant literature and the historical evidence derived from the historians and chroniclers of her era, as well as the surviving images of Zoe. The eye‐witness chroniclers of the era describe her as blonde, with bright white skin, lack of wrinkles, and a very young girl appearance, preserving her beauty even into her 60s. All the historical sources agree that her main occupation was the manufacture of cosmetic essences, and for this purpose, she had installed a laboratory (myrepseion) in her private quarters, where she prepared various drugs and perfumes, spending much of her time for these activities. It is noteworthy that her first two husbands died under circumstances that aroused suspicions of Zoe’s involvement in their deaths, as she had parallel love affairs. The best known image of Zoe is the mosaic panel in Saint Sophia, the cathedral Church of Constantinople and her representation has been long discussed, as she was 64 years old at the time of the scene apparently depicted in the panel, and maybe she took the opportunity of adding a more pleasing portrait of herself. The preservation of beauty is a timeless quest and cosmetic dermatology has its origins in antiquity and medieval times.

″I will not cut, even for the stone″: origins of urology in the Hippocratic Collection

The Hippocratic Collection, including the most of ancient Greek medicine, remains still interesting, despite the recent advances that transformed definitely the urological healing methods. Considering the patient as a unique psycho-somatic entity and avoiding high risk surgical manipulations were the leading principles dictating the everyday practice. Contemporary physicians can still learn from the clinical observations in times of complete absence of laboratory or imaging aid, from the prognostic thoughts, the ethics, and the philosophical concepts, represented by the Hippocratic writings, tracing into them the roots of Rational Medicine in general and Urology in particular.

History of leucotomies in Greece

In order to present the social, scientific and institutional context which permitted the use of leucotomies in Greece, we have reviewed the Archives of the Medical Associations, the medical literature of the years 1946–56, a reader’s dissertation and the memoirs of two psychiatrists. More than 250 leucotomies were done in the two public psychiatric hospitals in Athens from 1947 to 1954, as well as 40 leucotomies in the public psychiatric hospital in Thessaloniki. Although aware of the side effects, psychiatrists justified the use of the procedure. The performance of leucotomies in Greece declined because of reports of the dangers of the operation and its unpredictable outcome for the patients, but mainly because of the encouraging results with psychotropic drugs in the early 1950s.

Urological Diseases of the Byzantine Emperors (330-1453)

OBJECTIVES To offer historical evidence of Byzantine urology and the variety of operations or other healing techniques as applied on the selected group of the Emperors who presented with diseases of the kidney and the urinary tract. METHODS The health problems of all 87 Byzantine Emperors have been reviewed and focus has been made on the urological diseases, followed by an analysis of the diagnostic and therapeutic processes. RESULTS Byzantine medicine is the heir of the Ancient Greek and Roman scientific knowledge, enriched by the personal experience of the physicians of the era and the evolution in anatomic researches. In the field of urology, various operative techniques were applied and the surgeons attempted to cure problems of the bladder, urethra, and external genitalia, aiming to restore the health of the State leader. The healing methods applied to the urological problems of the Emperors represent the highest level of this branch of Byzantine surgery, because the best quality of surgeons performed their profession in the capital of the Empire, Constantinople, and were also responsible for the health of the Royal Family. The descriptions of all of these well-known diseases of the urological system and their therapies are contained in the extended compilations of the medical authors of the era, and historical and other nonmedical sources complete the panoramic view of Byzantine urology. CONCLUSIONS The diagnosis and the healing methods for the urological diseases of the Emperors represent the general level of Byzantine Surgery and especially of urology, as well as the anatomic knowledge of the genital and the urological systems.