# Scientific Achievements under Islam: Ophthalmology



## Dig Knowledge (Apr 3, 2010)

Hey guys, here is an article which I found really enjoyable and above all intersting and very informative. Hope this article will benefit people wanting to pursue a career in Medicine or any other related or non-related Degree. Don't forget to let me know what you think of it..Enjoy...#grin 

*p.s. This article is somewhat related to my previous article called Scientific Achievements under Islam: Surgery. This article also tells us of the fact that The biggest friend of Islam is Knowledge. It emphasizes greatly on seeking and spreading beneficial Knowledge to the extend that it tells us that "The ink of a scholar is more holier than the blood of a martyr." which is why we should all seek and spread knowledge. Peace out! *

Another really fascinating article by Prof. Dr. I N _(UK)_:

The notion that religion is not compatible with scientific development is alien to Islam. History shows that most of the scientific developments by the Muslims were carried out when Islam prevailed. One has to only look at the Arabic origins of many words used in the West, like alkali, algebra, cipher and algorithm. Islam is a system of life, which originated from the Creator. God is the One who created the universe, life and subjected man to the physical laws that He imposed on the universe. The Qur?an, as revealed to the final Prophet and Messenger, Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, directs man to study the physical world in order to understand the reality and to appreciate more the greatness of the Creator. Many verses in the Qur?an point to the physical world and explain natural phenomena to man, as a confirmation for mankind that this revelation is from the Creator, the Supreme.

From 800-1300 CE the world of Islam produced not less than sixty renowned Eye Specialists of Oculists, authors of textbooks and producers of monographs in Ophthalmology, meanwhile in Europe prior to the 12th century an oculist was unheard of.

Professor J. Hirschberg, a renowned eye ophthalmologist of Germany, addressed the American Medical Association (in California) on 11-14th July 1905. His subject was the work of Arab ophthalmologists or oculist. An eye specialist is known in Arabic as Al-Kahhal from the work Kuhl (Kollyre). He began:

?I invite you to a short Arabian hour, to go back with me 1000 years to consider the fascinating history of the old Arabian Ophthalmology which I have studied in the past five years. Two questions at first must be addressed:

1.	What were the sources of information at the disposal of these Arab Ophthalmologists?
2.	What is the contribution of the Arabian work in ophthalmology?

One of the outstanding classical works ?Memorial of Ophthalmology? written by Ah Ibn Isa (1000 CE) was compiled from Greek material ?The Ten Treatises of the Eye? of Galen and he added new knowledge.?

The Greek work on Ophthalmology from Hippocrates to Paulus, produced five books on this subject, spanning one thousand years. The text book of Khalifah (written around 1260 CE) lists eighteen works on Ophthalmology. Muslims in just 250 years produced eighteen written works on Ophthalmology. The Muslims in all wrote some thirty Ophthalmology text books and the most important of these were written by specialists, in fact fourteen still exist today. Hirschberg then went on to mention some of the more notable names and gave an account of their work.

Ali Ibn Isa
The most famous of all occulists of Islam was born in Baghdad (Iraq). His work ?Tazkiratul Kahhaleen? (Notebook of the Occulist) the best and most complete textbook on diseases of rhe eye, was translated with commentary into German by Hirschberg and Lippert (1904) and into English by Casey Wood (1936). Isa?s book was the most widely referred to textbook by later Ophthalmologists. It was first translated into Persian and then into Latin and printed in Venice in 1497 CE.

Famous contemporarie of Ali Ibn Isa were Ammar Ibn Ali Al Mosuli (see below) and Abul Hasan Ahmed Ibn Muhammad Al-Tabari who in his work Kitabul Mu?Alajaul Buqratiyya (Book of Hippocratic treatment) says that he wrote a long treatise on diseases of the eye. Unfortunately, this treatise is no longer available.

Ammar Ibn Ali Al-Mosuli
Ammar, from Mosul, in Iraq, flourished around 1010 CE. He wrote a book entitled Kitabul Muntakhab fi ilaj-ul Ayn (Book of Choices in the treatment of Eye diseases) and practiced mainly in Egypt. His book deals with anatomy, pathology and describes six case histories for cataract operation and a case of optic neuritis. Hischberg writes that Ammar was the most intelligent eye surgeon of the whole Arabian literature. Ammar discussed some 48 eye diseases in a short work of about 1500 words (the shortest work of its kind). This manuscript (no.894) can be found in the Escorial Library in Madrid, Spain. Although shorter than the book of Isa, it contains any more original remarks and observations. Until the 20th century, Ammar?s work was only available in Arabic and Hebrew translation made by Nathan, a Jew, in the 13th century.

This work was translated into German by Professor J. Hirschberg in 1905. Ammar was the inventor of cataract operation by suction, using the fine hollow needle inserted through the limbus (where the conea joins the conjuctiva). This was the best operation of its ime. This type of cataract operation among others is still carried out today. The operation of ?couching? i.e. violent displacement of the lens, dates back to Babylonian times but this had its obvious complications and risks.

Ammar throughout his work, as a surgeon and researcher, never forgot that he was a Muslim first and scientist second. This is seen by his compassionate attitude toward his patients. On his travel, he fulfilled his religious duties, visiting Madinah and performing Hajj at Makkah.

Zarrindast ?Gold Hand
Abu Rah Muhammad Ibn Mansur Bin Abduliah, otherwise known as Al-Jurani, an excellent surgeon from Persia who flourished around 1088 CE, wrote a book entitled Nur-ul Ayn (The light of the Eyes). The book, much of which is original, was written during the reign of Sultan Malikshah and consists of ten chapters. In the seventh chapter he describes some thirty eye operations including 3 types of cataract operations. He also deals with anatomy and physiology of the eye and eye diseases. This book mentions curable and incurable diseases and gives methods of treatment. A large section is about surgery of the eye.

Another name mentioned by Hirschberg in his address to the American Medical Association was Abu Muttarif from Seville in Spain, who flourished around the 11th century. Besides being an eye specialist he was also a Wazir. Unfortunately, his work is entirely lost.

Al-Ghafiqi
Muhammad In Qassoum Ibn Aslam Al-Ghafiqi or simply known as Al-Ghafiqi (died 1165 CE) also from Spain, wrote a book in the 12th century called Al-Murshid fil Kuhl (The right Guide in Ophthalmology). The book is not just confined to the eye but gives details of the head and diseases of the brain. In his book he describes and gives drawings of various instruments to be used in the eye surgery. What was started at the beginning of the 20th century in America and Europe, was done in the 12th century in Muslim Spain (the Golden era of Islam).

Today a tourist visiting Cordoba can see the commemorated bust of Muhammad Al-Ghafiqi, a tribute paid from the people of Cordoba to an outstanding Muslim eye specialist. The bust with full Arab Ammama can be seen in the quadrangle of a municipal hospital in Cordoba, Spain. It was erected in 1965 to commemorate the eight hundredth anniversary of his death.

Khalifah of haleb
Khalifah Ibn al-Mahasin of Allepo or Haleb (Syria) flourished around 1260 CE and he wrote a book of 564 pages in which he describes and gives drawings of various surgical instruments including 26 instruments for eye surgery. He also discusses the visual pathways between the eye and the brain. He also writes about twelve kinds of cataract operations. The term for cataract in Arabic is Al-Ma?Nazul Ayn. Ma? means water or water descending onto the eye i.e. water accumulates in the lens and it becomes ?soggy? thus making it cloudy. This cloudiness is sucked out by the use of hollow needle, thus the cataract is removed and the patient is once again able to see.

Salahuddin
Salahuddin Ibn Yusuf from Hammah (Syria) in 1290 CE wrote a book called ?The Light of the Eyes? in which he discussed new work on the optical theory of vision. He also quotes many extracts from Ammar?s treatise. He did work on the eye from a more general medical point of view as did other notables such as Az-Zahrawi, Ibn Zuhr and Ibn Rushd.

Ibn Haitham
Ibn Haitham born in 965 CE was the first to explain that all vision was made possible because of refraction of light rays. The work of Ibn Haitham was repeated and expanded upon by Persian Kamal-Uddin (died 1329 CE) who observed the path of rays of light in the interior of a glass sphere in order to examine the refraction of sunlight in rain drips. This led him to an explanation of the genesis of primary and secondary rainbows.

Professor J. Hirschberg told this to an enthralled audience at the American Medical Association. It was not until the 18th century that the method of removal of cataract by a hollow needle was employed in Europe.

The Muslims produced many original works on the anatomy of the eye. Their studies were, however, limited because they carried out their observations on animal eyes. Theqaz dissection of any part of the human body was considered unlawful in Islam. These works give us the oldest pictures of the anatomy of the eye.

The original work of the Arabs includes the introduction of terms such as Eyeball, Conjuctiva, Cornea, Uvea abd Retina. Operations on diseases of the eyelids such as Trachoma, a hardening of the inside of the eyelid, were also done by Muslims. Glaucoma (an increase in the intraocular pressure of the eye) under the name of ?headache of the pupil? was first described by a Muslim. However, the greatest single sontribution in Ophthalmology, by the Arabs was in the matter of cataracts.

Gerard of of Cremona in Toleda (Spain) spent 40 years of his life (1147-1187 CE) translating the work of Ar-Razi and Ibn Sina. This fact has been attributed on a Spanish postal stamp.

?Arab physicians have been in the forefront of the effort to prevent blindness since 1000 CE, when Ar-Razi became the first doctor to describe the reflex action of the pupil. At about the same time, Ammar Bin Ali Al-Mosuli invented the technique of suction removal of cataracts by the use of the hollow needle.?
(Optometry Today, publication of the Association of Optometrists, England, march 28, 1987)

Professor Hirschberg concluded his address to the A.M.A. with the words:

?During this total darkness in medieval Europe they (the Arab Muslims) lighted and fed the lamps of our science (Ophthalmology) ? from the Guadalquivir (in Spain) to the Nile (in Egypt) and to the River Oxus (in Russia). They were the only masters of Ophthalmology in medieval Europe.?

So we can see from Hirschberg?s work that the Muslim Ophthalmologists of the 10th-13th century were many hundreds of years ahead of their time. :happy: 

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## Dig Knowledge (Apr 3, 2010)

*I want to let all of you viewers know that Islam tells us soooooooooooooooo much to gain and spread knowledge, a fact that many people aren't really aware of and when I looked up more about the topic and also came across these articles and many others, I was literally like....WWWOOOOOOWWWWWWW!!!!!!!!!!!*
*The biggest friend of Islam is knowledge! Islam emphasizes soooo much to gain and spread knowledge to the extend that it tells us that "The ink of a scholar is more holier than the blood of a martyr" and also that "Seek knowledge from cradle to your grave." (A saying by Prophet Muhammad pbuh Himself). Which is why Muslim scholars were 1,000 years ahead of there time. Just think of it...not 50, not a 100, not even 2 or 300..but infact 1,000 YEARS AHEAD OF THERE TIME!!! (I dont belive anyone nowadays or in the last 2-300 years was more cleverer than that). And it was all because of the fact that they seeked knowledge and spread it among others. This is how ideas reached the Western world...All thanks to our Muslim scholars.*
*There is soo much more to share with all of yous and i'll be back with more information Inshallah.*

*Peace out! :happy: *


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## missakhwand (Jul 8, 2008)

Cool May Allah reward you for spreading knowledge.


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## hammad khan (Jan 13, 2010)

SobhanAllah. I love the info. Thanks for sharing it with us.


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## Dig Knowledge (Apr 3, 2010)

Thanks for the encouragement..may Allah bless u all too!


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## Dig Knowledge (Apr 3, 2010)

*Please also view my threads with the titles 

"Scientific Achievements under Islam: Surgery" 

and 

"Scientific Achievements under Islam: Physics and Technology"

I had put all these threads together but somehow they have been moved to different places on this forum. You can view them by clicking on the url's below:

http://medstudentz.com/pakistan-med...hievements-under-islam-surgery.html#post18855 

http://medstudentz.com/pakistan-med...ntific+Achievements+Islam:+Physics+Technology 

Or you can search them up with the titles that I have mentioned earlier. Thanks #wink *


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