Department of Surgical Oncology, Medical School of Crete University Hospital, Heraklion, Greece.
J Plast Reconstr Aesthet Surg. 2010 Aug;63(8):e600-4. doi: 10.1016/j.bjps.2010.05.013. Epub 2010 Jun 9.
Nowadays, as in the past, much attention is paid to aesthetic operations in women, while only infrequently have such operations been referred to in males. Generally, male aesthetic surgery was introduced to surgical practise during the 19th century. In this study, we analysed the practise of such operations in Byzantine times and in other ancient cultures with surgical knowledge, i.e. ancient India and China
The sixth book of Paul of Aegina's "Epitome of Medicine" was studied for description of aesthetic operations in males in the Byzantine period, since this book is completely devoted to surgery and is generally considered to be the most important reference for surgery in Byzantine times. The original text and its excellent translation by Francis Adams were used. References concerning aesthetic operations for males were identified. Accordingly, historical work and reviews on plastic surgery in ancient India and China were studied.
Mainly, two aesthetic surgical procedures for males in the Byzantine period were identified. These two procedures comprise gynaecomastia and rhacosis (scrotal relaxation). Two different techniques were reported for the surgical management of gynaecomastia, through sub-mammary or supra-mammary access. Two procedures were noted for rhacosis, for which Paul of Aegina reproduced the respective chapters from Leonides' and Antyllus' works. Evidence supporting male aesthetic surgery in ancient India and China or elsewhere was not found.
Despite the dubious aesthetic result, the existence of different aesthetic surgical techniques in males substantiate the advanced level of surgery achieved by physicians in the Byzantine period.
如今，与过去一样，人们非常关注女性的美容手术，而男性的此类手术却很少被提及。一般来说，男性美容手术是在 19 世纪引入外科实践的。在这项研究中，我们分析了拜占庭时期和其他具有外科知识的古代文化（即古印度和中国）的此类手术实践。
研究了保罗·埃吉纳的《医学纲要》第六卷中关于拜占庭时期男性美容手术的描述，因为这本书完全致力于外科手术，通常被认为是拜占庭时期外科手术最重要的参考。使用了原始文本及其由 Francis Adams 翻译的优秀译本。确定了有关男性美容手术的参考文献。相应地，研究了古印度和中国的整形外科学历史著作和综述。
主要确定了拜占庭时期男性的两种美容手术。这两种手术包括男性乳房发育症和阴囊松弛症。报告了两种不同的手术方法来管理男性乳房发育症，通过乳房下或乳房上的途径。对于阴囊松弛症，保罗·埃吉纳复制了 Leonides 和 Antyllus 的作品中的相应章节。没有发现古印度和中国或其他地方有男性美容手术的证据。
尽管美容效果值得怀疑，但男性存在不同的美容手术技术证明了拜占庭时期医生所达到的外科手术水平的先进性。
