Biomedical Research Foundation of the Academy of Athens, Athens, Greece.
2(nd) Department of Orthopaedics, Medical School, University of Athens, Athens, Greece.
World Neurosurg. 2018 Jan;109:338-341. doi: 10.1016/j.wneu.2017.10.047. Epub 2017 Oct 17.
The purpose of this historical review is to summarize the work of Paul of Aegina, especially his contribution to the treatment of neurosurgical disorders and trauma. Paul performed trephinations for head injuries in the tradition of the Egyptian and the Greek schools of medicine. However, he was an innovator in the treatment of several spine injuries, as his choice to perform laminectomies and his description of them as safe and successful is unprecedented in the history of the recorded medicine and surgery. Our search of the literature shows that Paul was the first to include in his practice such a surgical technique, and, in this way, he is an innovator, since Hippocrates described the results of spine surgery as disastrous for the patient. Thus, he may be considered the historic father of spine surgery for his pioneering surgical innovations. This shows clearly that innovation in science and medicine was significantly increased through the rise of Islam and the Arabic conquest of the Middle East. The so-called "Dark Ages" were not so dark after all.
本次历史回顾的目的是总结保罗·埃吉纳的工作，特别是他在神经外科学障碍和创伤治疗方面的贡献。保罗沿袭了埃及和希腊医学流派的传统，对头部损伤施行环锯术。然而，他在几种脊柱损伤的治疗上具有创新性，因为他选择施行椎板切除术，并将其描述为安全且成功的，这在有记载的医学和外科学史上是前所未有的。我们对文献的检索表明，保罗是第一个在其实践中采用这种手术技术的人，因此，他是一位创新者，因为希波克拉底曾将脊柱手术的结果描述为对患者灾难性的。因此，他可以被认为是脊柱外科学的历史之父，因为他开创了外科创新。这清楚地表明，通过伊斯兰教的兴起和阿拉伯对中东的征服，科学和医学领域的创新明显增加。所谓的“黑暗时代”并非如此黑暗。
