| Volume 3, Issue 2, September 2002 Contents IBN SINA Congress of Pathology Fourth Syrian Pathology Society Meeting IAP President and Secretary Honored The Beginnings and the Way Ahead: Part Two Ibn Sina (Avicinne) 981- 1037 C.E |
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| Editorial |
This newsletter functions as an annual communication medium among the Arab pathologists. It communicates regional practice ideas, views, experiences, and job opportunities in the Arab world. Your contributions of any topic of interest to the Arabic pathologists are welcomed. Please e-mail your article or announcement. We look forward to your contributions. E-mail: raslanwf@aramco.com.sa |
| A Message from the President Dr. Sharif El Salem Head, Department of Pathology Faculty of Medicine, Damascus University, Damascus, Syria
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I am very glad to introduce the second issue of the newsletter issued by the Arab Division- IAP, in implementation of a resolution adopted by 13th congress of Damascus. I believe that this newsletter will greatly help in strengthening ties and scientific knowledge among the members in the Arab countries and abroad. I look forward to your active participation in providing the newsletter with your activities and hopefully your articles, so that it will eventually develop into a periodical of a distinguished and respectable publication. I have to mention in particular Dr. W. Raslan, Dr. A I Janabi and Dr. S. Amr, who gave much of their efforts and time to prepare for the launching of the newsletter. Waiting for your news and material, I hope that our newsletter will be a great success. |
| IBN AL-NAFIS Scholarship |
Department of Pathology at Trafford Healthcare NHS Trust announces the Ibn Al-Nafis Scholarship. This is to pay for a single accommodation up to six months to a young pathologist just before getting his/her consultant grade. The nominee will be allowed good exposure to the running of Pathology services in the UK , the interaction of Pathology and other disciplines in this hospital, and possibly initiating a research program. Following the period of training, the trainee is required to: - 1- Write a report addressed to the IAP/AD about his/her experience. This report may appear in the Newsletter of the IAP/AD. 2- Upon return back to his/her home country, implement the experience he/she has gained and if applicable open research communication with Dr. Haboubi’s Department. As there will be a strong interest in this opportunity, the selection will be made strictly on CV’s and may give some consideration for certain geographical consideration. For more information, kindly contact: |
| The 13th Annual Meeting in Damascus Dr. Ghazi
Zaatari |
The l3th Annual Scientific Meeting in Damascus last September was an enjoyable and rewarding event. Despite the atmosphere of worldwide apprehension and fear that followed the tragic events of September ll. 2001 in the U.S.A, the meeting accomplished its objectives in bringing together 250 pathologists from the Arab World, Europe and N. America.
Opening ceremony of the 13th annual meeting in Damascus, Syria The participation and strong presence of the French Division of the International Academy added richness to the scientific program and its deliberations. As for the accomplishments at the meeting, the Executive Committee of the Division has approved the revisions to the Constitution and Bylaws of the Division. These will be put into effect at the next meeting. An additional landmark for the Division is the establishment of the Arab School of Pathology. Its objective is to promote teaching of pathology at the undergraduate level and postgraduate education to pathologists and other members of the medical and paramedical profession in the Arab World. This will be accomplished through: The Bylaws for the school were approved and Dr. Gamal Abdul Aal, the Councilor from UAE, has been elected to be the first Chairperson of the School and he will be actively working on organizing the first workshop in the near future. The l4th Scientific Meeting will be held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia next September and Dr. Fouad El-Dayel is spearheading the organization for it. The General Assembly endorsed the nominations of Dr. Samir Amr for President-elect and Dr. Ghazi Zaatari for Secretary.
Closing ceremony of the 13th annual meeting, Damascus, Syria On the side, the Executive Committee visited H.E. Dr. Mohammad Eyad Chatti in his office at the Ministry of Health to thank him for the sponsorship of his Ministry to the Damascus Meeting. In his long tradition of understanding and staunch support of the Division, Dr. Chatti expressed the willingness of his Ministry to underwrite the printing expenses of the Division’s Newsletter. Moreover, Dr. Chatti invited Dr. Moufid Jokhadar, the Secretary General of the Arab Board of Medical Specializations and together, we explored the prospect of the Arab Board of Pathology. Both Dr. Chatti and Dr. Jokhadar expressed their endorsement for this prospect and Dr. Jokhadar will seek the input of the Division in pursuing this objective. At the conclusion of the meeting. I turned the baton of the presidency of the Division to my able colleague and friend, Dr. Sharif Salem. On behalf of all the attendants, I would like to expand my heartiest gratitude for our Syrian colleagues to their kind hospitality and to President Bashar Assad for his patronage of the meeting.
Soufi dance in one of the old Damascus restaurants, 13th annual meeting
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| IBN SINA Congress of Pathology Tunis, Tunisia. November 8-12, 2001 Prof. Mansour Ben Abdullah |
Is it ever possible to bring Ibn Sina back to life and make him talk, move and spend a few days with us in a congress holding his name? Though the idea sounds terrific, nobody denies the fact that the first part of it is well beyond our reach . We thought, however that it might be possible to bring its last part up to light. Here's what we have done. The idea of establishing the Ibn Sina Congress of pathology started about two years ago when professor Abdulkhalik Ben Rajib (Tunisia) started thinking about a one-day scientific meeting as a continuation of his academic interest in disseminating up-to-date knowledge in pathology. Following many correspondences, he could crystallize the idea of a sort of a congress that might be supervised by the International Academy of Pathology / Arab Division and the Tunisian College of Medicine, and to which distinguished pathologists could be invited.
Scientific committee discussing the best poster He collaborated with other colleague pathologists in the Tunisian Society of Pathology and the newly formed Club of Pathology in this regards. The idea was very simple, but needed extremely hard work to get materialized and that was exactly what happened. Guests and speakers from abroad started to arrive during the first week of November. Those who had arrived first could enjoy magnificent sight seeing tours through Tunisia. No later than the afternoon of the 7th of November, 2002, when every thing was set up in place and everybody was eagerly waiting for the sun of the next morning to arise. Thursday morning was beyond the expectations of many of us. Extensive gathering of top pathologists from many Arab countries and from the UK had taken place. The program was opened with up-to-date experience about GI tract lymphoma both gastric and intestinal with many interesting clinical and epidemiological findings associated with ultrasonic, endoscopic and molecular data, in addition to the Tunisian experience in chemotherapy and surgical intervention. After that, an interesting lecture about the contribution of the Arab – Islamic medicine in the science of anatomy during the period from the Ninth to the Thirteenth century. attracted much attention. (See the article about the subject in this issue). The opening ceremony was postponed till the afternoon when a warm word of welcome addressed to all attendants and wishing all the success to the congress was given in the name of Professor Rachid Mechmech: The Dean of the College of Medicine of Tunis. Finally, there was a lecture about non-invasive ductal intraepithelial neoplasia and micro carcinoma. The second day started with a lecture about Celiac disease and related conditions followed by poster presentations, another lecture about collagenous colitis, free paper presentations and a symposium by DAKO biopartners. During the coffee break, a meeting was called for with the fellow participants from Algeria and Jordan. The principle topics discussed were: The names were to be announced the following day. Social activities were not far from the thinking of the organisers. That Friday night, a beautiful party in Professor Al-May’s house where everybody enjoyed delicious traditional food and the fine Andalusia music was unforgettable. Saturday morning was no exception. During the first hours, The Ibn Sina Awards were announced (The prizes included a sum of money and a memorial plate). The prizes went to Dr. Ayda Aiadi-Kaddour for the best poster and to Dr. Salma Abdelmoula for the best paper. Following that ceremony, the attendants listened to state- of-the-art lectures about FNA of the lymph node, followed by a workshop. That afternoon was spent sightseeing and shopping in the old markets of Tunis. Fellow doctors from Jordan and Algeria participated in that activity and made new friendships. That evening all attendants enjoyed the Congress Dinner accompanied by Magribi and Eastern music in one of the biggest hotels of the capital. The dinner was unforgettable, neither was that windy night. Next Sunday was a free day. Participants were off from the scientific, but not from the social activities. Visiting galleries, monuments, museums, the old city and Sidi Bou Said were among many others. Monday morning was reserved for FNA of the Thyroid Gland, followed by practical demonstrations and a Workshop. Finally the congress was closed by distributing certificates of attendance. By Monday evening the congress was over and people began to say farewell to each other. Though the last four days were full of joy, many of us could not hide the thin feeling of sadness that naturally accompanies the end of such friendly gatherings. That feeling soon evaporated when all of us agreed to meet again in Saudi Arabia during the next IAP/AD Congress. |
| Fourth Syrian Pathology Society Meeting Lattakia,
Syria
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Ninety pathologists attended the 4th Annual Meeting of the Syrian Pathology Society in the Mediterranean city of Lattakia The 4th Meeting of the Syrian Society of Pathology was held in Lattakia between the period 18-19 April -2002 at the Meridian Hotel. This annual scientific meeting had been regularly held over the past four years. The will and perseverance of the Syrian members with the support made by their colleagues from Arab Division of IAP as well as many delegates from France, contributed to the success of the meeting. The main topics of the meeting were: Gastrointestinal Pathology, Malignant Lymphoma, Soft Tissue Tumors and Recent Advances in Immunohistochemistry. Approximately 90 pathologists attended this meeting including 10 delegates from France, Saudi Arabia and Lebanon. More than 15 platform presentations were delivered.
Dr, Zaatari’s comprehensive lecture entitled "Bladder Urothelial Neoplasms" added to the success of the meeting in Lattakia. Prof. A. DE Mascarel (France) held a slide seminar entitled "Gastrointestinal Lymphoma " and focused on the update of GI lymphoma and the MALT concept. Another slide seminar was held by Prof. J. F. Flegou (France) entitled "the Interpretation of colonic Biopsies". During this meeting new "Society Council " was elected; President, Dr. M.E. Chatti (Minister of Health), Vice-President, Dr. A.Z. Al-Shawaf, Secretary, Dr. Sharif EL-Salem, Treasurer, Dr. S. Al-Agha, Members, Dr. Gh. Baddour, Dr. O.J. Hassan, Dr. Z. AL-Shehabi, Dr. R. Beydoun, Dr. E.D. Mouhandes. |
| Calendar of Events
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15TH CONGRESS OF THE ARAB DIVISION OF THE INTERNATIONAL ACADEMY OF PATHOLOGY CAIRO, EGYPT TIME: FALL 2003 25TH INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS OF THE INTERNATIONAL ACADEMY OF
PATHOLOGY FIFTH MEETING OF THE SYRIAN SOCIETY OF PATHOLOGY HAMAH,
SYRIA CONTRIBUTORS TO THIS NEWSLETTER WASIM F. RASLAN, MD, PHD IAP-ARAB DIVISION NEWSLETTER |
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IAP President and Secretary Honored |
Drs. Zaatari and Amr presenting plaques of appreciation to Drs. Vogel and Mullick An annual gathering for the Arab pathologists and their friends in North America started last year at USCAP Meeting in Atlanta, Georgia. This new tradition, which had been spearheaded by Dr Wael Sakr, Professor of Pathology at Wayne State School of Medicine, Detroit, Michigan, is becoming one of the highlights of USCAP meetings for the Arab pathologists attending those meetings. Our Division took this gathering as an opportunity to introduce its goals and achievements. This year, a gathering took place at Riza Restaurant in downtown Chicago on February 25, 2002, with over 40 people in attendance. Dr Ghazi Zaatari, Secretary of the Division and Dr Samir Amr, President-elect attended that dinner along with a group of councilors and officials from the IAP Council. Dr Amr made a presentation about the Arab Division: Its beginnings and its ambitions. This was followed by presentation of appreciation plaques to Dr Stephen Vogel, President of IAP and Dr Florabell Mullick, Secretary of IAP for their continuous encouragement and support for the Division. A tasty Persian dinner of kebab and seafood made an excellent finale for this gathering. Several pathologists expressed their interest in participation in future Division activities and meetings. |
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The Arab Division of the International Academy of Pathology The Beginnings and the Way Ahead Part Two Samir S. Amr, MD |
Our Division was to have its Fourth Meeting on April 22-24, 1991 in Kuwait. Following the invasion of Kuwait, all our plans were in shambles. The influx of massive number of military forces from various countries to our region, and the massive movement of people from Kuwait, made an atmosphere of an inevitable war. We were concerned about the safety of our colleagues in Kuwait and Iraq as well as the integrity of the Division. On November 28, 1990, our secretary then, Dr. Yahia Dajani, sent a message to the members of the Division informing them about the "postponement" of the meeting which was supposed to be held in Kuwait. He contacted Dr. M Adnani, our President at that time, who was residing in London after he left Kuwait, and asked his advice concerning handing the duties of the presidency to the President-Elect, Dr. Abdulla Khalil, in the light of the prevailing atmosphere, and the inability of Dr. Adnani to lead the Division after leaving Kuwait.
Council meeting at the 4th meeting, Amman, 1992 The Second Gulf War erupted on January 15, 1991. I was in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, at the heart of the events during this war. I stayed in Dhahran until the war was over in March 1991. After the cessation of hostilities, I went to Amman, Jordan in April to visit my family there. At the initiative of Dr. Dajani, a limited Council meeting was convened on April 23, 1991. We were only three in attendance: Dr. Dajani, Dr. M Faisal Kamal, our treasurer and myself. We agreed on several points to keep the Division functional. This included sending a letter to the members to update them on the current affairs of the Division. The term of council was automatically extended to the next meeting, which was proposed to be held in Amman in 1992. A hand-carried letter from our Council member in Iraq, Dr. Tahseen Al
Saleem assured us of the safety of our colleagues there. We decided to
invigorate the Division by contacting the pathologists in Damascus to
have the participation of our Syrian colleagues in the future activities
of the Division.
Sixth annual meeting in Hammamet, Tunisia, 1994 Dr. Dajani sent another letter to the members of the Division on May 28, 1991 informing them about the new developments, and encouraging them to keep their interest in the affairs of the Division. He also informed the members that he was elected as Vice President for Asia at the IAP Council. That was an important landmark for our fledging Division. In his new position, Dr. Dajani was able to establish liaison with other Divisions and can have more support from IAP. A council meeting was held in Amman on August 15, 1991. Dr. Abdulla Khalil was presiding the meeting. It was decided to hold the Fourth Meeting for the Division in Amman on June 24-25, 1992. A flurry of announcements regarding this meeting was sent to members. Advertisements were placed in the Annals of Saudi Medicine and the Saudi Medical Journal. The Fourth Meeting took place at Amra Hotel in Amman. It was the same hotel where the First Meeting was held in 1988, a symbolic coincidence for the re-birth of the Division after the shock waves of the Second Gulf War. Dr. Antonio Llombart-Bosch, The President of IAP, attended the meeting signaling the strong support of the IAP for our Division. Dr. Llombart-Bosch gave a lecture on present perspectives in Ewing’s sarcoma and two slide seminars on breast pathology and small round cell sarcomas of bone and soft tissues. In addition, he attended our Council meeting, and gave several constructive ideas. He asked our members to participate in the upcoming IAP Congress to be held in Madrid, Spain, in October 1992. We responded positively to this invitation. Later on, over 20 Arab pathologists attended the 19th IAP Congress in Madrid. We had representatives from Syria (Dr. Sharif El Salem) and Tunisia (Dr. Muncif Zitouna) attending our council meeting. That was a step forward in attracting more participation from other Arab countries. Both were asked to contact pathologists from their countries. We started a new tradition at this meeting: A lecture related to history of medicine. Our first guest speaker on this topic was Dr. Ghada H Karmi, a Palestinian physician residing in the United Kingdom. Her lecture was entitled "History of Arabic Pathology". Other guest speakers to this meeting were Dr. Dennis Wright (UK), who gave two lectures and one slide seminar on malignant lymphoma; and Dr. HK Ng (Hong Kong), who gave two lectures and one slide seminar related to neuropathology. The members who attended the meeting presented a total of 21 papers. Our Division was born again… The Fifth Meeting was held in Cairo, Egypt at Gezirah Sheraton Hotel on November 6-7, 1993, under the auspices of the National Cancer Institute of Egypt. Dr. Nabil El Bolkainy was the president of the meeting. There was large number of participating pathologists from Egypt. Dr. David Hardwick, the new President of IAP at that time attended the meeting, thus emphasizing the continuous support of IAP towards our Division. Our first contact with the British Division took place at that meeting: Prof. Dr. Kristin Henry gave a lecture on Epstein Barr virus associated lymphoma. That was the beginning of a fruitful and productive collaboration with the British Division through the help and support of Professor Henry. Other guest speakers included Dr. Gianni Bussolati (Italy) who lectured on papillary carcinoma of the breast, and Dr. Genevieve Contesso (France) who lectured on problems in breast pathology. In addition, there were three slide seminars. The first was entitled "Problems in Cancer Pathology" (20 cases) and was conducted by the staff members of National Cancer Institute and Faculty of Medicine, Cairo University. The second was entitled "Ophthalmic Tumors", conducted by Dr. Antonio Humana from King Khalid Eye Hospital, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The third slide seminar entitled "Renal Pathology" was presented by Dr. Majid Alousi, an Arab American pathologist at Wayne State School of Medicine in Detroit, Michigan, USA. Dr. Nabil Ebeid from Egypt gave the second lecture of history of medicine. Its title was "Medicine at the Times of the Pharaohs". A total of 79 papers were presented at the meeting, which was quite a jump from previous meetings. A new council was elected. His Excellency Dr. M Iyad Chatti (Minister of Health in the Syrian Arab Republic) was our new President. Dr. Sadok Korbi (Tunisia) was the President-Elect. At the invitation of our Tunisian colleagues, it was decided to hold
the next meeting in Tunisia. During the council meeting in Cairo, the
issue of publishing a newsletter for the Division on regular basis was
discussed. By now, our Division had recovered completely from the impact
of the Second Gulf War. Our membership was increasing and expanding to
more Arab countries, and our standing among the pathologists in the Arab
World was getting stronger. In addition to a large number of Tunisia pathologists attending this meeting, there were several pathologists from Algeria. This fulfilled an important point in the strategy of our Division: Expansion to North African Arab countries. There were several guest speakers from France, United Kingdom, USA, Italy, Belgium, Germany and Spain. Those speakers gave a total of 15 lectures. In addition, there were 4 slide seminars, 38 oral presentations and 21 poster presentations. Among the distinguished guest speakers was Dr. Kamal Ishak, Chairman of Division of Liver Pathology at AFIP in Washington, DC, USA who gave a lecture on pathology and nomenclature of chronic hepatitis, and a slide seminar on liver pathology. Dr. Kristin Henry gave a lecture on thymic tumors. Dr. Antonio Llombart-Bosch lectured on the current aspects of prostatic carcinoma. Dr. Gianni Bussolati presented a lecture on the myoepithelial cell of the mammary gland. Dr. Majid Alousi presented a slide seminar on liver pathology. Dr. M Prade (France) gave a lecture entitled "Concept de Coelomiose". Dr. R Heimann (Belgium) had a lecture titled "Criteres Histologiques des Carcinomes Papillaires de la Thyroide". Dr. Henry Azar delivered our annual history of medicine lecture: Ibn Zuhr (Avenzoar) contributions to European Medicine. Dr. Najib Haboubi, an Arab pathologist residing in Manchester, UK for many years started his long and dedicated association with the Division at Hammamet. He gave a lecture with a "musical" touch: Do, Re, Mi, Fa, Sol, La, Ti: Is this the complete viral hepatitis ladder? The richness and the variety of topics at this meeting, and the strong participation from the members in the form of papers and posters put the Division on the map as a venue for presentations and continuing medical education for pathologists from many Arab countries. The Seventh Meeting was held on August 21-24, 1995 in Damascus, Syria. The president of the meeting was HE Dr M Iyad Chatti. The sessions were held at Al Assad University Hospital. There were 2 lectures, 7 slide seminars and 33 oral presentations. In addition, through the efforts of Dr. Kristin Henry, the British Division held a 6-hour workshop on lymph node pathology. Dr. Philip Allen (Australia), President of IAP at that time attended the meeting and gave a slide seminar on soft tissue tumors. Other guest speakers included Dr. Anisa Kanbour-Shaker, USA (Seminar on gynecological pathology), Dr. Wael Sakr, USA (Slide seminar on genitourinary pathology), Dr. Najib Haboubi, UK (Seminar on colonic biopsy interpretation). Involvement of Arab pathologists living abroad was starting to take shape. A new council was elected at Damascus to express representation of our expanding membership. Dr. Sadok Korbi (Tunisia) was the new President, and Dr. Abdullah Darwish (Bahrain) was President-Elect. Representatives from Lebanon, Libya, and Algeria were added for the first time to the Council. The Eighth Meeting was held in Amman, Jordan at the Royal Cultural Center on September 8-13, 1996. That was the longest meeting (6 days) the Division had so far. Dr. Yahia Dajani was the President of the meeting. He invited an impressive group of world-renowned pathologists. They included Juan Rosai, Maria Luisa Carcangiu, Cecelia Fenoglio-Preiser, Kristin Henry, Kamal Ishak, Philip McKee, Nick Rooney, Gianni Bussolati, Antonio Llombart-Bosch and Najib Haboubi. The British Division contributed a full day workshop on dermatopathology (Dr. McKee), and lectures and slide seminars on hematopathology (Drs. Henry and Rooney). Dr. Rosai gave a surgical pathology slide seminar of 10 cases mostly related to soft tissue tumors. His wife Dr. Maria L. Carcangiu presented a slide seminar on gynecological pathology. Dr. Ishak presented two lectures: one on drug induced hepatitis and the other on histopathology and nomenclature of chronic hepatitis. Dr. Haboubi lectured us on colonic cancer. Dr Fenoglio-Preiser gave two remarkable lectures on gastritis and molecular pathology. In addition, there were 37 papers and posters presented by our members. At this meeting, the first Ibn Al Nafis award was granted to Dr. Linda
Abed from Algeria for her paper " 5 year study of adnexal skin tumors".
This award, which was proposed and sponsored by Dr. Najib Haboubi, is
given to young pathologists in training who are less than thirty years
of age. Its purpose is to stimulate and encourage young Arab pathologists
to participate in the meeting of the Division. For more detail about this
award, refer to the short article in the previous issue of this Newsletter.
The grand and long meeting in Amman in 1996 will remain as a legacy to
the efforts of Dr. Dajani. It set a standard to be followed in future
meetings. |
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Ibn Sina (Avicinne) 981- 1037 C.E Wasim F. Raslan, MD, Ph.D. |
Abu Ali al-Hussain Ibn Abdallah Ibn Sina was born in 981C.E. at Afshana near Bukhara (Central Asia). By the age of ten he had become well versed in the study of the Qur'an and the Arabic basic sciences. In his youth he devoted himself to learning Jurisprudence, philosophy, natural science, logic, and medicine. He showed remarkable expertise in medicine and succeeded in curing the King of Bukhara Nooh Ibn Mansoor at the age of seventeen when the experienced doctors failed. Because of this he was awarded a permission to use the king’s uniquely stocked library. Ibn Sina left Bukara and traveled west to Jurjan after his father's death where he learned from the famous Al Biruni At Jurjan he lectured in logic and astronomy and wrote his first part of his book AL Qanun. Later he moved to Ravy and then to Hamadan, where he finished his famous book "Al-Qanun fi al-Tibb".
Portrait of Ibn Sina In Hamadan he treated Shams al-Daulah, the King of Hamadan, for severe colic. For that he was made prime minister. Soon after he was striped of his power and was thrown in prison. To his luck the Amir suffered from a recurrent colic and had to apologize to him and to reinstate him as a prim minister again. This part of his life was very strenuous. He would spend the day at the service of the Amir and the nights working on his books and lecturing. After the death of the Amir he fled to Isphahan (currently Iran), where he completed many of his monumental writings. Nevertheless, he could not escape few brushes with the law and imprisonment again. His final year was spent at the service of the ruler of Isphahan. The excessive mental exertion and the political turmoil badly affected his health and he finally returned to Hamadan where he died in 1037 C.E at an early age of 58 years. His famous statement, which reflects his personality, was "I prefer a short life with width to a narrow one with length". During his relatively short life he wrote 21 major and 24 minor books. Other sources attributed 99 books to Ibn Sina. About 16 books in Medicine, 68 on theology and metaphysics 11 on astronomy, and four on verse. His major contribution to medical science was his famous book al-Qanun, known as the "Canon" in the West. The "Qanun fi al-Tibb" (the Canons of Medicine) is an immense encyclopedia of medicine extending over a million words. It reviewed the medical knowledge available from ancient and Muslim sources and was recognized as the most authentic medical work. The book is divided into five volumes, the first dealt with general medical principles, the second with simple drugs arranged alphabetically, the third with diseases of organs and all parts of the body from head to toe. The fourth part studied the diseases, which tend to spread from one organ to another such as fevers, and the fifth part dealt with compound medicines. The book recognizes the contagious nature of tuberculosis of the lung and the spread of the disease through water and soil. He was the first to describe meningitis and made rich contributions to anatomy, gynecology and child health. It also points to the importance of diet and the influence of the climate and the environment on the health. He even advised surgeons to treat cancer at its earlier stage and he emphasized the complete removal of all the diseased tissue. More than 760 medications were discussed in this book with comments on their applications and effectiveness. He recommended testing new drugs on animals and humans prior to general use. Due to its systematic and scientific approach, formal perfection as well as its intrinsic value, the Qanun superseded many other original contributions such as the Razi’s book Al Hawi, and even the works of Galen. AL Qanun remained supreme for six centuries. Ibn Sina's Qanun contains many of his anatomical findings which are accepted even today. Ibn Sina was the first scientist to describe the minute and graphic description of different parts of the eye, such as conjunctiva, sclera, cornea, choroids, iris, retina, layer lens, aqueous humor, optic nerve and optic chiasm. Ibn Sina called upon physicians and surgeons to base their knowledge on a close study of human body. He observed that Aorta at its origin contains three valves and described there functions in controlling the dynamics of the blood flow from the heart. Further, he observes that liver spleen and kidney do not contain any nerves but the nerves are embedded in the covering of these organs.
Front page of Al Qanun The Qanun became the text book for medical education in the schools of
Europe. The demand for it may be appreciated from the fact that in the
last thirty years of the fifteenth century it was issued sixteen times
- fifteen editions being in Latin and one in Hebrew, and that it was reissued
more than twenty times during the sixteenth century. From the twelfth
to seventeenth centuries the Qanun served as the chief guide to medical
science in the West. Dr. William Osler, author of the Evolution of Modern
Science, writes: "The Qanun has remained a medical bible for a longer
period than any other work." References: |
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Winner of Ibn Al Nafis Junior Pathologist Award IAP-AD 13th Meeting, 2001 |
The Ibn Al Nafis Junior Pathologist award winner for the year 2001 was Dr. Balkess Taha Garib. "A Methodological study: Introduction of AgNOR proliferation scoring system In oral squamous cell carcinoma." Department of Oral Diagnosis, College of Dentistry University of Baghdad, Iraq. |
