Abu Muhammad ibn Zakariya al-Razi: The Greatest Muslim Physician

Last month the nation’s top medical research agency, NIH, made a historic admission - that in part chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) is caused by repetitive traumatic brain injuries.(TBI). This finding has been welcomed by those in the sporting world who have long been advocating for the acknowledgment of this clinical connection.

However, few people are aware that it was a 9th-century Persian physician and polymath who first made important breakthrough findings about brain injuries such as concussions. Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn Zakariya al-Razi, also known by his Latin name Rhazes or al-Razi, was not only a physician, but he was a renowned alchemist and philosopher in the 9th century. 

Considered to be the greatest Muslim physician by his contemporaries, he is credited with many discoveries and pioneering techniques during the Islamic Golden Age, that pushed the frontiers of modern medicine. 

His vast range of knowledge spanned many subjects. As a lifelong learner, al-Razi was a big proponent of evidence-based science and applied methods. 

We take a look at five contributions to medicine he made that are still being studied and advanced but which owe their foundation to the initiative and brilliance of this man who was, without doubt, ahead of his time.

Credited to be the first physician to distinguish concussions from other head injuries.

Al-Razi’s contribution to neurology was multifold. One of his first discoveries in the field was uncovering the fact that the nerves in our bodies had both motor and sensory functions. With this knowledge, he was then able to label seven cranial nerves and 31 spinal nerves, from the optic nerve down to the hypoglossal. 

Later on, he was able to make a connection and emphasize the importance of the location of a lesion and the clinical symptoms patients may be experiencing. 

As a result, he was able to emphatically separate concussions from similar head traumas. 

Developed instruments used in modern-day pharmacies.

Al-Razi was fascinated by pharmacology and compiled numerous medical texts regarding how to treat specific ailments as well as recording his findings along the way.

He had an interest in the preparation and use of medicines. Honey, widely seen as therapeutic in early Islam, was something he would frequently prescribe and heavily advocated the use of it as a simple drug. He was the first to introduce mercurial ointments and invented several medical instruments that were used as recently as the early 20th century. 

His inventions include:

- Mortars and pestles

- Flasks

- Beakers

- Spatulas

- Glass vessels

Al-Razi was also credited with the discovery of ethanol and sulfuric acid. 

First to describe smallpox and differentiate it from measles.

Al-Razi became known as “the original portrayer” of smallpox. He was working as Chief Physician in Baghdad when he discovered the difference between measles and smallpox through clinical observations.

To inform the public of his findings, he wrote a 14-chapter treatise on the distinctions called “Kitab al Judari wa al Hasbah”. The book detailed how exactly to distinguish diseases from one another, treatment options, as well as commonly afflicted patients. 

The treatise was translated into Latin several times over the course of many years. Despite this, however, European physicians still confused the two and ignored his findings. 

Authored the largest and oldest collection of medical case histories.

The largest and oldest known record of medical case histories was authored by al-Razi. He was a prolific medical writer, using his records as an educational tool. Over the course of his career, he wrote more than 200 pieces of literature. More than half of the works were medically related. 

Documenting various illnesses and their methods of treatment, the largest book of his was the Kitab al-Tajarib. It is the largest and oldest collection of medieval medical literature. 

Another landmark achievement includes being the first to write a monograph specifically for children and children’s illnesses and how to treat them. The monograph in Latin was referred to as Practica Puerorum, meaning “Booklet on the Ailments of Children and Their Care”. The 24 chapters in the book addressed the various illnesses that can be found in newborns, infants, and young children. His work in this field led some to confer on him the title of ‘father’ of pediatrics.

Pioneering the treatment of mental illness.

When al-Razi was director of the main hospital in Baghdad, he set up a special section to treat mental patients exclusively. While working with these patients, he developed “Al-Tibb Al-Ruhami” which touched on mental health and the standards of ethics to physicians should adhere to. The book stressed the importance of bedside manners and how to treat patients in a gentle manner in order to help ease their anxiety.

Al-Razi classified psychiatric disorders into two different categories. 

The first category acknowledged the relationship between impaired thinking and perception. The different variations and combinations for which it could occur affected the diagnosis presented.

The second category, the persistence of the mental disorder symptoms, was further broken down into two sub-categories. Permanent symptoms involved direct damage to the brain and it involved a combination of primary and secondary symptoms. The appearance of this disorder was not sudden according to him. Non-permanent symptoms are a result of complications from other diseases such as meningitis, pneumonia, etc. 

Al-Razi was also recognized for his compassion for those in his care and it was noted that he would give his patients a small amount of money after being discharged for any necessary immediate needs. This has been recognized as the first recorded reference to psychiatric aftercare. 

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