Anatomy of the cranial nerves in medieval Persian literature: Esmail Jorjani (AD 1042-1137) and the treasure of the Khwarazm Shah

Research on anatomy discussed by scientists at University of Alabama
5 March 2008
Biotech Week

"ESMAIL JORJANI WAS an influential Persian physician and anatomist of the 12th century who did most of his writing after his seventh decade of life (see also Anatomy). Jorjani's comprehensive textbook of medicine, Zakhirey-e Khwarazmshahi (The Treasure of the Khwarazm Shah) was written in approximately AD 1112 and is considered to be the oldest medical encyclopedia written in Persian," investigators in the United States report.

"This was an essential textbook for those studying medicine during this time. We describe the life and times of Jorjani and provide a translation and interpretations of his detailed descriptions of the cranial nerves, which were written almost a millennium ago. Medieval Persian and Muslim scholars have contributed to our current knowledge of the cranial nerves," wrote M.M. Shoja and colleagues, University of Alabama.

The researchers concluded: "Some of these descriptions, such as the eloquent ones provided by Jorjani, were original and have gone mostly unknown to post-Vesalian European scholars.'."

Shoja and colleagues published their study in Neurosurgery (Anatomy of the cranial nerves in medieval Persian literature: Esmail Jorjani (AD 1042-1137) and the treasure of the Khwarazm Shah. Neurosurgery, 2007;61(6):1325-1330).

For additional information, contact R.S. Tubbs, University of Alabama, Columbus Children's Hospital, Sect Pediatrics Neurosurgery, 1600 7th Avenue S, ACC 400, Birmingham, AL 35233, USA.