The arabo‑islamic contribution to the evolution of cardiology

Abstract

In the 8th century AD, when the West sank into the darkness of the Middle Ages, the bloom of the sciences came from the Arabs. The work of the most famous Arabo-Islamic physicians reflects their knowledge of heart function and heart disease. Rhazes (864-925), claims that heart has two ventricles while Hally Abbas (930-994), was one of the first to deny the existence of communication between the right and the left cavities. Avicenna (980-1037) observed that there are three valves in the aorta’s outflow, which open when the volume of blood is ejected from the heart during contraction and close during the expansion of the heart. He was also a pioneer in examining and studying pulse and its wave. Finally, Ibn Al-Nafis (1213-1288) was the first to describe pulmonary circulation and for this reason, he is considered as a true precursor of cardiology.

Keywords

• history of cardiology
• Arabo-Islamic medicine
• Rhazes
• Avicenna
• Ibn Al-Nafis