title: History of spine surgery in the ancient and medieval worlds.
abstract: There is a paucity of surviving texts from ancient and medieval times that can shed light on the early development of spine surgery. Nevertheless, the author reviews many of the available books and fragments and discusses early developments in the field of spine surgery from the point of view of physicians' personalities, general themes, and actual surgical practices. For purposes of an overview and to highlight changing trends in spine surgery, he divides the paper into four eras of medicine: 1) Egyptian and Babylonian; 2) Greek and early Byzantine; 3) Arabic; and 4) medieval.
authors.affiliation: Leo Davidoff Department of Neurological Surgery, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Children's Hospital of Montefiore, Bronx, New York 10467, USA. goodrich@aecom.yu.edu
authors.forename: James Tait
authors.initials: JT
authors.lastname: Goodrich
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D018643:Arab World; D018612:Byzantium; D004285:Dogs; D004534:Egypt; D006115:Greece; D049668:History, 15th Century; D049690:History, Ancient; D049691:History, Medieval; D006801:Humans; D008374:Manuscripts, Medical as Topic / Q000266:history; D008512:Medicine in the Arts; D009493:Neurosurgery / Q000266:history*; D019635:Neurosurgical Procedures / Q000266:history* / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence / Q000379:methods; D019637:Orthopedic Procedures / Q000266:history* / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods; D009985:Orthopedics / Q000266:history*; D013119:Spinal Cord Injuries / Q000266:history / Q000601:surgery; D013122:Spinal Diseases / Q000266:history / Q000601:surgery; D013124:Spinal Injuries / Q000266:history / Q000601:surgery / Q000628:therapy; D013131:Spine / Q000601:surgery*; D013552:Swine; D014143:Traction