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Hakim Mohammad: A Persian Military Surgeon in Safavid Era (1501–1736 CE)

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Abstract

Background

Wars and injuries have accompanied mankind throughout history. Physicians and surgeons from various civilizations made difficult attempts to manage wounds and injuries. Among various civilizations, the Persian Empires had great armies which were well equipped. One of the most important organizations in Persian troops was the military surgery.

Methods

This study presents a brief biography of Hakim Mohammad (a military surgeon in Safavid era) and introduces his book, Dhakhira-yi-Kamilah.

Results and Discussion

Safavid kings (1501–1736 CE) with unifying all of Persian regions and provinces reconstructed the Persian Empire. Great scholars and physicians were raised in this era. It seems that Persian physicians and surgeons were well trained in Safavid era and many of them were even employed by other countries like Ottoman Empire and India. Hakim Mohammad as a military surgeon was one of such physicians who served in Ottoman Empire for some time. He gathered his surgical experiences and others in the book of Dhakhira-yi-Kamilah. This book was written in Persian. He has mainly written about the management of wounds and practical techniques. Later, he came back to his homeland and dedicated his book to the king of Persia.

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Acknowledgements

We gratefully acknowledge Dr. Hasan Mirsalehian (Assistant Professor, School of Dentistry, Shahed University) for sharing the photos of manuscripts of Dhakhira-yi-Kamilah. We are especially grateful to Dr. Zahra Bahaedin to cooperate in literary editing of the article.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Iranian Traditional Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Shahed University, Tehran, Iran

    S-Ali Khodaie

  2. Diabetes Research Center, Shahid Sadoughi University of Medical Sciences, Yazd, Iran

    S-Ali Khodaie

  3. School of Traditional Medicine, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Farzaneh Ghaffari

  4. Department of History of Medicine, School of Traditional Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Arman Zargaran

  5. Research Office for the History of Persian Medicine, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran

    Arman Zargaran

  6. Traditional Medicine Clinical Trial Research Center, Shahed University, Tehran, Iran

    Mohsen Naseri

Authors
  1. S-Ali Khodaie
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  2. Farzaneh Ghaffari
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  3. Arman Zargaran
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  4. Mohsen Naseri
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Mohsen Naseri.

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Khodaie, SA., Ghaffari, F., Zargaran, A. et al. Hakim Mohammad: A Persian Military Surgeon in Safavid Era (1501–1736 CE). World J Surg 42, 2421–2427 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00268-017-4410-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00268-017-4410-z

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