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E Poulakou-Rebelakou

Publications and source records attributed to E Poulakou-Rebelakou.

14 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2003

Oribasius (fourth century) and early Byzantine perinatal nutrition.

BACKGROUND: The purpose of the study is the investigation of perinatal nutrition in the early Byzantine period. METHODS: The original Greek language works of the celebrated physician of the fourth century, Oribasius, were studied. RESULTS: The first Byzantine author who studied perinatal nutrition, Oribasius, provided his own concepts about the topic, focusing on the suitable choice of wet nurse and evaluation of the quality of the milk. His research proves that physicians from early Byzantine times were greatly interested in perinatal nutrition. He was aware of the knowledge of eminent ancient Greek and Roman physicians, whose extracts he quoted and opinions he generally followed. CONCLUSIONS: The study concludes that concepts of perinatal nutrition in the early Byzantine period followed those of the Hippocratic, Hellenistic, and Roman periods. The early Byzantine physicians then influenced later Byzantine and Arab physicians, and afterward, their research was introduced to European medicine.

Breast Feeding↗
PubMed2000

Child sexual abuse: historical cases in the Byzantine empire (324-1453 A.D.).

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this article is the presentation and brief analysis of some historical cases, unknown in the broader medical bibliography, of child sexual abuse in Byzantine Society (324-1453 A.D.). METHOD: The original texts of the Byzantine historians, chroniclers and ecclesiastical authors, written in the Greek language, were studied in order to locate instances of child sexual abuse. RESULTS: Although the punishment provided by the laws and the church for cases of child sexual abuse were very strict, a number of instances of rapes under cover of premature marriages, even in the imperial families, are revealed in these texts. Furthermore, cases of child prostitution, pederasty, and incest are included in the historical texts and some contemporary authors confirmed the presence of many such cases in all classes of Byzantine society. CONCLUSION: The research of original Byzantine literature disclosed many instances of child sexual abuse in all social classes even in the mediaeval Byzantine society which was characterized by strict legal and religious prohibitions.

Byzantium↗
PubMed1999

Abandonment of terminally ill patients in the Byzantine era. An ancient tradition?

Our research on the texts of the Byzantine historians and chroniclers revealed an apparently curious phenomenon, namely, the abandonment of terminally ill emperors by their physicians when the latter realised that they could not offer any further treatment. This attitude tallies with the mentality of the ancient Greek physicians, who even in Hippocratic times thought the treatment and care of the terminally ill to be a challenge to nature and hubris to the gods. Nevertheless, it is a very curious attitude in the light of the concepts of the Christian Byzantine physicians who, according to the doctrines of the Christian religion, should have been imbued with the spirit of philanthropy and love for their fellowmen. The meticulous analysis of three examples of abandonment of Byzantine emperors, and especially that of Alexius I Comnenus, by their physicians reveals that this custom, following ancient pagan ethics, in those times took on a ritualised form without any significant or real content.

Byzantium↗
PubMed1999

Kidney disease in Byzantine medical texts.

The most significant contribution of the great Byzantine physicians to the evolution of medicine is their effort to summarize all the medical knowledge of the Greco-Roman world, which included earlier sources in antiquity, lost forever in our days. The transition from ancient to medieval medicine included the adoption of Christian spiritual values, which took place in the early Byzantine period (4th to 7th century). In the field of nephrology, under the influence of Hippocratic and Galenic doctrines, the most prominent medical personalities, Oribasius of Pergamum, Aetius of Amida, Alexander of Tralles and Paul of Aegina, performed the role of the researcher and healer, as well as that of the encyclopedist. Their works on kidney disease are presented in this paper.

Byzantium↗
PubMed1997

Aretaeus on the kidney and urinary tract diseases.

Hippocratic medicine based on rational thought and clinical observation was the first to develop the speciality of nephrology. Five centuries later, Aretaeus of Cappadocia incorporated in his writings the achievements of anatomy and physiology from the flourishing Alexandrian School of Medicine. His work comprises two books on acute and two books on chronic diseases and this classification is extended into the field of treatment. Nephrological diseases are examined according to the above division and healing methods include, in particular, herb therapy.

Egypt, Ancient↗
PubMed1996

Abortions in Byzantine times (325-1453 AD).

The legislation and the texts of the most important medical writers of Byzantine times have been studied with reference to abortions, the ethical aspect of this social and medico-legal problem, the theological and the scientific approach. The theoretical basis of the permanent and absolute condemnation of all kinds of abortions except those permitted for medical reasons, is greatly influenced by the spirit of Christianity. In fact, religion supported the view that the reception of the seed in the uterus and the conception of the embryo means the beginning of life and accepted that the foetus is already a living creature. All legislation of Byzantium from the earliest times also condemned abortions. Consequently, foeticide was considered equal to murder and infanticide and the result was severe punishments for all persons who participated in an abortive technique reliant on drugs or other methods. The punishments could extend to exile, confiscation of property and death. The physicians followed the tradition of Ancient Greece, incorporated in the Hippocratic Oath, representative of the ideas of previous philosophers. According to this famous document, it is forbidden them to give a woman "an abortive suppository". The Orthodox faith reinforced this attitute, protective of every human life. On the other hand, the Church and the State accepted selective abortion based on medical data, such as prevention of dangerous conditions in pregnancy or anatomical difficulties involved. In conclusion, science, church and legislation had a common attitude to matters concerning abortion and this fact reveals an effort to apply a fair policy for the rights of the embryo and the protection of human life in Byzantine society.

Abortion, Spontaneous↗
PubMed1995

[Traditional medicine in ancient Greece (coexistence of Asclepian art and Hippocratic medicine)].

Ancient Greece created two types of medicine: priestly-religious one with god Asclepios and temple treatment and other rational one, formed by Hippocrates. Both coexisting types of medicine represented two non-antagonistic alternatives of treatment for the patients. In spite of differences between both kinds of ancient Greek medicine we have no evidence either of a collaboration between Asclepian priests and Hippocratic physicians, or of any mutual misunderstanding or hostility, Asclepios followers respected the tradition, believed in the divine descent of their profession, but remained loyal to the Hippocratic Oath. The fact, that when the rational medicine did not help the patient, he searched his healing in religious or other alternative type of medicine, happens often even in contemporary times.

Greece, Ancient↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Nursing homes for the old ('Gerocomeia') in Byzantium (324-1453 AD).

BACKGROUND: Research into the welfare institutions for the elderly, which were established in the Byzantine Empire. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of the study is the research into the texts of the Byzantine chroniclers and the contemporary historical sources so as to determine the social policy of the Byzantine State regarding the homes for the aged. METHODS: The histories and chronicles of the Byzantine writers, written in the original Greek language, were studied and analysed, so as to locate the extracts in the texts concerning the interest shown by the Byzantine State to establish institutions for old and ailing people. RESULTS: The care for the elderly in Byzantium was undertaken in special infirmaries, called 'gerocomeia', which operated all over the empire mostly in or near the monasteries. All these nursing homes were highly esteemed and the governor of the institution seems to have been a person of high importance. The most important nursing home was located in Constantinople and was established by Emperor John II Comnenus in the 12th century in the famous monastery and hospital of the Pantocrator. CONCLUSION: The study and analysis of the historical texts of the Byzantine period (324-1453 AD) prove that human-oriented behaviour, which derived from the intervention of religion, contributed to the foundation of many welfare institutions for the elderly by the Byzantine emperors, the church and some individuals who showed great interest in them.

Aged↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Theories and cures of the rheumatic diseases during the byzantine period (330-1453 a.D.)].

Most Byzantine medical texts described the rheumatic diseases. The Byzantine physicians, based on the ancient Greek texts, explained the causes of rheumatic diseases, described their symptoms and proposed certain treatments. The Byzantine medical sources described various types of rheumatic diseases, as inflammatory arthritis, chronic deformans polyarthritis, and gout. As it can be concluded by the available medical sources, during the Byzantine period rheumatic diseases constituted a serious medical and social problem, representing a remarkable cause of disability, and this complaint was part of the epidemiological interest of the Byzantine physicians.

Arthritis, Gouty↗