Praxagoras from Kos

Praxagoras of Kos was a 4th century BC Chr. Living Greek physician. He is considered to be one of the most famous physicians of antiquity and has been quoted frequently by other ancient medical professionals.

Life

Praxagoras came from the respected family of the Asclepiads of Kos , his father was called Nikarchus. With regard to diagnosis and therapy, Praxagoras was in the tradition of Hippocrates of Kos . He reached the height of his work around 300 BC. He probably used the facilities of the extensive Asclepius shrine in Kos, a stay in Alexandria cannot be ruled out .

Praxagoras was a contemporary of the physician Diocles of Karystos , although there are points of contact with his and the Aristotelian teachings as well as deviations. Overall, however, Praxagoras took its own medical standpoint. In the tradition of Western Greek medicine (early beginnings of medicine in the western colonial area, southern Italy and Sicily) he gave the heart a central role and assumed that the nerves had their origin there. Praxagoras was the first physician to differentiate anatomically between veins and arteries and assumed that arteries contained pneuma , a substance imagined as air-like, and transported this from the heart into the body, while the blood, which supplies the body with nutrients, flows in the veins. With regard to the pulse, he was the first doctor to point out the associated diagnostic possibilities.

With regard to the development of illnesses and the maintenance of health, humoral pathology was central to him . According to Galenus , who quoted Praxagoras, he modified Hippocrates' juice theory so that he came up with a total of eleven body fluids. In relation to physiology, the pneuma played a not unimportant role in the ideas of the Praxagoras .

Praxagoras devoted himself relatively heavily to anatomy, examining the brain, spinal cord and possibly performing operations on the intestines. This anatomical approach was later continued by his famous student Herophilos of Chalcedon . Only fragments of his numerous medical writings have survived.

The assumption that Praxagoras was the father of the poet Theokritos could not be ruled out .

literature

Kurt Bardong : Praxagoras 1 . In: Paulys Realencyclopadie der classischen Antiquity Science (RE). Volume XXII, 2, Stuttgart 1954, Col. 1735-1743.
Georgia L. Irby-Massie: Greek Science of the Hellenistic Era: A Sourcebook . London-New York 2002, pp. 296f. (Excerpts of the fragments in English translation)
Ferdinand Peter Moog: Praxagoras of Kos . In: Werner E. Gerabek u. a. (Ed.): Encyclopedia of medical history. De Gruyter, Berlin / New York 2005, ISBN 3-11-015714-4 , p. 1182.
Georg Wöhrle: Studies on the theory of ancient health . Stuttgart 1990, p. 170ff.

Individual evidence

^ Markwart Michler : Western Greek medicine. In: Werner E. Gerabek et al. (Ed.): Encyclopedia of medical history. Pp. 1476-1482.
↑ Jutta Kollesch , Diethard Nickel : Ancient healing art. Selected texts from the medical writings of the Greeks and Romans. Philipp Reclam jun., Leipzig 1979 (= Reclams Universal Library. Volume 771); 6th edition ibid 1989, ISBN 3-379-00411-1 , p. 21.
↑ Markwart Michler : Alexandrian surgery. In: Werner E. Gerabek et al. (Ed.): Enzyklopädie Medizingeschichte. Pp. 32–38, here: p. 33.

personal data
SURNAME	Praxagoras from Kos
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	ancient Greek medic
DATE OF BIRTH	4th century BC Chr.
DATE OF DEATH	3rd century BC Chr.

[1] Markwart Michler : Western Greek medicine. In: Werner E. Gerabek et al. (Ed.): Encyclopedia of medical history. Pp. 1476-1482.

[2] Jutta Kollesch , Diethard Nickel : Ancient healing art. Selected texts from the medical writings of the Greeks and Romans. Philipp Reclam jun., Leipzig 1979 (= Reclams Universal Library. Volume 771); 6th edition ibid 1989, ISBN 3-379-00411-1 , p. 21.

[3] Markwart Michler : Alexandrian surgery. In: Werner E. Gerabek et al. (Ed.): Enzyklopädie Medizingeschichte. Pp. 32–38, here: p. 33.