Diabetes mellitus from antiquity to present scenario and contribution of Greco-Arab physicians

ABSTRACT

Diabetes is known since the age of antiquity. The first description that resembles the features of the disease is found in scroll of Ebers papyrus [1550 BC]. Buqrat [460 BC], the father of Unani medicine did not specifically mentioned Diabetes in his writings, but there are accounts in the buqrat's writings that are consistant with the sign and symptoms of the disease. From the 9th to 11th Century AD, Arabic medicine was at its peak, during this period the Arab physicians translated the works of Greek physicians mainly Buqrat and Jalinoos and enriched them with the knowledge of that era. Ibn Sina a renowned physician of this era described the disease in his book Al-Qanoon and mentioned gangrene and collapse of sexual function as a complication of the disease. No progress was made till the 16th Century AD when Paracelsus reported that Diabetes was due to deposition of salt in the kidneys. After Paracelsus many scientist contribute their views to the development Diabetes, but scientific advances in the 19th and 20th centuries led to the discovery of insulin, which was the turning point in the management of diabetes mellitus. This led to an explosion of multidirectional research into the role of insulin in regulating metabolism and survival. In the present paper historical aspect of Diabetes and contribution of Greco-Arab physicians will be discussed