Physician
Born: c. 375 b. c.e.; Carystus, Greece Died: c. 295 b. c.e.; Athens?, Greece Category: Medicine
Life Diocles of Carystus (DI-uh-kleez of kuh-RIHS-tuhs) on the island of Euboea became a famous and respected physician, sometimes ranked second only to Hippocrates. The exact dates of his life remain uncertain, but he lived after the Hippocratic school was well established and may have been a contemporary of Aristotle. No full writings of his survive, but later writers credit him with the first handbook on anatomy, along with works on physiology, aetiology, diagnoses, dietetics, and botany. He was best known for promoting the importance of practical experience in making sensible diagnoses. Diocles’ insistence on practical experience may explain one fragment that calls for more complex assessments of pathological effects, rather than simply assuming a certain smell or substance always reflects the same condition in every patient. Another fragment provides detailed daily and seasonal regimens for healthy living.
Influence Careful observation allowed Diocles to distinguish for the first time among different types of diseases of the lungs and intestines. He also established that a fever was a symptom of disease, not a disease itself. Two ancient inventions also bore his name: a type of head bandage and a spoon for removing arrowheads. Later physicians such as Galen praised Diocles both for his practical knowledge and for his theoretical positions.
Further Reading
Eijk, Philip J. van der. Diocles of Carystus: A Collection of the Fragments with Translation and Commentary. Boston: Brill, 2000.
_. Medicine and Philosophy in Classical Antiquity: Doctors and
Philosophers on Nature, Soul, Health, and Disease. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2005.
Lyons, A. S., and R. J. Petrucelli. Medicine: An Illustrated History. New York: Abrams, 1978.
Wilfred E. Major
See also: Hippocrates; Medicine and Health.
World History
