Hippocrates: father of mini-invasive nasal surgery.

Abstract

Hippocrates, a Greek physician during the fifth century BC., is often considered the father of medicine. The Corpus Hippocraticum comprising of 58 volumes was writing between 450 and 150 BC. The objective of our study was to detail the management of nasal polyps during this period. We read and analyzed all volumes of the Corpus Hippocraticum in French translation and extracted all passages dealing with nasal polyps (n = 6). Surgical procedures in the Corpus Hippocraticum are described in great detail. The first surgical strategy for the removal of nasal polyps was by mini-invasive nasal approach: the lopping method and the sponge method. We explain the two mini-invasive nasal approaches with drawings. The meticulously detailed observations of the corpus give us a precious insight into the early perception of diseases, their progression and early attempts of treatment.