Susruta
V.K. SUBRAMANIAN
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Susruta (6th century B.C.) was a pioneer in many surgical practices that are in use even today.
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Susruta is the greatest surgeon in Indian history. His work Susruta Samhita contains information on surgical practices of ancient Indian, several centuries before Christ. It has medical knowledge, relevant even today.
Susruta lists 125 instruments used for conducting operations. Susruta was the pioneer of plastic surgery. He was the first doctor to advocate what is today known as the "Caesarian operations" in child deliveries.
Beacon light
He was also expert in removing urinary stones, locating and treating fractures and doing eye-operations for cataract.
His suggestion to give wine to patients before being operated upon makes him also the Father of anaesthesia.
He was also the pioneer in ensuring aseptic conditions before and after operations. Susruta was an excellent teacher. He advocated the dissection of dead bodies by students of surgery. His advice to students was:
"Without practice, you are like a one-winged bird that is incapable of flight. You should train your knife repeatedly first on natural and artificial objects resembling the diseased parts of the body before actually undertaking an actual operation."
Susruta's system of naming surgical instruments after the animals or birds they resemble in shape, is in vogue even today, eg., crocodile forceps.
Susruta has also dealt with measures to cure snake poisoning, dog bite etc. Today, Ayurveda, the holistic Indian system of medicine, is becoming popular all over the world. Susruta, along with Charaka, is the beacon-light of this great science.
This is an extract from the book The Great Ones by V.K.Subramanian, Abhinav Publications, New Delhi
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