Soranus of Ephesus: the practice of neonatal manipulation in the history of ancient Western medicine

Soranus of Ephesus: the practice of neonatal manipulation in the history of ancient Western medicine

Authors

  • Silvia Iorio Department of Molecular Medicine, Unit of History of Medicine,Sapienza University of Rome
  • Marco Cilione Department of medico-surgical Science and Biotechnology, Sapienza University of Rome, Italy
  • Valentina Gazzaniga Department of medico-surgical Science and Biotechnology, Sapienza University of Rome, Italy

Keywords:

Ancient Medicine, Neonatal massage, Soranus of Ephesus

Abstract

The work of Soranus of Ephesus – the founder of gynaecology and scientific obstetrics – on neonatal therapeutic massage is truly interesting glimpse into the history of ancient medicine. This treatise, in addition to the importance it offers in describing important techniques that affect the body size of the newborn, is seen as the first study that conceptualizes the practice of massage as a process of shaping and modelling the perfect citizen of the ancient world

References

Thompson CJS. Massage in antiquity and its practice in ancient Greece and Rome. London: Wellcome Historical Medical Museum; 1923

Gazzaniga V. Anomalous pregnancies in ancient medicine. Med Secoli 2010; 22(1-3): 343–60.

Soranos d'Éphèse, (1988), Maladies des femmes. Texte établi, traduit et commenté par Paul Burguière, Danielle Gourevitch, Yves Malinas. Paris, Les Belles Lettres.

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Published

06-08-2024

Issue

Vol. 8 No. 2 (2024)

Section

Short report: History of Medicine

License

Copyright (c) 2024 Silvia Iorio, Marco Cilione, Valentina Gazzaniga

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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

How to Cite

1.
Iorio S, Cilione M, Gazzaniga V. Soranus of Ephesus: the practice of neonatal manipulation in the history of ancient Western medicine. Med Histor [Internet]. 2024 Aug. 6 [cited 2025 Mar. 15];8(2):e2024015. Available from: https://mattioli1885journals.com/index.php/MedHistor/article/view/15939