History of Neurosurgery in the Levant: A Historical Review of the Development of Neurosurgical Services in Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, and Syria

Abstract

The “Levant,” or “Bilad al-Sham” in Arabic, is a part of the Arab world in the Middle East extending along the shores of the eastern Mediterranean, bordered to the north by Anatolia (modern Turkey), to the west by the Mediterranean sea and Egypt, to the east by Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq), and to the south by the Arabian Peninsula. In the Middle Ages and before, this area saw the rise of great physicians and the development of major hospitals. The names of a few of those great surgeons and their landmark books, and those of some of the magnificent hospitals of the era, are chronicled. This article tries to trace the development of neurosurgery in this region and outline the differences in how this specialty developed in the four political entities that are located in the area, namely Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, and Syria. Light is shed on the educational institutions that helped in the development of physicians and how the specialty of neurosurgery started, and the pioneer neurosurgeons. Special emphases are placed upon tracking how neurosurgical training and residency programs started in these countries, placing this in the context of some health data and statistics about each country and relating that to the percentage of gross domestic product dedicated to health. The national neurosurgical societies’ history is outlined as well as the regional and international connections. A factual description of the state of neurosurgical practice in the Levant is detailed.