The father of circulatory physiology

The study of anatomy is still yielding valuable discoveries, but each step along the way has given us more insights into how bodies function.

Among those who helped pave the way for our modern understanding of animal and human anatomy is Ibn Al Nafis, the Arab polymath best known for providing the first description pulmonary circulation.

Nafis was a physician, scientist and philosopher born between 1210 and 1213 in Damascus and died on Dec 17, 1288 in Cairo.

As an early anatomist, Nafis performed dissections on animals to glean new knowledge. He also performed several human dissections during the course of his work, making several important discoveries in the fields of physiology and anatomy.

In addition to his sharp explanation of how blood is circulated from the heart to the lungs, he also provided an early understanding of coronary and capillary circulations.

He was even appointed as the chief physician at Al Naseri Hospital founded by the sultan Saladin

Due to his discoveries, Nafis has been described by some as "the second Avicenna [Ibn Sina]”.

Apart from medicine, he studied jurisprudence, literature and theology. The number of medical textbooks written by Nafis is estimated at more than 110 volumes.