Sushruta Samhita

The Sushruta Samhita is a Sanskrit redaction text on surgery The original work is attributed to Sushruta, likely a historical physician from the 6th century BC Varanasi, although the text as preserved dates to the 3rd or 4th century AD It is one of three foundational texts of Ayurveda (Indian traditional medicine), alongside the Charaka Samhita and the medical portions of the Bower Manuscript The original text however is lost and modifications and edited versions are currently available (Ruthkow IM (1961) Great Ideas in the History of Surgery, pp 57 Baltimore: The Williams & Wilkins Company in Anatomy in ancient India: a focus on the Susruta Samhita Journal of Anatomy 2010)
The Sushruta Samhita, in its current form, contains 184 chapters and description of 1120 illnesses, 700 medicinal plants, 64 preparations from mineral sources and 57 preparations based on animal sources The text discusses surgical techniques of making incisions, probing, extraction of foreign bodies, alkali and thermal cauterization, tooth extraction, excisions, and trocars for draining abscess draining hydrocele and ascitic fluid, the removal of the prostate gland, urethral stricture dilatation, vesiculolithotomy, hernia surgery, caesarian section, management of haemorrhoids, fistulae, laparotomy and management of intestinal obstruction, perforated intestines, and accidental perforation of the abdomen with protrusion of omentum and the principles of fracture management, viz, traction, manipulation, appositions and stabilization including some measures of rehabilitation and fitting of prosthetics It enumerates six types of dislocations, twelve varieties of fractures, and classification of the bones and their reaction to the injuries, and gives a classification of eye diseases including cataract surgery