"When we think about the history of sleep science, the story is often told as a leap from ancient Greek philosophy to modern medicine. But a new study shows that medieval physicians made several profound and interesting discoveries when it came to how we sleep. A review article by sleep specialist Ahmed S. BaHammam argues that medieval Arabic and Persian physicians developed a "sophisticated understanding of sleep and dreams.""
"Al-Rāzī is also credited with something that looks surprisingly like early clinical comparison. In one passage, he describes treating one group of meningitis patients while deliberately withholding bloodletting in another group to observe differences in outcomes. Severe insomnia appears among the warning signs he tracks. While this is not a modern clinical trial, it shows a clear attempt to use structured observation and comparison in medical reasoning."
"Centuries before sleep paralysis became a common subject in modern medicine, al-Rāzī gave a vivid description of the condition he called al-kābūs (the nightmare): "When the nightmare occurs, the person feels something heavy pressing upon them and finds themselves unable to cry out.""
Medieval Arabic and Persian physicians produced nuanced clinical observations and interventions regarding sleep and dreams. They described, classified, and treated sleep-related problems with methods resembling modern practice. Al-Rāzī observed that normal sleep signaled recovery and linked sleep to healing processes. He compared treatment groups, withholding bloodletting in some meningitis patients to assess outcomes and noting severe insomnia as a warning. He provided a clinical account of sleep paralysis (al-kābūs) characterized by a heavy pressing sensation and inability to cry out. Other medieval clinicians such as Ibn Sīnā and Ibn al-Nafīs contributed similar diagnostic and therapeutic insights.
Read at Medievalists.net
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