Abstract
Gout, from Latin gutta (drop), is the oldest form of chronic inflammatory arthritis in adults, due to deposition of sodium monourate crystals in peripheral joints and periarticular tissues driven by hyperuricemia. Literature spans from Hippocrates (460-370 BCE) to Atsushi Enomoto (2002).
Rufus of Ephesus, a physician who suffered from gout, was a prominent figure who floruit in the second half of the 1st century CE, during the reign of Trajan (98-117 CE).
The goal of the study are (i) to outline the contribution of Rufus of Ephesus to gout, (ii) to identify the ailments of vegetable origins used by Rufus in the therapy of gout, and (iii) to translate for the first time De podagra/On gout into English (ancillary goal).
Rufus authored De podagra/On gout, a treatise comprising 37 chapters where he embraced the humoral theory and taught a medical approach based on maintaining-restoring bodily balance. Podagra was curable at its onset, however, when inflammation sets in, there are reasons to worry. Diagnosis can be facilitated by the narrative of the patients on the onset of pain. If this was not the case, the patient “must be immediately placed on a diet, given an enema and bloodletting”. Exercise is an important adjunct to treatment. Baths are prohibited, but are helpful “when body suffers (insistent) pain”.
Rufus’s humoral theory emphasized early diagnosis, physical therapies, and dietary measures, which intriguingly echo some aspects of current lifestyles and metabolic approaches in nephrology. His detailed clinical method offers perspective on early semiotics in patient-centered care, predating evidence-based protocols.
Keywords: Rufus of Ephesus, On gout, humoral theory, exercise, massage, nutrition