Repairing holes in the head: a history of cranioplasty.

Cranioplasty is almost as ancient as trephination, yet its fascinating history has been neglected. There is strong evidence that Incan surgeons were performing cranioplasty using precious metals and gourds. Interestingly, early surgical authors, such as Hippocrates and Galen, do not discuss cranioplasty and it was not until the 16th century that cranioplasty in the form of a gold plate was mentioned by Fallopius.

The history of spinal biomechanics.

The history of spinal biomechanics has its origins in antiquity. The Edwin Smith surgical papyrus, an Egyptian document written in the 17th century BC, described the difference between cervical sprain, fracture, and fracture-dislocation. By the time of Hippocrates (4th century BC), physical means such as traction or local pressure were being used to correct spinal deformities but the treatments were based on only a rudimentary knowledge of spinal biomechanics.