Hektoen International

A Journal of Medical Humanities

Metrodora: Egyptian physician, midwife, and surgeon

Geraldine Miller
Liverpool, England

The first page of On the Diseases of Women and their Cures attributed to Metrodora, preserved as part of a Byzantine manuscript from c. 1100. The Metrodora text begins at the marginal cross sign about three quarters of the way down the page. Folio 4v of the Biblioteca Laurenziana Plutei 75.3. Via Wikimedia.

Metrodora is considered to be the “the mother of gynecology.”1 Yet, for many centuries, she has remained unknown. Even today, there are few within the medical community who know much about her pioneering work as a midwife, gynecologist, and surgeon who performed “procedures ahead of her era.”2

She is believed to have been born sometime between AD 200–400, and although her work as a physician was mainly based in Greece, she was born in Egypt to a well-off family. Her name in Greek includes the words “metro,” meaning womb, and “dora,” meaning gift. There have been rumors that her name was an alias for Cleopatra, the famous female pharaoh of Egypt; hence, she became known as Cleopatra Metrodora. However, there is no evidence to prove this theory.3

Her Egyptian background enabled her to receive an education in medicine, as Egyptian law ruled that women were equal to men in that area. By contrast, the Greeks saw women as second class and believed medicine should only be practiced by men. In their eyes, medicine was “a divine science derived from the gods.”2 However, Julius Caesar (100–44 BC) ruled that any woman educated in medicine should also be allowed to practice, and therefore Metrodora was able to practice in Rome.

Her medical knowledge helped her develop both innovative treatments and diagnostic procedures. She wrote a medical textbook, The Diseases and Cures of Women, considered to be the oldest medical textbook written by a woman. It consists of 63 chapters and is one of the first to be written in alphabetical order. Some of the medical procedures described in her book are the origins of treatments still used in modern medicine. Metrodora opened her textbook with the following statement, in regard to the diseases and treatments she would discuss: “Some of them are intricate to create to treat and others are fatal, by these notes we will recognise each one.”1 Some of the diagnostic procedures and treatments were not to be found elsewhere, and Metrodora may have developed them herself.

Metrodora was a renowned gynecologist. She introduced the speculum for vaginal examination, developed treatments for vaginal bleeding, and proposed the application of “potato porridge mixed with goose fat in a form of pessos” for vaginal infection.4 This form of pessary was also believed to have been used as an early form of contraception.4 Her knowledge further allowed her to develop surgical treatments for cancers of the ovaries or the uterus, and she devised ways to aid in the safe removal of a dead embryo from the mother’s uterus.1 She helped mothers who were struggling to feed their babies with advice and remedies for the production of breast milk.

Metrodora also used methods to determine if a woman had suffered sexual abuse and was proficient in early forms of reconstructive surgical techniques. At a time when virginity was seen as one of a woman’s most prized possessions, women who had lost their virginity before marriage faced extensive social stigma and disgrace. She developed a surgical procedure for re-suturing of the hymen, thus giving the women back their visible virginity. She also performed reconstructive surgery on the face and breast.

Metrodora used some techniques that are still employed today in modern medicine. During an era when the medical profession was dominated by men Metrodora forged a successful career. Part of her writings are preserved in the Laurentian library found in Florence Italy.

The Metrodora Institute can be found in Utah’s Salt Lake Valley in the United States and helps develop medical practice for the future. Awards in her name recognize leading women in health policies, scientific research, and health education. The awards are hosted by the International Alliance of Patients organization via sponsor Vietris.

To conclude Metrodora worked as a physician and surgeon at a time when women were mostly regarded as second-class citizens to their male counterparts. Her medical knowledge helped her to develop both diagnostic and treatment methods that are still used today. Her training and skill helped her to treat and save many women’s lives.

References

  1. Dawkins, KA. “Metrodora: The True Mother of Gynaecology.” Lilas Wellness blog. https://lilaswellness.com/blogs/news/metrodora-the-true-mother-of-gynecology. Accessed January 6, 2025.
  2. Novo Scriptorium. “Aspasia and Cleopatra Metrodora: Female Pioneers of Medicine in the Christian Roman Empire.” 2019.https:// novoscriptorium.com/2019/08/23/aspasia-and-cleopatra-metrodora-female-pioneers-of-medicine-in-the-christian-roman-empire. Accessed January 5, 2025.
  3. Creekside Centre for Women. “Metrodora, A Pioneer in Women’s Health.” December 6, 2021. https://creeksideobgyn.com/metrodora-a-pioneer-in-womens-health. Accessed January 5, 2025.
  4. Ashley, E. “Cleopatra Metrodora: The First Female Cosmetic Surgeon in the Ancient World.” Dr. Emmaline blog, December 20, 2021. https://www.dremmaline.co.uk/blog/cleopatra-metrodora. Accessed January 5, 2025.
  5. Gregory, T and Markos, S. “Aspasia and Cleopatra Metrodora, Two Majestic Female Physician-Surgeons in the Early Byzantine Era.” Journal of Universal Surgery 2016;4(3):55. doi:10.21767/2254-6758.100055. Accessed January 5, 2025.

GERALDINE MILLER worked as a staff nurse in the cardio-thoracic department, on a male surgical ward specializing in cardiac pulmonary surgery. It was both a pre-operative and post operative ward caring for patients after cardio-pulmonary bypass grafts or pneumonectomy and lobectomy surgical procedures.

Submitted for the 2024–25 Nurse Essay Contest

Winter 2025

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One response

  1. Good comment, a little more scholarship (precise and critical citations) would be helpful (Cf. Kraetschmer K. Was Hippocrates preceded . . . Academia. edu )

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