Ophthalmological therapy in hospitals (xenones) in Byzantium

Based on the typikon of the Imperial Monastery of the Pantocrator of Constantinople (12th century) and the manuscripts used in the Byzantine hospitals as well as the published Lives of the Saints and other related sources, it is undeniable that special ophthalmological departments existed in the xenones of Byzantium. It is also proven, that specific ophthalmological therapy was practised here including surgery and particularly in the cataract operation. This last operation is attested to, not only by the medical writings of Byzantine writers but also from the therapies of the physician-saints Cosmas and Damian.