[Rufus of Ephesus, On gout]

Aims. For a study on the timeline of gout from the Corpus Hippocraticum to the Renaissance, encompassing some 26 authors, we have focussed on a Latin manuscript - "De podagra" - of the Middle Ages (posthumous edition dated to the 7th-8th century AD) of Rufus of Ephesus (98-117 AD), during the reign of Trajan. A multipurpose study has been devised to 1) translate into English and Italian the Medieval Latin treatise of the 7th-8th century AD of Rufus of Ephesus on "De podagra"; 2) define the role of Rufus in the historical timeline of gout from the Corpus Hippocraticum to the Renaissance ; 3) analyze causes, clinical presentations and therapy of acute attacks and chronic gout; and 4) identify the plant-based remedies described therein. Neither an English nor an Italian translation of "De podagra", nor the identification of the plants described therein, has been attempted before. Methods. Plants were identified taking into account methods used for studies on Dioscorides and Galen. Results. The findings highlight the originality of Rufus of Ephesus's clinical approach to therapy and the vast knowledge of diseases treated by plants. Conclusion. Rufus of Ephesus, the third most famous figure in medicine after Hippocrates and Galen, celebrated for his studies in obstetrics, gynecology, pediatrics, and neurology, a gouty physician, left a personal mark in the history of gout by making full use of his clinical skills that had been maximized by the severe apprenticeship in anatomy and in the Corpus Hippocraticum.