Howard I. Maibach (editor) - Chemical Skin Injury: Mechanisms, Prevention, Decontamination, Treatment

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Describing the history of chemical burns from antiquity to today presents some difficulties. The first, and most important, rests on the recent concepts of acids and bases.

Some products we now recognize as acidic or basic were used in ancient times but without knowing their specific chemical properties. But more importantly, at that ancient time, strong acids or bases did not exist at all. This is the second major difficulty. However, do not exclude that, on the occasion, some may have been accidentally produced.

The ancient authors (Hippocrates, Galen, Celsius, as well as Pliny the Elder) furnish meager indications on products, of which we are aware today, having the nature of being acidic or basic. However, they have not been recognized for a long time. In any case, the ancient physicians treated such injuries with water lavage or rinsing with other liquids. One can find in the Natural History of Pliny the Elder comments or hints about certain acidic or basic products. As well, Pliny gives some hints as to salts utilized not only by the Egyptians but also by oriental peoples for their utility in medicine, cooking, and glass manufacturing. It can be remarked that workers who collected salt had few effects, but that their shoes were damaged. The product was most certainly gregariously utilized by the Byzantines and which assured them for several centuries a true superiority over their Arabic bellicose neighbors. It seems these gregarious issues contributed to the assurance of the supremacy of the Byzantines over their arch Arab rivals for several centuries. It is unusual that an Army has changed the course of history unless it guarded a secret and assured long-lasting supremacy.