In the heritage of Islamic medicine, the names of tens of outstanding physicians and hundreds of medical works are shining, but the name of Avicenna and his book of Canon in the Islamic east and the Christian west (See: Part Two) enjoys a specific position. Since the age of Avicenna up to the present, more than 200 commentaries, annotations, abridgements and translations in different languages of his book of Canon have been made. These statistics is unprecedented as compared with the works of other Islamic physicians.

Commentaries, annotations, abridgments, translations and frequent manuscripts of Canon indicate that the book was used as a textbook and instructors and students of medical sciences were giving attention to the medical school of Avicenna.

The date from which the Canon was taught dates back to the age of Avicenna himself. According to Abu Ubayd al-Juzjāni, a pupil and a close companion of Avicenna, the students used to come together at the residence of Sheikh al-Raiss (Avicenna′s title) every night and studied his book of Canon and Shifā one by one under his instruction.