The first printed edition of this monumental work was published in Milan in 1473. It is very possible that this 1476 Padua publication was the second printed edition of this work. Avicenna was indebted to the tradition of Greek medicine, but he did not hesitate to add the results of his own observations as well. Among his contributions were the description of the preparation and properties of alcohol and sulfuric acid, and the argument that some diseases were contagious, such as tuberculosis and dysentery.