Disease and infection Flashcards
The theories of what people think caused disease and how they tried to treat those illnesses
Who came up with the Theory of the Four Humours and what was his susequent nickname?
Hippocrates
‘The Father of Modern Medicine’
the theory was used for nearly 2000 years
What was the Theory of the Four Humours?
The four humours of the body must be balanced in order to be healthy. Illness is caused when one of the humours is unbalanced.
What were the four humours of the human body?
Blood
Yellow bile
black bile
phlegm
How did the Theory of the Four Humours relate to the wider world?
Seasons were linked to symptoms due to humour imbalance.
Dry rahes in the hot summer
Runny noses in damp winter.
How did Hippocrates earn the name ‘father of modern medicine’.
He encouraged doctors to observe a paitent’s symptoms to look for a cause related to them.
Encouraged good hygiene, diet and exercise
Although, his theory of the four humours was so heavily relied upon that it prevented doctors looking elsewhere for causes of disease.
Why and how did the Romans practise good hygiene?
Tried to look after their soldiers by having gyms, bath houses and toilets.
This was a public health system unseen by the Greeks or Egyptians.
Also had hospitals and health measures
Prayed to Salus: Roman Goddess of Health
How were Roman (and Greek) doctors trained?
Anyone could practise as a doctor without training/ regulations
Learn by shadowing experienced doctors
They may have read the Hippocratic collection, travelled to Alexandria, the medical capital of the world, to share ideas and gain new medical knowledge
Alexandria was also the only place where human dissection was legal
Quote part of the Hippocratic Oath.
Into whatsoever houses I enter, I will enter to help the sick, and I will abstain from intentional wrong doing.
Who were barber surgeons and what did they do?
In medieval times, most people would be treated by a barber.
Perform basic surgeries like blood letting but also major ones like amputation
Learnt as an apprentice, usually trying to heal on battlefields
Lead to death, infection and extreame pain so most people would try to find other cures to avoidd surgery.
How did the ancients treat disease?
They would try to rebalance the four humours by blood letting, purging and vomitting
Who were wise women and what did they do?
Medieval people would usually go to wise women for their main source of care and fist aid.
Also gave herbal remdies, some we still use today.
Did also use spells/charms to try to heal people
Using treatement passed down orally from generation to generation, rather than writing it down (probably illiterate)
What was a travelling healer and what did they do?
Went to markets and town fairs, performing minr operations like tooth extractions or fixing fratures and selling potions
Mostly in it for the profit, many of the potions were useless/ dodgy
Medieval period
Who was an apothecary and what did they do?
Mixed ingredients to make ointments to sell and for doctors to use
What was a herbalist in monasteries and what did they do?
Cared for the sick using herbal treatements, prayers and supernatural cures within mosteries
Medieval period
What were trained doctors in the Medieval period like and how significant were they?
They had to be university educated for seven years.
They charged high fees and were controlled by the Church
Could only be found in big towns and there were very few, only available to the rich within society
Still using the incorrect theories of Hippocraties and Galen
What were the beliefs of Medieval churches about the ill?
The ill were being punished by God and therefore, the Church should not try to cure the ill, but help them reach divine salvation through repentance.
How many hospitals did the Church set up and fund?
Medieval
More than 700 in England
What was a Lazar House?
Set up for those who needed to be isolated since they had leprosy.
Did keep wider society safe however, it also meant that no one would see these people dying despite praying to God for forgiveness, so would keep peoples’ faith.
What was the main aim of Medieval Church Hospitals and how did they achieve this?
To care not cure the ill.
1. They would enforce strict monestery schedules onto patients, hoping the hard work and prayer would mean God would forgive them
2. They also used some painful cures, like carving ‘in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit into a patients’ jaw.
3. The best cure was said to be prayer and pilgimage
Use the hospital of St John as evidence
What was the ethos of Medieval Church Hospitals towards their patients?
Very cold and no sympathy for the ill (who deserved to be ill because they had sinned and were now being punished).
St John hospital, Bridgewater, like many others, had strict rules as to who could be admitted into the hospital. Eg. no women, beggars, children ect.
The hospital, like many others, had rules on when to let patients leave: ‘infirm persons have recovered, they are let out without delay’
What did Prophet Muhammed PBUH say about scientific discovery and religion?
**
Every disease has a cure, if a cure is applied to the disease, it is relieved by the permission of God almighty.
Did Islam or Christiamity encourage scientific pursuit?
Islam did, medical knowledge travelled all over the Islamic Empire, often to Baghdad, where one of the largest libraries: The House of Wisdom was
What was the main ethos of Islamic hospitals?
First set up to help those with mental and physical illnesses, treating them with compassion and as victims of an unfortunate illness
What were brimaristans?
Islamic hospitals built in cities (under Caliph al-Rashid, 805CE) to provide care for everyone and doctors were always present, with medical students training along side them
Give the names of two influentail, muslim doctors whose works were translated and transformed the west
Rhazes and Avicenna
The their works were translated by Constantine the African when he came to Italy in 1065 and then by Gerald of Cermona when he died
Their works soon transformed Italy, and Podua and Bologna became the most prolific medical universities in Europe
Who was Ibn Sina?
980-1037
Wrote an encyclopedia of medicine: Canon of Medicine
It covered the whole of Ancient Greek and Islamic medical knowledge of the time
Became the standard European textbook until 17th century
listed the properties of 760 drugs and had chapters on anorexia and obesity
Who was Al-Razi?
Stressed the need for careful observation of the patient
Distinguished measles from smallpox for the first time
Wrote over 150 books including Doubts about Galen
Encouraged students to question, build off of and correcg their teachers
865-925
Ibn al-Nafiz
Considered to be the first to describe how blood circulates around the human body via the lungs
Galen thought that blood went from one side of the heart to the other, without going to the lungs
he wrote on many medical topics and concluded Galen was wrong
Not read by the West, who continued to accept Galen’s mistake until the 17th century
Describe the medieval practice of blood letting
Based on the belief of the four humours, and if you had too much blood you needed to be rid some to rebalance the humours.
Use a small cut under the arm or leeches
Didn’t cure, since blood was rarely tne problem, and could lead ro excessice blood loss and infection
