Medicine In Medieval England Flashcards
What was God’s roll in
The cause of disease and treatment?
Illness was a punishment for sin, God’s will.
Church promoted belief that it was caused by the supernatural.
Prayer and repentance, & flagellation.
Pilgrimages to relics or to resting places
What was Witches and spirits roll in
Cause of disease and treatment?
Belief that spirits would live inside a person and cause illness
People in Church did “excorcisms” to get these spirits out of people’s bodies
Belief that witches were responsible for spreading diseases through towns.
Astrologys role in cause of illness, diagnoses and treatment?
Doctors used star signs to diagnose and treat disease
How did religion slow progress?
Directions
The church only allowed dissections on criminals that had already been executed
Galens mistaken beliefs could not be corrected (holes in heart, blood absorbed not circulated)
One positive and one negative about the Churchs encouragement of the crusades
- moved funds away from Hospitals and health into wars
+ Western Europeana met Muslim doctors, ideas from Islamic Empire could be used
When was Bedlam found
1247, to look after mental illness
What happened to those who challenged the old books?
Monk Roger Bakon was arrested for challenging the books in the 1200s.
What Hippocrates promote or create? Apx.460 BC in Greece
The Hippocratic oath
Clinical Observation
The four Humours theory
How would the Ancient Greeks correct an imbalanceyd humour
Yellow, spleen, hot and dry, change diet or purging
Black, gallbladder, cold and dry, laxatives and more veggies
Yellow, brain, cold and wet, breathing steam
Blood, liver, hot and wet, eating red meat or drinking red wine
Galens theorys 129AD Rome
Theory of Opposites, new way to treat imbalanced humours.akao blood was absorbed by body not circled round it
Monotheistic, church supported his views
Miasma theory, popular till the late 1800s
Ideas lasted for 1,400 years
Public Health in ancient Rome
Introduced Aqueducts, sewages, baths and toilets.
Believed dirt, sewage and unclean drinking water made people ill.
Doctors followed Galens theory of Opposites. Bleeding was common, surgery was not
Gods could affect health.
Aesculapius and Carna
What sort of training did Medieval Doctors get?
No training
Learned from word of mouth or experience
Experimented with Herbs and charms
Could learn from Apothecaries, Healers and Wise Men/Women
Tell me about Barber surgeons
Had access to razors and did a lot of medical procedures. No medical training.
Cut hair, blood letting, and amputations.
Lots of deaths bec wounds were infected or lost too much blood
Influence of the church
Very popular
Lots of doctors trained at Universities set up by the church. Most based in Italy. Bologna and Padua.
Church & Galen
Monasteries controlled education, Galens ideas taught in Medical school. Fitted with the view of god = correct.
Downside of Doctors
Most found in large towns, still rare
Expensive, most people could not afford to see them
Some doctors observed and treated their patients on the battlefield.
Hospitals
Poor could only have hospitals set up by Monasteries.
However, lots of people who were ill were not treated, fear that the disease could spread to others.
Apothecaries/Wise women
Sold herbal remedies. Most people couldn’t afford to pay doctors so they used Apothecaries.
Surgery 😬
Pain, only natural anaesthetics, like hemlock or opium used. Very dangerous. Could kill patient
Infection
No link between dirt and disease. Believed pus in wounds helped a patient to recover. many 💀 from infections
Blood loss. No blood transfusions. Fatal
Common Surgical process. Most from Barber surgeons and or military surgeons
Little formal training for surgeons. Apprenticeships.
Bloodletting for rebalancing humours.
Amputation.
Trepanning. Drilling a hole into patients skull. Possessed by spirits, mental illness, epilepsy.
Cauterisation. Burned a wound to stop blood flow or close up amputated wound.
Medieval Progress in surgery, key individuals
Albucasis
Albucasis- 11th century physician wrote Al Tasrif, 30 volume book on medicine. Invented surgical instruments and popularised medicine
Medieval progress in surgery, key individuals
Hugh of Lucca
Hugh of Lucca- 13th century. Argued puss was bad for a wound. Used wine to dissinfect wounds. However did not overturn dominant idea that pus was necessary for wounds to heal
Medieval progress in surgery, Key Individuals,
Mondino de Luzzi.
Mondino de Luzzi- 14th century,
Popularised dissection and wrote Ananthomia which dominated medicine until 16th century
Medieval progress in surgery, key individuals
John of Arderne
Most famous surgeon in Medieval England, established ‘Guild of Surgeons’ in 1368.
Book Practica on his exp in the war with France and his knowledge of Ancient greek and Arab medicine. Created his own form of pain killers from opium.
