Medicine Stands Still 1000-1400 (Medieval) Flashcards
What were the main killers of Medieval Britain?
Famine, war, Saint Anthony’s Disease, dysentery/typhoid/smallpox/measles, childbirth
What did malnourishment mean for people in Medieval Britain?
People were more likely to catch diseases
What was Saint Anthony’s disease?
A disease caused by a fungus growing on rye in damp conditions, once in bread it caused rashes and even death
What did 10% of England’s population die from in the Medieval Period?
Dysentery, typhoid, smallpox and measles
How many children died before the ages of 7 in Medieval Britain?
30%
At what age did 30% if children die during Medieval Britain?
Seven
What was the Medieval cure for asthma?
Swallow young frogs
What did Hippocrates suggest?
The Four Humours theory (recognised keeping the body healthy) realised different parts of the body needed different treatments, diet was important
What empire was Hippocrates part of?
Greek 400BC
How many books did Hippocrates write?
60 books - influenced Western medicine for a long time
What impact did Hippocrates have to this day?
Doctors still sign the Hippocratic Oath (confidentiality)
How was the Greek Empire (400BC) significant in the development of medicine?
(Hippocrates)
- Four Humours theory recognised keeping body healthy, different parts of the body need different treatments
- Influenced public health by realising significance of diet
- Big impact at the time as 60 books and Western medicine influenced for a long time after
- Impact now as Hippocratic Oath
How did the Roman Empire (150AD) help with disease and infection?
Built bath houses
How did the Roman Empire/Galen (150AD) influence surgery and the anatomy?
Galen (moved to Roman Empire from Greece) worked in a gladiator school - learnt about the anatomy and threading injuries - realised observation was important
How did the Roman Empire (150AD) influence public health?
- Aqueducts brought fresh water to towns
- Underfloor heating
How did the Roman Empire/Galen (150AD) influence medicine at the time?
- Galen’s books used as university medical tests - taught dissection to better understand the body
- Influenced Western medicine for a long time
How did the Arabic Empire (900AD) influence disease and infection understanding?
- Rhazes wrote first description of smallpox
- Arab hospitals trained people and had pharmacies
Who was Rhazes?
An Arabic Doctor who wrote the first description of smallpox symptoms
How did the Arabic Empire (900AD) influence surgery and the anatomy?
Avicenna (Arabic scholar) wrote texts; The Book of Healing and Canon of Medicine
How did the Arabic Empire (900AD) influence public health?
Believed cleanliness and fresh air were important
Who was Avicenna?
An Arabic scholar who wrote The Book of Healing and Canon of Medicine - were reprinted in Europe - used into 17th century
How did the Arabic Empire (900AD) influence medicine at the time?
Texts were reprinted in Europe and used well into the 17th century (Avicenna)
How has the Arabic Empire (900AD) influenced medicine now?
We still use some tools and methods e.g. stitching
What were the Four Humours?
Blood, Phlegm, Yellow bile, Black bile (dangerous as bloodletting etc)
What did medieval people believe made them ill?
- God
- Bad smells
- Supernatural
- Everyday life
- Four Humours
What did the Barber Surgeon do in the Medieval times?
- Most people with money went to him
- Had to be trained as an apprentice
- Mostly in towns and cities - some travelled country
- Carried out minor operations (pulling out teeth, setting broken bones)
What did the Apothecary do in the Medieval times?
- Sold medicine as well as herbs and spices
- 7 year apprenticeship for training
- Sold SIMPLES (medicine made of one hero of compounds which were a combination of ingredients e.g. red rose and bamboo juice for smallpox treatment)
What did Wise Women do in the Medieval times?
- Wisdom and skills handed down in family
- Usually knew the patient, reasonably priced
- Acted as midwives
What did the lady of the house do in the Medieval times?
- Expected to provide medical care for her family and workers
What was the apothecary’s treatments?
Bleeding - done by cupping (slicing a vein:/) or using leeches - thought too much blood caused illness - leeches still used today
What was the barber surgeon’s treatments?
Herbs e.g. camomile tea and lavender scented pillows for headaches. ointments for aching joints
Some were more strange eg toothache - hot rods in the cavities - thought tooth worm made the holes
What did the lady of the house and wise women use to diagnose and treat illnesses?
- urine charts (matching urine colour to the chart, sometimes even smelt and tasted it - still use urine samples today)
- zodiac charts (different parts of the body linked to different astrological signs and told them how to treat a patient)
Who was the first English Surgeon and when was this?
John Arderne - 1307
What did John Arderne do?
- medieval surgeon (trained in London)
- 50% success rate in removing anus growths (v successful for time)
- worked in 100 years war, developed understanding for major wounds and developed painkillers e.g. hemlock, opium and henbane - helped to stop need for cauterisation (which caused many deaths)
- talented at amputating
- wrote books with modern ideas e.g. The Practice of Surgery (1350) encouraged doctors to have a good bedside manner, talk calmly and trust own judgement (not relying on Galen or Hippocrates)
- treated the rich for a lot so he could treat the poor for free
What was Arderne’s book called?
The Practice of Surgery 1350 (encouraged bedside manner, talking calmly and making own judgements)
Where did Arderne work?
In 100 years war where he developed painkilling ointments, hemlock, henbane and opium
What was Arderne good at?
amputating and removing anus growths (50% success rate)
What was trepanning?
drilling into people’s heads to remove the demons (if they have a headache) - very dangerous but actually removed some pressure
What was the role of the church in medieval medicine?
- people encouraged to buy indulgences (prayers) and go on pilgrimages to cure them - site of St John of Bridlington was believed to be a source of miracles
- dissection was illegal (heresy) and scientists arrested e.g. Roger Bacon - Oxford lecturer who questioned church’s stance on Galen
- Christian duty to look after sick/poor
- set up 160 hospitals in 12-13th century (however many refused to take women/very sick people)
- church set up university schools of medicine in Europe (however Galen and Hippocratic texts taught)
- monks copied up medical texts and translated islamic texts
Where did people go on pilgrimages to cure themselves in the Medieval era?
St John of Bridlington’s grave - source of miracles v special to women in labour
Who was Roger Bacon?
an oxford lecturer who was arrested for questioning the church’s stance on Galen
How many hospitals did the church set up during the 12-13th century?
160 (but many were small and refused women/very sick people)
How did monks contribute to medicine development?
monks copied up Galen and Hippocrates texts and translated Islamic texts
What was the role of war in medieval medicine?
- lots of war led to surgical advancements
- cauterisation (sealing wounds with hot metal and could be fatal) replaced with wine as an antiseptic
- Arderne’s painkillers (eg opium) were used and drugs to knock out patients were used to allow surgery (however they could also kill the patient)
- army surgeons performed quick amputations but with saws and no effective anaesthetic
- tools invented e.g. arrow cup removed arrows with little damage
- diagrams e.g. the wound man improved knowledge
What tool was developed for removing arrows during the medieval times?
the arrow cup
What was cauterisation replaced with in medieval medicine?
wine as an antiseptic
What diagrams were developed to help understanding in the medieval times?
the wound man
What was the role of science in medieval medicine?
- Grosseteste - oxford uni and late Bishop of Lincoln encouraged scientific enquiry and experiment - his work led to development of spectacles
- Old text were challenged - e.g. Roger Bacon and the church’s view of Galen
Who was Grosseteste?
Bishop of Lincoln - his work led to development of spectacles and he encouraged scientific enquiry
What was life in a Medieval Hospital like?
- Bishop Lanfranc constructed a stone building, split into two for sick men and women - made arrangements for food and clothing
- rules (of hospital in Bridgewater 1215): No Lepers, lunatics, contagious diseases, no pregnant women, no sucking infants - when recovered should be let out immediately
- St Mary of Bethlehem 1247 specialised in “poor and silly people” - many hospitals acted more as safe houses for the vulnerable or care homes until you felt better
- clothes boiled and sheets changed every night, main treatment was prayer, monks used sophisticated herbal remedies and amputations, induced birth, stopped scurvy etc
How were medieval towns unhealthy?
- no police so crime was common
- wells for drinking water close to cesspools
- people lived close together so disease spread rapidly
What was the debate on pus during the medieval period?
- some surgeons believed in Galen’s idea that pus helped healing - led to deaths from infection
- some attempted to clean wounds with vinegar, wine or honey (islamic ideas) - this was also rarely effective
- infection was the most common cause of surgical death
What were the rules of a hospital in Bridgewater 1215?
No Lepers, lunatics, contagious diseases, no pregnant women, no sucking infants - when recovered should be let out immediately
What was the most common cause of surgical death?
infection
Who was Theodoric?
- bishop in italy
- wrote surgical books e.g. the Cyrurgia - challenged Galen and encouraged an antiseptic and anaesthetic approach - sponge soaked in opium, mandrake, hemlock etc induced unconsciousness - and bandages pre-soaked in wine
What were the features of islamic medicine?
- muslims believed learning was important, translated greek/roman texts
- used clinical observation
- understood importance of hygiene
- set up hospitals - these also trained doctors by awarding medical licences
- islam didn’t permit dissection of human bodies
- appealing to Allah was encouraged - believed disease was sent from God
What did muslims use to treat the sick?
- invented distillation to make drugs/anaesthetic
- developed successful anaesthetic (surgery less painful)
- having a medical licence meant you could open up a practice anywhere
- good hygiene would lead to a healthy body
- charity was important to islam - one hospital gave outpatients money to allow them time for rest
Who was Rhazes?
- Arab doctor
- El Hawl covered arab and greek medicine
- also wrote 200 medical works
- wrote of the difference between smallpox and measles
- first to consider allergies and diagnose hay fever
Who was Ibn al-Nafis?
- Islamic doctor
- discovered how blood was circulated through the heart - closest to discovering the complete circulatory system until the 17th century
Who wrote around 200 texts including El Hawk?
Rhazes
What was average age of death in the medieval period?
35
How much did population increase by between 1200-1400?
500% - 1200-1400
What did the Mayor’s Proclamation 1421 require?
That every man clean the street in front of his house every Saturday or pay a 12 penny fine
When was the Mayor’s Proclamation?
1421
When did Coventry introduce designated waste-disposal locations and how did the council do this?
1427 - 5 waste-disposal locations (e.g. dunghill, muck hill and pit) - waste disposal in River Sherbourne banned 9 times
What did the council in Coventry do to prevent flooding?
1421 - all latrines over the Red Ditch (local stream) ordered to be removed, attempts to stop stables and butchers throwing waste into River Sherbourne
When was the plague in medieval times?
1348-50
How much of the population did the plague wipe out in 1948-49?
50-66%
What did people in medieval times think caused the plague?
- miasma (bad smells)
- four humours out of balance
- God as people weren’t going to church enough
- jews poisoned wells
- earthquake in china
- the planets
What ddi people do to avoid the plague in medieval times?
- prayer
- burning candles in church
- bathing in urine
- posy of herbs
- avoiding victims
- not eating much
What did people do to help those affected with the black death?
- pop open buboes to release disease
- attach chickens to buboes to drive away disease
- drink vinegar mercury mix
- hagellation (prayers and whipping self)
- bleeding to release evils
