Medieval (1250-1500) Flashcards
Why did people point to God for the causes/treatment/prevention of disease?
There was limited science to answer questions that were unable to be answered. The church held huge amounts of power and influence over the people
Which disease was particularly attributed to God?
Leprosy
Astrology was another supernatural cause disease. What would astrologers look at after examining the alignment of the stars/planet?
A star chart that contained a list of remedies acording to the alignment of the planet
Who came up with the Theory of the Four Humours?
Hippocrates
What were the four humours?
Blood, Yellow Bile, Black Bile, Phlegm
What was the name of the cause of disease that was attributed to ‘bad smells’?
Miasma
What is a pomander?
A neckless that contains pleasant smelling herbs, such as lavender, to avoid miasma
Describe how urine charts were used.
The colour of urine would be compared to a ‘urine chart’. The Darker the urine, the more unwell the patient was
Explain why the church limited the development of medicine during the medieval period.
The Church focused the causes/treatment and prevention of disease on prayer and repenting sin. The church also discouraged any learning other than Galen/Hippocrates as they focused on a ‘creator’.
Explain why the technology limited the development of medicine during the medieval period.
Technology was limited during the medieval period and new technology and ideas was expected to fit into the church supported Galen/Hippocrates.
Who Came up with the theory of opposites?
Galen
Describe the theory of opposites and how it was used for treatment.
The Idea that an imbalance of a humour would be rebalanced by using something that is the opposite of a humour. e.g if someone is cold (containing too much phlegm) should be warmed up by sitting by a fire or eating a hot pepper!
What was blood-letting?
Blood-Letting was used to reduce the amount of blood to rebalance the Humours. This was through cutting through a vein or leeches.
What was purging and what humour did it aim balance?
Purging was the removal of of yellow bile by making the patient vomit.
What was Theriaca?
Theriaca was a common mixture, containing ginger, cardamon, pepper and saffron.
What was the regimen sanitatis?
This was a list of hygiene routines to keep clean and avoid disease.
Who produced remedies for prevention and treatment?
Apothecaries
Who performed surgery and why/
Barbers because they used knives
How would people purify the air to prevent miasma?
Use pleasant smelling herbs such as lavender and flowers. A Pomander was a herbs smelling neckless.
What was the main function of medieval hospitals?
To Care for the sick and ensure cleanliness rather than actual treatment
What % of hospitals were run by church?
30%
How many hospitals were there in England by 1500?
1,100
Where Did most care take place however?
At home
Who mostly took the responsibilities of care in medieval England?
Women
What did people believe caused the Black Death?
People believed that miasma and punishment by God primarily caused the black death
What were the ideas for treatment?
Praying to God, herbs to address the miasma and remedies sold by apothecaries.
What Did the Government do to help with the black death?
40 days quarantine for people entering a new area. Attempt to stop large religious processions (flagellants) as they usually attracted large crowds. Due To The belief in bad air, streets began to be cleared as people though the bad smell was from the rubbish would clear off the bad smell of the plague
Who were Flagellants?
People who whipped themselves as a way of preventing the disease from spreading by apologising for their sins - These were called Flagellants
