Medieval Britain Flashcards
Name two individuals who had an impact on medicine pre medieval time
- Hippocrates
- Galen
What is Hippocrates known as?
The father of modern medicine
What theory did Hippocrates come up with?
The Theory of the Four Humours
What did Hippocrates believe about all diseases?
They had physical causes that can be identified by observable symptoms
Which of Hippocrates’ ideas are still followed today?
- Observation of patients
- The Hippocratic Oath
What was the Theory of the Four Humours?
The idea that disease was caused by an imbalance of one of the four bodily humours (blood, phlegm, yellow bile, black bile)
What theory did Galen come up with?
The Opposites Theory
What animals did Galen dissect?
Mostly pigs
Why were Galen’s ideas adopted by the church?
They supported the idea that humans were created by God
What discoveries about the human body did Galen make?
- The brain controlled the body, not the heart
- Arteries carried blood, not just veins
How did the church help the development of medieval medicine?
- Had infirmaries to treat the sick
- Monks translated Greek and Roman medical texts
- Followed Galen’s ideas
How did the church hinder the development of medieval medicine?
- Punished anyone who went against their ideas
- Believed praying could cure illness
- Followed Galen’s ideas
What was miasma?
The idea that bad air caused disease
What were the different places to go to if you were ill in the medieval times?
- To a physician
- To a barber surgeon
- To an apothecary
- To the local wise woman
What measures were taken in Coventry to improve public health conditions?
- Forced people to clean the street in front of their house (or they would be fined)
- Created designated sites for the disposal of different types of waste
- Banned dumping waste in the river
Name 3 things a monastery had
- An infirmary
- A physic garden
- A sewage system
When did the Black Death begin?
1348
What percentage of the British population was killed by the Black Death?
40%
What did people at the time believe caused the Black Death?
- Astrological reasons
- God, as a punishment for their sins
What did people do to try to cure the Black Death?
- Become flagellants
- Burn herbs
- Methods to restore balance of the humours
What animals spread the Black Death?
Rats & fleas
Name 3 common medieval surgical procedures
- Bloodletting
- Amputation
- Drilling a hole into the skull to release demons
Why were Galen’s ideas about anatomy not all correct?
He dissected animals not humans
Name 3 Islamic ideas about health & disease
- The sick should be cared for
- Hospitals should be places of education as well as healing
- Dissection should not be allowed
Allah has not created pain without a remedy for it
How did Al-Razi help medical development?
- Worked out the difference between measles and smallpox
- Wrote over 200 books including Doubts about Galen
How did Ibn Sina help medical development?
He wrote Cannon of Medicine which detailed all medical knowledge known at the time. It was used as a medical textbook in Europe until the 17th century.
What advancements in surgery did Islamic doctors make?
- Invented distillation
- Used aesthetics eg. hashish and opium
- Performed eye surgeries
