Medieval medicine 1200-1500 Flashcards
what was dominant in medieval society
the christian church and supernatural ideas
discuss god as a cause of disease
the church taught (and people believed) that god made them ill as a punishment for sin or a test of faith
why did people not want to explore scientific ideas
- many people were illiterate
- the communication of ideas was slow
- the church controlled education and taught religious ideas about the causes, prevention and treatment of disease
- people believed there was no need to search for rational explanations because god sent disease and he is omnipotent and can’t be overruled
discuss astrology as a cause of disease
- the alignment of planets and stars were thought to cause some disease
- astrology was used to help diagnose what was wrong with a patient
- use qof astrology wasn’t new in 1250 but increased throughout the period especially after the black death when the church became more accepting
how did the church control ideas
- most of what ordinary people learned was taught by the church
- it was the centre of formal learning: setting up and running univertsities where physicians where trained
- the church discouraged and banned dissection and in general didn’t approve of people challenging ideas of authority
- monks and priests could read and write unlike the rest of society who were generally illiterate. most large collections of books where in monasteries meaning the church was effectively in charge of what books were read
- the church approved of traditional rational explanations for disease
- promoted ideas of Galen as his theories fitted Christian beliefs that the body has a soul and that all parts had been created by god to work together in harmony - theory of the four humours
- the church also taught that people should follow Jesus’ example and care for the sick. many hospitals were housed in monasteries and nunneries.
what were rational ideas based on
the ideas of Hippocrates and Galen
discuss the four humours theory
The Ancient Greeks thought everyone had a mix of four humours in their body
- black bile
- yellow bile
- phlegm
- blood
they believed when this mix became unbalanced people became ill and this balance needed to be retained
carried into the renaissance
what was the theory of opposites
In the 2nd century AD, a doctor called Galen developed the idea of the four humours further. Besides bleeding and purging to get rid of excess humours, treatment based on his theory of opposites aimed to balance the humours by giving the patient the ‘opposite’ of their symptoms. For example, if you had too much phlegm linked to water and cold you should eat hot peppers
who was Galen
- Greek doctor who worked in Ancient Rome
- he wrote many books and his ideas were the basis of medical training in the middle ages
- he developed Hippocrates ideas and mainly used bloodletting and purging to prevent and treat illness as well as his own treatments based on the theory of opposites
- drew detailed diagrams of human anatomy using knowledge he gained from operating on wounded gladiators and carrying out dissections on dead (mostly animal) bodies
who was Hippocrates
- an ancient greek doctor
- ideas and books were very influential into medieval times and beyond
- he dismissed the idea that gods caused disease
- he believed there was a physical reason for illness which needed a physical cure.
- his treatments were based on diet, exercise and rest
- he also used bleeding and purging to get rid of excess humours
- he wrote the Hippocratic Oath where doctors swore to respect life and prevent harm
- his method of clinical observation (studying symptoms, making notes, comparing with similar cases, then diagnosing and treating) is the basis of the approach used today
what was miasma
- disease was the cause of bad air
- bad air indicated sin = god
- the theory originated into the ancient world but carried through the medieval period to the 19th century
