Renaissance medicine Flashcards
why were the ideas about the causes of disease changing during this period?
the reformation- Henry VIII broke off from the catholic church meaning they were less able to promote their beliefs
what continuity was their in beliefs about causes of disease?
miasma
god
supernatural
what changes were there in the beliefs about causes of disease?
4 humours had been discredited
urine analysis was discredited- doctors now understood there was no relation between urine and ill health
animalcules- small animals were causing disease
why did patients continue to use the 4 humours to diagnose themselves despite it being discredited?
they understood it
what did Vesalius’ first publication in 1537 show?
different parts of the human body labelled in Latin, Greek, Hebrew and Arabic
what did Vesalius publish in 1543?
On The Fabric Of The Human Body
how had Vesalius been able to carry out dissections?
local magistrates let him use the bodies of executed criminals
what errors of Galen did Vesalius note?
the lower jaw of a human is only one part, not two
the main vein leading out of the heart did not lead to the liver
men did not have one fewer pair of ribs than women
the human liver did not have 5 separate lobes
what did Vesalius encourage doctors to do?
base their work on dissection rather than books
what did Vesalius offer in terms of progress?
nothing- the church refused to accept that Galen had made any errors
why did doctors oppose Vesalius?
they said that drawing had no place in science
what did doctors say Vesalius’ work proved?
that the body had changed since Galen’s time
what did Harvey want to prove?
that Vesalius had been correct to say that veins contained valves that allowed blood to flow to the heart
how did Harvey prove that blood only flowed towards the heart?
he pumped liquids through the veins of dissected bodies in the opposite direction and it didn’t work
what was Harvey influenced by?
the mechanical water pump
how did Harvey prove that the arteries and veins were linked together in one system?
tying a tight cord around someone’s arm and cutting off the blood flow in the artery to the arm
what did Harvey publish in 1628?
An Anatomical Account of the Motion of the Heart and Blood in Animals
what did Harvey prove?
that the heart acted as a pump
why was Harvey’s work NOT a turning point?
there was still much more to discover about blood and it didn’t change treatments
why did some doctors ignore Harvey’s theory?
because it criticised Galen
when did English medical books continue to give Galen’s theories until?
1651
what was Thomas Sydenham’s nickname?
the English Hippocrates
in what aspect was Sydenham’s work significant?
in moving medicine in Britain away from the classical ideas of Galen and Hippocrates
how did Sydenham diagnose patients?
by closely observing their symptoms
what was one of Sydenham’s most controversial ideas/
different diseases could be organised into different groups
what did Sydenham stress the importance of?
bedside practice and observation of symptoms
what did Sydenham publish in 1676?
Observationes Medicae
what did Observationes Medicae theorise?
illness was caused by external factors rather than the four humours
what was Sydenham able to identify?
that measles and scarlet fever were 2 separate diseases
why was Sydenham’s work limited?
he was not able to isolate and identify the various microorganisms that were causing the diseases he was observing
what continuity was there in approaches to prevention and treatment?
bloodletting, purging, herbal remedies, removal of bad air, practice of regimen sanitatis, apothecaries and women cared for sick
what changes were there in approaches to prevention and treatment?
belief in transference, chemical cures, relocate to avoid disease, hospitals began to treat people with wounds and curable diseases
what was transference?
the belief that disease could be transferred to something else
what were pest houses, plague houses and poxhouses?
hospitals that specialised in one particular disease
why did war bring about improvements in medical training?
new weapons created new wounds which required different types of surgery
how did a rich economy lead to change in medicine?
hospitals could be developed meaning larger ranges of people could be treated
how did art lead to changes in medicine?
doctors could hire artists to create realistic images of the body which allowed them to understand how the body worked
when was the royal society set up?
1662
how did the development of the royal society lead to change in medicine?
scientists and doctors could gather together and share their ideas and demonstrate experiments
when was the printing press developed?
1450’s by Gutenberg
how did the development of the printing press lead to changes in medicine?
medical books could be published meaning knowledge could be obtained by other doctors
how did the discovery of America by Columbus lead to changes in medicine?
new foods and medicines were brought back
how did the reformation lead to changes in medicine?
the dominance of the Catholic church declined meaning dissection was allowed so doctors could understand the body better
who developed lenses for the microscope in the 1640’s?
Anton Von Leeuwenhoek
how did the development of technology such as the microscope lead to changes in medicine?
observation of cells could be made
when was the Great Plague?
1665
what did people think was causing the plague?
overpopulation, cats and dogs, travellers, touching infected objects, astrology, miasmas, god, 4 humours, Jews, distempered people, looking an infected person in the eye
what treatments were there for the plague?
quarantining victims by marking their doors with a red cross and the words 'Lord have mercy upon us' all graves dug 6 feet deep no 'corrupt' fruits to be sold on markets assembles of people banned houses cleaned daily beggars executed people buried at night killing cats and dogs
