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Medicine in the Middle Ages (The Church (The church taught most people and…
Medicine in the Middle Ages
The beliefs on causes of disease
God
People believed that there was no need to search for other, more rational explanations for disease
Medical research was held back and few new ideas appeared as the theory of God was widely believed
God made people ill because he was displeased with them or their faith was being tested
The Four Humours
Ancient Greeks thought everyone had 4 humours in their body
People would be ill if the 4 humours were out of balance
To make people better they would try and balance out the humours
Humours - Black and yellow bile, blood and phlegm
Miasma Theory
Disease was transmitted by bad air
Bad smells indicated sin
Astrology
The alignment of the planets and the stars was thought to have caused disease
Astrology would be used for diagnosis
Astrology wasn't news but the use of it increased especially after the Black Death
The Church
The church taught most people and was also the centre of formal learning
Universities where physicians were trained were set up and ran by the church
Dissection was discouraged and so was challenging ideas and authority
Most large collections of books were in monasteries as monks and priests were literate, so the church could effectively control what was read
Traditional, rational explanations for disease were approved, particularly the ideas of Galen as it fitted some Christian beliefs
They taught that most people should follow the example of Jesus and care for the sick
Medical research was held back and few new ideas appeared as the theory of God was widely believed
Theory of opposites
Development of the four humours theory
Aimed to balance the humours by giving them the opposite of their symptoms
Phlegm was linked to water and cold, so if you had too much of it you should eat hot peppers
Phlegm, water and winter
Black bile, earth and autumn
Yellow bile, fire and summer
Blood, air and spring
Hippocrates
Dismissed the idea of God causing disease
Would use bleeding and purging to help balance humours
Most treatments were based on diet, exercise and rest
Wrote the hippocratic oath, which was where doctors swore to respect life and prevent harm
He used the method of clinical observation, which was studying symptoms, making notes, comparing to similar cases and then diagnosis and treating
Galen
His ideas were the basis of medical training in the middle ages
Developed the ideas of hippocrates
Mainly used bloodletting and purging for prevention and treatment of illness
He also used treatments based on his theory of opposites
Drew detailed diagrams of human anatomy
Prevention
Rational and Traditional
Trying to keep streets clean
Bathing and washing
Exercising
Not overeating
Bleeding and purging
Purifying the air
Religious and Supernatural
Living a Christian life
Carrying lucky charms and amulets
Chanting incantations
Self punishment like flagellation so God doesn't punish you
Treatment
Rational and Traditional
Bloodletting - Done by either cutting a vein, using leeches or cupping. Different points in the body would be used for different illnesses
Purging - Either making a patient vomit or go to the toilet to get rid of food from the body. Emetics or laxatives would be mixed in
Remedies - Made with herbs that would be either, drunk, sniffed or bathed in. Also included different foods to rebalance the humours and ointments to apply to the skin
Religious and Supernatural
Praying for the sick
Fasting
Going on a pilgrimage
Paying for a special Mass to be said
Specific ideas for specifics illnesses e.g. hanging a magpies beak around your neck to cure a toothache
Who treated the sick?
Barber Surgeons
Had no training
Carried out bloodletting, pulling teeth, lancing boils and also cut hair
Did basic surgery such as amputating limbs but it had a very low success rate
Less costly than a physician
Apothecaries
Received training but had no medical qualifications
Mixed medicines and ointments based on their own knowledge or the directions of a physician
Costed less than a physician
Home care
Most ill people would be treated at home by a female family member
The village 'wise women' would care for people in their homes for free
Physicians
Medical trained at universities where they took exams
Diagnosed illnesses, gave treatments or sent them to apothecaries of barber surgeons
Expensive, utilised by the wealthy
Very few, women physicians incredibly rare
They would observe symptoms, check pulse and skin colour and check urine for colour and taste using urine charts
Then consulted zodiac charts to help diagnose the illnesses and work out when the best time was to administer treatment
Hospitals
Places where travellers and pilgrims would stay on journeys
People with infectious disease or incurable diseases wouldn't be admitted
Patients and their surroundings would be kept very clean
They were places of recuperation rather than treatment
Fresh food was given alongside plenty of rest
Some hospitals were built especially for infectious disease
The Black Death
1348-1349
Killed about a third of the population
Today it is thought that it was the bubonic plague which is carried by fleas which may have come from ships during trade
Symptoms
Swelling of the lymph glands into pus filled lumps known as buboes
Fever and chills
Headaches
Vomiting, diarrhoea and abdominal pain
Treatment
Praying and holding lucky charms
Cutting open buboes to release the pus
Holding bread against the buboes and burying it in the ground
Taking cold baths and eating cool things
Causes and avoidance of The Black Death
Causes
Religion - God sent the plague as punishment
Astrology - The position of Mars, Jupiter and Saturn was unusual at the time
Miasma - Bad air and smells caused from decaying rubbish
Volcanoes - Poisonous gases from European volcanoes and earthquakes carried through the air
Four humours - Most physicians believed that it was because of an imbalance in the humours
Outsiders - Strangers and witches had caused the disease
Avoidance
Prayer and fasting - It helped show God that they were sorry
Clearing up rubbish
Smelling bad smells such as the toilet as they believed it would overcome the plague
Lighting a fire, ringing birds or having birds fly around the room to keep the air moving
Carrying herbs and spices to stop inhaling bad air
Not letting unknown people enter their village