Medicine in Medieval England

Flashcards about medicine in medieval England, covering disease causes, treatments, and key figures.

What were the thought causes of disease in Medieval England?

They were thought to be supernatural. A punishment from God or related to demons or witches

What was the Church Influence on medieval medicine?

The Roman Catholic Church was an extremely powerful organisation that dominated the way people studied and thought about a range of topics, including medicine. Encouraged people to believe that disease was a punishment from God, rather than having a natural cause. They made sure that scholars of medicine learned the works of Galen.

How was astrology used to Diagnose disease?

Astrology is the idea that the movements of the planets and stars have an effect on the Earth and on people and could cause disease.

What were treatments in medieval England based on?

Rational Explanations and observation of the physical world.

What was the Theory of the Four Humours?

Hippocrates believed that the body was made up of four fluids (or humours)-blood, phlegm, yellow bile and black bile. These were linked to the four seasons and the four elements. They needed to be in balance for good health

What is the Miasma Theory?

The idea that bad air (or miasma) causes disease when someone breathes it in. This bad air may come from human refuse, abattoirs or dead bodies - anything that creates a bad smell.

Which major treatments were used during the Middle Ages?

Disease was believed to be a punishment from God, so sick people were encouraged to pray. Medieval people also believed that pilgrimages to holy shrines could cure illnesses.

How did Bloodletting and Purging aim to make the Humours balance?

Bloodletting and purging were popular treatments because they fitted in with the Four Humours Theory.

Why was Purifying the Air thought to Prevent Disease?

The miasma theory led people to believe in the power of purifying or cleaning the air to prevent sickness and improve health.

What were Remedies made of?

Remedies bought from an apothecary, local wise woman or made at home were all popular in medieval England and contained herbs, spices, animal parts and minerals.

Who were Physicians?

Physicians were male doctors who had trained at university for at least seven years. They read ancient texts as well as writings from the Islamic world, but their training involved little practical experience.

Who were Apothecaries?

Apothecaries prepared and sold remedies and sometimes gave advice on how best to use them.

What kind of surgery was available?

Medieval surgery was very dangerous - there was no way to prevent blood loss, infection or pain. It was therefore only attempted rarely and for very minor procedures.

What were hospitals like?

Most hospitals were set up and run by monasteries. The main purpose of hospitals was not to treat disease, but to care for sick and elderly people, providing patients with food, water and a warm place to stay.

What was The Black Death?

A series of plagues that first swept Europe in the mid 14th century with two illnesses involved: Bubonic plague, spread by the bites of fleas from rats carried on ships. Pneumonic plague, which was airborne-it was spread by coughs and sneezes.

What caused The Black Death?

No-one at the time knew what had caused the plague; some people believed that the Black Death was a judgement from God and thought the cause of the disease was sin.

What did Local Governments do to Prevent the spread of the disease?

Local councils took measures to try to stop the spread of the plague by quarantining plague victims, closing areas where people crowded together, and burying the dead bodies of plague victims in mass graves away from houses.

How was The Renaissance a time of Continuity and Change?

Rediscovery of knowledge from classical Greek and Roman times, emergence of science, anatomy and dissections were very important, people began to question Galen’s thinking.

How did The Medical Knowledge of doctors Improve?

Doctors in the Renaissance trained at the College of Physicians to stop the influence of quacks and made important discoveries about disease and the human body.

What did Vesalius and Sydenham believed?

Vesalius and Sydenham believed that direct observation was the best way to learn about the body and dissection to understand anatomy.

What did Vesalius do to learn about the human body?

To perform dissections on criminals who had been executed which let him study the human anatomy more closely. He wrote books based on his observations using accurate diagrams to illustrate his work.

How did Thomas Sydenham use Practical Experience?

He made detailed observations of his patients and kept accurate records of their symptoms.

How did Harvey discover the Circulation of the Blood?

Harvey realised that he could observe living animal hearts in action, and that his findings would also apply to humans and theorized that blood must circulate - it must go round and round the body.

How did the Printing Press allow New Ideas to be Spread?

The invention of printing allowed books to be copied much more easily so students in universities could have their own textbooks for the first time, letting them study in detail.

What was the Royal Society?

The Royal Society was a prestigious scientific body founded in 1660 that was supported by King Charles II, which gave it high status and was important in spreading new scientific theories and getting people to trust new technology.

How did Some Doctors still follow Old Ideas?

Many doctors were reluctant to accept that Galen was wrong and still used similar treatments to the Middle Ages, like bloodletting and purging and continued to use other healers.

How did The Great Plague hit London in 1665?

London was struck by the Great Plague with its death toll at about 100,000 with treatments based on magic, religion and superstition.

How did People try to Prevent the plague from Spreading?

Councils tried to quarantine plague victims to prevent them passing on the disease to others, with the victim's house locked and a red cross painted on their door.

How was smallpox prevented?

Edward Jenner introduced a vaccination against smallpox, using pus from a cowpox sore to inoculate people.