Medieval Medicine - Treatment of the Black Death (Humours, Quarantine, and Remedies)

Flashcards cover key concepts from the notes on how medieval medicine treated the Black Death, including humours, quarantine, plague doctor practices, cures tried, and social/religious responses.

What are the four humours believed to influence a person's health and character?

Blood, phlegm, yellow bile, and black bile.

What is quarantine in the context of the Black Death?

A period when an animal or person with a disease is kept away from others to prevent the disease from spreading.

Why did plague doctors wear protective clothing and masks?

To protect themselves from the plague; masks contained strong-smelling items to ward off disease.

What is bloodletting and why was it used?

Deliberate bleeding of a vein to reduce 'hot' blood and treat the disease.

What happened to buboes after they were cut open in some treatments?

A paste was applied made from crushed dried toads and dried human excrement.

What other method was commonly used to remove blood from the body besides bloodletting?

Leeches to suck out blood.

Name two methods used to expel excess humours from the body.

Forcing vomit and bringing on severe sweating or diarrhoea.

Which foods were used to balance the humours in the diet?

Mustard, mint sauce, apple sauce, and horseradish.

What environmental measures helped prevent plague spread?

Carrying herbs, holding them to the nostrils, and burning sweet-smelling wood; avoiding stagnant water, slaughterhouses, and rubbish heaps.

What ointment was applied after bloodletting?

An ointment made of clay and violets.

How were the sick treated at home?

Put to bed and washed with vinegar and rose water.

What was done with the clothes of plague victims?

Bury or burn them.

How were infected people managed within communities?

The sick were forced to leave the village and were sometimes locked in their houses; some fled.

What religious responses accompanied the plague?

People prayed to God, went on pilgrimages to Canterbury and Walsingham, and in London sang hymns and whipped themselves.

What unusual bodily treatment was sometimes used on victims?

Victims were bathed in urine several times a day.

What did the buboes look like and how were they treated aside from cutting them open?

Sores (buboes) were exposed; paste (tree resins, flower roots, and poo) was applied.

What underlying belief about the disease’s cause is reflected in these practices?

The disease was believed to be in the blood, with the veins leading to the heart to be cut open to bleed.

What does the historical note say about doctors' understanding during the 1347-1350 outbreak?

Doctors were completely confused and knew nothing about germs or bacteria, yet desperately sought a cure.