Medieval Times Medicine

Question 1

What influences did the Medieval church had back then

Answer 1

• Monasteries controlled education
• Priests and monks were the only people who could read.
• The Church opened medical schools where the ideas of Galen were taught.
• Monasteries made an effort to provide clean running water and toilets.

Question 2

What were the four humours?

Answer 2

Blood, phlegm, yellow bile, black bile

Question 3

Define the four humours

Answer 3

Were believed in ancient times to be responsible for a person’s health and personality

Question 4

What were the new developments on medieval medicine

Answer 4

• Human dissection was allowed again.
• Urine analysis used for diagnosis.
• Astrology used to decide treatments.
• Monks in monasteries provided care using traditional remedies and experience.

Question 5

What were Medieval beliefs and treatments

Answer 5

• The church believed that illness was a punishment for sins
• Some believed that pilgrimages to holy shrines could cure illness
• Doctors had superstitious beliefs, saying magical words when treating patients and consulting stars

Question 6

Developments in Surgery

Answer 6

• Barber surgeons performed basic surgery like bloodletting and tooth removal.
• Some gained experience in battlefields (e.g., treating wounds).
• Tools were improved (e.g., cautery irons, saws).
• Knowledge limited by lack of understanding of infection and anatomy.
• Surgery seen as a lower-status profession.

Question 7

What were the public health measures

Answer 7

-Towns lacked the public health schemes of the Romans
-People relied on cesspits and wells. Waste was frequently disposed of into the street.
-People found it healthier to drink beer, than to drink water

Question 8

What was the Black Death?

Answer 8

An infectious disease spread by fleas carried by rats in the 14th century

Question 9

How did the Black Death spread?

Answer 9

Spread by coughs and sneezes or by black rat flea bites - black rats were carried overseas by ships

Question 10

What were the Black Death’s symptoms?

Answer 10

Exhaustion, high temperatures, swellings and difficulty breathing

Question 11

What did people think caused the Black Death?

Answer 11

Position of stars and planets, bad air, poisoning of wells by Jews, punishment from God

Question 12

How did they try curing the Black Death

Answer 12

Miasma - carried sweet smelling herbs, sat between two large fires. Tried to appease God by praying. Use of opposites, purging, vomiting and blood letting. Poisoned water - blamed the Jews.

Question 13

What was Galen’s theory?

Answer 13

Theory of Opposites - illness was caused by an imbalance in humours.