What did the doctors do in medieval times to cure patients?

Answer 1

Poultices were often used to treat wounds, rashes and various kinds of sores. A poultice is soft, sticky, moist mass of herbs that have been crushed and mixed, the applied to a bandage and wrapped over the skin.

Elixirs (medicinal liqueurs made from herbs steeped in alcohol) and herbal tea concoctions were often given for the sick to drink, in order to relieve certain ailments.

Another treatment for illness in the Middle Ages was called bloodletting. The idea was that the body's health depended on a balance between various "humors" (blood, phlegm, black bile and yellow bile) and in order to restore balance to the humors, one often had to get rid of the "bad blood" by letting some out. This led to the practice of bloodletting, actually removing blood from the body either by applying leaches or by piercing a vein with a fleam or other instrument. Bloodletting was often prescribed by a physician but then actually carried out by a barber surgeon, and the red, white and blue poles in front of barber shops today still indicate the profession's former practice of bloodletting, with the colors representing the blood and the tourniquet.

Answer 2

In the medieval period "doctor" was a term used for a certain level of education and it had nothing to do with medicine. A student at a Church university from the 14th century onwards might attain the level of Doctor of Canon Law, Doctor of Civil Law and so on - it became the topmost level of degree in certain subjects. Anyone achieving a doctorate could become a university teacher or "master". The word doctor therefore meant a teacher or scholar, not a medical practitioner.

People who attempted to "cure patients" were not called doctors, but chirurgions, surgeons or phisiciens (physicians); they were extremely expensive and most people could not even dream of paying for their services. A nobleman or a member of royalty might have his own personal physician; a wealthy merchant could afford to pay for consultations, but for the ordinary person there was no professional medical service of any kind.

If a farming labourer broke his arm or suffered serious wounds in an accident, he would be treated by untrained local "wise women", by his friends or family or perhaps by monks at the infirmary of the local monastery. Monks were capable of setting bones and healing wounds, using herbal remedies and prayer to assist the healing process; certain herbs were proven to have antiseptic qualities that often helped in such cases. Prayer was seen as equally important in treating patients as medicines or bandages.

Bacterial infection was not understood and certain conditions (such as blood poisoning) could not be treated at all.

Answer 3

by putting horse poo in their heads. true fact!

Answer 4

They used leeches and bitched

Answer 5

Blood letting