Medical Practices During Revolutionary Times By Aaron.

Medical Practices During Revolutionary Times

By Aaron

Medical Practices During Revolutionary Times

• The medical practices were very primitive in the revolutionary times. This should explain how primitive everything was.

• Out of 100 people born, only 64 made it to age 6. By age 16, there were 46 still living and by 26, only 26 still alive. Only 16 made it to age of 36, and just 10 made it to 46 with only 6 make it to 56. 

Surgery Pain FixPatients received rum or brandy if it was available, but if not they were given a wood stick to bite instead.

• surgeons stuffed things into the soldiers ears so they wouldn’t hear the screaming of other patients

• biting the stick was a well known phrase called the practice of "biting the bullet."

Speed of Surgery

A surgeon could saw through the bone during surgery in less than 45 seconds.

• because the patient was awake, the surgeon had to work very quickly

Disinfection

Surgical instruments and surgeons' hands were not disinfected at all in any way.

• surgeons went from patient to patient without washing their hands or instruments

Surgical Sterilazation

The surgeons performed amputations without anesthesia or sterilization we know today.

• anesthesia would not be discovered until 1846• they would wipe their equipment on their clothes 

The Survivors of Surgery

Only 35% of the people who went through the surgery procedure survived.

• surgeons were usually just glorified butchers

35%   65%           Survived                                        DIED

Small Pox

• small pox had a killing rate of 30%• the British were attempting to spread smallpox by

injecting civilians and sending them out among George Washington's troops

Reasons of Spreading Small Pox

• the sick and wounded fought alongside healthy soldiers• conditions were very unsanitary in revolutionary hospitals• If you got smallpox the first thing you got was heroic medicine

Heroic Medicine

• the Age of Heroic Medicine was 1780 - 1850•  includes blood-letting, intestinal purging,

vomiting, profuse sweating and blistering• in the practice it was thought if one overdoses

then they would heal faster

Blood Letting

• dates back to the 4th century in ancient civilizations like Egypt and Greece

• was considered during the colonial period to be able to relieve tension

• was considered to be needed for any cure to work• the practice continued for 2,500 years• a vein in the arm, leg or neck would be opened

with a knife called a lancet• a leech would be used to remove blood from the

body

Intestinal Purging

• taking laxatives to purge the body of harmful thought to be poisons

Vomiting

• emetic (emetic is a medicine that produces nausea and vomiting) is taken to "puke"

• “Puking” was considered to  restore balance to the body

Profuse Sweating

• over sweating after medical emergencies

Blistering

• placing hot plasters onto the skin to raise blisters, which were then drained

In Conclution

Doctors often helped the patient die rather than get better.The doctor mainly provided support and comfort for their dying patients.The soldiers were more afraid of dying in one of the hospitals than being shot and killed on the battle fields. 

Creditshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surgical_instrument

http://www.weaponspecialists.com/wooden-stick

http://www.flickr.com/photos/34637679@N04/3361036887/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/11418107@N02/galleries/72157622378185907#photo_3850255505

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stopwatch

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rubbing_alcohol

http://www.pics4learning.com/details.php?img=tactile.png

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Injection_Syringe_01.jpg

http://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/File:Coping_saw.jpg

http://www.mnwelldir.org/docs/history/history02.htm

http://www.prevention-news.com/1999/sepoct99/healing.htm

http://www.pbs.org/wnet/redgold/basics/bloodletting.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scrubs_(clothing)

http://www.hsl.virginia.edu/historical/medical_history/lewis_clark/medicine.cfm

http://today.uchc.edu/newsreleases/2009/aug09/library.html