Change and Continuity
Overall, what changed and what stayed the same during the Medieval period?
| Changed | Continued |
|---|---|
| Islamic medical ideas spread through wars in Europe. | People continued to follow ancient ideas about medicine. |
| During the Black Death, quarantining was used (even though people didn’t know why it worked). | Hippocrates’ Four Humours theory was still in use. |
| Some towns made local laws to improve cleanliness. | Galen’s ideas based on animal dissection were still followed (and human dissection was still not allowed by the Church). |
| Religious beliefs influenced medicine (prayer, pilgrimages, and monasteries caring for the sick), as well as ideas about the supernatural and the Zodiac. | |
| | There was little scientific evidence available, so theories like miasma (bad air) remained. |
| Many believed the Black Death was a punishment from God. | |
| Living conditions were poor, and poor hygiene continued allowing disease to spread. |
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