week 4

• Surgery


  The treatment of injuries or disorders of the body by incision or manipulation, especially with instruments
• Medicine

  The science or practice of the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disease (in technical use often taken to exclude surgery)
• Evidence of early attempts at interventions

  • Trepanation - Drilling a hole in the head
  • Fracture immobilisation
  • Teeth extraction
  • Surgical instruments - drills, rasps, scalpels, scoop, forceps, grinding stones
  • Obsidian scalpels
  • Trepanation in Peru
• Earliest evidence of surgery

  Neolithic 6500 BC
• Earliest evidence of surgery

  China 3000 BC
• Earliest evidence of surgery

  Minoan civilisation 2500 BC
• Earliest evidence of surgery

  Incas 1500 BC
• Trepanation


  China 1615 BC
• Trepanation


  18th C France
• Trepanation


  1497 Germany
• Trepanation


  5th C BC Azerbaijan
• Trepanation as a cure for psychosis

  16th C
• Ancient Egyptian priest-doctors


  Treated with herbs and wine from 3150 BC
• Treatment for baldness in Ancient Egypt


  • Fat of lion, fat of hippo, fat of cat, fat of crocodile, fat of ibex, fat of serpent, mixed together and the head of the bald person is anointed with them
• Physician to Zoser c 2600 BC


  God of healing
• Ebers papyrus 1500 BC

  700 magical formulas, remedies, incantations to turn away disease-causing demons
• Evidence of long tradition of empirical practice and observation in Ancient Egypt
• Ancient Egyptian mummies show evidence of trepanation, dentistry, draining dental abscesses, circumcision, castration, amputation, lithotomy, use of opiates, herbal remedies, and extensive knowledge of anatomy
• Sushruta

  Studied anatomy in Ancient India 600 BC, founding text of Ayurvedic medicine
• Sushruta Samhita

  • Incisions
  • Probing
  • Extraction of foreign bodies
  • Alkali and thermal cauterization
  • Tooth extraction
  • Draining fluid
  • Caesarean section
  • Fractures
  • Dislocations
  • Cataract removal
• Sushruta Samhita translated from Sanskrit to Arabic in the 8th century
• Yin-Yang

  Two opposing but complementary forces, balance maintains harmony in body, mind & universe (in Traditional Chinese Medicine)
• Qi

  Energy flows through the body along meridans, regulates spiritual, emotional, mental & physical health (in Traditional Chinese Medicine)
• 5 elements


  Fire, earth, metal, water, wood - correspond to particular organs and tissues (in Traditional Chinese Medicine)