The identification of a disease, illness or condition which is present in a patient. A diagnosis is made after looking for signs and symptoms in a patient.
Physician
A person who practices medicine
Humanism
A new way of thinking during the Renaissance that recognised the importance of the individual in discovering the truth around them. Humanist ideas represented a challenge to the old ideas and encouraged experimentation to find the truth.
Four humours
Four bodily fluids - yellow bile, black bile, blood and phlegm - used in ancient times to analyse and describe people's state of health
Thomas Sydenham
Respected doctor in London during the Renaissance
Encouraged physicians to move away from the classical ideas of Galen and Hippocrates towards the new scientific ideas of observation
Believed that to diagnose a patient's illness, a doctor needed to closely observe the symptoms and treat the disease that was causing them
Refused to rely solely on medical books
Believed that each disease was different and that doctors needed to identify the exact disease before recommending a cure
Published his ideas about disease in a book called Observationes Medicae (Medical Observations) in 1676
Sydenham's work led to a more scientific approach to medicine after the 18th century