Medieval Western European Epidemics And Their Prevention And Treatment

Ebola virus was reported to be broken out in West Africa in 2014. As a rare case of epidemic, this outbreak was considered to be one of the most serious. Because of the spread of the epidemics, we started to think about the relationship between human beings and the epidemics. By studying the prevention and treatment of epidemics, including ideas and measures of prevention and treatment, we could not only find out how people in the middle ages recognized and treated the diseases, which we may know the basic picture of their living conditions, but also learn something lessons to know and treat the old and new epidemics from it.This dissertation consists of four parts, namely preface, body, conclusion, and reference. The body was also divided into three parts.Preface introduces the significance and purpose of this topic, and focuses on present research situation of home and abroad about this topic and related issues. Then introduces my research methods and ideas. Finally, here talks about the innovations of the dissertation.The first part focuses on the epidemics in Western Europe in the medieval times. There are some reasons resulting into the spread of epidemics, such as the rise of urbanization, poor public health, terrible personal health hygiene, and constant contact between different areas. There were plenty sorts of epidemics in medieval Europe, such as plague, leprosy, smallpox and syphilis, from which people suffered mostly and those epidemics have some unique characteristics of being high death rate, broad coverage, and dealing with each cases differently for susceptible population.The second part focuses on the treatment thoughts and methods to epidemics. On one hand, people gained some inspiration from astrology, mephitis, and pathogenic microorganism theories to construct the corresponding control theories, on the other hand, medical field followed the orders from governments to hand out hygiene handbooks, collated and summarized advanced medical experience from the ancient, so they groped nine methods of preventive treatments, i.e. nine basic methods to precaution epidemics, there are confession, exor-cisme, detox, diet, trusol, effleurage, vaporization, specific drugs and fleeing. What’s more, in order to prevent and treat leprosy, governments started to isolate the infected patients and established quarantine system to fight with pestilence, improved public hygiene and made special provisions in environment.The third part discusses the influence of treatments to epidemics in Western Europe. Hospitals that were born with the charity ideals in early Christianity, were increased in the process of controlling leprosy and other epidemics. Facilities in hospitals, medical procedures, and qualities of nursing staffs were enhanced a lot. The quarantine restrictions that were built in the Middle Ages had played an importance character in resisting infectious diseases for a few hundred years in Western Europe. Each country has established quarantine restrictions, which were considered as heritages in the medieval times and have played roles in new period. When the modern public hygiene appeared during this period, the awareness of public health promoted the environment improvement and related social welfare works.In the conclusion, here refines the central idea of the whole dissertation. When facing with the epidemics, people in medieval period never give up resistance, instead of, they cooperated and fought for lives, while revealed their forbear and hopes, which offered certain life charm for the Middle Ages.