Traditional medicine in the history of medical development

From the 7th century BC to the 6th century BC, Greece entered slavery society from primitive clan society. The Greeks absorbed the cultural advantages of Egypt and Babylon and made great achievements in all aspects of culture and science. Greek medicine is the foundation of medical development in Rome and Europe. Until now, the medical symbols used by Europeans: walking sticks and snakes, originated from Asclepius, the Greek god of medicine. Many ancient Greek medical words are still in use today.

In the 5th century BC, empedocles proposed that all objects are composed of "four elements", namely fire, air (wind), water and earth (earth). These four elements are mixed together in different proportions and become objects of various properties, similar to China's Five Elements Theory. For example, muscle is composed of four elements with equal weight, and nerve is composed of fire, earth and water with double beliefs; Bones are a mixture of two parts water, two parts soil and four parts water.

The representative figure of Greek medicine is Hippocrates (about 460 BC ~ 377 BC). The book Hippocrates, named after him, may include many later research contributions, and it is the most important ancient book for studying Greek medicine at present.

The Hippocratic school developed the theory of four elements into the theory of four body fluids pathology. They believe that the life of the body depends on four kinds of body fluids: blood, mucus, yellow bile and black bile. Different combinations of four elements are the basis of these four liquids, and each liquid has adapted to a certain "temperament". Everyone's temperament depends on the dominant liquid in his body. If heat is the basis of blood, it comes from the heart, and if blood is dominant, it is sanguine. Four body fluids are balanced, then the body is healthy; Disorder leads to many diseases.

Hippocratic school tends to understand the physiological process of the body from a unified whole. They said: "The disease starts from the whole body ... individual parts of the body immediately cause diseases in other parts, the waist causes diseases in the head, and the head causes diseases in the muscles and abdomen ... These parts are interrelated ... and all changes can be spread to all parts."

Hippocratic school also attaches importance to the influence of external factors on diseases, and has a clear preventive thought. They teach young doctors to study the climate, soil, water and lifestyle of residents in cities they have never been to. As a doctor, only by studying the living conditions of the city in advance can we do a good job in urban medical work.

They asked doctors not to hinder the "natural" process of pathological changes, but to work according to medical knowledge and consider nature.

The Hippocratic Collection talks about medical ethics in many places, the famous Hippocratic oath, which later Europeans will take after studying medicine.

After the 4th century BC, Greek medicine gradually declined, and the medical center turned to Hellenistic Alexandria. Alexander's doctor Herophilus (335-280 BC) noticed anatomy. In addition, pharmacy also developed during this period. Rome is a centralized empire, and the organization of the country is first manifested as a standing army. In order to maintain the combat effectiveness of the army, the Roman Empire had military medical institutions; In order to prevent epidemics, the Roman Empire established the position of "medical governor" as an official of the government administrative organs. They are also responsible for holding examinations and approving doctors approved by the government.

Rome also has a high level of public health, using slave labor to build urban waterways (drinking water in Rome is piped from outside the city through nine ditches), sewers and baths. In the famous "Twelve Copper Table Law", it is also forbidden to bury in the city, and it is pointed out that attention should be paid to drinking water hygiene.

The development of medicine in Roman times has inherited relations with medicine in ancient Greece. In the 2nd century BC, the Romans occupied the primitive area of Greece ── the southern Balkans, and many Greek doctors came to Rome. For example, Galen (about 129 ~ 199), the most famous doctor in Rome, was originally from Greece, and he studied the works of Hippocrates.

Galen's view is mixed with teleology, that is, everything in nature has a purpose, and human structure is also set for the purpose of the creator. He said: the left heart wall is thicker and heavier than the right heart wall in order to control the vertical position of the heart; The artery wall is dense in order to better prevent the tiny gas in the artery wall from escaping. This theory of destiny was regarded as a dogma by later generations, which hindered the development of science. In terms of treatment, he attaches importance to drug treatment. He proved that there are both effective components that should be used and harmful components that should be discarded in herbs. He has his own special pharmacy, and a large number of plants are used to prepare pills, powder, ointment, infusion, decoction, tincture, lotion and other preparations for later use. Up to now, pharmaceutical preparations are still called "Galen preparations". The Roman Empire was divided in 395 BC. The Western Roman Empire was destroyed by barbarians (Germans, Franks, Visigoths, Vandals, etc.) in the 5th century. ) and split into several barbarian kingdoms. In Europe, from the 6th century to 13 and 14 centuries, it was called the dark age, and there was little cultural progress. The Eastern Roman Empire was preserved under the name of Byzantium. Byzantine culture is the successor of Greek and Roman culture. There were medical schools, hospitals and pharmacies. Byzantine doctors, mostly compilers of medical encyclopedias, collected the rich heritage of ancient medicine and systematized it. Byzantium was not destroyed by Turkey until15th century.

In the Middle Ages, Europe was in a period of economic and cultural decline, and the Pope and the king competed for sovereignty. Catholicism occupied almost13 of the land in Europe, and the church became the largest feudal Lord, and temples flourished. Culturally, medieval Europe was almost completely ruled by the church. Theology permeates all intellectual groups, and medicine is also mastered by monks. Only they know Latin, and they still keep some medical knowledge handed down from ancient times. They treat patients and pray for them, which becomes the so-called "temple doctors". Linking cure with "sacred miracle" has hindered the development of medicine.

165438+Crusades in the 20th century, urban development, business travel, etc. Broaden the horizons of Europeans and stimulate the development of scientific knowledge. From 1 1 to13rd century, many cities in Europe established universities. Among them, the most famous medical schools belong to the University of Salerno and the University of Padua, which were least influenced by scholasticism and played a progressive role in medieval Europe.

In the Middle Ages, the main discipline of universities was scholasticism, and its basic content was to explain or demonstrate the authenticity of the Bible. At that time, medical students mainly studied the works of Hippocrates, Galen and Avicenna, memorized the dogma of authoritative works and despised practice, so they stagnated and made little progress in medicine.

In addition, European medieval epidemics were rampant, among which plague, leprosy and syphilis were the most prosperous. Leprosy was the most rampant in the13rd century, with an average of one patient in every 400 people in Europe, and then it stopped spreading after strict isolation, which also promoted the establishment of European hospitals. 1346 European plague epidemic prompted quarantine at Venice port, and later London and Paris also promulgated some laws and regulations to prevent infectious diseases. Arab Medicine During the 7th and 8th centuries, Syria, Egypt, Asia Minor, North Africa, Pyrenees Peninsula and many other countries and regions (or pre-Byzantine Empire) all belonged to the feudal Islamic powers, the so-called "Kingdom of Khalifa Arabia". Arabia inherited the cultures of ancient Greece and Rome, and at the same time had frequent business contacts with the East, and absorbed the cultures of India and China. Therefore, it plays a role in communicating the cultures of all ethnic groups in Europe and Asia. Major philosophical, scientific and medical works in Greek and Latin have been translated into Arabic. Arabia has made great achievements in astronomy, mathematics, chemistry, agriculture, architecture and medicine.

Arabic medicine refers to the traditional medicine in Arabic-speaking areas. From the 8th century to12nd century, medicine in this area was very developed. Arabia has made great achievements in chemistry, pharmacology and pharmaceutical technology. Chemistry at that time was called alchemy. An alchemist has two purposes: one is to turn base metals into precious metals; The second is to refine the elixir of life.

Although the purpose of alchemy is absurd, countless experiments have established some basic principles of chemistry, found many substances and compounds useful to human beings and medical treatment, and designed and improved many experimental operation methods, such as distillation, sublimation, crystallization, filtration and so on. These greatly enriched the methods of pharmaceutical preparations and promoted the development of pharmacy.

Avicenna (980 ~ 1037) was a great doctor in the Middle Ages and one of the outstanding doctors in the world medical history. He is also a famous encyclopedia editor and thinker. His most famous medical work is Medical Code, which has been translated into Latin many times. For a long time, Canon of Medicine has been a must-read guide book for studying medicine.

In terms of treatment, Avicenna attached great importance to drug therapy, which he discussed in detail in Neijing. He not only uses Greek and Indian drugs, but also collects drugs made in China. He also used mud therapy, water therapy, solar therapy and air therapy. In diagnosis, he attached great importance to pulse diagnosis, and he divided the pulse into 48 types. Through Arabia, China's medicine was also introduced to the West.