-
4000 BCE
Primitive Times
-Illnesses were thought to be caused by evil spirits and as punishment from the Gods
-Tribal witches were their doctors at that time
-Herbs and plants were used as medicines
-Trepanation was common. (Surgically removing a piece of the skull)
-The average lifespan was about 20 years -
3000 BCE
Ancient Egyptians
-The physicians were priests
-Health records first recorded
-Bloodletting was a standard treatment
-The average lifespan was 20-30 years -
1700 BCE
Ancient Chinese
-Believed in curing the spirit and nourishing the body
-Recorded a book of medications based on the use of herbs
-Used Acupuncture and other therapies
-Began searching for a medical reason for illness
-The average lifespan was 20-30 years -
1200 BCE
Ancient Greeks
-Hippocrates and others were the first to observe the human body and the effects of disease
-Believed illness was caused by natural causes
-Used therapies like massage, art therapy, and herbal treatment
-Worked on diets, hygiene, and exercise to prevent disease
-The average life span was 25-35 year -
753 BCE
Ancient Romans
-First to provide health care for injured soldiers
-Hospitals were religious and charitable institutes
-First to build sewers and aqueducts
-Galen's belief that the body was regulated by four body humors (blood, phlegm, black bile, yellow bile)
-The average life span was 25-35 years -
400
Dark Ages
-More on saving the soul and the study of medicine was prohibited
-Prayers were used to treat illness
-Monks and priests provided care for the sick
-Medications were mainly herbs
-No exact understanding of why people got sick
-The average lifespan was 20-30 years -
1400
Middle Ages
-Interest in medicine practiced by Greeks and Romans
-Arabs began making physicians pass exams and get licenses
-Bubonic plague killed 75% of the population in Europe and Asia
-Major diseases were smallpox, diphtheria, tuberculosis, typhoid, plague and malaria
-Medical universities were made
-The average lifespan was 20-35 years -
Renaissance
-Rebirth of medicine and science
-Body dissections led to a greater understanding of anatomy
-The invention of the printing press allowed medical information to be shared
-First anatomy book published by Andreas Vesalius
-Disease cause is still a mystery
-The average lifespan was 30-40 years -
16th and 17th centuries
-Knowledge of the human body greatly increased
-A French surgeon made the first version of a tourniquet
-Early pharmacists made and prescribed medicine
-Invention of the microscope
-Allowed physicians to see disease-causing organisms
-Cause of diseases still unknown - many died due to infections
-The average lifespan was 35-45 years -
18th century
-Gabriel Fahrenheit created the first mercury thermometer
-Benjamin Franklin invented bifocals
-John Hunter made surgical procedures and invented tube feeding
-Smallpox vaccine made
-The average lifespan 40-50 years -
19th century
-Rapid advancements from discovering microorganisms, anesthesia, and vaccinations
-X-ray machine first made
-The first open heart surgery was performed
-Stethoscope was made
-Formal training for nurses
-Women have a chance in healthcare
-The average lifespan was 40-60 years -
20th century
-ABO blood groups established
-New medications developed
-Insulin discovered
-Antibiotics discovered
-New machines made
-Kidney Dialysis machine
-Heart Lung machine
-Structure of DNA discovered
-First bone marrow transplant
Test tube babies
-Organ transplants performed
-Kidney, liver, heart, and artificial heart -
20th century vacines
-Diphtheria
-Tuberculosis
-Pertussis
-Typhus
-Influenza
-Oral Polio
-Measles
-Mumps
-Rubella
-Chicken Pox
-Streptococcus
-Pneumonia
-Meningitis
-Hepatitis B
-Hepatitis A
-Lyme Disease
-Rotavirus -
20th-21st century
-Laparoscopic surgery
-Cancer therapies
-Smoke-free laws
-HIV medications advance
-Advances in Stem Cell research -
21st century
-First implantable artificial heart placed in a patient
-Human Genome project finished
-Face transplants
-Vaccines for HPV, Malaria and Ebola