Medicine during the revolutionary war - Essay Example

The military was the most affected by undeveloped medical practices and poor knowledge on the field of medicine. They used to use branding iron to stop bleeding. Amputation was also very common and was somehow considered equal to what is an antibiotic currently. It was believed that, to stop an infection from spreading to the rest of the body from the part of the body that has been struck by a bullet or diseased, was to amputate it. Doctors tending to the military during that time had little concept of germs.

They barely washed their hands or even their tools. They had an approach that curing a person mainly involved getting the disease out of the system. One of the common methods that were used was cupping. The doctors took a heated glass cup and placed it on the patient’s chest with an attempt to sweat out the disease. They also used a method called leeching. That is, they used leeches to suck out bad blood. Or they could simply cut the patient’s wrist and let them bleed out an ailment. Dental hygiene was also a major issue during this time.

People’s teeth were either black or yellow or missing altogether. They usually used twigs to brush their teeth. If someone can afford something better than twigs, they used a bone with pigs’ hair. A family could afford only one toothbrush which they had to share. Going to the dentist wasn’t very much necessary unless one is in deep and extreme pain. Alcohol was mostly used to ease the pain as a medical procedure. Pulling out a tooth could not have gotten any more literal. A metal object, whi