Medicine - Essay Example

Download file to see previous pages... The practice of medicine has been shaped through the years by advancement and refinement of existing techniques of that era. As per N.D Jewson the concept of sick man was found to disappear from medical cosmology in two related sense of period ,1770 to 1870. Medical cosmology is basically meta physical and attempts to circumscribe and define the universal nature of medical disease ( Althruser and Bailbar, 1970 ).
Three distinct period in history of medicine are associated with three different places and three different thoughts of diagnosis. From middle age- 18th century BED SIDE Medicine ( BM ) was widely prevalent, then by 1794 to 1848 came the era of HOSPTIAL MEDICINE ( HM ). And from the time forward it was Laboratory Medicine ( LM ) that ruled the medical world. The Laboratories contribution to the medicine has been recently recognized by the historians as something more than addition of knowledge, but as an seat of medicine which helps clinicians to account what they observe in patient.
The first medical diagnosis made by human race was based on observations made with eyes and ears by ancient physicians. The Greek attribute all diverse reactions and diseases to bodily fluid called humor. Ancient Egypt's and Mesopotamian clinicians made diagnosis and treatment based primarily on observation of clinical symptoms as palpitations, acultation, etc. Other less scientific diagnosis that was widely prevalent in that time was spiritual sacrifice of animal and examination of those animals organs, being correlating to the patient's stage. Aptly described as the father of medicine ,Hippocrates in 300 BC attributed all diseases to body fluids. Later Gallen ( AD 131 to 101 ) who is called as the founder of experimental physiology combines Hippocrates and Pythogras theorem, holding four elements earth, fire, water and air contributing to four elements blood, bile, phlegm and black bile.
In the middle age, in Europe early Christians considered diseases sin or punishment and diagnosis were based on symptoms, pulse, excreta ( especially urine). The concept of uroscopy was introduced and testing of urine for all diseases was made mandatory. The 17th century saw the descriptive work of medicine, as the medical journals started evolving and there was more ground work done for diagnosis and therapy of diseases. Many inventions as blood circulation, microscope, uroscopy, gravimeter analysis, experiments on blood transfusion, and attempt to use pulse rate and temperature as health indicator were followed. 18th century was considered to be the golden age of medicine as text book of medicines and laboratory medicines evolved. Blood pressure measurement and heart beat measurement and coagulation concepts were established in this century. The 19th century saw the growth of sophistication in technology in labs, transformation of society, introduction of the concept of bacteriology, stethoscope, opthalmoscope, layrngoscope, x-ray, microscope, etc.( Starr, 1982).
The three concepts in medicine
At the beginning of medical cosmology, Bedside Medicine was widely predominant, mainly in the last 3rd of 18th century. The ideology was centered around University of Edinburg and in certain parts of England (Jewson, 1974). The BM treats patients as the patrons and physicians as ...Download file to see next pagesRead More