Egyptian Medicine

Egyptian Medicine

1. spirital beings

   • Believed that evil spirits either got inside your body or sent poison inside you to make you sick
     • Physical medicine such as herbs were for pain only while cures were magic.
   • Prayers to Sekhmet, goddess of healing, curses, and threats, often accompanied the cures.
     • Prosthetics were given such as artificial toes, eyeballs, they typically served as more than a decorative purpose, mainly during burial in order to sure they had it in after life.
     • Wehedu- evil spirit that intentionally blocked channels
       • The Channel theory allowed the art of medicine to gear more towards physical signs and cures, not spiritual ones.
   • Mummification allowed autopsy as a religious exercise and gave the Egyptians a vast knowledge of organ functions and locations
     • organ function was presumed correctly- blood was transpiration medium- brain and heart functions were switched though

2. physicians

   • both women and men were doctors in ancient Egypt. They worked together, not having one favor the other.
     • They must first discover the nature of the entity possessing the sick person and figure out how to drive it out
     • Knifes used on patients were stone blades and had sharper edges than modern surgical steel.
       • T hey would heat the blade to cut into the patient but also seal up the blood vessels, limiting bleeding
     • They were also known as priest
     • They had their own hierarchy
   • They also were involved in the prevention of plaques, using veterinary medicine to inspect animals before sacrifice
     • They were the first to connect pulses to the heart, and blood circulation
   • Egyptians were told to watch dietary habits such as eating raw meats and getting proper nutrition
     • Also focused on sanitization, washing their bodies regularly and shaving their armpits because that was where spirits could enter
   • Looked for by kings and queens from far

3. Papyrus Ebers

   • among the oldest and most important medical papyri of Egypt
     • It contains 700 magical formulas and remedies for everything from birth control to cancer
       • It also talks about disorders such as depression and dementia in a chapter called Book of Hearts
         • They believed this was caused by blocked channels and influence of evil spirits/ angry Gods
           • Channels- similar to farmers having irrigation channels for their crops it was like that in our bodies, unblocked channels was thought of as good health
             • EX: The heart had 46 channels (to a certain extent they were right, our veins, arteries)
       • Treatment of Guinea Worm (Dracunculiasis) remains a standard treatment to this day
       • They focused on skin problems, dental, eyes, intestinal problems, parasites, and how to surgically remove a tumor, fix a broken bone and treat burns
     • writes about the earliest known surgery performed (2750 BC)
   • 110 page scroll; 20 meters long
   • dating back to 3400 B.C.
   • Out of two famous papyrus scrolls, Edwin Smith Papyrus

4. Cures

   • They often would make you eat or drink foul-smelling objects hoping the evil spirit would leave. Often times, making you bleed out
     • Ingredients for a cure often derived from a plant or animal who had characteristics which in some way corresponded to the symptoms of the patient.
       • EX: an ostrich egg included the treatment of a broken skull or a hedgehog might be used against baldness
   • The Placebo Effect (Being given false hope or medicine and reacting the way you anticipated) was a big part of Egyptian Medicine
     • They used human great milk to cure colds which actually worked due to Placebo.
   • They also used herbs such as Aloe Vera, Garlic, and Poppy to cure headaches, burns, and help spirits.
     • Massages were also very big they were considered to be a step down from surgery
   • Amulets were given to fear off diseases and gain positive attributes like strength
   • Surgery was very common as well
     • They focused on "basic surgeries" such as surface of the skin or on the skin ( stitching wounds), fixing broken bones and dislocated joints.
     • Patients were divided into 3 categories for surgery
       • Treatable injuries
         • dealt with immediately, patient had a good chance of surviving
       • Contestable injuries
         • deemed not to be life-threatening, patient did not need surgery and put under observation
       • Untreatable injuries
         • doctors refused to intervene

5. Egyptians were known to be the most skilled in medicine and diagnosing during their rein. They helped kick start modern medicine to this day