19th Century Medicine

Advancements in Medicine in 19th Century England
A robot saved my life! While this may not necessarily be true, the revolutionary technological aspects of medical advancements in the 1800s were just as crazy to people who lived there and saved their lives. While the common cold is a prevalent illness among us now and has treatment, in the 1800s common illnesses like this caused death. During this time there were many medical advancements that took place. From advancements in the knowledge of diseases to the invention of medical equipment and treatments, the 1800s were quite a time to be alive. While these advancements were discovered over 218 years ago, they are still commonly used and prevalent today. Without these pivotal technological advancements,
In England between 1885 and 1894, death rates from the disease in the richest city precincts averaged 1.3 per 1,000 population, in the new working-class areas 2.6, in the waterfront tenements where the casual dock labourers lived, 3.4” (Evans 3)
Evans is speaking of how industrialization caused tuberculosis casualty rates to rise exponentially. During this time period, people were piled into unsanitary factories to work in inhospitable environments and were housed in slums that lacked proper hygiene. This contributed to the spread of tuberculosis. Because of its ease of transmission due to poverty, working environments due to rapid industrialization, and lack of knowledge, tuberculosis induced casualties increased. Tuberculosis wasn’t the only illness to be propelled by the industrialization of England. This same change in infrastructure also caused Cholera to be rampant amongst the population. In the book “Cholera: The Victorian Plague” by Amanda Thomas, she reveals the negative impact cholera had on the Victorian population as well as what causes it. She describes cholera and its effects as
Thomas effectively speaks of the definition of what cholera is and the exact effects it has on the human body. She shows the severity of the disease and speaks of how the disease requires immediate attention. Without immediate attention, the only thing possible for those affected with Cholera would be death and the infection of others. Cholera was spread due to the poor living conditions and cramped spaces during the industrial period in England. It is most commonly spread through human excretions and as a result was spread unknowingly to the masses due to the common need for water. In this book the author speaks of how
“We are rather at a loss for a simile or example to illustrate the journeys of this scourge, which was to go faster than a steam-carriage. It crept, like a skulking hyena, from one dirty lane to another, seizing chiefly on those who were half in the grave already, or who, from terror, were flying before the enemy. It rarely or never attacked those who boldly faced the foe” (Thomas