The Impact of War on Medicine

Both World War One and World War Two coincided with advances in medical technology and medical treatment. Some potential causes for the advances during war are below:

Medical advances in war

Portable x-ray machines, blood transfusions and plastic surgery all advanced around the start of the 20th century.
Penicillin was initially mass produced because of the increase in demand around the time of war.

Incentive to develop and funding

The financial and moral incentive to treat soldiers and win the war may be higher. Governments want (or have to) win wars.
Governments were more likely to fund scientific developments if it would help the war effort.

Experimentation

Progress may have been possible because doctors have more opportunities to experiment.
Saving lives on the battlefield may require extreme treatments that may work.

Diet and hygiene

Rationing emphasised the importance of eating a healthy diet as cheaply as possible.
- Government posters in the UK endorsed eating healthily and being hygienic.

Improvements in Surgery

The two World Wars drove improvements in surgery in Britain. Orthopaedic (skeleton/bones) surgery and neurosurgery both began in World War One.

Anaesthetics

Anaesthetics were developed which enabled patients to remain unconscious for longer.
- This meant doctors could try more complicated procedures.
In 1950, William Bigelow performed the first open-heart surgery. Anaesthetics made more complex surgery like this possible. In 1958, a pacemaker was fitted in the heart.

Keyhole surgery

Keyhole surgery was created. This means the surgeon could perform an operation through small incisions (cuts).
Keyhole surgery needed improvements in video so that tiny cameras could be put into the body to do surgery.
Using miniature instruments and fibre-optic cameras, surgeons can perform operations which reconnected nerves and blood vessels together.

Radiation therapy and X-ray machines

Radiation therapy was advanced in the 20th century by Henri Becquerel and Marie Curie. This means the surgeon uses high-energy radiation on a patient with cancer.
- This helps surgeons kill cancer cells and reduce the size of tumours.
X-ray machines were used to make surgery more effective. They could identify what was wrong with a patient before and during surgery to make it more effective.

Laser surgery

Laser surgery was first used in 1987 in eye surgery.
Alongside eye surgery, lasers can also help treat skin conditions, remove ulcers, control bleeding and help remove blockages in arteries.

Prosthetic body parts

A prosthetic limb is an artificial body part that can replace arms or legs. Pare had designed some prosthetic limbs but investments after the world wars improved the technology.
In 1972, John Charnley made the first hip replacements and in 1984, skin grafts became widely available.
In the 1990s, prosthetic limbs with microprocessors were released.

1Medicine Stands Still

1.1Ancient Egyptian Approaches to Medicine

1.1.1Ancient Egyptian Medicine

1.2Ancient Greek Medicine

1.2.1Hippocrates

1.2.2Galen & Ancient Rome

1.2.3End of Topic Test - Ideas About Disease

1.3Medieval Medicine

1.3.1The Fall of Rome

1.3.2The Medieval 'Doctor'

1.4Religion & Medicine

1.4.1Christianity & Medicine

1.4.2Islam & Medicine

1.4.3Medieval Surgery

1.5Public Health in the Middle Ages

1.5.1Towns & Monasteries

1.5.2The Black Death

1.5.3End of Topic Test - Medieval Medicine

1.5.4Grade 9 Medieval Medicine

2The Beginnings of Change

2.1The Impact of the Renaissance on Britain

2.1.1The Renaissance & Vesalius

2.1.2Paré & Harvey

2.1.3Institutions & Technology in the Renaissance

2.2Treating Illnesses in the Renaissance

2.2.1The Great Plague

2.2.2Physicians, Surgeons & Hospitals

2.2.3End of Topic Test - The Beginnings of Change

2.2.4Grade 9 - The Beginnings of Change

2.2.5Exam-Style Questions - Source Utility

2.3Prevention of Disease

2.3.1Vaccination & the Spread of Disease

2.3.2Was There Progress in Renaissance Medicine?

2.3.3Exam-Style Questions - Societal Attitudes

3A Revolution in Medicine

3.1The Development of Germ Theory & its Impact

3.1.1Germ Theory, Pasteur & Koch

3.1.2Magic Bullets & the Impact of Germ Theory

3.2A Revolution in Surgery

3.2.1Anaesthetics & Antiseptics

3.3Improvements in Public Health

3.3.1Public Health & Cholera

3.3.2C19 Improvements in Public Health

3.3.3End of Topic Test - Revolution in Medicine

3.3.4Grade 9 - Revolution in Medicine

4Modern Medicine

4.1Modern Treatment of Disease

4.1.1WW1, Pharmaceuticals & Penicillin

4.1.2Exam-Style Questions - Penicillin

4.1.3The Impact of War on Medicine

4.2New Diseases & Treatments in the 20th Century

4.2.120th Century Diseases & Treatments

4.2.2Alternative Treatments & Transplants

4.3Modern Public Health

4.3.1Booth, Rowntree & the Liberals

4.3.2The Welfare State

4.3.3The NHS

4.3.4End of Topic Test - New Diseases & Treatments

4.3.5Grade 9 - Modern Medicine

5Themes in Public Health

5.1Themes in Public Health over the Period

5.1.1War

5.1.2Exam-Style Questions - War

5.1.3Religion & Superstition

5.1.4Chance

5.1.5Government

5.1.6Communication

5.1.7Science & Technology

5.1.8Role of Individuals

5.1.9End of Topic Test - Themes in Public Health

5.1.10Grade 9 - Themes in Public Health

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