The history of medicine in its salient features

By Walter Libby

Book Overview

Before laboratories and antibiotics, healing was still contested, ingenious, and fiercely human. Medicine is an ancient argument. In The History of Medicine in Its Salient Features, Walter Libby offers a brisk, scholarly medical history that traces the western medicine history of ideas and practices across pivotal eras. From ancient greek medicine and its early theories of the body, through medieval medical practices shaped by faith, craft, and necessity, Libby follows the evolution of medical theory as observation, anatomy, and experiment began to challenge inherited authority. The narrative keeps one eye on the clinic and another on society: 19th century medicine, the rise of hospitals, sanitation, and a growing public health history sit alongside changing notions of contagion, prevention, and professional training. Written with the confidence of a history of science overview, it remains an illuminating medical humanities reading for anyone who wants to understand how today's assumptions were made, revised, and sometimes overturned. Republished by Alpha Editions in a careful modern edition, this volume preserves the spirit of the original while making it effortless to enjoy today -- a heritage title prepared for readers and collectors alike. Offered as an unabridged classic edition and complete text edition, it works equally well as a medical students reference, a research-friendly companion for general readers, and a handsome addition to a classics shelf.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 9353705991
• ISBN13: 9789353705992
• Release Date: June 2019
• Publisher: Alpha Edition
• Length: 456 Pages
• Weight: 1.27 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 5.5" x 8.5"