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Biomedical subjects

B Bachrach

Publications and source records attributed to B Bachrach.

11 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1984

Sin and mental illness in the Middle Ages.

The modern stereotype that in the Middle Ages there was a general belief that mental illness was caused by sin is reviewed. The authors examined 57 descriptions of mental illness (madness, possession, alcoholism, epilepsy, and combinations thereof) from pre-Crusade chronicles and saints' lives. In only 9 (16%) of these descriptions did the sources attribute the mental illness to sin or wrongdoing, and in these cases the medieval authors appeared to use this attribution for its propaganda value against an enemy of their patron saints, their monastery lands, or their religious values. The medieval sources indicate that the authors were well aware of the proximate causes of mental illness, such as humoral imbalance, intemperate diet and alcohol intake, overwork, and grief. The banality that, since God causes all things he also causes mental illness, was only used by medieval authors under special circumstances and in a minority of cases. It does not constitute evidence of superstitious and primitive notions about mental illness in the early Middle Ages.

Europe↗
PubMed1982

Visions and psychopathology in the Middle Ages.

Descriptions of visionary experience from written medieval sources are examined from a cross-cultural perspective. The mental states of the persons having the visions range from terminal illnesses, states of starvation, stress-related syndromes, dreams and hypnagogic states, and seemingly unremarkable mental states. Although a few of the visions elicited some skepticism on the part of contemporaries, most reports of visions were accepted at face value as bona fide visions, with no discernible differentiation between starvation visions, dreams, deliria of illnesses, and possible mental illness. Only four of the visions appeared causally related, by today's standards, to mentally illnesses. These persons were not recognized as mentally ill by their contemporaries. Since there was a recognition of mental illness in the Middle Ages, it would appear that such recognition was based on symptoms other than visions or hallucinations. It is also possible that hallucinations, as culturally supported phenomena, were not as available as forms of expression of psychoses in the Middle Ages as they are today. Such a possibility has interesting implications regarding the role of a culture in shaping the forms by which mental illnesses are expressed, recognized, and labeled.

Alcoholism↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Hospital foundations: pros and cons should be considered.

To Create a separate foundation for fund raising purposes has tempted many development directors. The author examines positive and negative factors that should be weighed before making a final decision.

Financial Management↗