How did the diffusion of Muslim ideas in medicine affect Europeans?

A) They began following Muslim recommendations to concentrate on treating the mind over the body.

B) They used the Muslim practice of vaccinating for measles and smallpox to reduce deaths in medieval Europe.

C) European doctors began creating large urban hospitals, but rejected Muslim medical scholarship.

D) It introduced them to a wide body of medical knowledge and the idea of training physicians and creating hospitals.

The correct answer is D.

The Islamic achievements in medieval medicine were groundbreaking.

Apart from translating many medical books from Greek into Arabic and then into Latin, the scholars believed that the sick should be cared for and not shunned. The first medical center was established in Persia (Iran) in the 6th century. In the city of Bagdad, there were five public hospitals by the year 1000. They were proper hospitals with wards and they also served as medical education centers for doctor training. Arabic hospitals pioneered the use of antiseptics such as alcohol or vinegar. The hospitals were also extremely clean in contrast to Europe where the sanitation was missing.

Some achievements in medical knowledge were: circular system and anatomy knowledge improvement, infectious diseases recognition (establishing the quarantine), the invention of over 200 surgical instruments and the creation of pharmacies.