Question

What was NOT a reason for the very low number of surgeries performed before 1800?

O There was no effective way of blocking the patient's pain during surgery.
O Most patients undergoing surgery later died from complications.
O The risk of infection was high.
O Surgeons were poorly paid.

Answer 1

The incorrect reason among the options for low surgical frequency before 1800 is that surgeons were poorly paid. Surgeries were infrequent because of the inability to manage pain, infection, and lack of anatomical knowledge, not because of surgeons' salaries.

Step-by-step explanation:

The reason that was NOT a reason for the very low number of surgeries performed before 1800 is that surgeons were poorly paid. Numerous other factors contributed to surgeries being infrequent during this period, namely the lack of an effective way to block the patient's pain, high risk of postoperative infection, and a significant number of patients dying from complications after surgery. However, the payment of surgeons is not mentioned as a factor influencing the rate of surgeries.

Before the discovery of anesthesia in the 1840s, there was no way to perform surgery without causing horrendous agony to the patient. This, coupled with a high risk of infection as highlighted by the work of Joseph Lister, who introduced the practice of antiseptic surgery, and the overall poor understanding of internal human anatomy due to legal and social restrictions on dissections, made surgical procedures rare and dangerous. The late nineteenth century saw significant advances, including X-rays and a better comprehension of microbes that reduced the risk of postoperative infections.