Medieval orthopaedic history in Germany: Hieronymus Brunschwig and Hans von Gersdorff.

Hans von Gerssdorff and Hieronymus Brunschwig, who flourished in Germany in the latter half of the fifteenth century, have both left early printed treatises on Surgery which give excellent woodcuts showing pictures of instruments, operations, and costumes, at the end of the medieval period. Hieronymus Brunschwig or Hieronymus Brunschwygk (ca. 1450 - ca. 1512), was a German surgeon (wundartzot), alchemist and botanist. He was notable for his methods of treatment of gunshot wounds. His most influential book was the Buch der Cirurgia. Gersdorff(1455-1529) was a military surgeon who gained wide experience during 40 years of campaigning and was an expert in the treatment of battlefield injuries. His work covers anatomy, surgery, leprosy, and glossaries of anatomical terms, diseases, and medications.

Crutch art painting in the middle age as orthopaedic heritage (part I: the lepers, the poliomyelitis, the cripples).

Throughout time from antiquity, the major objective of crutches was to restore, as close as possible, the functional capacity formerly held by a limb deficient person. The crutch is probably the oldest tool of the orthopaedist. It is probably also the most neglected in terms of progress from antiquity until the 20th century. The aim of this paper is to give a view of the different crutches used in this period by different people and to observe the influence of this period on the progress of the design of crutches.