ABSTRACT
Medieval surgeons used pharmaceutical preparations to complement their practical skills in the treatment of wounds. Formulae exist in the contemporary literature of such preparations which sometimes include details as to their actual formulation and usage. These surgical texts do not usually define the specific conditions in which they were to be used as many were thought appropriate for all types of wounds. This chapter describes a clear case of therapeutic failure for a facial wound in 1353 in the City of London and offers possible explanations as to why such a therapeutic failure may have occurred based on consideration of a number of contemporary surgical texts and the evidence of fourteenth-century coroners’ reports.
