Medical practice in the Middle Ages played a very important role in society. Communities and civilizations would not have survived without the care provided. To keep the population going, medicines were needed. In some cases the population could have been much smaller or even reduced without the hope of these medicines. If there had been no Black Death, most medical advances would not have occurred. Although this was a devastating event in history and a misery for all those affected, it paved the way for many new improvements in medicine. Medical recipes were developed that used the resources they had available to create relief for some of the diseases that affected people at the time and that we still have today. Medical problems that could not be cured with the herbs and resources they had available required surgery. Compared to modern surgeries, medieval surgeries were very different. Surgery was only performed if it was the last resort and there were no other options. They had to use poisonous resources, which could be extremely dangerous. Today we take for granted the opportunities we have with surgery and, if we need it, sometimes we don't think twice, as in the case of someone who undergoes plastic surgery to change the appearance of a part of the body . While it may seem like these practices have no effect on the level we are at today, they actually do. Without the practice of medieval medical recipes and surgical practices, the world of medicine would not be where it is today. Due to the occurrence of the Black Death, advancements were made in medicine that helped us be where we are today in the medical field. The Black Death first began...... middle of paper ......ultMultimediaItem.do?Multi=yes&ResultsID=142EEC8158A&fromPage=search&ItemNumber=1&QueryName=multimedia.Myers, AR "The Black Death, 1348-9 ." English historical documents. http://www.historystudycenter.com/search/displaySuitemPageImageItemById.do?UseMapping=SuitemPageImage&QueryName=suitem&fromPage=studyunit&ItemID=10617&resource=ehd.———. "Medical recipes of the 14th century." English historical documents. http://www.historystudycenter.com/search/displaySuitemPageImageItemById.do?UseMapping=SuitemPageImage&QueryName=suitem&fromPage=studyunit&ItemID=10650&resource=ehd.———. “A Surgeon's Code of Conduct and Ethics, circa 1376.” English historical documents. Accessed December 8, 2013. http://www.historystudycenter.com/search/displaySuitemPageImageItemById.do?UseMapping=SuitemPageImage&QueryName=suitem&ItemID=10648&resource=ehd&imageNumber=4&scale=100.