Biomaterial Database

[Assisted birth in 19th century Bahia]. 2008

Maria Renilda Nery Barreto

Centro Federal de Educação Tecnológica, Celso Suckow da Fonseca-RJ, Rua Octávio Kelly, 304/703, 24220-30, Niterói, RJ, Brasil. renildabarreto@hotmail.com

This paper presents the traditions of assisted childbirth in the Brazilian state of Bahia in the 19th Century and develops the hypothesis that two obstetrical traditions coexisted in the capital, Salvador, namely the doctor-midwives--who used technical resources and knowledge acquired from obstetrics as a medical specialty--and the traditional midwives, whose know-how was purely of an empirical-sensorial nature. Despite all efforts employed by the doctors to win over the confidence of Bahian families, the midwives continued to be predominant in the art of 'delivering' children and treating female illnesses. The analysis focuses on the social and professional segments that were active in assisted birth; the role of the Bahian College of Medicine (Faculdade de Medicina da Bahia) in the training and certification of midwives and the use of newspapers as a way to legitimize the doctor-midwives; it also discusses the scant coverage of the midwives in these media.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D008880	Midwifery	The practice of assisting women in childbirth.	Traditional Birth Attendant,Midwife,Midwives,Birth Attendant, Traditional,Birth Attendants, Traditional,Traditional Birth Attendants
D009524	Newspapers as Topic	Publications printed and distributed daily, weekly, or at some other regular and usually short interval, containing news, articles of opinion (as editorials and letters), features, advertising, and announcements of current interest. (Webster's 3d ed)	Newspapers as Topics,Topics, Newspapers as
D009774	Obstetrics	A medical-surgical specialty concerned with management and care of women during pregnancy, parturition, and the puerperium.
D011247	Pregnancy	The status during which female mammals carry their developing young (EMBRYOS or FETUSES) in utero before birth, beginning from FERTILIZATION to BIRTH.	Gestation,Pregnancies
D001938	Brazil	A country located on the eastern coast of South America, located between Colombia and Peru, that borders the Atlantic Ocean. It is bordered on the north by Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana, on the south by Uruguay, and on the west by Argentina. The capital is Brasilia.
D005260	Female		Females
D006801	Humans	Members of the species Homo sapiens.	Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D000329	Advertising	Works about the act or practice of calling public attention to a product, service, need, etc., especially by paid announcements in newspapers, magazines, on radio, or on television. (Random House Unabridged Dictionary, 2d ed)	Advertising as Topic,Advertisement as Topic,Telemarketing,Advertisings
D049672	History, 19th Century	Time period from 1801 through 1900 of the common era.	19th Century History,19th Cent. History (Medicine),19th Cent. History of Medicine,19th Cent. Medicine,Historical Events, 19th Century,History of Medicine, 19th Cent.,History, Nineteenth Century,Medical History, 19th Cent.,Medicine, 19th Cent.,19th Cent. Histories (Medicine),19th Century Histories,Cent. Histories, 19th (Medicine),Cent. History, 19th (Medicine),Century Histories, 19th,Century Histories, Nineteenth,Century History, 19th,Century History, Nineteenth,Histories, 19th Cent. (Medicine),Histories, 19th Century,Histories, Nineteenth Century,History, 19th Cent. (Medicine),Nineteenth Century Histories,Nineteenth Century History
D036861	Delivery, Obstetric	Delivery of the FETUS and PLACENTA under the care of an obstetrician or a health worker. Obstetric deliveries may involve physical, psychological, medical, or surgical interventions.	Obstetric Delivery,Deliveries, Obstetric,Obstetric Deliveries