Trota, who is also known as Trotula, lived sometime in the eleventh century in Salerno in Southern Italy. At that time, Salerno was famous for its hospitals, and the first medical school was established there. Many women were trained as physicians, and were professors of medicine.
Trotula was one of the most famous physicians of that time. Her main interest was to alleviate the suffering of women. She was the author of many medical works, including a book on the diseases of women. She wrote it to educate male doctors about the female body, because such knowledge was generally lacking.
The book comprises 63 chapters, and gives a lot of information about the medical problems faced by women. The majority of the remedies that she recommends are herbs, spices, and oils. Her work influenced physicians in the centuries to come. There is no doubt that Trotula was instrumental in bringing about a change in society due to her scientific revelations.
