I don't think I seen Tuberculosis mentioned, horrible way to die, but one of the more insidious deaths of the time was diabetes, because it was often considered a malady of the soul and brain hence many we're confined to institutions which weren't much better than the german death camps of WWII.
Also an intriguing form of death was the small injury treated by the surgeons of the time. It was said, that a good doctor could be spotted by the amount of blood and debris on his work coat, (true) unfortunately many patients who may have survived if left untreated by these practitioners died of infectious diseases caused by the doctors unsanitary conditions.
Actually I have one cause of death for you that is was very painful in those times yet not widely reported, because many afflicted actually lived and tolerated the disease, which was GOUT.
I suffer the malady myself, which is an overproduction of uric acid in the kidneys which forms tiny little crystals which invade the joints and cause searing pain of which you would literally beg for death at an acute outbreak... The fascinating thing about Gout back in the 16th and 17th century was that everyone drank from lead or pewter cups. Historical doctors have surmised that it was in fact the lead from these cups which played a huge roll in the onset of acute gout as much, if not more than the diet of the times.
The thing is, gout wouldn't kill you by itself, but a huge concentration of uric acid in the kidneys would cause sever damage and shut them down. So imagine having your joints on fire, not being able to piss, and a back ache like never before... Thank you, I'll take death for 100....
