From the Spirit of Seventy Six[1]
COMMUNICATION
The
disease known of late years by the name of Influenza has appeared in Montgomery
county, Maryland, with unusual malignancy [
] Its first a[[earance was about the beginning of the year in the
vicinity of the Potomac and from thence has extended itself through different
parts. The disease has commonly
commenced with, and in its progress assumed most or all of the symtoms [sic],
viz. a [a i ude], sneezing, a thin and acrid discharge from the nose, a sorethroat,
chills, a fever, pains in the limbs, breast and sides; also in the back and
head; a cough an expectoration of muscus mixed with blood, profuse sweats
difficult respiration, great debility, gidiness [sic] and delirium: and
finally, it has ended in death or a tedious recovery. The pulse in a few instances, was depressed,
sometimes it was full and tense: but often weak and frequent. The blood drawn, in several instances was
dissolved, or would not separate into o[]assement[ ]en and serum - when taken
indiciously [sic] it generally exhibited an inflammatory oroct.
The
disease under the anme of "a bad cold" passed trhough whole families
in perfect safety with medical aid. The
disease however in its progress occassionally assumed the form of the typhua
gravior of Dr. Cullen:[2] in
several instances it terminated in the typhus state of fever of Doctor Rush:[3] it
was accompanied with the symtoms [sic] of a billious-fever; It was most rapid
in its progress and its termination, fatal, under appearance of a parissneu
monia[4] no[t]tha
or hastard pleurisy. The appearance of
Influenza under all these forms has been particularly observed by medical
writers. In fact it is a law of
Influenza in common with other epidemics to banish or mix with all the other
existing diseases. The circumstance
especially claims the diligent attention and ingenuity of the physician[].
The
treatment of the disease should be different according to the carying and
opposite states of the system. It has
been owing to a neglect of this golden rule that every remedy in turn has proved
injurious. The lancet too, from an
indiscriminate use has been brought into disrepute; this is to be lamented; for
in very many cases, It is the anchor of hope.
It is confidently asserted, there has not been any appearance of a new
or unknown disease, but that in every csae [sic] an early and judicious
application of proper remedies will prove beneficial.[5]
March
19, 1814
[1] The
spirit of 'seventy-six. : (Richmond [Va.]) 1808-1814 Richmond [Va.] Publisher: Edward
Carter Stanard Vol. 1, no. 1 (Sept. 13,
1808)- ; -Mar. 4, 1814.
[2] William
Cullen (15 April 1710 – 5 February 1790)
was a Scottish physician, chemist and agriculturalist, and one of the most
important professors at the Edinburgh Medical School, during its heyday as the
leading center of medical education in the English-speaking world. Cullen was
also a successful author. He published a number of medical textbooks, mostly
for the use of his students, though they were popular throughout Europe and the
American colonies as well. His best known work was First Lines of the Practice
of Physic, which was published in a series of editions between 1777 and 1784.
From Wikipedia
[3] Benjamin
Rush (January 4, 1746 [O.S. December 24, 1745] – April 19, 1813) was a Founding
Father of the United States. Rush lived in the state of Pennsylvania and was a
physician, writer, educator, humanitarian, as well as the founder of Dickinson
College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. Rush signed the Declaration of Independence
and attended the Continental Congress. He served as Surgeon General in the
Continental army, and was blamed for criticizing George Washington. Later in life, Rush became a professor of
chemistry, medical theory, and clinical practice at the University of
Pennsylvania. Rush was a leader of the
American Enlightenment, and an enthusiastic supporter of the American
Revolution. He signed the Declaration of Independence, and was a leader in
Pennsylvania's ratification the Constitution in 1788. He was prominent in many
reforms, especially in the areas of medicine and education. He opposed slavery,
advocated free public schools, and sought improved education for women and a
more enlightened penal system. As a leading physician, Rush had a major impact
on the emerging medical profession. As an Enlightenment intellectual, he was
committed to organizing all medical knowledge around explanatory theories,
rather than rely on empirical methods. Rush argued that illness was the result
of imbalances in the body's physical system and was caused by malfunctions in
the brain. His approach prepared the way for later medical research, but Rush
himself undertook none of it. He promoted public health by advocating clean
environment and stressing the importance of personal and military hygiene.
His study of mental disorder made him one of the founders of American
psychiatry. From Wikipedia
[4]
very hard to read; perhaps: peripneumonia
A brief history of pneumonia . May 1, 2012 Rick Frea 2007-2011 [accessed March 30, 2013]
http://hardluckasthma.blogspot.com/2012/05/brief-history-of-pneumonia.html
" Pleurisy was defined
by the Ancient Greeks as inflammation of the pleural cavity, and they
recognized symptoms of pleurisy and pneumonia as a sharp pain in the side. Hippocratic writers simply grouped these two
conditions together under the phrase peripneumonia. (8, page 192). The condition may also have been confused
with other maladies such as asthma or heart failure, which were generally
grouped under the umbrella term asthma."
[5] Transcribed by John Peter Thompson from: American
Watchman, Date: 03-30-1814; Volume: VI; Issue: 485; Page: [1]; Location:
Wilmington, Delaware
No comments:
Post a Comment