Colonial North America: Countway Library of Medicine

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Materia Medica

Stimulants

consequence of debility, but he is certainly mistaken. I think that a plethoric state of the system does sometimes produce it, it is often cured by a turgescence of the vessels of the brain, and opium must be improper, but it often arises from an irritation of the nerves, when our medicine is verry usefull and particularly when the disease is periodical, the frequent use of it however must increase the turgessence of the vessels of the brain. Dr Cullen found it usefull depending on an acute epilepsy, this is so called from its sensation which is like that of cold air or cold water applied to the part, the patient feels on the top of the head or foot a circumscribed coldness about the size of a dime, this rapidly travels to the head, it often originates in pain like the sting of an insect. I think that the aura Epileptica is the same or verry near to the aura arthritica, in many cases a tournaquet or any bandage applied to the limb, will prevent the coldness, from reacting to the head, opium is a very powerfull means of preventing this return, many cases of Epilepsy come on during sleep, these are sometimes ended by giving opium before going to bed, the reason of the coming on at night appear to be from a horizontal position determining the blood to the head and thereby producing a turgessence of the vessels of the part, and to this the

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Materia Medica

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a young man who was affected with Epilepsy with whoom he used stramonium with great advantage, the same person was afterward my patient, but I did not think it a case adapted to the use of stramonium the pupils of his eyes were much dilated. I however gave the article to him afterwards with manifest advantage, on the fifth of July he took 1 gr. [grain] of the extract, bis die, on the ninth I ordered V.S. ℥vij [7 ounces] and gr 1 [1 grain] of the medicine in the morning and three grs [grains] in the afternoon, increasing gradually, on the third of Sept he was discharged cured, in another patient it increased the dilation of the pupil, which I think is an indication of the inflamitory state of the brain, in another case it diminished the violence of the fits as also their frequency in a black woman who had laboured for a long time and in whoom it was produced by an Aura Epileptica it effected a complete cure, in some cases of Epilepsy bleeding, Purging, &c are verry necessary and the same observations that are applicable to opium are applicable to stramonium, where there is a plethoric state of the system like opium it would be improper in Mania. I have frequently used the extract of opium in the Pennsylvania Hospital, in the case of Mary Hill I employ’d it with the happiest effects, on the 23d July 1800 I prescribed two grs [grains], on the 30th grs iij [3 grains] every night and increased it