Volume 1

The science and practice of medicine / By William Aitken ... From the 4th London ed., with additions, by Meredith Clymer.

  • William Aitken
Date:
1866
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: The science and practice of medicine / By William Aitken ... From the 4th London ed., with additions, by Meredith Clymer. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the University of Massachusetts Medical School, Lamar Soutter Library, through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the Lamar Soutter Library at the University of Massachusetts Medical School.

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    fever to consist in a preternatural heat,—it is obviously abso- lutely essentia] that medical men should be able to measure this heat, and so Leara the significance of such increase of temperature in every case of disease where fever may be present. The careful physician counts the pulse and the respirations in all cases of illness; it is now not less incumbent upon him to measure the heat. By means of a delicate thermometer he has in every ease of fever an accurate measurer of its amount; and the student of medicine, as one of the earliest clinical lessons in hospital wards, should be taught to look to the excreta, and to the various physiological con- ditions of the patient, tot- the products of the metamorphosis of tis- sue equivalent to the amount of heat in each disease. For physicians the thermometry of disease is practically impor- tant from two points of view, inasmuch as,—(1.) The continuous daily us, ,,{ th, ///, rmonn ter greatly facilitates the clinical recognition of diseases. It aids the busy practitioner in coming to certain and safe conclu- sions ; and so relieves him of much anxiety of mind in doubtful cases. (2.) 77m us\ of the thermometer tends to elucidate the Natural History of all diseases /rhere fever is present. It is proposed, therefore, to illustrate this subject under the fol- lowing four heads : I. Th Instruments, Methods, and Practical Rules for Observing and Recording the Temperature of the Human Body in Diseases where Fever may i» }>e>s> yd. Animal heat has been determined in two ways; namely, either by the ordinary mercurial thermometer, or by the thermo-electric- apparatus. The latter is able to indicate fractions of a degree, and in this respect surpasses the powers of the most delicate mercurial thermometers. MM. Becquerel and Breschet employed such an apparatus to determine the temperature of internal parts. The apparatus consisted of two wires, of different metals, soldered together, and having their free ends brought into communication with a thermo-electric multiplier, having an index showing lOths of a decree. The wires being passed through different parts of the body (like acupuncture needles) indicate the temperature of the tissues at the point of contact of the two metals. For example— passing the wires an inch and a half into the calf of the leg, the temperature was found to be 98° Fahr., while at the depth of a third of an inch it was only 94° Fahr., showing some cooling of the body towards the surface compared with the interior. The superficial fascia of the biceps was nearly 3° Fahr. lower than the temperature of the muscle itself. But notwithstanding the greater delicacy of the thermo-electric apparatus, a sensitive mercurial ther- mometer, finely graduated, is the only instrument of practical use-
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