Remarks on the history and treatment of delirium tremens / by John Ware.

  • Ware, John, 1795-1864.
Date:
1831
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Remarks on the history and treatment of delirium tremens / by John Ware. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the National Library of Medicine (U.S.), through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the National Library of Medicine (U.S.)

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    lirium Tremens. Uniformity is, however, so much more important than significance of nomenclature, that it seems not desirable to attempt to substitute a new name for that now in general use. The termination of a paroxysm of Delirium Tre- mens is always, as has been already mentioned, by a profound sleep, and no cessation of the delirium or other symptoms is to be regarded as indicating a fa- vorable close of the disease, unless it have been pre- ceded by it. Sleep, however, is not always to be regarded as indicating the speedy termination of the paroxysm, since it is not uncommon for patients to sleep a little,—from a few minutes to an hour, for instance,—on each day of the delirium ; and this is more likely to happen when the attack takes place in the course of some other disease. Lucid intervals are not common, but they sometimes occur, and so far as a few cases can go towards establishing a general principle, we are to regard them, when occurring be- fore the regular termination of the paroxysm, as un- favorable indications. Two cases only, however, of this kind have fallen under my observation, and I do not recollect that any others have been recorded. In the first, the disease began with convulsions, which were repeated during the first twelve hours. On the second morning, without having slept at all, the patient had a perfectly rational interval of con- siderable duration, and talked with his friends and attendants in a manner which would have led no one to suspect him of having labored under any alienation 5