Observations upon the action of ipecacuanha and its alkaloid emetia / by Dyce Duckworth, M.D.

  • Dyce Duckworth
Date:
[cbetween 1800 and 1899?]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Observations upon the action of ipecacuanha and its alkaloid emetia / by Dyce Duckworth, M.D. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The University of Glasgow Library. The original may be consulted at The University of Glasgow Library.

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    primarily some amount of stimulus upon the branches of the vagus seems-then to relieve this symptom, but I think it highly probable that ipecacuanha has more than an ordinary effect of this kind, for it appears to exert a decided influence upon the uterus, to which allusion will be made later. * Ipecacuanha in Cases of Slow Digestion and Constipation. There is strong evidence in favour of this remedy in pro- perly selected cases of indigestion due to insufficient gastric secretion. It is indicated when the tongue is coated, and the mouth constantly sticky or dry, and when there is complaint of a ' load on the stomach' at the same time. This condition may be arrived at either as the result of an acute debauch, intemperance of food or strong liquors, or as a phase of long- standing indigestion. It has been well termed an embarras gastrique. Ipecacuanha is of signal service here, and no better formula for its use exists than the old-fashioned, so-called, dinner-pill, in which rhubarb also is an ingredient. M. Martin Solon ] employed gr. vj. to vij. of ipecacuanha alone, three times in the twenty-four hours in such cases. There is something decidedly noteworthy, however, in the combination of rhubarb with the remedy. The two drugs work better together in affording relief than either singly in the same case. Ipecacuanha has no dovibt the merit of directly increasing gastric secretion. According to Budd, % it possesses this power in a greater degree than any other medicine we possess, and he quotes the opinion of M. Daubenton, § that the remedy acted by increasing peristaltic action in the stomach, and imparting energy to its glands. Rhubarb is observed to have a peculiar calmative effect upon the stomach, and this is noticed very shortly after taking it. Its astringent action is a later one. Noav the combination has in addition the power of clearing the alimentary canal very effectually. This action is excellently well observed in the case of the compound rhubarb pill, five grains of Avhich, if combined with one of powder of ipecacuanha, act as efficiently as ten or fifteen grains of the pill by itself. Thus the addition of one grain of ipecacuanha powder to five of compound rhubarb pill, acted upon the bowels in * Vide p. 31. t Wilson Fox, ' Diagnosis and Treatment of Dyspepsia,' 1st edit. p. 181. i 'Diseases of the Stomach,' p. 327. § ' OLseiTations on Indigestion, and the efficacy of Ipecacuanha in relieving it,' &c., Trans., Loud. 1807- l^udd believes that this writer was the first to introduce ipecaclianha for slow digestion.