Criticism on Doctor Washington's essay on yellow fever / by Th. Henderson.

  • Thomas Henderson
Date:
1824
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Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Criticism on Doctor Washington's essay on yellow fever / by Th. Henderson. 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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    tive action of antispasmodics and mercury, in a true light.— Cholera morbus should, if mercury in its primary operation be a sedative or antispasmodic, be met by this remedy instead of opium. It is suggested to the unprejudiced observer, to form some estimate of the probable result of the sedative in- fluence of mercury in this case. In colic, if mercury be a sedative or antispasmodic, this remedy should be directly soothing and sedative, and preferable to opium. Is this the fact? In bilious colic, we give calomel, not because by any sedative operations it allays the irritability of the stomach, but because of its specific gravity it is retained when bulky and unpalatable doses are rejected. In dysentery, when we give calomel, it is proverbially true that no relief is obtained until free and copious evacuations are brought off by it. In short, when an immediate and primary sedative and antispas- modic is required, we resort to any other medicine rather than mercury. The modus operandi of mercury, we have considered* in two aspects; one locally stimulant on the sto- mach and bowels and liver—the other alterative and gene- rally stimulant, when affecting the system after absorption. This simple view is, in our opinion, the whole truth as tc the operation of mercury. From a work, the character of which is admitted in Europe and America to be unrivalled, we quote this expression: Whenever we wish a strong and perma- nent impression to be made on the alimentary canal, and through it on the neighbouring viscera and the system gene- rally, calomel, by universal consent, is adopted for such a purpose.—[Paris Pharmacologic Art. Mercury.'] If a medi- cine which almost invariably purges powerfully, and most frequently occasions vomiting, be a sedative; then is calomel a sedative. It is not desired to disturb the author in his mercurial theory; as it leads to no practical result or material errour. So manv able writers are to be found differing irom each other on the modus operandi of mercury, that we utterly despair of saying any thing worth penning. We are content