Morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven [Conn.]) 1848-1894, 1881-01-31
DE1HCHtFIAs
From Halls Journal of Health

| d.
| Diphtheria is generated by breathing i'm
pure dir, such comes from damp apart
| ments, dirty cellars, cutters, sinks, decaying
matters, pools of standing liquids and other
sources of filth. 1t is usually confined to
persons from to Is years of age. The at
| mosphere, the breathing of which causes the
disease, seems to be full of living things,
vegetable and animal, the bacteria and mico-
| coppins, some of which lodge in the throat
and form white splotchss, which are distinct
i of the malady, and whose presence quick
| ly poisons the blood; hence there should not
be moments delay in sending for physi-
| clan, as the march of the disease is always
rapid and its virulence increases every hour.
As with most other diseases, diphtheria is
| more likely to attack those whose systems
have been debilitated by Illness poor diet, or
any cause whatever. Any irritation of the
throat prepares the way for the disease. Any
person affected should be taken to an upper
room into which no one should come but
| those in perfect health, and who have not
| the slightest scratch or sore on any part of
the body. particularly the hands The room
should be ventilated all the time, oil discharg-
es should be quickly removed, the clothing
| frequently changed and at once covered with
water containing carbolic acid.
| Diphtheria taken from another person is
more malignant than when generated by bad
| air.
| TREATMENT OF DIPHrHERIA.
| Take from two to five grains of chlorate of
! potash, put it far back on the tongue, allow
it to melt gradually and repeat every hour
until decided Improvement takes place,
which is usually in few hours. One of the
best plans of treatment is the following:
| GARGLF
| Chorate of potassa.- ....--..-.-.... drachmus
| Hot water ounces.
Alcohol. .........-.....-..........4 drachms.
EEeosGse., drops
| Muraallc acio. ~ drops.
| This is to be used as gargle every thirty
minutes.
| INTERNALLY USE THE FOLLOWING REMEDY.
Chlorate of potassa. drachms.
| Sugar .....................1 1 7unce
Tincture of nuriate Of iron drachms
Dose-A teaspoonful every four hours.
| 1t is claimed that the above treatment will
cure nineteen cases out of twenty =
| The principal point is to find out what win
destroy the bacteria.
| Tannin will kill them in two hours.
solution of copperas, that is sulphate of IRON
| will kill them also chlorine water and diluted
muriatlc sulphuric and nitric acids. If cop
| peras is used as a gargle, it should not be
stronger than piece half large as nut
meg, dissolved in a pint of water; or level
| teaspoonful of tannin dissolved in teaspoon
full of warm water but it is better to rely on
chlorine washes above named and it would
De SAFE piani snoulQ any MEMBER OF famlIy
| have diphtheria, for each of the others to
gargle the mouth every hour with chlorine
| solution
Instead of using solutions, few grains or
either chlorate of potash, tannic acid or cop
peras, known as sulphate of iron, may be
placed dry, far back on the tongue, to
dissolve gradually and spread over the sur
faces. It is more simple method of apply
| ing these remedies, and would be more like
| ly to reach farther down the throat and to re-
main longer in contact with the diseased sur
faces than when applied in gargles or swal-
/ lowed.
/ These remedies are powerful to cure in pro-
portion to the promptness with which they
are used,