Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1882-06-01

disease attended with difficult breathing
as asthma. Consumptive patients, and
hose suffering from disease Of the heart,
also complain Of short breath. Now, al
though we never have asthma without
short breath, il Is very common TO have
short breath where the disease Is essen
TALLY different from asthma; l wish
could add, less fatal.
By asthma / mean that disease of the
lungs which manifests itself in spells or
paroxysms of short or difficult breathing,
which may last a few hours, few days,
or a month, passing off with free expec-
toration leaving the lungs as comfortable
as before the attack. Although this is
the usual course OF asthma, it is not uni
formly so.
The approach OF asthma is known by a
feeling OF languor, yawning, and oppress-
ion about the stomach, with a sense of
tightness around the lower part of the
chest. There is headache and dryness of
the nostrils and violent sneezing, With q
sense of chilliness and weeping eyes.
The attack may come at any time, but
il usually minifest itself toward evening.
Some suffer as soon as they lie down, hut
many are wakened out OF sleep in the
middle of the night, or toward morning,
by gasping for breath. The chest feels a,
though it were bound with cord. The
patient springs up in bed, and orders the
windows to be raised, and the doors to be
thrown open. The house seems .too
small to breath in" II the paroxysm is
severe, perspiration starts on the fore.
head; the face is haggard, the lips pale,
the extrep,ities cold, the heart palpitates
violently 1t is no unusual thing for the
asthnatic to rush to an open window and
lean out for hours in the coldest weather.
insensible to every influence and ever,
feeling, except the desire for air. The
distress experienced during fit of asth
ma can only be likened to strangulatioD
protracted through hours, days, weeks,
and sometimes even months.
Happily for the victims of this disease,
hope and confidence never flag, that ma
ture will soon come to their relief. At
ter while the tight feeling of the chest
relaxes, the breathing becomes more
easy, the patient speaks, coughs, and ex
pectorates freely. The anxiety Of the
face disappears, the lips lose their lividity,
and, exhausted by violent efforts to get
breath, the poor sufferer falls asleep.
The cause of all this distress, and the
reason why asthma comes on SO sudden
ly, and passes off SO mysteriously, are
very simple. The air.cells unconsciously
contract and expand. Any thing which
irritates the nerves that upon these aii.
cells may cause spasmodic contraction
to take place on the instant, and when it
does the cells close and shut out air from
the blood. The distress is caused, not by
the spasm, but for the want OF air which
it occasions. Any distractions. in the
windpipe sufficiently great to limit in
the same degree the quantity of air
drawn into the lungs, would produce the
same distress. The spasmodic contrac.
tion occurs, like cramp, instantaneously,
and, like cramp, may continue for sew
eral hours, and then pass off in an in.
slant. From this you will understand
that whatever irritates the nerves of the
lungs may cause asthma, and what
ever soothes that irritation relaxes
the spasm, and relieves the patient,
However theorists may contend for the
hereditary character of consumption, all
must admit the purely local character OF
asthma.
As my object is chiefly to illustrate the
successful treatment of asthma, shall
give brief notice of the various forms
of this disease, reserving for future
time more ample history of its physiolo
gical phenomena.
Nervous Asthma comes on suddenly
and passes off with very slight and otter
no expectoration. It occurs in persons
who are said to be nervous, most common
with females, and at all ages. 1t may bt
produced by any thing which quickens
the circulation. as the receipt of good OF
bad news, fear, etc. Inhaling Ipecacu
unha powder will excite it. Many per
sons will begin to wheeze the moment 6
jar of this medicine is opened In theil
presence. I know two medical men who
are wholly unable to handle this drug Il
is sometimes produced by the odor Of
strong cheese; and has even been knowr
to arise from so ridiculous cause as the
presence of cat in the room. Laennel
notices two singular examples which oc
Cured under his nRobservation, One
was invariably seized with asthma on at.
tempting to travel in certain direction
and Immediately relieved on turning
back. The other was sure to be seized
with asthma IL his lamp went out during
the night, although he was asleep at the
time.
Hay Asthma-Hay Fever-Rose Cold.
These different names are applied to a
kind of asthma very com non during the
Summer months. It occurs as a com-
mon cold or catarrh in the shead, and
rapidly develops into asthma. First, we
have irritations Of the nose, eyes, and the
whole Of the air passages, attended by
itching or burning in the parts. An
ncrid atar ruuo from tha nose atton1oJ
by much sneezing, These symptoms are
throat, more or less cough, short breath,
and wheeling in the chest. The disease
begun as catarrh In the nose, reaches
the lungs, and the oppression and want
OF breath which it occasions are so great
as to deserve the name of Asthma. Hay
Asthma sis most common during the
months Of June and July, and is caused
by inhaling the pollen Of some kind of
flowers or grass which are in maturity at
this season Of the year. It is often pro-
dnced long after the hay season is over,
by simply going into a barn where hay is
stored, or by having hay brought to a
stable near the house. The .odor acts as
an irritant to the olfactory nerves.
Hay Asthma is caused by and irritation
OF the pneume.nasal nerves, which have
origin in the sub-mucous membrane lin
ing the interior of the nose, and their
distributing termini in the tissues of the
air-cells form the upper lobes of the
lungs. ! have never seen case Of hay
asthma unaccompanied by nasal catarrh.
Catarrh without asthma is common, but
hay asthma, rose cold. or hay fever with
out catarrh has no existence in my OBJ
servation; and make this statement af-
ter having made the subject of asthma