St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1888-01-05
Sir Morrill, Mackenzie, the Eminent
English Specialist.
THE CROWN PRINCES PHYSI-
i' CLAN.
Brsoi Sos
His Arrival in America and What He
Has to Say of an American
Disease.

throat specialist. Sir Morrill, Mackenzie, on
the condition of the Crown Prince Williams
throat, the conversation turned to Dr. Mac
kenzie's travel. He said that one of the first
questions asked him after arriving in Amer
lea was What do you think of our country?
and what do you think of our catarrh:" The
doctor answered both questions by saying, II
think 1t a great catarrh country" He an
swered them very truthfully, too-one of the
most prevalent as well as the most disagree
able diseases in America to-day is catarrh
What is catarrh? What is the bugbear of
the American people? for catarrh is almost
exclusively an American disease.
Well, the word catarrh means inflammation
of any part of the mucous membranes i'll the
body, the product of which is the free
production of the secretion of the part
namely, mucus.
Where do we find mucous membranes?
Well, we find them lining all hollow Organs
of the body, extending in one unbroken
line from the lips through the great in
testine.
If the Inflammation be of the lining mem
brane of the nose and upper part of the
throat, we say the patient has catarrh in the
head; if little further down we say he has
catarrh of the throat; if the trouble extends
to the Wlndplpe, we say he has trache1tiS If
it extends down the gullet to the stomach,
then we say he has gastric catarrh, or gastritis
or catarrhal dyspepsia: if the inflammation
extend still further, Involving the lining
membrane of the small intestine, we call the
trouble diarrhea, or catarrh of the bowels;
we say the person has jaundice, or catarrhal
Inflammation of the liver; if on the other
hand the disease pass on to the large intes-
tine, we then call it dySentery; if it involves
the lining of the bladder, we call it cystitiS;
and If the lining Of the womb, endometritis.
So you see that the popular idea is wrong
when it limits catarrh to the head and throat.
1t is very true that catarrh troubles are much
more common in this Aforementioned situa-
ton than they are in any other place.
You suffer with discharge from the nose,
sore throat. hawking up of phlegm, pain
across the front of the head, roaring in the
ears, and a slight difficulty with the hearing;
besides this, you have wandering pains
through the body and limbs, bloating in the
stomach. With all these symptoms you pre-
sent yourself to your family doctor and ask
doctor answers, "Oh. nothing, only
a little cold. You say, But, doctor,
may I not have catarrh?'' Ger
tainly, you have catarrh.' - says the doctor,
odd when you have not felt thoroughly we'll
for several months past, and maybe years;
besides this, every time you catch cold you
are worse. In desperation you say, Can
says old DR.. So-and-so. II will have you well
in no time" He prescribes dose of Gallo
mel, gives some chloride of potash to gargle
with, or salt and water, and promises speedy
relief You go away more cheerful, try his
remedies faithfully, appear 10 get better for
a while, then fall back in the old channel,
and learn to believe that either doctors are
humhugs, or catarrh cannot be cured.
Certain it is that the ordinary doctor can't
cure catarrh, for he treats il as though he
considered it local affection, just situated on
the surface of the body, and of no more i'm
portance than the toothache., Why is this?
1t is either because he has not studied the
disease carefully or else he has failed in his
attempts to cure it, and rather than &C
knowledge his ignorance, he feigns to treat
the disease as beneath his notice and alto
IN
time.
CAUSES OF CATARRH.
Catarrh may be caused by anything that
will produced a cold or sudden chilling of
the surface of the body: as for instance, a
draught blowing on the body while heated.
Then catarrh may be produced by irritants
such. as smoke, dust, indigeStible articles of
diet and poisons, and, lastly, by extension of
the inflammation to adjoining parts Thus
you may get up bronchitis from a simple
catarrh in the head, by the disease extending
down the throat along the continuous mu-
couS membrane into the windpipe.
SYMPTOMS
The first symptom noticed with nasal
catarrh is itching and fullness of the nose;
then with this is often sneezing. In the
course of a few hours there will be dis
charge from the nostrils, consisting of a
watery material or mucus. By the next day
this trouble has extended down to the throat,
and tickling sensation will result. If not
attended to, the Inflammation will extend
down the throat still further and involve the
windpipe, and now cough will be added to
the other symptoms. and the patient will
spit up some yeliOwiSh mucus. Besides these
symptoms there will be some slight fever,
and the urine is changed to dark color.
This describes an acute attack of catarrh in
the head. Now, suppose this condition is
left to itself to get well. Then what results?
Why, the inf1amed membrane does not en-
tirely get well, and soon the patient con-
tracts another cold which is left incurred;
others follow in rapid succession, until the
result is chronic condition, known
CHRONIC CATARRH OF HEAD AND THROAT.
And this is just the condition which we
meet with most frequently. For ordinarily
the individual does not think simple catarrh
worth the trouble Of noticing, but waits until
he has chronic form of the disease devel-
oped before he seeks medical aid.
What do we find in these cases? Fir st
thickening of the membraneOuS lining of the
nose and throat The little glands on the
surface OF the membrane are immensely en-
larged, and are industriousiy engaged i'll
manufacturing and pouring out mucus.
This mucus either is discharged through the
nose, is retained in the nasal passages in the
form OF scabs, which decompose and give
the bad odor to the breath, or else it passes
down back into the throat. and is either spit
out or else swallowed.
In time the glands swell to such an extent
that they ulcerate Little ulcers are formed,
which often spread over the greater part of
the lining of the nose, and in MANY in
stances they extend down to the bones of the
nose, causing their destruction.
SYMPTOMS OF CHRONIC CATARRH.
The ordinary symptoms presented to our
notice in chronic catarrh are discharge from
the nose of mucus; mucus mixed with pus
or scabs soreness of nose and back part of
throat; cough; pain across forehead just
over the eyes; hawking up of phegm; loss
of appetite; roaring in the ears; sore eyes
and a general feeling of wretchedness. If to
these troubles there is added continuous
sneezing, or fetid odor of the breath, due
to decomposition of the retained mucus, or
death of the bones of the nose; if the voice is
changed so that the person seems to talk
through the nose then is the life of that in
dividual wretched indeed