The Irish standard., 1888-07-14
TREATMENT OF suM-svRoxE.
Valuable Hints Given by Prominent
pI, v2;cian,

Valuable Hints Given by "a Prominent
American Physician.
In his opening remarks DR.. Mitchell
said: There are two distinct vari-
cites of sun-stroke. but we recognize
one, the common, which takes the
form Of an intense fever. The other
presents exactly the opposite conai-
ton, though arising from the same
cause. 1t is called heat exhaustion.
This condition is essentially the same
as that called COLLAPSE. >: 1t attacks
strong and weak indiscriminately.
The attack is generally sudden, and
with little or no warning the patient
becomes unconscious. incapable OF
speech or movement, or nlutters in in
coherent phrases; he is pale, is skin is
cold to the touch and covered with
profuse cold sweat. Even his breath
feels. cold to q hand held hsfore his
mouth. His pulse at the wrist is very
fast and feeble and he can not be
reused enough to reply intelligently.
The situation is almost the exact con-
trary of that in sun-stroke proper. aswe
frequently see. hence the treatment
must be different. 1t is easy to see
what is needed. The patient is too
cold, the natural heat Of the body
which is the condition of the pro-
per working Of all the functions
is lost, and first we must restore
that. Put him in hot bath to help
bring back the normal heat by exter-
nal warmth. Let the water be OF atem-
perature of 100 degrees or more. and
and keep the water at this temperature
by pouring in more hot water. Keep
him there until his own temperature
has been restored to its natural stand
ard, which is 984 degrees. If you have
no means to ascertain the patients
temperature let him remain in the
water for about halfan hour, unless he
becomes conscious and intelligent
sooner. Secondly, his heart is too
fast and not strong enough and some
thing must be given to strengthen it,
! the most convenient article being alco-
hol, whisky OF brandy. Give table
spoonful in about as much water and
repeat it about three times at short in.
! tervals.
| ..Thermic fever" or heat fever, )"
| is always from exposure to heat in some
form The principal sufferers arc those
who use strong drink, habitually,
white men more thar negroes, and men
more than women. The varieties OF
thermic fever differ in degree, but not
much in kind. They range from severe
headaches or dizziness to inhamnla-
ton of the brain itself, with convul-
| sions and death in it's train. The mind
| confused, more OR less headache with
some fever, all of these are the orai -
nary symptoms Of these slight sun
strokes. and they may be treated as I
have suggested, giving, too, a little
bromide Of potash, about twenty or
twenty-five grains.
! Most cases are more marked. The
face is greatly flushed, eyes bloodshot
breathing deep and noisy, the pulse
very fast and commissions often accom-.
panying the attack. This last is the
i most Important sign. The patient
should be rubbed down with ice and
cold water should be poured over
him until his temperature is reduced
to 100 degrees, when he should be put
\ TO bed. I
Apoplexy or epileptic fits, often
mistaken for sunstroke, are generally
1 without commissions and without fever.
Opium poisoning comes on slowly and
when found the patients eyes are
shrunken, the breathing is remarkably
I slow, with long, deep res irations,
y and they have often to be treated il
the most brutal manner -rub bed with
! a wire brush or whipped with a wet
towel to keep them moving 60 as tc
keep up ibreat hing
\ To avoid str oke, n avoid eating
3 very u uc me at, EYege
tables, SIffref