Custer chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, Black Hills, D.T. [S.D.]) 1880-1890, 1889-12-28
The Dinhtheria scourre

Dlphthcrla Is epidemic on the "N est
Side In Chicago and the physicians Of
that city have been discussing the
dreaded disease in all its forms. 4
majority Of those who pronounced on
what TO DO first when a child is taken
sick agreed that TO put o child in .
warm room and give It ~quinine and
whisky" is the best course OF treatment.
DR.. E. Fletcher lngals. professor Of
throat diseases At Rush Medical college,
covered most Of the ideas Of further
treatment. Ne said: Il do not regard
it as a disease which is specially con.
tagious, except in houses where its APP
pearance may have been repeated, and
such houses should be kept careful
watch over and be kept thoroughly
aired. In the case of a sick child rec
ommehd the nursing Of the little patient
in n oom during a part of the day
and then changing it 20 another room;
but in all cases it is important that tie
room shall be properly warmed. / at
tribute hundreds of cases of diphtheria
in children To this. | do not >aean to
say that cold will cause or set
up d~iphtheria, but it does this: IL
intensihes the tendency to injection
from diphtheritic poison, and, there
fore, parents should be careful to keep
their houses at a temperature of 20 de-
grees to 70 degrees Fahrenheit They
generally do keep them al about e. de-
grees, with an idea that above would be
too warm and unhealthy. They do NOS
feel the cold, but the children do, and
in this way they imperceptibly contract
a pre~disposition to infection whenever
it is developed in the neighborhood.
Some cases are well treated upon ice,
and yet il will be essential to use alco-
hol in connection with it as soon as the
child shows symptoms Of depression.
,-uecially keeping up the system upon
tincture of iron in ordinary cases. In
some cases | have known the DAILY
treatment to be advantageously used.
In that large doses of calomel are en-
ployed.
ITO the question, How TO keep it
of" | would say that i think where
children are exposed to the contagion it
might be very desirable TO have the
atmosphere i~mpregnated occasionally
with carbolic acid spray by one Of the
ordinery atomizers, and individually,
where there exists any catarrh or
tendency 10 throat disease, to have their
threats sprayed with a mild solution.
But first and foremost, please emphasize
as much as possible the necessity Of
keepin. the children warm. l know, as
you remind me, that poncette boxes
and pierced balls Of goldsmith's work
were used in Europe during the ex-
istence Of the disease there, as they
were during he pla rue of London; but
i question il InuaIing the spices and
drugs they were filed with had any eff
feet on preventing Infection" !
DIR. Hoadley thought the wholesp pro-
fession behind the times. declared the
disease purely local" and said tincture
of myrrh applied in a spray to the
diphtheritic surface every fifteen min
utes will eprs 1t.
the disease IL they do not have it. For
food, soft eggs and milk punch, and
egg-nogg are the best Too long sleep
should not be allowed. Whisky was
given every thirty minutes to children
from 3 to 5 years old, in the New York
foundling asylum when the disease
broke out there.
On the question Of d~isinfection DIR.
Henry stable said thet the methods en-
ployed by the city board of health are
old fashioned and practically valueless.
and that nearly every city Of any size in
the world employs steam for . disinfec-
tant while the Chicago authorities use
sulphur, which rs ineffective.