Inaugural address in connection with the chair of clinical medicine, November 6, 1874 / by McCall Anderson.

  • Anderson, McCall, 1836-1908.
Date:
1874
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Inaugural address in connection with the chair of clinical medicine, November 6, 1874 / by McCall Anderson. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The University of Glasgow Library. The original may be consulted at The University of Glasgow Library.

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    be used in preference to other methods in certain cases and because it offers the following advantages :— 1st. The medicine is quickly , absorbed, and its thera- peutical action occurs with great rapidity. Some time ago I injected a quarter of a grain of morphia into the cellular tissue of a gentleman who was labouring under. a tumour in the brain, which prevented sleep. After making the injection I walked to the table, a distance of a few yards from the bed, laid down the syringe, and turning round, found, to my astonishment, that he was sound asleep. 2nd. Its effects are much more intense than when administered by the mouth, and hence a smaller quan- tity of it is required, which is sometimes a considera- tion. For example, quinine is a valuable medicine for the cure of ague, and requires to be given in much larger doses by the mouth than by subcutaneous injection; but it is an expensive drug, and cannot always be had in unlimited quantity in ague districts. 3rd. In certain cases it is the readiest way of bringing the patient under the influence of a drug—in the case of maniacs or those who are unable to swallow, for instance. 4th. Its action is much more certain than when in- troduced into the stomach, where it is liable to decom- position. 5th. In the case of some drugs unpleasant symptoms, such as vomiting, may sometimes be avoided. The remedies which I have hitherto used in this way