An inauagural discourse : on the policy of establishing a school of medicine in the city of Memphis, Tennessee / by the editor.

  • Cross, James Conquest.
Date:
1847
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Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: An inauagural discourse : on the policy of establishing a school of medicine in the city of Memphis, Tennessee / by the editor. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the National Library of Medicine (U.S.), through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the National Library of Medicine (U.S.)

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    With the exception of those of Kentucky, Ohio, South Caroli- na, Georgia and Louisiana, the Schools of the United States arc supported by students who generally reside North of the 38th or 40th deg. of North latitude, three-fourths of whom will follow the profession in cold and inclement latitudes. Having a personal Remittent Fevers,' to be found in the second volume of the New Orleans Medical Jour- nal, Dr. Tuck, of Memphis, says:—The mode of treatment of remittent fevers by large doses of quinine, was not alluded to so far as I remember, during an attendance on two courses of lectures, in Philadelphia, in the winter's of 1839-40, and the sum- mer of the latter year; and the first time I ever became aware of it, was through the conversation of a young gentleman from Ala., who wan my room-mate, and who had determined to write a thesis upon the success of this mode of treatment, (as he had been convinced of its correctness from the success attending the practice;) from which J attempted to dissuade him, as his views were so contradictory to what I had been taught, and believed tobe the opinions of the professors; and I feared Hud such ultra notions might occasion his reject Ion. [ A ve ry h igh idea is thus impliedly expressed of the enlightened liberality of those who arrogantly presume to dictate to the profession of the United States.] By my own preceptor, a distinguished physician of Virginia, I had been taught, (and this, so far as 1 was acquainted, was the opinion of the most eminent professors in the country,) that the smallest quantity of quinine would be almost sudden death, if' administer ed-in a case ofremittent fever. Whether the young gentleman allu- ded to presented his thesis, [an event that is hardly probable, since such ideas of the liberality of Philadelphia professors were entertained by those who attended their lec- tures,] I am not aware, as he was not a candidate for graduation until a year after I left. Removing to the South-west in 1810,1 had an opportunity of meeting with some distinguished physicians, of enlarged experience, and who, for a number of years, had employed quinine in large doses, in the treatment of bilious remittent fevers, with the most signal success; but my prejudices were so strong,frpm early education, [quite nat- ural,] against such a coins,, that I could scarcely be made to believe it, until I had an opportunity of witnessing the success with my own eyes during the followi lg summer. But, however, thi3 treatment by large doses of quinine originated, or whoever may have been the author, it must be gratifying to every friend of humanity, that so useful a discovery has been made, and that it is now becoming the established practice amongst the moist intelligent physicians of the South; and that where, former- ly, death swept over the land with a resistless tide, destroying thousands in his career, we are now able to arrest his destructive march, and almost insure a speedy return of health where, previously, even a hope to live would have been looked upon as folly. Dr. Holmes of the Medical Staff of the United States Army, in his remarks on qui- nine and malaria to be found in the October number for 1816, of T/.e American Jour' ■nal of the Medical Sciences? says:—On my arrival in Florida, knowing nothing of Southern diseases from practice, and being stationed alone at a distant and unhealthy post, I learned the rules by experience alone, guided by which I have since successfully administered quinine, [of course, if his North-eastern education was not a disadvan- tage, which it is difficult to believe, it was of no use to him,] I practised on Northern precepts, annoying the patient without arresting the disease, by a continued succes- sion of two grain pills; occasionally at long intervals checking the disease by those means, but much more frequently vexed for weeks by the continued sickness of the soldier. I rose finally to ten grains, and continued to give this quantiiy at once; I more frequently succeeded by this practice, but not yet to my satisfaction Finally convinced that large doses of quinine are necessary in the South, I mer- rily minimum dose for intermittent fever to fifteen grains given at once.'' After the fullest proof of the efficiency of large doses of quinine in bilious remittent fever, Dr. Condie, of Philadelphia, in his edition of Watson's Practice of Physic, remarks:—Ma- ny of the physicians of the Southern a:: portions of the United Stairs place their chief reliance, in congestive remit ilphate of quinine pre- scribed in enormous doses—twenty, thirty, and even fifty grains repeated at short in- tervals until the solution of the disease i .re convinced of the propriety pf large and frequent doses, those alluded to an cessiveand uncalled for. How does he know? i m a case of congestive remittent fever in the South.' No. Then he knows noth >io right to ques- tion the skill and judgment of those who are I ith the subject. This is like the philippic which Dr. Dudley is in the annual habit of pronouncing against quinine and iodine; and yet he has the assurance to tell his classes he never employed them in his life.