Some account of a fever in the year 1831 / by George Leith Roupell.

  • Roupell, George Leith, 1797-1854.
Date:
1837
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Some account of a fever in the year 1831 / by George Leith Roupell. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by Royal College of Physicians, London. The original may be consulted at Royal College of Physicians, London.

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    were passing unconsciously beneath him and with' out his power to restrain them. Some, when questioned, maintained for a time an obstinate silence, and then would give an incoherent answer in a loud voice and maniacal manner. The disordered functions of the brain were variously and expressively described ;—‘ roaring torrents in the ears’—^ flashes of light before the eyes’—^ fire in the brain’ — were terms used to picture the excited intellect. The most intimate acquaintances did not recog- nize each other—memory in some (though without loss of consciousness) was so completely gone that no history of the complaint could be obtained ; many doubted their own identity; one supposed he ‘ had died and when questioned as to his reason, asked, if he lived why he did not feel ? The pupil of the eye was dilated rather than contracted ; the conjunctiva in some was of a rose- red hue from minute vascular injection; in others, however, and in those where there was the greatest cerebral excitement, it was of the natural colour. The tongue was broad, thickly coated with a dirty fur, and moist: thirst was intense, the stomach bore food though no appetite was felt—vomiting was not common; hiccup was more frequent —the bowels were usually constipated, but if open, the evacuations passed involuntarily and the urine was frequently detained in the bladder from paralysis of its muscles. The pulse was very weak, little if at all increased