On the parasitic affections of the skin / by T. M'Call Anderson.

Date:
1861
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: On the parasitic affections of the skin / by T. M'Call Anderson. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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

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    at all, for whenever the local applications are stopped the crusts reappear. The extraction of the hairs by means of the calotte has long been celebrated, and is still practised in France to a considerable extent. This consists of a plaster which is prepared in the following way :—“ About four ounces of rye-flour are mixed with a pint and a half of white vinegar in a pan, this is then put on the fire, and the mixture stirred continually; to it, when it boils, is added half an ounce of the carbonate of copper in powder. The whole is then boiled for an hour, after about which four ounces of black pitch, six of Burgundy pitch, and four of resin are added ; when thoroughly mixed and melted, about six ounces of antimonial ethiops are put in, and the mixture is stirred continually, till it has assumed a suit- able consistence. This plaster is then spread upon strong cloth.” (d) It is employed thus:—The hair is cut as short as possible, the crusts removed by means of cata- plasms, and the plaster applied in strips so as to fit the head accurately. It is left on for a few days, so that the hairs in growing become firmly adherent to the plaster. The end of each strip is then seized and suddenly and forcibly removed, dragging along with it a number of the hairs. This operation is repeatedly performed, and extends over a period of several months in many cases. The practice has sometimes proved successful; but only so when, by it, the whole of the diseased hairs are removed; but unfortunately, in many cases, this cannot be accomplished, and in too many others the operation is