On the symptoms, causes, and treatment of puerperal insanity / by James Reid, M.D.

  • Reid, James, M.D.
Date:
[1848]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: On the symptoms, causes, and treatment of puerperal insanity / by James Reid, M.D. 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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    LIABILITY TO AFTER ATTACKS. This is by no means so great as we should at first be inclined to sus- pect ; for although Esquirol mentions one case of mania after the first labour, in which the female was successively attacked in a similar manner after each of her eleven succeeding ones, each attack lasting about a month or six weeks; and likewise a second case in which mania appeared after labours successively, yet numerous instances occur, in which no return takes place, though strong exciting causes may have existed, such as great misfortunes, domestic; chagrins, &c. I have myself mentioned one, in which the patient bore twins twice, without any similar attack. In speaking as to this liability on future similar occasions, Esquirol naively observes, On previent les acces, en evitant la grossesse. The patients mentioned by Gooch, with one exception, had no return in their subsequent confinements. One of the Bethnal-green patients, already alluded to, was attacked after her ^rs^ labour, recovered in three months, and although she has since had several other children, there has been no recurrence of the mania. Still a judicious practitioner will, in a succeeding confinement, employ every precaution to prevent any>>undue excitement taking place.