Observations on typhus / Abridged from an essay submitted to the Faculty of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow in 1840.

  • Anderson, Andrew, 1818-1870.
Date:
[1840]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Observations on typhus / Abridged from an essay submitted to the Faculty of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow in 1840. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    OBSERVATIONS ON TYPHUS. ABRIDGED FROM AN ESSAY SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF PHYSICIANS AND SURGEONS OF GLASGOW IN 1840. By ANDREW ANDERSON, M.D. The following observations on our ordinary epidemic fever were made during a residence of two years and a half in the Glasgow Royal Infirmary, eighteen months of which were devoted exclusively to the care of the patients in the Fever Wards. After having formed a certain acquaintance with the disease by acting for a year as Medical Clerk in that department, the series of observations which are the principal foundation of the present paper was begun, and was continued from Sept. 1837 till Sept. 1838. The observations were conducted in the following manner:—A certain number of cases being selected, their previous history was ascertained as accurately as possible, and the symptoms each day carefully recorded in the tabular form under 23 heads. The chest was care¬ fully explored with the stethoscope, whenever the state of the patient permitted it, and as little as possible was taken on the report of nurse or patient. The cases selected were either those of recent origin, which might be thus traced from an early stage, or such as were particularly severe. In case of death, the greatest care was bestowed on making and recording the inspection. The cases so traced were 257, or 175 male and 82 female; and of these 65 afforded post mortem examinations. Besides the facts so collected, I have in the following pages made use of those amassed in the ordinary course of my duty as Fever Clerk. I intend to classify my remarks as follows.— 1. The previous History of those attacked. 2. The Conditions of the Disease. 3. The Mortality. 4. The Morbid Anatomy. 5. The Connection between the Symptoms and principal Lesions. 6. The Complications and Sequelas. By Typhus, I mean the ordinary epidemic fever of this country, essentially marked by contagiousness, and by its maculated eruption. About 1-7th of the cases admitted into the Hospital were not cases of fever; l-33d of the whole were cases of small-pox.