Practical Therapeutics. Antinosine in the Treatment of Enuresis, Cystitis and Urethritis.-R. F. AMYX* reports good results from the use of two per cent. solutions of antinosine in irrigations of the bladder and urethra in cases of this character which did not respond to other well-known remedies. It is non-toxic, soothing and very rapid in action, and of particular value in cases of cystitis of a purulent character. The Relief of Vomiting following Chloroform Narcosis. The extremely interesting suggestion of LEWIN should always be tried in these cases. It consists of the inhalation of vinegar or dilute acetic acid. As soon as the nausea appears a towel is saturated with the vinegar and the patient inhales the fumes. It is claimed by Lewin that the chloroform is changed into trichloracetic acid, which is the cause of the distressing symptom. He claims to have treated 174 cases in this way, and to have immediately relieved the vomiting in 125. The severity of the symptoms of the above complication makes any method of this kind well worthy of a trial. It Picric Acid in the Treatment of Burns.—The value of a solution of picric acid in burns is attested by a sufficient number of observers to give this substance a recognized standing in their treatment. is most useful in superficial burns; in those which are deeper some care must be employed in the application, as the substance is not devoid of toxic properties. In general, it should be avoided in children unless the burns are quite superficial and of no great extent. The saturated solution of picric acid is antiseptic and analgesic. It is readily prepared by simply shaking a quantity of the acid with water, which gives a saturated solution. Some writers have recommended that 14 drams of picric acid be dissolved in 3 ounces of alcohol, the solution being then diluted with 2 pints of distilled water. There is no evidence that this alcoholic solution is more efficient than the simple aqueous solution. In burns and scalds the parts should be thoroughly cleansed by the free application of the solution. The clothing, if any, should be removed as gently as possible; but in cases where the fibre cannot be separated from the burnt flesh, it is better to cut away that which is readily detached. The surface is then thoroughly cleansed with the solution and strips of aseptic gauze are saturated with it and applied to the burnt area. This application is followed at once by a cessation of pain. This dressing may be allowed to remain until the outer covering is discolored with the discharge; a single application is generally sufficient, as the wound becomes covered with a granulating *N. Y. Med. Jour., June 3, 1899. Sig. Two drachms every three hours. A dose of compound cathartic pills should be given in suitable cases at the commencement of treatment. A Simple Method of Trephination for IntraCerebral Injection.-DR. ALBERT KOCHER† describes the very simple method used in his father's clinic at Berne, Switzerland. After proper cleaning of the scalp a drill is thrust through skin, etc., and the skull bored through. The needle of a syringe is inserted through the opening thus made and the injection thus quickly completed. Treatment of Uterine Myomata.-PROF. ZWEIFEL declares that there can now be no more total removal of the body of the uterus since Abel has shown that complete destruction of its mucous membrane causes the ovaries to atrophy with the same torture, in consequence, as that experienced by women who have been castrated. Myomectomy must in most cases be done by the abdominal method; it is easily passable through the vagina when the tumor can be pressed into the pelvis. Urotropine in the Treatment of Bacterial Diseases of the Urinary Tract.-S. EHRMANN? reports great success from the use of this remedy, which is formed by the action of formaldehyde on ammonia; in five out of twelve cases he detected formaldehyde in the urine after giving urotropine. He has used it with excellent results in cases of peri-urethral abscess and cystitis following gonorrhoic infection, six cases of bachteriuria, five of which were permanently cured, and has found it of great service iu the treatment of chronic posterior urethritis, attended with cloudiness of the whole of the urine. It is given in doses of 7 grains, three times daily at first, and reHe duced to two, and finally to one dose each day. believes that it will attain a permanent place in the treatment of diseases of the urinary tract. *N. Y. Med. Rec., May 27, 1899. Eighth meeting of the German Gynecological Society in Berlin, May 24-27, 1899. §The Therapist, May 15, 1899. Bovinine Locally and Internally. It is maintained by certain authorities that bovine blood applied locally to moribund tissues will raise their vitality and ultimately effect a cure of some of the most obstinate cases. In the Sound View Hospital* of Stamford, Conn., investigations were made in the use of Bovinine, both locally and internally, in conditions in which iron tonics were indicated. It was found to act admirably in cases of purulent nephritis, anthrax, chronic ulcerative catarrh, sciatica with anemia, chronic ulcers, chronic cystitis, etc. Scott's Emulsion Vindicated.-The medical profession and the trade have for the past year and a half been much interested in the fight between Messrs. Scott & Bowne, manufacturers of Scott's Emulsion, and the State Dairy and Food Commissioner of Ohio. The trouble arose from the charges made by the Ohio Food Commissioner that Scott's Emulsion contained a narcotic which, if true, made it a misdemeanor under the laws of Ohio to offer it for sale without the regulation poison label. Messrs. Scott & Bowne, feeling it a duty which they owed, not only to themselves, but to the profession in general, repudiated the charges in every instance, and since then the matter has been a subject for the courts to decide. The suit brought by the Commissioner against a druggist of Cincinnati for selling Scott's Emulsion, which the Commissioner claimed contained morphine, was settled this week in the courts at Cincinnati by a verdict for the defendants, entirely vindicating them and showing the injustice of these injurious attacks upon Scott's Emulsion, the jury being out but a very few moments. The testimony brought out at the trial was overwhelmingly in favor of the claims of the manufacturers, that Scott's Emulsion had never contained a narcotic of any kind. More than a score of the best chemists in the country certified to these facts. We congratulate Messrs. Scott & Bowne on their victory. It is the old story: "Truth crushed to earth will rise again." Nasal Catarrh.-DR. T. PICKLES, Anna, Ill., writes to the editor of the Medical Summary the following therapeutic results from actual experience: For sore nose, nasal catarrh, etc., I have used Unguentine for the past three years, and have yet to see the case where I have used it that was not cured within a reasonable length of time. In most cases where dry scabs or scales form in the nose I order to give, say, a half ounce of Unguentine, make a small mop with a small roll of absorbent cotton on the end of a small stick, roll the mop in the Unguentine and apply well up both nostrils, at the same time have patient to snuff the nose until the Unguentine can be plainly tasted. Use only once a day, just before retiring for the night. This generally cures within three weeks. *Sanitarian, April, 1899. Antidiphtheritic Serum.-DR. C. M. SEBASTIAN* of Memphis, Tenn., presented an interesting series of case reports from his own practice in which he has used antidiphtheritic serum for the treatment of diphtheria with uniform success. Treating the series of cases as practically one epidemic, Dr. Sebastian speaks briefly of two cases which marked the starting point of the disease in his community. The first case was treated by himself, but without antitoxin, and fatal result followed. The second case did not fall within his own experience, and while antitoxin was administered, Dr. Sebastian feels convinced that the fatal result was due to its application too late to be of benefit. In concluding this interesting series of case reports, Dr. Sebastian writes: "I treated, concurrently with the foregoing, probably an equal number of cases of milder type in which I used no antitoxin, all of which recovered without sequelae. I only gave antitoxin in cases presenting a somewhat grave prognosis. Every dose, almost without exception, was followed by perceptibly good results. bacteriological examinations were made, reliance being placed on a clinical diagnosis in each case. no case was it deemed expedient or practical to wait for bacteriological verdict from a laboratory, the urgency of symptoms requiring immediate use of the remedy. The antitoxin used was the product of Parke, Davis & Co." No In Solar Heat. Direct exposure to the sun's rays, employment in or living in hot and poorly ventilated offices, workshops or rooms, are among the most prolific causes of headache in summer time, as well as of hat exhaustion and sunstroke. For these headaches and for the nausea which often accompanies them Antikamnia will be found to afford prompt relief and can be safely given. Insomnia from solar heat is readily overcome by one or two five-grain Antikamnia tablets at supper time and again before retiring. If these conditions are partly dependent upon a disordered stomach, two five-grain Antikamnia tablets, with fifteen or twenty drops of aromatic spirits of ammonia well diluted, are advisable. For the pain following sun or heat stroke, Antikamnia, in doses of one or two tablets every two or three hours, will produce the ease and rest necessary to complete recovery. As a preventive of and cure for nausea while traveling by railroad or steamboat, and for genuine mal de mer or sea sickness, Antikamnia is unsurpassed, and is recommended by the surgeons of the White Star, Cunard and American steamship lines. |