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Domestic Medicine : or, a Treatise on the Prevention and Cure of Diseases by Regimen and simple Medicines
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OF INTERMITTING FEVERS.

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When the inhabitants of a high country remove to a low one, theyare generally seized with intermitting fevers, and to such the diseaseis most apt to prove fatal. In a word, whatever relaxes the solids, di-minishes the perspiration, or obstructs the circulation in the capil-lary or small vessels, disposes the body to agues.

SYMPTOMS.------An intermitting fever generally begins with a

pain of the head and loins, weariness of the limbs, coldness of theextremities, stretching, yawning, with sometimes great sickness andvomitting; to w Inch succeed shivering and violent shaking. After-wards the skin becomes moist, and a profuse sweat breaks out, whichgenerally terminates the fit of paroxysm. Sometimes indeed the dis-ease comes on sudd «ily, when the person thinks himself in perfecthealth; but it is more commonly preceded by listlessness, loss of ap-petite, and the symptoms mentioned above

REGIMEN.------While the fit continues, the patient ought to

drink freely of water-gruel, orange-whey, weak cammomile tea; or,if his spirits be low, small wine whey sharpened with the juice oflemon. All his drink should be warm, as that will assist in bringingon the sweat, and consequently shorten the paroxysm.

Dr. Lind says, that twenty or twentyfive drops of laudanum putinto a cup of the patient's drink, and given about half an hour afterthe commencement of the hot fit, promotes the sweat, shortens thetit, relieves the head, and tends greatly to remove the disease.

Between the paroxysms, the patient must be supported with foodthat is nourishing, but light and easy of digestion, as veal or chickenbroths, sago, gruel with a little wine, light puddings, and such like.His drink may be small negus, acidulated with the juice of lemonsor oranges, and sometimes a little weak punch. He may likewisedrink infusions of bitter herbs, as cammomile, wormood, or water-trefoil, and may now and then take a glass of small wine, in whichgention root, centaury, or some other bitter, has been infused.

As the chief intentions of cure in an ague are to brace the solids,and promote perspiration, the patient ought to take as much exer-cise between the fits as he can bear. If he be able to go abroad, rid-ing on horseback, or in a carriage, will be of great service. But ifhe cannot bear that kind of exercise, he ought to take such as hisstrength will permit. Nothing tends more to prolong an intermit-ting fever, than indulging a lazy indolent disposition.

Intermitting fevers, under a proper regimen, will often go offvithout medicine: and when the disease is mild, in an open drycountry, there is seldom any danger from allowing it to take itscourse; but when the patient's strength seems to decline, or the pa-roxysms are so violent that his life is in danger, medicine ought im-mediately to be administered. This however should never be donetill the disease be properly formed' that is to *ay, till the patient hashad several fits of shaking and sweating.

MEDICINE.------The first thing to be done in the cure of an to

termitting fever is to cleanse the stomach and bowels. This not onlyrenders the application of other medicines more safe, but likewisemore efficacious. In this disease, the stomach i-. generally loaded