As soon as any infectious disease sets in, the room of the patient should be at once stripped of curtains, carpet, bed-curtains, valances, and all unnecessary garments, whether in a wardrobe or drawers, as well as of all superfluous furniture, especially chairs stuffed with wool or covered with fabric of any kind.
Disinfections of the apartment by fumigations must be postponed until it is vacated; as before such a time thorough disinfection is impossible.
Infected bedding, &c., should be removed in the boxes made for the purpose, and subjected to the heating process. In most towns provision is made by the Board of Guardians, and under the directions of the medical officer of health, for the disinfection process to be efficiently carried out. See Disinfecting Chambers.
The disinfection of articles of food is accomplished by thorough cooking, boiling in the case of milk, boiling and filtration in the case of water, and complete roasting, stewing, and frying of meat.
The experiments of Mr Crookes (to which reference has been made in the extract taken from Dr Parkes’ ‘Practical Hygiène’) with carbolic acid during the cattle plague possess great practical interest both for the chemist and physiologist.
Of the use of carbolic acid as a disinfectant Mr Crookes, in the Appendix to the Report of the Cattle Plague Commissioners, writes as follows:
“According to the principles laid down, the air must be treated, and where there is no disease there is only a secondary use in treating anything besides the air. Several cowhouses have been treated with carbolic acid with very excellent results. The mode has been, first, to remove from the floor the mass of manure, which too often adheres to it; secondly, to sprinkle the floor with strong carbolic or cresylic acid; next, to wash the walls, beams, and rafters, and all that is visible in the cowhouse, with lime, in which is put some carbolic acid, 1 to 50 of the water used, or with strong carbolic acid alone. Next, to make a solution containing 1 of carbolic or cresylic acid to 100 of water, or, perhaps still better, 60 of water, and to water the yard and fold until the whole place smells strongly of the acid. Only a few farms have been treated in this way, so far as I know, but in each it has been successful. It may be well to give the cattle a little of the weak solution of carbolic acid, but this has not been so fully tried as the external use. The washing of the mouth and of the entire animal with the weak solution may be attended with good results, especially in the early stage of disease; but I know nothing of cure, and speak only hopefully of prevention.
“The animals seem to have an instinct for disinfection, and lick substances touched with this acid. They must not be allowed to drink it, as when strong it blisters the skin, and especially the mouth and tongue.”
Mr Crookes also tried the effect of the acid by injecting it into the veins of the animals, and thus details the results of his experiments:—“It appeared evident that if harm were to follow the injection of carbolic acid, the mischievous effect would be immediate; but that if the fluid could pass through the heart without exerting its paralysing action on that organ, and could get into the circulation, no present ill effects need be anticipated. I therefore determined to push these experiments as far as possible, increasing the quantity of carbolic acid, until it produced a fatal result.
The next operation was on cow No. 11, in which 3 oz. of solution (containing 521⁄2 gr. of pure carbolic acid) were very slowly injected; no bad effect followed. Increasing the dose, cow No. 12 had injected into her vein 41⁄2 oz. of solution (equal to 783⁄4 gr. of carbolic acid); this also was followed by no immediate ill effect. Cow No. 13 was then treated with 6 oz. of solution (containing 105 gr. of pure carbolic acid), in two portions of 3 oz. each, five minutes’ interval elapsing between each injection. The first 3 oz. produced a slight trembling,