Constitutional Treatment.—There are no specific remedies for eczema. Arsenic, it is true, acts in some cases admirably, but these instances are rather exceptional; the proportion of cases in which it may be prescribed with the hope of advantage is not very large. It not infrequently proves positively injurious. It is in the dry, scaly, and papular forms of the disease, and especially those in which the inflammation is of a low grade, that it acts most happily. The drug is to be given in sufficiently large doses to obtain slight evidences of its physiological action; toxic effects are to be avoided. It should never be given in acute cases. In small doses (one or two minims of Fowler's solution) arsenic is frequently of value as a tonic, acting then in the same manner as other tonics. When the physiological effects of the drug are desirable the dose should be gauged accordingly, beginning with two or three minims three times daily, and increasing gradually up to five or six or even more minims; as soon as the action of the drug becomes evident, as shown by a slight conjunctival injection and puffiness about the eyelids, the dose should be diminished and its administration continued for an extended period.

In the management of eczema attention should be given to the subject of diet. The food should be nutritious but plain, avoiding such articles as pork, salted meats, pastry, cabbage, gravies and sauces, pickles, cheese, condiments, beer and wine, etc. In anæmic and debilitated individuals a moderate use of stimulants may prove useful. Fresh air and exercise are often of aid in the treatment. The various remedies to be employed internally will depend upon the cause or causes which have brought about the attack. In robust persons and those of full habit laxatives or purgatives will prove of positive service. A useful formula for such cases, and also for those in whom constipation is present, is the following:

Rx.Magnesii sulphatis,ounce iss;
Potassii bitartratis,drachm iv;
Sulphuris præcip.,drachm ij;
Glycerinæ,fluidrachm ij;
Aquæ menthæ pip., q. s. adfluidounce iv.

M.—S. A tablespoonful in a tumblerful of water a half hour before breakfast. If this dose of the mixture fails to produce one or two free evacuations daily, then as much as double the quantity may be taken or a dose may be taken morning and evening. In many cases an aperient combined with a tonic is indicated. This is the case in those who are dyspeptic and debilitated, and in whom there is more or less constipation present. The following formula is available for such cases:

Rx.Magnesii sulphatis,ounce iss;
Ferri sulphatis,gr. iv;
Acidi sulphurici dilut.,fluidrachm ij;
Aquæ menthæ pip.,fluidounce iv.

M.—S. A tablespoonful in a tumblerful of water a half hour before the morning meal. In some cases the acid is contraindicated, and then the mixture may be prescribed without this ingredient. Although this formula is found to agree with most individuals, there are some who are either not able to take it or in whom it is found to aggravate the dyspepsia or to cause more or less gastric disturbance. In these cases the following formula has proved of value:

Rx.Ext. cascaræ sagradæ fl.,fluidrachm iv;
Acidi muriatici dilut.,fluidrachm ij;
Elix. calisayæ,fluidounce iij drachm ij.

M.—S. A teaspoonful in a large wineglassful of water before or after meals. The laxative effect of the mixture is more marked when it is taken twenty or thirty minutes before meals. In some cases it will be found necessary to increase the proportion of the cascara sagrada, while, on the other hand, not infrequently a less quantity may be sufficiently active. In acute eczema laxatives, especially the salines, are of great service. The various mineral-spring waters may also be mentioned as useful. Of these Friedrichshall, Hunyadi Janos, the Hathorn and Geyser Springs of Saratoga, are the most serviceable. A tonic aperient where there is only slight constipation is the following:

Rx.Sodii phosphatis,drachm vj;
Acidi phosphorici dilut.,fluidrachm iij;
Syr. zingiberis,fluidounce j;
Infus. gentianæ comp.,fluidounce iiss.

M.—S. A tablespoonful in a wineglassful of water three times daily.