comprehending all the preceding genera, are in consequence of various acute and chronic distempers; broken constitutions, cachexy; intermittent, remittent, and scarlet fevers; repelled erysipelas; rickets; jaundice; biliary obstructions; suppression or repulsion of habitual or wholesome evacuations, as menses, hemorrhoides; general debility from various causes; atony of the sanguinous vessels, and of the exhalents, and transudation of serum through them; excessive evacuations by hemorrhage, diarrhœa, perspiration, or other excretories; sudden and large draughts of cold water when the body is much heated, especially if not discharged by urine or sweat; excess of fluids, of spirituous liquors; languid circulation; sedentary life; watery trades; moist air; suppressed perspiration, and watery excretions; tenuity or impurity of the blood; tenacious adhesion and agglutination of the coagulable lymph; increase of serous fluid in the blood; diseases and also ruptures of the lacteals and lymphaticks, and of the kidneys, ureters, and bladder; defect of lymphatic absorption; obstructed and scirrhous viscera, mesentery and lungs; asthma, polypi, ossified arteries, excessive fatness, and other causes intercepting the circulation of the blood: diseases of the stomach and digestive organs, and those of sanguification; laxity of the external subcutaneous cellular membrane; debility of the muscular solids and fibres, and of the tela cellulosa; hereditary; hydatides; violent muscular exertions, external injuries.
Tympany.
There are two species; that where air is confined within the intestinal tube; the other, where it is extravasated between the intestines and peritoneum: this last species very rarely occurs, and only from an erosion or hole of the intestines. The symptoms of Tympanites are, tumour and tension of the abdomen, and compared to the stretched head of a drum, without fluctuation or thirst; and not altered by a change of posture, nor is the body increased in weight: there is inappetency, indigestion, colick pains, eructation, and explosion of fetid air by the mouth and anus; costiveness, sallow complexion; and, from the distension of the abdomen, difficulty in breathing: in the inveterate stages of the disease, ischury, dysury, emaciation, hectic, and atrophy. Its increase is generally quicker than ascites; it is also chronic, and contumacious to medicine. Tympany of the womb is also mentioned by authors; but is a very unusual occurrence: it is described by local heat, pain, tenesmus, tumour, discharge of fetid air. The causes of Tympanites are, atony and palsy of the intestinal tube; excessive purging; chronic colick, dysentery and diarrhœa, or their premature suppression; suppression of the lochia or menses; the consequence of rickets, intermittent fevers, asthma, hypochondriasis; diseased abdominal viscera; excess of pituita, or bile; complicated with ascites, and the intestinal tube debilitated by soaking in water.
Excess of Fat,
obesitas, polysarcia; including anasarcous obesity, abdominal corpulency, and their complication. This is a frequent malady of adult age in this island. Those, unfortunately for themselves, thus stuffed and loaded with grease, are clumsy, unwieldy, inactive, lethargic; on any exercise or motion, they are panting for breath; and may be compared to cumbrous hulks. The causes hereditary; laxity of the cellular membrane, or tela cellulosa; esculent luxuries, sensual living, epicurism, malt liquors, excess of oleaginous secretion from the blood.
My original intention was to have proceeded to the next group, as arranged in the medical catalogue: but whether we enter upon their discussion now or hereafter, is a matter of no moment. However modern nosologists may plume themselves on classification, it appears to me as attended with no difficulty, nor requiring any exertion of genius: we may with as much facility as shuffling a pack of cards, throw diseases into endless arrangments and associations.
Female Diseases,
including obstructio-mensium, chlorosis, profluvium mensium, fluor albus, hystericks. These derangements of the human machinery, which, from the days of Hippocrates, have been discriminated by specifick morbid names, are notwithstanding unnoticed in the London registers; unless perhaps rising of the lights, spleen, and vapours are substituted as a portion of hysterick mortality. This formidable phalanx, whose frequency and fatality are of universal notoriety, must be mustered amongst the chronic host of diseases. From about the period of puberty, seldom earlier, they begin to infest numbers of the female sex.
On a careful perusal of nearly one half of the books of the Aldersgate Dispensary in London, and before mentioned, during six years, I found the total sick and diseased amounted to 29,511: by far the greater proportion of which were adults, and more females than males. Of this twenty-nine thousand, the numbers afflicted with different female complaints were as follow: Obstruct. mens. and chlorosis, 254; profluvium mens. 270; fluor albus, 446; hysteria, 1104; total, 2074. Here it is worthy of observation, that four only of the principal female infirmities constituted nearly one fourteenth part of all the diseases in that dispensary, which is open to afflicted patients of every description and age. I should, however, not omit to add, from the information of one of the learned physicians of that charity, that under Fluor Albus, a few cases of venereal gonorrhœa were concealed; and that under Hysteriæ, were arranged all female and nervous complaints, without strictly attending to its generick symptoms. We have here likewise, one proof that uterine relaxation is a more frequent female malady than obstruction in London: it is more so in warm than in cold climates: and probably, all these four female diseases are more prevalent amongst the higher and luxurious ranks; and in city than in country.