Part 1

+Transcriber's Notes+

1. Typographical errors have been silently corrected.

2. Variations of spelling and hyphenation are as in the original.

3. The text version is coded for italics and the like mark-ups i.e., a) italics are indicated thus italic; b) bold text is indicated thus =strong=

RULES AND DIRECTIONS

FOR THE

EMPLOYMENT OF INJECTIONS

IN VARIOUS DISEASES;

WITH QUOTATIONS FROM DISTINGUISHED MEDICAL AUTHORS.

PRINTED TO ACCOMPANY

LEWIS'S IMPROVED PORTABLE SYRINGES,

OR DOMESTIC INJECTING APPARATUS.

BOSTON 1857.

Entered according to Act of Congress in the year 1856,

BY THOMAS LEWIS,

In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of Massachusetts.

PRINTED BY ALFRED MUDGE & SON, 21 SCHOOL ST.

INJECTIONS.

PREFACE.

Heretofore one of the greatest objections to the free use of Injections, as a domestic remedy, has been the inconvenience and clumsy size of the instruments employed for the purpose, and the manner of their construction, such as to render them liable in a short time to get out of repair, and become worthless. It had therefore become a matter of necessity that a new instrument should be introduced, that could be used with ease either for injecting the bowels of children, for female uses, or for self-administration. The new instrument which is herewith offered to the public, termed the Improved Portable Syringe, or Domestic Injecting Apparatus, we have taken great pains with to perfect, so as to overcome the many serious objections entertained against the old ones, and which we flatter ourselves we have succeeded in doing, by constructing it in such a manner as to render it impossible for it to get out of repair, unless by the abuse of the user. Its size makes it extremely portable, so much so that it can be carried in the pocket without the least inconvenience; and being made on the principle of the pump, is capable of injecting any given quantity of fluid without being taken to pieces, or altered in the least, and with any degree of force or rapidity that may be necessary; and in connection with the crooked or angular tube, can be used by an invalid without any assistance or difficulty, therefore making it a very superior and convenient instrument for self use. Also, in connection with the vaginal tube, as a female syringe, and with the small tube for injecting the bowels of children, which is a very difficult matter with the common instruments formerly used for the purpose. One very important feature in this instrument is, that an injection of which gruel forms a part will be found to be as easily administered as one more fluid, therefore rendering it invaluable to physicians and others who have frequently to resort to such an Instrument, and are annoyed to find the instruments with which most families are supplied will not answer the purpose.

This little book of rules and directions, which has been carefully prepared by an experienced physician, and which is herewith presented to our readers as an accompaniment to the Improved Portable Syringe, is not intended as a medical work or treatise on the human system, which are often printed to accompany instruments of the kind, and which few people ever read or care about, but is intended merely as a guide in the administration of the more simple remedies in the form of injections, well knowing that the majority of the people had rather rely on the advice of an experienced physician in all critical cases than their own judgment, formed from reading books of the kind.

BOSTON, January, 1856.

The Uses of Injections.

Injections, or Clysters, are liquid substances or medicines injected into the lower intestines by mechanical means, for the purpose of promoting alvine discharges, relieving costiveness and cleansing the bowels. They are also sometimes administered to nourish and support patients who cannot swallow aliment, to evacuate the bowels without purging, to affect the system through the intestines, to remove worms from the rectum, to cure other disorders of the rectum, to lessen diarrhœa or dysentery, to alleviate spasms in the stomach and intestines, to produce other medicinal effects in the stomach, when all other curative means are too irritating. Prompt in operation, they are very useful in inflammatory affections of the bladder, womb, liver, kidneys, and lungs; and for the relief of hysterics, croup, determination of blood to the head, and convulsions; also in urethral strictures, urinal retention, flooding after child-birth, and in removing the after-birth, when nature fails to do so. When warm, they are of the greatest service in cases of suspended animation; and for the purpose of nutrition they alone have prolonged life for over ten weeks. Carefully administered, they are always safe.

Authorities upon Injections.

It is not necessary to accumulate the evidence of physicians concerning their utility. Every practitioner of medicine can recall the cases, in which a perfect syringe would have saved hours of pain, and in which he could find only the most inefficient aid from a leaky barrel and a loose piston.

Dr. Pereira, of London, author of one of the best treatises on Therapeutics, says: "Warm water is injected into the rectum to excite alvine discharges, to promote the hæmorrhoidal flux, to diminish irritation in the large intestine, or in some neighboring organ, as the uterus, bladder, prostate gland, &c.; and to bring on the menstrual action. Thrown into the vagina, it is used to allay uterine irritation and pain, and to promote the uterine discharge." And again:

"Cold water is thrown into the rectum to check hæmorrhage, to expel worms, to allay local pain, to rouse the patient in poisoning by opium."