Encyclopaedia Britannica, or, a Dictionary of arts, sciences, and miscellaneous literature : enlarged and improved. Illustrated with nearly six hundred engravings > Volume 13, MAT-MIC

458 M E D I
Epifchefes. body being opened, it has appeared that the fymptoms
which occauoned the belief of a Hone in the bladder
arofe from fome other caufe.
Vv HEN a dyfuria proceeds from any acrimonious mat¬
ter thrown into the blood, it may be readily cured by
bleeding, emollient clyfters, cooling and diluting drinks
with gum arabic or gum tragacanth, linfeed tea, or
the warm bath. When it arifes from inflammations of
the bladder or parts adjoining to it, we are to regard
it^ only as a fymptomatic affedtion; and the remedies
ufed to remove the primary difeafe will alfo remove the
dyfuria. Sometimes it may arife from an ulcer of the
bladder 5 in which cafe it is generally incurable } a
mild nutritious diet rvill, however, protract the patient’s
life } and even render that life tolerable, by alleviating
fymptoms.
401 Genus CXXV. DYSPERMATISMUS.
'Difficult Emission of Semen.
Dyfpermatifmus, Sams. gen. 260.
Sterilitas, Zz'/z. 171. Sag. 211.
Agenefia, Vog. 283.
This impediment proceeds generally from obftruc-
tions in the urethra, either by tumors in itfelf, or in
the cavernous bodies of the penis 5 in which cafe the
treatment is the fame as in the ifehuria urethralis ;
fometimes it is owing to a kind of epileptic fit which
feizes the man in the venereal a£t; and fometimes the
femen, when ejedled from the proper receptacles, is
again abforbed, or flows into the bladder, and is expel¬
led along with the urine. The laft cafe it is very diffi¬
cult, or even impoffible, to cure ; as proceeding from
feirrhi, or other indiffoluble tumors of the verumonta-
num, or the neighbouring parts. It is alfo, in gene¬
ral, incurable. In fome it proceeds merely from too
violent an eredlion ; in which cafe emollient and relax¬
ing medicines will be of fervice 5 and we have an ex¬
ample of a cure performed by means of thefe in the firfl:
volume of the Edinburgh Medical Eflays.
40* Genus CXXVI. AMENORRHOEA.
Suppression of the Menses.
Amenorrhoea, Vog. 130.
Dyfmenorrhcea, Lin. 168. Sag. 218.
This obftrudlion, with many other fymptoms, as
dyfpepfia, yellowifh or greenifh colour of the Ikin, un-
ufual appetites, &c. conflitutes the chloroffis already
treated of, a difeafe which feldom or never appears
without a fuppreflion of the menfes. In Dr Hume’s
Clinical Experiments we find the virtues of feveral em-
menagogues fet forth in the following manner. Chaly-
beates feldom or never fucceeded : they were always
found more ufeful in diminifhing the evacuation when
^ ^ Pra&ice,
too violent, than in reftoring it when deficient. The Amenor.'
tincture ot black hellebore proved fuccefsful only in one rl'cea.
of nine or ten cafes, though given to the length of four '’""Y—^
tea-fpoonfuls a-day, which is double the quantity re¬
commended by Dr Mead. Compreffion of the crural
artery, recommended by Dr Hamilton in the Phyfical
and Literary Eflays, vol. ii. proved fuccefsful only in
one of fix cafes. From the effeas produced by this
compreffion, it has the firongeft appearance of loading
the uterus with blood : from the fenfations of the pa¬
tient it produces ths fame effeas as the approach of the
menfes, and has every appearance in its favour ; yet
does not fucceed. Dr Hume fuppofes that the uterus is
molt frequently in too plethoric and inflammatory a
ftate j in which cafe, this remedy will do more hurt
than in a ftate of inanition 5 however, he owns, that in
the caie in which it did fucceed, the patient was ple¬
thoric and inflammatory. Venefeaion is recommended
as an excellent remedy 5 the dodfor gives three inftan-
ces of its fuccefs, and fays he could give many more.
It a£ts by removing the plethoric ftate of the uterus,
relaxing the fibres, and giving the veffels full play j fo
that their adlion overcomes all refiftance, and the eva¬
cuation takes place. It is of no great moment from
Avhence the blood is taken : the faphaenic vein has been
fuppofed to empty the uterus moft 5 but it is difficult to
get the proper quantity from it, and the quantity of the
difeharge cannot be fo well meafured. The powder of
favine is a moft powerful remedy *, and proved fuccefs¬
ful in three cafes out of four in which it was tried. It
was given to the quantity of half a dram twice a-day.
It is a ftrong topical ftimulus, and feems improper in
plethoric habits. Madder-root, according to Dr Hume,
is a very powerful medicine in this difeafe 5 and proved
fuccefsful in 14 out of 19 cafes in which it Avas tried,
being fometimes exhibited in the quantity of two feru-
ples, or a dram, four times a-day. It has fcarcely any
fenfible effedls ; never quickens the pulfe, or excites in¬
flammatory fymptoms : on the contrary, the heat, thirft,
and other complaints abate ; and fometimes thefe fymp¬
toms are removed, though the difeafe be not cured 5 but
when it fucceeds, the menfes appear from the third to
the 12th day.
We have now confidered all thofe difeafes enumera¬
ted in Dr Cullen’s Nofology, the cure of which is to
be attempted chiefly by internal medicines. The other
genera either require particular manual operations, or a
very confiderable ufe of external applications *, and
therefore more properly fall under the article Surgery.
To this, therefore, we fhall refer the genera which fall
under the three laft orders of the clafs of locales, viz.
the tumores, effopue, and dia/yfes; and we ihall add,
by way of Appendix, a few obfervations on fome im¬
portant affe&ions to which Dr Cullen has not given
a place in his fyftem, or which pradlitioners in general
are not agreed in referring to any one particular genus
which he has mentioned.
APPENDIX,,