494 



# 

 THEORY OF FEVER. Sup. I. 14. 3. 



fecled with torpor by its previous exhauftion of fenforial pow- 

 er, but become greatly increafed, producing irritative or inflam- 

 matory fever. Where this fever is continued, though with 

 fome remiflions and exacerbations, the excefiive action is at 

 length fo much leffened by expenditure of fenforial power, as to 

 gradually terminate in health ; or it becomes totally exhaufted, 

 and death fucceeds the deftruction of the irritability and affocia- 

 bility of the fyftem. 



3. There is alfo another termination of the difeafes in con- 

 fequence of great torpor of the ftomach, which are not always 

 termed fevers j one of thefe is attended with fo great and uni- 

 verfal torpor, that the patient dies in the firft cold fit ; that is, 

 within twelve hours or lefs of the firft feizure ; this is common- 

 ly termed fudden death. But the quicknefs of the pulfe, and 

 the coldnefs with fhuddering, and with ftck ftomach, diftinguifh- 

 ed a cafe, which I lately faw, from the fudden deaths occafion- 

 ed by apoplexy, or ruptured blood-vefiels. 



In hemicrania I believe the ftomach is always affected fee- 

 ondarily, as no quicknefs of pulfe generally attends it, and as 

 the ftomach recovers its activity in about two whole days. But 

 in the following cafe, which I faw laft week, I fuppofe the 

 ftomach fuddenly became paralytic, and caufed in about a week 



the death of the patient. Mifs — , a fine young lady 



about nineteen, had bathed a few times, about a month before, 

 in a cold fpring, and was always much indifpofed after it ; fhe 

 was feized with ficknefs, and cold fhuddering, with very quick 

 pulfe, which was fucceeded by a violent hot fit ; during the 

 next cold paroxyfm fhe had a convulfion fit •, and after that 

 fymptoms of infanity, fo as to ftrike and bite the attendants, 

 and to fpeak furious language *, the fame circumftances occur- 

 red during a third fit, in which I believe a ftrait waiftcoat was 

 put on, and fome blood taken from her •, during all this time 

 her ftomach would receive no nutriment, except once or twice 

 4 little wine and water. On the feventh day of the difeafe, 

 when I faw her, the extremities were cold, the pulfe not to be 

 counted, and fhe was unable to fwallow, or to fpeak j a clyfter 

 was ufed with turpentine and mufk and opium, with warm fo- 

 mentations, but fhe did not recover from that cold fit. 



In this cafe the convulfion fit and the infanity feem to have 

 been violent efforts to relieve the difagreeable fenfation of the 

 paralytic ftomach ; and the quick pulfe, and returning fits of 

 torpor and of orgafm, evinced the difeafe to be attended with 

 fever, though it might have been called anorexia maniacalis, or 

 epileptica. 



4. Might not many be faved in thefe fevers with w$ak pulfe 



k x 



