52 



Local Appliances. 



Both methods of treatment may be supplemented by local 

 appliances l of a purely palliative nature, for relieving the irrita- 

 tion about the anus ; for this purpose, various preparations 

 .are used, of which fatty substances are generally the basis, 

 such as mercurial, cocaine, or belladonna, ointments 2 . No 

 curative action is claimed for any of these. It is, on the other 

 hand, well known that the ointments may affect the sensitive 

 .skins of children. 



The Multitude of Anthelmintic Drugs. 



The drastic treatment 3 is carried out by means of anthel- 

 mintic drugs, introduced per os, or per rectum ; and the un- 

 satisfactory results 4 of the therapeutics of threadworm 



1 The use of powdered worms as 

 a local application is mentioned by 

 STEENEVELT : " Vermes desiccates 

 et in pulverem redactos, contra 

 praedictum morbum commendant 

 plurimi." (STEENEVELT, C., Disser- 

 tatio de ulcere verminoso, Lugduni 

 Batavor., 1698, p. 22.) 



2 One of the oldest and quaintest 

 local appliances is the use of a piece 

 of fat bacon as a kind of bait : 

 "*' On a aussi introduit utilement 

 -dans le rectum un morceau de lard 

 frais, auquel viennent se fixer les 

 oxyures." (HEMONT, G. M., op. cit., 

 p. 35.) 



3 Even ANDRY, who, for his time, 

 was singularly well-informed on 

 this subject, recognises the in- 

 efficacy of drastic treatment : 

 '*' Les Ascarides sont des vers 

 -difficiles a chasser, et cela pour 

 plusieurs raisons. La premiere, c'est 

 que ces animaux sont fort eloignez 

 du ventricule, en sorte que les 

 remedes perdent leur force avant 

 que de parvenir jusqu'oii sont les 

 vers. La seconde, c'est que les 

 .ascarides 'sont enveloppez dans les 

 humeurs visqueuses, qui empech- 

 ent 1'action des medicamens. La 

 troisieme, c'est que ces vers montent 

 -quelquefois dans le c-or 'im ; or, 

 cet intestin etant en f de cul 

 de sac, leg ascarides _, tiennent 

 comme retranchez." (ANDRY, N., 



de la generation des vers dans 

 le corps de Vhomme, Paris, 1700, 

 p. 248.) 



4 COULET relates that the failure 

 of a physician to cure a friend of his 

 who had been suffering from thread- 

 worms, induced him to take up the 

 study of medicine himself, in the 

 hope (unfortunately not realised) 

 of finding a cure : " Amicus meus 

 . se gravissimo certe morbo 

 laborare putabat, et ut apud 

 Medicam comitem me habere roga- 

 bat. Pauca dixit Medicus, praeter- 

 quamquod Vermiculi illi (quod ipse, 

 audita descriptione, ascarides nomi- 

 navit), non multum pericelli secum 

 adferabant, modo tempestive causae 

 eos producenti obviam iretur. Prae- 

 scripsit pulverem quemdam semel 

 de die ad quantitatem dragmae 

 unius, mane et jejuno ventriculo 

 sumemdum, vel ex vino, vel ex 

 cerevisia ; huic pulveri addidit 

 clysma attero quoque die sub vesperi 

 injiciendum. Quae autem medica- 

 menta, vel pulverem, vel clysma 

 ingraderenture, memoria mea ex- 

 ciderunt, unum scio, scilicet, quod 

 Amico meo dixerit, utrumque ex 

 amarissimis remediis fuisse con- 

 fectum, quorum virtuti tenacissima 

 Vermium quorumcunque maleries 

 cedare cogeretur. 



" Quid accidit ? Amicus meus 

 pulvere et clysmate usus est, et 



