PRACTICE OF MEDICINE 



FEVERS. 



Fever signifies an acute affection of the system, in which all the 

 functions are more or less deranged ; the most striking phenomena 

 being sensorial or nervous irregularity, increased frequency of pulse, 

 increased heat, and disinclination for food. 



The most comynon signs of fever, are shivering, followed by heat 

 of skin, restlessness, and thirst ; headache, flushed face, and quick 

 pulse ; general aching, and debility of the body. 



There are very many varieties of fevers ; the first grand distinc- 

 tion is into the idiopathic or essential, and the symptomatic. 



By an idioioj^ihic fever is meant one which arises without any ob- 

 vious local cause ; not being produced by or dependent upon disease 

 of any particular organ of the body. 



By a symptomatic fever is meant one which depends upon or is 

 caused by inflammation, or other local disease. 



Idiopathic fevers are often accompanied by inflammation ; — thus 

 inflammation of the mucous membrane of the throat accompanies 

 scarlatina ; inflammation of the cerebral membranes, or lungs, or 

 intestinal mucous membrane, may go together with typhoid ; hence 

 some eminent physicians have persuaded themselves, that typhoid is 

 not an idiopathic fever, but that it is symptomatic of a local inflam- 

 mation. 



But, in a symptomatic fever, the local inflammation begins first — 

 in an idiopathic fever, on the contrary, the feverish symptoms begin 

 first, and may continue some time before any local disease appears, 

 even if it appear at all. 



Idiopathic fevers are most commonly caused by some poison 

 which gets into the blood. Their chief kinds are, the intermittent, 

 remittent, continued, and exanthematous ; ' each of which kinds has 

 many varieties. 



Symptomatic fevers may be of an acute inflammatory type, or 

 hectic, or typhoid. We may observe here, that an intermittent fever 



2 . 



