490 



irritants to the nerve centers themselves, as in cases of heat stroke, 

 injur}- to the brain, etc. 



The treatment of fever depends upon its cause. As nerve irrita- 

 tion enters into the etiology of fever in all cases, one of the important 

 factors in treatment is absolute quiet. This maj' be obtained by 

 placing a sick horse in a box stall, awaj' from other animals and 

 extraneous noises, and sheltered from excessive light and draughts 

 of air. Anodjmes, belladonna, hyoscyamus, and opium, act as anti- 

 I)yretics simply by quieting the nervous system. As an irritant exists 

 in the blood in most cases of fever, any remedj' which will favor the 

 excretion of foreign elements from it will diminish this cause. We 

 therefore employ diaphoretics to stimulate the sweat and. excretions 

 from the skin; diuretics to favor the elimination of matter by the 

 kidneys ; cholagogues and laxatives to increase the action of the liver 

 and intestines, and to drain from these important organs all the 

 waste material which is aiding to choke up and congest their rich 

 plexuses of blood vessels. As the heart becomes stimulated to 

 increased action at the outset of a fever, and increases it by iDumj)- 

 ing an augmented quantitj- of blood through the whole body, we 

 emi^loy cardiac depressants to diminish tlie force of this organ. 

 Among these antimony, aconite, veratrum viridQ, and iodide of pot- 

 ash are the most important. The increased blood pressure througli- 

 out the body may also be diminished by lessefting the fjuantity of 

 blood. This is obtained in many cases with advantage by direct 

 abstraction of blood, as in bleeding from the jugular or other veins, 

 or by derivatives, such as mustard, turioentine, or blisters applied 

 to the skin; or setons, which draw to the surface the fluid of the 

 blood, thereby lessening its volume, Avithout having the disadvantage 

 found in bleeding, of imi)Overishing the elements of the blood. 



When the irritation which is the cause of fever is a specific one, 

 either in the form of a bacterium (living organism), as in glanders, 

 tuberculosis, influenza, septicaemia, etc., or in the form of a foreign 

 chemical element, as in rheumatism, gout, ha3maglobinuria, and other 

 so-called diseases of nutrition, we employ remedies which have been 

 found to have a direct specific action on them. Among the specific 

 remedies for various diseases are counted quinine, carbolic acid, sali- 

 cylic acid, antipyrine, mercury, iodine, the empyreumatic oils, tars, 

 resins, aromatics, sulphur, and a host of other drugs, some of Avhich 

 are ad hoc and other of Avhickare theoretical in action. Certain reme- 

 • dies, like simple aromatic teas, vegetable acids, as vinegar, lemon 

 juice, etc., alkalies in the form of salts, sweet spirits of niter, etc., 

 which are household remedies, are alwaj^s useful, because they act on 

 the excreting organs and ameliorate the effects of fever. Other reme- 

 dies, which are to be used to influence tlie canse of fever, must be 

 selected with judgment and from a tliorough knowledge of the nature 

 of the disease. 



