Temperature of the Human Body in Health. 



207 



From this Table we learn that in all cases the temperature of the body 

 rose in the hot bath, this elevation, as might be expected, varying with 

 the temperature and duration of the bath. It varied from 1° Fahr. to 

 4 0, 6 Fahr. ; or, to put it in another and more striking way, we raised the 

 body temperature to 103° and 104° Fahr., a severe fever height. Is it pos- 

 sible to bring the temperature of the body to that of the bath ? As it is im- 

 possible to remain in a very hot bath sufficiently long to enable us to deter- 

 mine this question, we must examine those experiments in which the 

 temperature of the bath was not very high. "We were compelled in a 

 short time to discontinue the experiment with a very hot bath on account 

 of the great weakness induced by it. Yet as the temperature continued 

 to rise so long as the patient remained in the hot water, it is probable 

 that, if adequate time could have been allowed, the temperature of the 

 body would have become identical with that of the bath. 



The charts show that a bath of moderate temperature, as 101° to 

 102°, will raise the body temperature to that of the bath. "Whilst 

 making several of these series of observations the bath temperature was 

 recorded simultaneously with the temperature of the body, and the 

 figures are given in the charts, as with Mountain on Jan. 3rd, 4th, and 

 5th, and with Mooney and Luff on Jan. 22nd. Thus it is clear that the 

 temperature of the body may be raised to that of a bath at 101°-8. 



Influence of Hot-water Bath on the Temperature of the Body during the 

 rest of the day after the Bath. 



The evening fall begun in Mountain, Thompson, and Eundell between 

 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. 



The average diurnal variation of all the observations 



in the above-named lads, all about the same age, was . . l°-9 Fahr. 

 Of Mountain alone 2°-l „ 



The minimum temperature of the day of these three lads was reached 

 between 9 and 11 p.m., the average time being 10. 



If these results are compared with those obtained from the observa= 

 tions made on the same lads on the bathless days, it will be seen that 

 the two sets of figures entirely agree ; that, in fact, hot-water baths, 

 except at the time of immersion, exert no influence on the body 

 temperature. 



On the Influence of Hot-vapour Baths on the Temperature of the Body. 



The temperature of the body is always raised by the hot-vapour bath, 

 the amount of elevation, as might be expected, being proportionate to the 

 heat and duration of the bath, as shown in the foil-owing Table : — 



VOL. XXVI, 



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