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Treatment 
Purge. 
As practically all cases of yellow fever have been in robust health 
until suddenly stricken with the disease, it is advisable to give a 
purge. Some doctors prefer castor oil, others fluid magnesia, various 
cathartic mixtures or large doses of calomel. I favour small fractional 
doses of calomel followed by sodium sulphate. The latter is an 
excellent diuretic and, with the calomel, often allays the acidity of the 
stomach. After the preliminary purge, it is inadvisable to give any 
more, as we should irritate the bowels as little as possible, and enemata 
will answer the patient’s needs. 
Diaphoresis. 
When the purge has been taken, a hot mustard foot-bath or hot 
pack should be given. In order to induce free diaphoresis hot 
demulcent diinks should be taken. Free perspiration for a short 
time is comforting to the patient and markedly relieves the congestion. 
Care should be taken to avoid the symptoms of excessive sweating, 
which are so graphically described by Carroll * Sweating should be 
confined to the first twenty-four hours of the disease. 
Enemata. 
It is an almost universal custom to order clysters, and they vary 
as to amount, number and composition. One large one every twelve, 
sometimes every eight hours is sufficient. Some doctors use solutions 
oracic, others eucalyptus, sodium chloride or sodium sulphate. 1 
prefer the two latter, using about 600 c.c. or 1 litre of solution to be 
mjected slowly and retained as long as possible. 
e eucalyptus and boracic are supposed to be excellent, but I 
ie\e that their virtues rest in the mere cleansing of the lower 
bowel and the sensation of comfort imparted to the patient. The 
temperature of the clyster should be usually about 65° to ;o° F. (i8f 
-4 •)• Some prefer to use ice-cold enemata, but they generally 
cause the patient discomfort and do not appear to reduce the 
temperature very much. 
* Carroll, James, loc.'dt. 
