550  Jhe  New  Treatment  of  Itch.  {AMbJe0cURiPi8H7A2RM* 
better  than  styrax  for  the  cure  of  itch.  It  was  first  employed  in 
1853,  by  Bosck,  and  was  strongly  recommended  by  Barensprung  in 
1864,  on  the  strength  of  an  extensive  trial  of  it  in  the  Charite'  Hos- 
pital, of  Berlin.  Its  component  parts  are  cinnamein,  cinnamonic 
acid  and  resin.  Balsam  of  Peru  is  preferable  to  all  the  other  vaunted 
remedies,  because  the  acarus  scabiei  is  most  rapidly  killed  by  it,  be- 
cause it  acts  with  rapidity,  with  certainty,  and  agreeably ;  because  it 
does  no  injury  to  the  skin;  because  it  easily  penetrates  the  skin;  be- 
cause baths  are  not  absolutely  necessary  with  it,  and  because  it  kills 
all  the  acari  and  their  eggs,  for  when  well  rubbed  into  the  skin  it 
comes  in  contact  with  the  eggs.  As  a  remedy  for  children  it  is  supe- 
rior to  all  others.  The  children  are  first  placed  in  a  warm  bath,  then 
well  dried,  and  forty  drops  of  the  balsam  rubbed  well  in.  This  is  to 
be  repeated  four  or  five  times  the  next  twenty-four  hours,  and  the 
cure  is  complete.  It  may  be  used  in  every  form  of  iteh  in  children 
with  advantage.  It  has,  to  be  sure,  no  effect  upon  the  eczema  scabiei ; 
for  this,  soap  baths,  starch  powder,  or  glycerin  inunctions  are  required. 
In  adults  the  best  plan  is  to  rub  in  the  balsam  of  Peru  all  over  the 
naked  body,  slowly,  carefully  and  gently,  giving  special  attention  to 
certain  parts  of  the  body,  especially  the  fingers.  Although  in  the 
treatment  of  itch  the  rubbing  in  cannot  act  mechanically,  yet,  what- 
ever substance  may  be  used,  the  mode  of  preparing  the  inunction  is  of 
great  importance.  As  the  balsam  is  readily  distributed,  nine  grammes 
of  it  suffice  for  one  operation.  It  is  not  at  all  necessary  to  begin  the 
treatment  with  a  bath ;  but  if  a  bath  is  first  given,  the  rubbing-in 
should  not  follow  immediately,  as  the  balsam  is  more  rapidly  absorbed 
by  a  dry  skin.  Hence,  in  persons  who  easily  perspire,  the  skin  should 
be  well  dried  before  the  remedy  is  used.  When  the  operation  is  care- 
fully performed,  relapses  occur  very  rarely,  and  there  is  never  any 
increase  in  the  eczema  that  may  be  present.  It  is  seldom  that  pru- 
rigo occurs  after  the  itch.  Should  it  occur,  this  disagreeable  symp- 
tom is  more  readily  removed  by  the  internal  use  of  carbolic  acid  than 
by  warm  baths  and  soft  soap  or  glycerin.  The  only  objection  to 
Peru  balsam  is  its  expense.  Carbolic  acid,  on  account  of  its  efficacy, 
its  facile  employment  and  its  cheapness,  deserves  to  be  mentioned 
next  to  Peru  balsam.  It  must  be  mixed  with  glycerin  or  oleum  lini, 
to  prevent  its  caustic  action.  One  scruple  of  acid,  carbol.  is  to  be 
mixed  with  two  ounces  of  either  of  the  two  other  excipients.  This 
remedy  has  this  advantage,  that  by  its  action  on  the  peripheric  cuta- 
