Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
Dec,  1880. 
Varieties. 
629 
•muriate  of  pilocarpin  in  doses  of  0.4.  grain  every  five  or  ten  minutes 5  the  quantity 
given  amounted  in  all  to  6"4  grains.  The  result  was  remarkable,-  the  toxic  symp- 
toms gradually  receded,  and  at  the  end  of  three  hours  from  the  time  of  taking  the 
atropia  the  patient  had  quite  recovered.  Even  the  dilatation  of  the  pupils,  which 
had  taken  place  to  the  greatest  extent,  had  completely  passed  off, 
Homatropia  hydrobromate,  prepared  by  Merck,  of  Darmstadt,  has  been  the  sub 
ject  of  experiments  by  Dr.  Henry  L.  Schell,  who  reports  his  observations  in  the 
*' Philadelphia  Medical  Times  "  of  October  9th,  arriving  at  the  following  conclu- 
sions : 
1.  Homatropin  hydrobromate  is  not  well  adapted  to  the  treatment  of  inflamma- 
tory or  traumatic  affections  of  the  eye,  on  account  of  the  conjunctival  irritation  it 
•produces. 
2.  It  is  especially  adapted  to  the  production  of  that  temporary  dilatation  of  the 
■pupil  and  paralysis  of  the  ciliary  muscle  which  is  so  often  required  in  examining  the 
■condition  of  the  refraction. 
3.  The  best  solution  to  use  is  one  containing  16  grains  to  the  fluidounce  of  dis- 
tilled water.  From  one  to  five  drops  of  such  a  solution  maybe  required  to  produce 
the  desired  effect,  according  to  the  strength  and  activity  of  the  ciliary  muscle. 
4.  Under  the  influence  of  a  full  dose  the  pupil  attains  its  maximum  dilatation  in 
about  twenty  minutes. 
5.  With  a  full  dose  the  accommodation  begins  to  fail  in  about  ten  minutes  and  is 
usually  totally  suppressed  in  a  half-hour,  although  exceptional  cases  may  require  an 
hour.  This  total  suppression  lasts  about  three  hours  5  the  accommodation  then 
gradually  recovers  itself,  and  is  fully  in  action  again  at  the  end  of  from  ten  to  thirty 
hours  from  the  time  of  the  last  instillation. 
6.  The  local  action  of  the  mydriatic  is  not  accompanied  by  any  unpleasant  effects 
upon  the  general  system. 
Cheken— A  New  Remedy. — Dr.  Henry  Von  Dessauer,  of  Valparaiso,  has  used 
cheken  for  some  years  in  the  treatment  of  a  number  of  complaints.  Thus  as  an 
inhalation  he  uses  it  in  diphtheria,  laryngitis,  bronchitis  and  bronchorrhea  5  as  an 
injection  in  certain  infections  of  the  mucous  membrane,  as  gonorrhea,  leucorrhea, 
cystitis,  etc.,  while  given  internally,  in  the  form  of  syrup  or  liquid  extract,  it  is  said 
to  aid  digestion,  allay  cough,  facilitate  expectoration,  and  stimulate  the  kidneys  to 
action.  It  is  also  an  astringent,  and  is  found  to  be  of  especial. service  in  threatened 
hemoptysis.  Dr.  von  Dessauer  used  it  with  marked  success  in  more  than  one  hun- 
dred cases  of  bronchitis  and  phthisis.  For  many  years  he  was  physician  to  a  large 
convent  shool,  many  of  the  inmates  of  which  suffered  from  consumption,  and  hemop  • 
tysis  being  of  constant  occurrence.  During  the  two  and  a-half  years  that  he  gave 
cheken  in  this  establishment  he  had  not  a  single  death  from  phthisis,  there  were  no 
fre^h  cases  of  hemoptysis,  and  many  of  the  patients  who  had  had  repeated  attacks 
of  bleeding  from  the  lungs  recovered  and  gained  flesh  and  strength  in  a  very  marked 
.manner, — Louisoj.  Med.  Ne^s^  October  2d. 
The  Coca  in  Opium-Habit. — In  your  issue  of  May  29th  I  noticed  an  article, 
from  the  pen  of  Dr.  Palmer,  upon  coca  as  a  possible  antidote  for  the  opium -habit. 
