site logo

PHYSICIANS' TREATMENT for Whooping-Cough

Categories: Infectious Diseases

The patient should be isolated
and sleep in a large, well ventilated room. In spring and summer weather,

the child is better in the open air all day. In the winter the child

should be warmly clothed. Pine wood and a fairly high altitude are

probably the best. The greatest care should be taken in all seasons to

keep from taking cold, or bad bronchitis or pneumonia may result. All

complications are serious, especially in nursin
children. There should be

no appreciable fever, and when the paroxysm of cough is over the child

should sleep or play quite well, until the next one returns. So if there

is much fever the case needs watching.



Medical Treatment. Medicines have little effect in controlling the

disease. The severity can be lessened. If the child is much disturbed at

night, the following is good:



1. Acetanelid 1/2 dram

Dover's Powder 1/2 dram



Mix thoroughly and make up into thirty powders; for one year old one-half

a powder every two hours while awake or restless.



2. Syrup of Dover's Powder 1 fluid dram

Tincture of Aconite 10 drops

Simple Syrup enough to make two ounces.



Mix and give one-half teaspoonful every two hours for a child one year

old. Shake bottle.



3. But the best treatment I know is the following: Go to any good drug

store and get a fifty-cent bottle of vapo-cresolene. Burn this, according

to the directions given on the bottle in the evening. Use a small granite

cup, put about one-third of an inch of the medicine in this, set cup on a

wire frame above a lamp, (can buy a regular lamp with the medicine) close

windows and let the child inhale the fumes. This will give the patient a

good night's sleep. I have used this for years, and know it is good and

effective. A tea made of chestnut leaves is said to be good, and is often

used as a home remedy. The leaves of the chestnut that we eat, not the

horse-chestnut.



Diet. This is an extremely important part of the treatment. As the child

vomits frequently, especially after eating, the food is generally vomited,

so there should be frequent feeding in small quantities. The food should

be digestible and nourishing. Milk is a good food for older children. In

nursing infants they should be nursed oftener, especially if they vomit

soon after nursing. In older children, you must not feed too heavy and

hearty foods; meat and potatoes should not be given to young children

having the disease. When vomiting is severe the food should be fluid and

given often. The child must be nourished. If this disease occurs in the

winter the person attacked, after he is seemingly well, must be careful

not to take cold. The condition of the mucous membrane of the air tube

after an attack of this disease, makes it very easy for the person to

contract inflammation of that part and have in consequence laryngitis,

bronchitis, or pneumonia. Thc cough in very many cases will last all

winter without any additional cold being added.



More

;