The Science of Therapeutics - Classical Homeopathy Online

Full text of "The Science of Therapeutics: According to the Principles of Homeopath...Page 349 of 653extension of inflammation from the soft parts. In the greatmajority of cases the mechanical is associated with a constitutiocause, very frequently the latter existing alone. Among theconstitutional diseases it is more particularly scrofulosis, tubeculosis, syphilis and hydrargyrosis that give rise to ostitis. Veoften it is very difficult to trace the cause with anything liketainty, especially so far as an inflammation of the substance ofbones is concerned, because it generally develops itself with scaperceptible symptoms and in a very insidious manner, hence toolong a period of time may have elapsed since the cause first begato act, to permit of the disease being traced to a definite origiBones that are but thinly covered by soft parts, are particularlyexposed to inflammation from mechanical causes; inflammationarising from more dynamic or constitutional causes may attackany bone; nevertheless inflammations of the mastoid process, of tinferior maxilla, of the vertebrse, the bones of the hands and feand of the ribs, occur most frequently and are of particularimportance.Periostitis occurs more particularly on the fingers, on the bonesof the lower extremities and on the skull-bones.The symptoms and course of ostitis diifer very remarkably inextent as well as intensity. It is very often found that at the410Ostitis, Periostitis. 411outset the disease is entirely without any symptoms until thedisease is finally revealed by the process of suppuration. It verseldom runs an acute and rapid course; this is generally the casethe inflammation attacks the outer surface of the bone and theperiosteum. In such a case the intensity of the pain depends uponthe extent of the inflammation; the fever is high, delirium som^times sets in, slight chills are common and the patient very soonbegins to lose his strength. Cases of this kind, which run a rapicourse, always terminate in suppuration, and the artificial removof pus is in most cases a matter of absolute necessity. After thepus is evacuated, a cure does not always take place immediately;the bone divested of its periosteum becomes more or less cariousbefore a cicatrix has time to form.If the periostitis runs a slow and somewhat chronic course, theinflammation of itself is not very painful ; but very violent paican be excited by contact ; here too the exudation may be transformed into pus, but is likewise apt to result in osseous growthsand to form extensive flat or tuberous bony indurations.If the inflammation is located in the interior of the bone, thelatter is generally distended in its whole length, is not very setive to pressure, but the patient is tormented by paroxysms ofpeculiar dull boring pains which, even in the absence of any speccause, are particularly apt to set in, and to become aggravated anight. These pains are usually felt for some time before the bonecommences to swell; they interfere with the mobility of the limbmore or less, generally the less the more remotely they are felthttp://www.archive.org/stream/sciencetherapeu00kafkgoog/sciencetherapeu00kafkgoog_djvu.txt