The Consultation Letters of Dr William Cullen (1710-1790) at the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh
[ID:1251] From: [AUTHOR UNKNOWN] / To: Dr William Cullen (Professor Cullen) / Regarding: Mr Dunbar (Patient) / 2 March 1776 / (Incoming)
Letter from Andrew Liddell updating Cullen on the case of Mr Dunbar. He informs Cullen that since his previous letter, the patient 'was seized with a return of these Pains of his Belly', and that the patient was now unable to walk or stand.
- Facsimile
- Normalized Text
- Diplomatic Text
- Metadata
- Case
- People
- Places
Facsimile
There are 3 images for this document.
[Page 1]
[Page 2]
[Page 3]
Metadata
| Field | Data |
|---|---|
| DOC ID | 1251 |
| RCPE Catalogue Number | CUL/1/2/351 |
| Main Language | English |
| Document Direction | Incoming |
| Date | 2 March 1776 |
| Annotation | None |
| Type | Authorial original |
| Enclosure(s) | No enclosure(s) |
| Autopsy | No |
| Recipe | No |
| Regimen | No |
| Letter of Introduction | No |
| Case Note | No |
| Summary | Letter from Andrew Liddell updating Cullen on the case of Mr Dunbar. He informs Cullen that since his previous letter, the patient 'was seized with a return of these Pains of his Belly', and that the patient was now unable to walk or stand. |
| Manuscript Incomplete? | No |
| Evidence of Commercial Posting | Yes |
Case
Cases that this document belongs to:
| Case ID | Description | Num Docs |
|---|---|---|
| [Case ID:438] |
Case of Mr Alexander Dunbar, adolescent son of Captain Dunbar of Westfield who has been 'subject to irregular & wandering Pains of his Belly' since infancy and who develops severe back pain, dizziness and an inability to stand. |
5 |
People linked to this document
| Person ID | Role in document | Person |
|---|---|---|
| [PERS ID:1] | Addressee | Dr William Cullen (Professor Cullen) |
| [PERS ID:1721] | Patient | Mr Dunbar |
| [PERS ID:1] | Patient's Physician / Surgeon / Apothecary | Dr William Cullen (Professor Cullen) |
| [PERS ID:339] | Patient's Physician / Surgeon / Apothecary | Mr Andrew Liddell (Liddle) |
Places linked to this document
| Role in document | Specific Place | Settlements / Areas | Region | Country | Global Region | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Place of Writing | Thurso | North Highlands | Scotland | Europe | certain | |
| Destination of Letter | Edinburgh | Edinburgh and East | Scotland | Europe | certain | |
| Place of Handstamp | Thurso | North Highlands | Scotland | Europe | certain |
Normalized Text
About a week after I had sent you the Informa¬
tion of Mr Dunbars Case, he was seized with a return --
of these Pains of his Belly: And they were now attended
with a New Symptom: He was become unable to --
walk or even stand on his Legs. This Inability he --
described as proceeding from a weakness of the lower
extremities, accompanied with a Dizziness, Sickishness
or pain to knees, when he made an effort to overcome the
weakness by attempting to stand up. --- I observed that
he could, when sitting in his chair, use his limbs with ease
& move them in any direction, & that his Spirits & Looks
were good: But when raised up & helped to move forwards
his Legs dragged after him, & he complained of the Diz¬
ziness and being faintish, tho' with little change of colour
in his countenance or sinking of his Pulse. -- When ---
replaced in his chair the uneasiness soon went off.
--- I gave him again the Powdered Stanni, of which he took 2 oz.
in 6 Days, & a Spoonful of strong Tincture of Pine every morning
but he discharged no worms. Strong Physic now excited most
violent pains, so I was obliged to confine him to the use --
of Flowers Sulphur, to procure a loan 1 stool every day while he
took the Tin, & since he uses it to prevent Costiveness
at present the pains of his Belly are not very violent; but
the swelling comes & goes as formerly, & he complains
[Page 2]
frequently of Sickness, by which he does not mean nausea
but rather some sensation in his Stomach or Intestines which
he knows not how to describe, at the same time he is
generally in good spirits: His Appetite is not good: His
Pulse is seldom above 70, & often below 60, & full enough.
The weakness of his Limbs has lasted a fortnight & still
continues. It (He) has had no startings in his Sleep since.
I was yesterday favoured with your Opinion, & think
it necessary to acquaint you immediately of the above ---
circumstances, as they may serve to discover somewhat
farther in the nature of this Case. --- In the mean time,
as the Patient complains so much of the very painful
effects of strong Physic, & also on account of his present
weakness, I shall give him only the Limat. Martis, &
defer the Gamboge & Calomel till I have your farther --
advice. -- I am always with the greatest respect &
regards.
Dear Sir
Your most obedient & very humble Servant
[Page 3]
To
Doctor William Cullen
Physician
Edinburgh
Mr Liddell q
Mr Dunbar.
March 1776
Vol. IV. p. 135.
Notes:
1: This is the most likely reading for what is probably a phonetic spelling of "lone".
Diplomatic Text
About a week after I had sent you the Informa¬
tion of Mr Dunbars Case, he was seized with a return --
of these Pains of his Belly: And they were now attended
with a New Symptom: He was become unable to --
walk or even stand on his Legs. This Inability he --
described as proceeding from a weakness of the lower
extremities, accompanied with a Dizziness, Sickishness
or pain to knees, when he made an effort to overcome the
weakness by attempting to stand up. --- I observed that
he could, when sitting in his chair, use his limbs with ease
& move them in any direction, & that his Spirits & Looks
were good: But when raised up & helped to move forwards
his Legs dragged after him, & he complained of the Diz¬
ziness and being faintish, tho' with little change of colour
in his countenance or sinking of his Pulse. -- When ---
replaced in his chair the uneasiness soon went off.
--- I gave him again the P. Stanni, of which he took 2 oz.
in 6 Days, & a Spoonful of strong Tincture of Pine every morning
but he discharged no worms. Strong Physic now excited most
violent pains, so I was obliged to confine him to the use --
of F. Sulphur, to procure a loan 1 stool every day while he
took the Tin, & since he uses it to prevent Costiveness
at present the pains of his Belly are not very violent; but
the swelling comes & goes as formerly, & he complains
[Page 2]
frequently of Sickness, by which he does not mean nausea
but rather some sensation in his Stomach or Intestines which
he knows not how to describe, at the same time he is
generally in good spirits: His Appetite is not good: His
Pulse is seldom above 70, & often below 60, & full enough.
The weakness of his Limbs has lasted a fortnight & still
continues. It (He) has had no startings in his Sleep since.
I was yesterday favoured with your Opinion, & think
it necessary to acquaint you immediately of the above ---
circumstances, as they may serve to discover somewhat
farther in the nature of this Case. --- In the mean time,
as the Patient complains so much of the very painful
effects of strong Physic, & also on account of his present
weakness, I shall give him only the Limat. Martis, &
defer the Gamboge & Calomel till I have your farther --
advice. -- I am always with the greatest respect &
regards.
Dear Sir
Your most obedt. & very h. Servt.
[Page 3]
To
Doctor William Cullen
Physician
Edinburgh
Mr Liddell q
Mr Dunbar.
March 1776
Vol. IV. p. 135.
Notes:
1: This is the most likely reading for what is probably a phonetic spelling of "lone".
XML
XML file not yet available.
Feedback
Send us specfic feeback about this document [DOC ID:1251]
Please note that the Cullen Project team have now disbanded but your comments will be logged in our system and we will look at them one day...
