The Consultation Letters of Dr William Cullen (1710-1790) at the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh
[ID:1518] From: Mr Alexander Dougall (Dougal) / To: Dr William Cullen (Professor Cullen) / Regarding: Mr Alexander Dougall (Dougal) (Patient) / May? 1778? / (Incoming)
Unsigned case note describing the case of Alexander Dougall, a 61-year-old surgeon, relating his history over the past 30 years, with kidney ailments, including kidney and bladder stones. Probably written by Dougall himself.
- Facsimile
- Normalized Text
- Diplomatic Text
- Metadata
- Case
- People
- Places
Facsimile
There are 4 images for this document.
[Page 1]
[Page 2]
[Page 3]
[Page 4]
Metadata
| Field | Data |
|---|---|
| DOC ID | 1518 |
| RCPE Catalogue Number | CUL/1/2/611 |
| Main Language | English |
| Document Direction | Incoming |
| Date | May? 1778? |
| Annotation | None |
| Type | Authorial original |
| Enclosure(s) | No enclosure(s) |
| Autopsy | No |
| Recipe | No |
| Regimen | No |
| Letter of Introduction | No |
| Case Note | No |
| Summary | Unsigned case note describing the case of Alexander Dougall, a 61-year-old surgeon, relating his history over the past 30 years, with kidney ailments, including kidney and bladder stones. Probably written by Dougall himself. |
| Manuscript Incomplete? | No |
| Evidence of Commercial Posting | No |
Case
Cases that this document belongs to:
| Case ID | Description | Num Docs |
|---|---|---|
| [Case ID:1033] |
Case of Alexander Dougall, a surgeon, with a history of gout and kidney stones but who now has a very painful bladder condition which is suspected of being a stone. |
2 |
People linked to this document
| Person ID | Role in document | Person |
|---|---|---|
| [PERS ID:2264] | Author | Mr Alexander Dougall (Dougal) |
| [PERS ID:1] | Addressee | Dr William Cullen (Professor Cullen) |
| [PERS ID:2264] | Patient | Mr Alexander Dougall (Dougal) |
| [PERS ID:1] | Patient's Physician / Surgeon / Apothecary | Dr William Cullen (Professor Cullen) |
Places linked to this document
| Role in document | Specific Place | Settlements / Areas | Region | Country | Global Region | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Place of Writing | Elgin | East Highlands | Scotland | Europe | inferred | |
| Destination of Letter | Edinburgh | Edinburgh and East | Scotland | Europe | inferred |
Normalized Text
Case
Alexander Dougall aged 61 – of a robust make & san¬
guine temperament subject to Catarrhal Complaints – was
afterwards of 30 years ago seized with what he took to be a Fit
of the Regular Gout in one of his feet. This however he soon
got the better of by observing a very strict regimen & using a
good deal of moderate constant exercise –– About some more
than 20 years ago he was attacked with a violent pain in
the left kidney stretching along the course of the Ureter –
attended with fever thirst nausea vomiting. He had re¬
course to venæsection – the use of Diluents & Injections & was
soon after relieved by passing with his urine a small Cal¬
culous Concretion about the size of a grain of Lintseed ––
At Intervals of a year or two after he was attacked by similar
paroxysms which terminated as the former by passing like
concretions which gave relief for the time – After this period
he had also paroxysms when neither sand nor Calculi were
voided –– About 8 or 9 years ↑ago↑ he first felt what he judged
to be the signs of a stone in the Bladder – viz pain in the
region of the Bladder – particularly on riding (to which
from his business as a Surgeon he was much exposed) &
voiding of Bloody urine with pain which affected the
whole of the Urethra. Alarmed at these symptoms he
restricted himself to a very low diet abstained from all
acid & fermented liquors & betook himself to the use of Lime¬
water & Soap-lee in milk - which he continued for several
[Page 2]
weeks & finding considerable relief from them - began again to
indulge in walking & riding without a return of any of the former
symptoms for the course of some years –– In the beginning of
Autumn 1777 He began to feel a weight & pain in the bladder &
on walking any time or riding tho' moderately the pain was in¬
creased & he voided Bloody urine –– Sometimes too he was affect¬
ed with pain in the left kidney & tho' very cautious in regard to
exercise his urine sometimes appeared of a blackish earthy colour
He returned to the use of Lime water & took also the Lixivium
Causticum in veal or Chicken broth in quantity from 20 to 30
drops twice a day –– He observed during the use of these medicines
a strict regimen avoiding all acids & acescents & used a very
low diet. By these means he procured some relief of symptoms
but by the abstemious course so long continued he lost his flesh
& strength –– In the month of March having fallen short of
Lixivium he had recourse to a Quack medicine called
Rambins Quintessence on the commendation of a friend
who thought he had experienced in his own person some good
effects from it –– But from a short trial of this medicine he
felt no relief of his Complaints – It had on him always the
effect of stupifying the senses – & he imagines the medicine
consists of Opium dissolved in a Lixivium with the admixture
of some odorous substance which conceals the smell of the opi¬
um –– Partly to the use of this medicine & Limewater he
attributes the Costiveness with which he was then affected
[Page 3]
& as his stomach could not bear a quantity of soap sufficient to
obviate this complaint he altered his diet a little indulged
himself with some fresh butter at breakfast – Greens & a little
lean mutton at dinner & generally supp'd on Pottage & milk
which he found to agree very well with his stomach & after
which he generally rested better than when he used any other
food –– He has during the night a call to make water almost
every 2 hours often every hour so that his rest is much broken
He cannot walk a hundred paces on the street without
feeling a smart pain in the bladder after which he generally
voids bloody urine – He has not ventured on horseback or
in a Chaise these 7 months past –– Sounding with the Catheter
has been attempted, but there seems to be such a stricture at
the entrance into the Bladder that the instrument when
endeavoured to be moved forward always gave excruciating
pain – so that he has not been able by these means to dis¬
cover whether there is a stone in the bladder or not – tho'
from the late frequent accession of Paroxysms & the continu¬
ance of the above mentioned symptoms – while no Calculus
was voided – he is led to suspect it may be the Case ––––
His Fauces are at present so tender that he cannot
swallow any thing hot – they are particularly uneasy all
around the Glottis & Epiglottis & reading aloud or speaking but
for 10 minutes distresses him much – For this he has only
used some Black-Currant Jelly. ––––
[Page 4]
✍
Mr Dougall.
May
1778
VIII. 103.
Diplomatic Text
Case
Alexander Dougall aged 61 – of a robust make & san¬
guine temperament subject to Catarrhal Complaints – was
afterwards of 30 years ago seized with what he took to be a Fit
of the Regular Gout in one of his feet. This however he soon
got the better of by observing a very strict regimen & using a
good deal of moderate constant exercise –– About some more
than 20 years ago he was attacked with a violent pain in
the left kidney stretching along the course of the Ureter –
attended with fever thirst nausea vomiting. He had re¬
course to venæsection – the use of Diluents & Injections & was
soon after relieved by passing with his urine a small Cal¬
culous Concretion about the size of a grain of Lintseed ––
At Intervals of a year or two after he was attacked by similar
paroxysms which terminated as the former by passing like
concretions which gave relief for the time – After this period
he had also paroxysms when neither sand nor Calculi were
voided –– About 8 or 9 years ↑ago↑ he first felt what he judged
to be the signs of a stone in the Bladder – viz pain in the
region of the Bladder – particularly on riding (to which
from his business as a Surgeon he was much exposed) &
voiding of Bloody urine with pain which affected the
whole of the Urethra. Alarmed at these symptoms he
restricted himself to a very low diet abstained from all
acid & fermented liquors & betook himself to the use of Lime¬
water & Soap-lee in milk - which he continued for several
[Page 2]
weeks & finding considerable relief from them - began again to
indulge in walking & riding without a return of any of the former
symptoms for the course of some years –– In the beginning of
Autumn 1777 He began to feel a weight & pain in the bladder &
on walking any time or riding tho' moderately the pain was in¬
creased & he voided Bloody urine –– Sometimes too he was affect¬
ed with pain in the left kidney & tho' very cautious in regard to
exercise his urine sometimes appeared of a blackish earthy colour
He returned to the use of Lime water & took also the Lixivium
Causticum in veal or Chicken broth in quantity from 20 to 30
drops twice a day –– He observed during the use of these medicines
a strict regimen avoiding all acids & acescents & used a very
low diet. By these means he procured some relief of symptoms
but by the abstemious course so long continued he lost his flesh
& strength –– In the month of March having fallen short of
Lixivium he had recourse to a Quack medicine called
Rambins Quintessence on the commendation of a friend
who thought he had experienced in his own person some good
effects from it –– But from a short trial of this medicine he
felt no relief of his Complaints – It had on him always the
effect of stupifying the senses – & he imagines the medicine
consists of Opium dissolved in a Lixivium with the admixture
of some odorous substance which conceals the smell of the opi¬
um –– Partly to the use of this medicine & Limewater he
attributes the Costiveness with which he was then affected
[Page 3]
& as his stomach could not bear a quantity of soap sufficient to
obviate this complaint he altered his diet a little indulged
himself with some fresh butter at breakfast – Greens & a little
lean mutton at dinner & generally supp'd on Pottage & milk
which he found to agree very well with his stomach & after
which he generally rested better than when he used any other
food –– He has during the night a call to make water almost
every 2 hours often every hour so that his rest is much broken
He cannot walk a hundred paces on the street without
feeling a smart pain in the bladder after which he generally
voids bloody urine – He has not ventured on horseback or
in a Chaise these 7 months past –– Sounding with the Catheter
has been attempted, but there seems to be such a stricture at
the entrance into the Bladder that the instrument when
endeavoured to be moved forward always gave excruciating
pain – so that he has not been able by these means to dis¬
cover whether there is a stone in the bladder or not – tho'
from the late frequent accession of Paroxysms & the continu¬
ance of the above mentioned symptoms – while no Calculus
was voided – he is led to suspect it may be the Case ––––
His Fauces are at present so tender that he cannot
swallow any thing hot – they are particularly uneasy all
around the Glottis & Epiglottis & reading aloud or speaking but
for 10 minutes distresses him much – For this he has only
used some Black-Currant Jelly. ––––
[Page 4]
✍
Mr Dougall.
May
1778
VIII. 103.
XML
XML file not yet available.
Feedback
Send us specfic feeback about this document [DOC ID:1518]
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...
