The Consultation Letters of Dr William Cullen (1710-1790) at the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh
[ID:1590] From: Dr John Heysham / To: Dr William Cullen (Professor Cullen) / Regarding: Mr Thomas Irwin (Irwine, at Moss Side) (Patient), Anonymous (Patient) / 24 November 1778 / (Incoming)
Letter from John Heysham concerning the case of Mr Irwin and mentioning the case of a 'lady' now recovered.
- 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 | 1590 |
| RCPE Catalogue Number | CUL/1/2/680 |
| Main Language | English |
| Document Direction | Incoming |
| Date | 24 November 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 | Letter from John Heysham concerning the case of Mr Irwin and mentioning the case of a 'lady' now recovered. |
| Manuscript Incomplete? | No |
| Evidence of Commercial Posting | No |
Case
Cases that this document belongs to:
| Case ID | Description | Num Docs |
|---|---|---|
| [Case ID:794] |
Case of Mr Thomas Irwin [Irwine] who suffers from swollen legs, itchiness and biliousness and which eventually proves fatal. |
18 |
| [Case ID:1002] |
Case of an unnamed 'young lady' attended by Dr Heysham for Typhus. |
3 |
People linked to this document
| Person ID | Role in document | Person |
|---|---|---|
| [PERS ID:477] | Author | Dr John Heysham |
| [PERS ID:1] | Addressee | Dr William Cullen (Professor Cullen) |
| [PERS ID:889] | Patient | Mr Thomas Irwin (Irwine, at Moss Side) |
| [PERS ID:2281] | Patient | |
| [PERS ID:1] | Patient's Physician / Surgeon / Apothecary | Dr William Cullen (Professor Cullen) |
| [PERS ID:477] | Patient's Physician / Surgeon / Apothecary | Dr John Heysham |
| [PERS ID:707] | Patient's Physician / Surgeon / Apothecary | Dr John Fothergill |
Places linked to this document
| Role in document | Specific Place | Settlements / Areas | Region | Country | Global Region | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Place of Writing | Carlisle | North-West | England | Europe | certain | |
| Destination of Letter | Edinburgh | Edinburgh and East | Scotland | Europe | certain |
Normalized Text
Since the receipt of your first letter of
August 12.th Mr Irwin has regularly taken
your Saline mixture at least with
very little intermission. It has in
general agreed with him very well, &
has promoted not only a gentle stool
or two every day but has likewise
made him make water very freely;
in consequence of which the swelling
of his legs subsided after he had con¬
tinued the use of it a little while.
The itchiness however still continues
& is very troublesome, tho with the
assistance of 8 or 10 drops of L. L. he
is able to rest tolerable well in the
night, & indeed has a tendency to
sleep during the day. About three
weeks ago he received a letter from his
friend Dr Fothergill, who desired
him to try what effect would be pro¬
duced from ℥ſs of Sal. Tart. & a sufficient
quantity of Acid. Vitriol. taken in the
state of effervescnece. He accordingly
[Page 2]
took it 3 or 4 days but it had no effect
upon the itchiness, & as it disordered his
stomach it was omtted, & he has
again had recourse to the saline mix¬
ture. His present state is as follows.
His strength considerably impaired,
& spirits very much depressed; his
legs for some time past have been
more affected with the œdematous swel¬
ling than ever they were before,
& the itchiness continues nearly the
same attended with some little erup¬
tion. He has scarcely any appetite for
solid animal food, & lives chiefly on
Milk, Broths & sometimes ventures on
an Egg; & agreeable to my recommendation
frequently drinks a glass of wine. Thirst
moderate, skin of proper temperature
& moisture, urine natural both in
quantity & quality. Pulse continues
strong tho it is some what weaker,
& not quite so regular as it was, &
there seems to be a remarkable debility
in the extreme vessels. Upon exposure
to the least cold the blood entirely for¬
sakes his hands & renders them pale
& flaccid. He presents his compliments &
requests you will take the above
[Page 3]
into consideration & return an answer
as soon as convenient.
Permit me now dear Sir to acknowledge
your last kind favour which I shall
remember as long as I have any rembe¬
rance of myself. It gave me great
happiness to find that the method I
had used was approved of by your
superior wisdom & experience. The
lady immediately took the Bark
& the Elix. Citriol & she is now re¬
covered. With compliments to all your
family & with kind wishes for
your health & happiness
P.S. M.r Irwin
begs the favour
that you would
[rend?] the inclosed
[Page 4]
D.r Cullen
Edenburgh
Haysham - Carlisle
C
Mr Irwine
November 1778
9. p. 92.
Diplomatic Text
Since the rec.t of your first letter of
August 12.th Mr Irwin has regularly taken
your Saline mixture at least with
very little intermission. It has in
general agreed with him very well, &
has promoted not only a gentle stool
or two every day but has likewise
made him make water very freely;
in consequence of which the swelling
of his legs subsided after he had con¬
tinued the use of it a little while.
The itchiness however still continues
& is very troublesome, tho with the
assistance of 8 or 10 drops of L. L. he
is able to rest tolerable well in the
night, & indeed has a tendency to
sleep during the day. About three
weeks ago he rec. a letter from his
friend Dr Fothergill, who desired
him to try what effect would be pro¬
duced from ℥ſs of Sal. Tart. & a sufficient
quantity of Acid. Vitriol. taken in the
state of effervescnece. He accordingly
[Page 2]
took it 3 or 4 days but it had no effect
upon the itchiness, & as it disordered his
stomach it was omtted, & he has
again had recourse to the saline mix¬
ture. His present state is as follows.
His strength considerably impaired,
& spirits very much depressed; his
legs for some time past have been
more affected with the œdematous swel¬
ling than ever they were before,
& the itchiness continues nearly the
same attended with some little erup¬
tion. He has scarcely any appetite for
solid animal food, & lives chiefly on
Milk, Broths & sometimes ventures on
an Egg; & agreeable to my recommendation
frequently drinks a glass of wine. Thirst
moderate, skin of proper temperature
& moisture, urine natural both in
quantity & quality. Pulse continues
strong tho it is some what weaker,
& not quite so regular as it was, &
there seems to be a remarkable debility
in the extreme vessels. Upon exposure
to the least cold the blood entirely for¬
sakes his hands & renders them pale
& flaccid. He presents his comp.s &
requests you will take the above
[Page 3]
into consideration & return an answer
as soon as convenient.
Permit me now dear Sir to acknowledge
your last kind favour which I shall
remember as long as I have any rembe¬
rance of myself. It gave me great
happiness to find that the method I
had used was approved of by your
superior wisdom & experience. The
lady immediately took the Bark
& the Elix. Citriol & she is now re¬
covered. With comp.s to all your
family & with kind wishes for
your health & happiness
P.S. M.r Irwin
begs the favour
that you would
[rend?] the inclosed
[Page 4]
D.r Cullen
Edenburgh
Haysham - Carlisle
C
Mr Irwine
Nov.r 1778
9. p. 92.
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