MEDICAL NOTES.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XL, Issue 12266, 9 May 1903, Page 6 (Supplement)

MEDICAL NOTES.

TO CURE SEASICKNESS.

COMMON SKIN DISEASES. ' Almost all persons have some form of skin disease at one time or another, and these affections often give rise to much discomfort and often to disfigurement. Some forms cause great irritation, others are painful, and some give rise to unpleasant discharges. It must be remembered that many skin ailments are contagious, especially those that are due to parasites or insects. Some are attended bv fever, and these aie acutely infectious, such as measles and scarlatina. Some of. these diseases are only observed in infancy, others in childhood, while others again are only seen in middle life or in aged persons. Constitutional diseases of the nature of blood poisoning are often shown to exist by skin eruptions. The diseases of" the skin are shown by about nine different peculiarities of the surface; these may occur singly or may be observed grouped together. These forms are smooth, reddened blushes, pimples, vesicles, blebs, pustules, wheals, stains, scaliuess, or scabs. For example, erysipelas is shown by a blush only, but smallpox goes through the stages of pimple, vesicle, pustule, and scab; while psoriasis is scaly only, as is one form of ringworm or tetter. The red blush is seen in measles or scarlatina.- By pimple is meant a small, round, raised »spot, somewhat hard and solid. A vesicle is a similar spot which contains a drop of clear liquid. A pustule is a similar raised spot containing a drop of pus, or matter —a thick, yellow liquid. Blebs are largo vesicles like a blister caused by a scald or burn. Wheals are temporary raised pink patches; they rarely last many hours; they are seen after nettle stings. Scales of dry scurf are commonly seen on the scalp, but some skin diseases cause large patches of scaly soreness on the hands and arms. Stains of colour, which are often hairy, are generally formed before birth, but some patches of yellow or brown colour may be due to parasites in the skin, and some are caused by constitutional disease. Scabs are the late stage of vesicles, blebs, and pustules, after they have been broken, and arise from the surface drying into a hardened crust; but when a scab is pulled off a raw sore place is found underneath. Scabs being a dried, dead layer, it is not of the slightest use to apply any ointment or lotion to them; the scabs must be removeu. and any curative treatment must be applied to the raw surface. Much disappointment is often felt by a neglect of this precaution. To remove scabs it is often necessary to apply one or more poultices of bread, linseed meal, or turnip.

A coßiussroNDEXT of the Daily Mail writes: —It is not necessary for the prevention of seasickness to build such a vessel as that proposed by Lieutenant Turc. Deep "breathing, as I know from personal experience, forms an admirable preventive of the distressing malady. As the vessel descends slowly raise the chest muscles and expand the whole chest in a deep inspiration. As the vessel rises slowly relax the chest and body muscles in an expiration. This maintains the physical balance, and unpleasant feelings will give place to those of exhilaration and enjoyment.