MEDICAL NOTES.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LV, Issue 16895, 6 July 1918, Page 5 (Supplement)

MEDICAL NOTES.

A STARCH POULTICE. ; In cases of skin irritation, a starch poultice IS sometimes ordered on account of its soothing properties. Mix the starch with a little cold water until it becomes the consistency of a thick paste. Spread on muslin, and allow the starch to come in direct contact with the skin. COLD COMPRESSES. A Email block of ice should be placed in a basin with a little water. Make two compresses by folding pieces of old linen or towel two or three thicknesses. While one compress is being applied, the other should bo rubbed on the skin to prevent :rr.tation. Where ice is not obtainable, \oiy cold water must be made to do, and by waving the wet compress m the air be« re folding, the temperature of it is reduced. FILLING THE HOT WATER BOTTLE. Mary hot water burns have ween received by filling the . bottle tho wrong way; I refer, of course, to the rubber bottles. _ The hot water should be slowly poured in while the bag is lying o n a flat surface, of course holding 'the neck up fuflii iently to receive the water. This causes the air to bo expelled and prevents the hot water from bubbling ovor the hand. The bag should be only halfii'ied, and the water should not have reached boiling point, as very hot water is injurious to rubber. It' is a good plan to attach the stopper by a piece of tope to the loop at the mouth of the bottle, as it is apt to go astray. A LINSEED POULTICE. A quantity of the linseed, according to the size of the poultice required, should be stirred slowly and evenly into boiling water, stirring constantly until the mixture is just thick enough to drop from a spoon. It must then be thoroughly beaten so as to remove all lumps. A Liver half-an-inch thick is spread on a piece of muslin large enough to fold over the poultice once, allowing a margin of half-an-inch to. be turned in. Apply vaseline on the side next the skin, and over this put. a thin layer of gauze. Carry on a hot plate and cover with a towel. Have the poultieo as hot as can be borne, but not not enough to burn. After it is in place, cover with a layer of cotton wool, and over this place a piece of oiled silk to prevent the escape of heat or moisture. A poultice should not In? left on till it becomes cold. Nor should it ever be re-heated and applied again. The skin should be wined dry from one application before another is made. SLEEP A GOOD TONIC. If you want a good tonic when you are feeling wearied out, try going to bf'd two hours earlier than is your usual habit for a fortnight. The extra rest, even if tou do not actually sleep, is beneficial. It relaxes jour nerves and your whole body to lie quiet on your back, and it aids digestion to rest quietly after a meal, and so get all the goodness out of the food you have swallowed. If you do manage to sleep the extra time, it will do you a lot of good. Sleep is tht panacea for all evils, but it is to be natural; the sleeper, rather, stupor—produced by powerful drugs is not nearly so beneficial, and such a sleep may be followed by a headache on waking. If you cannot sleep, an attempt should be made to discover the cause by experimenting. Perhaps you eat too late at night; on the other hand, you may have your last meal too early, so that you go to bed hungry or wake up at two in the morning feeling hungry. Some people find a satisfactory "sleeping draught" in a couple of biscuits, eaten slowly, when sleep deserts the pillow. I have known cases where the stuffy air has awakened the sleeper early in the morning. The air is used over and over again, and the stuffiness makes the lungs cry out for fresh air. i Jji some houses .-there is so*, much anxiety to keep the. air out "that even the chimneys are blocked up. Sleep with the window open.

A TEST FOR FLAT FOOT. Tliore may be every degree of flat foot, from an almost imperceptible defect to the most advanced cases when the sole of the loot .is as flat as a pancake. To test yourself for flat foot try the following simple method: Make the sole of your naked foot wet, and then plant the foot on the dry board or oilcloth, and examine the impression left behind when the foot is taken up. If the foot is in a normal healthy state there should be a broad patch in front for the ball of the toe and other toes, and a large patch behind for the heel, and between the two patches there should be only a narrow line running along the outer side of the impression. It is this narrow connecting line that is the important one. If the arch is high the line is very narrow. If the arch has fallen the line is broader, and if the foot is so flat that the arch has entirely disappeared there will be a broad mark between the toes and heel, so that the impression looks more like the mark of a boot than a naked foot. For a slight degree of flat foot it is not necessary to wear any instrument; the foot should bo strengthened by rubbing and massage with oils, and by giving the foot as much rest as can be managed. In the more advanced cases it is necessary to wear a support to make an artificial arch. These pads consist -of steel covered with leather, and they are worn inside the boot. It may be found more comfortable to wear boots a size larger than the ordinary pair, as the steel arch takes up some room.

CHRONIC BRIGHT'S DISEASE. Care in the diet and careful regulation of the habits of life are the two chief factors in the treament of chronic Blight's disease. This disease is an affection of .the kidney, and the reason why the diet must be free from an excess of certain elements is that the diseased kidney will not excrete, or will only excrete with great difficulty, these substances or things containing" them. The sick kidney csnnot deal properly with these things, and the amount of them which can safely be included in the diet must be carefully gauged by the doctor. If it were possible to exclude them entirely it might be as well, but many of them are things absolutely necessary for the proper maintenance of the body. It is on this account that the diet of the FulTerer from Blight's disease is so important a part of his treatment, and explains the stress laid by the doctor on the taking or avoidance of certain elements, sometimes apparently of trifling importance. Extreme moderation in diet is necessarv for the sufferer from Blight's disea«'e. Besides this, moderation in exerrise, and mental and bodily exertion is a!., 0 enjoined. AH extremes are harmful. In addition to this careful regulation of the habits all possibility of infections entering the body must be removed, and fin b° danger-points as diseased teeth or tor sits must have careful attention. A! ohol is a poison to the kidney, and must be avoided altogether. The question of diet is one which cannot be solved by any fixed formula. It is important for the general health that the diet be as varied as' possible, so that tho i-anacitv of each individual for the at-mihtion of tho more doubtful food el .-:cnt* in the diet may be regulated by it. In cases which show a dropsical tendc. rv for example, the fluids in the dietary fbi'nid be reduced, while these _ cases , • ,al!v benefit by a great reduction in t!- • am-'nnt of salt taken with the food. \\,~: cases do well with plenty of milk, (i, .i.ffh this latter contains a good deal of ,roWin-one of the difficult substances. In view of this latter fact it as well to keep the daily amount of milk taken to three pints a day, to which a pint of cream may be' added. ... , In most cases a mixed diet is the most suitable, in which the proteins are limited, and in which green vegetables, fruits and fruit juices, fata, farinaceous foods, and the cereals, except oatmeal, plav tho chief part. The effect of the diet on the general health as well as on the actual symptoms of the disease must be watched,' as it is of quite equal importance to keep up the strength of the patient as to arrest the development* Of the. symptoms.