The treatment of disease by electric currents : a hand-book of plain instructions for the general practitioner / by S.H. Monell.

  • Monell, S. H. (Samuel Howard), -1918.
Date:
1897
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: The treatment of disease by electric currents : a hand-book of plain instructions for the general practitioner / by S.H. Monell. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the Francis A. Countway Library of Medicine, through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the Francis A. Countway Library of Medicine, Harvard Medical School.

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    /^O electrodes, dust the skin with toilet powder and close the sitting. Repeat daily for a few times and then three times a week until benefit ceases. This method requires the removal of clothing, and in many cases would be more trouble than the patient would accept. The benefit to be derived is uncer- tain. Static.—Seat the patient upon the static platform and con- nect it with the negative pole. Ground the positive pole, and after familiarizing the patient during the first sitting with simple electrification, ground the brass point electrode and apply a positive spray over the entire spine, the right side and anterior regions of the liver and spleen. These steps are simply preparatory to counter-irritant fric- tional sparks which are the effective part of the treatment, but which should never be employed with a new patient at the first sitting. Having advanced by milder steps, next ground the brass ball electrode with the patient connected with the negative pole. Start the machine into very moderate action with a mild current, and quickly advance the electrode to actual con- tact with the dorsal spine. With very rapid passes move it up and down the back across the lumbar region around the right side and back and forth over the liver and spleen. To secure sufficient effect the intensity must be very greatly increased over the initial application, and this is accomplished by gradually increasing the speed of the revolving plates, and if need be by changing the platform rod from the negative to the positive pole. If the clothing is non-irritating this deficiency must be sup- plied by handing the patient a wrap of suitable material kept for this purpose. Also give a few long percussive sparks over the spine, liver and abdomen as well as limbs. In a total of three or four minutes devoted to producing counter-irritation at each sitting the electrode must be with- drawn at short intervals of about 15 or 30 seconds in order to 45