Chapter 65

The vein may be felt as a hard lash-like cord, a red line of inflammation marking its course along the inner and under side of the thigh. The disease may last weeks, depending upon the severity of the trouble. The affected leg is disabled for a number of months after recovery. Recovery takes place as a rule. Absorption of the clot takes place, or the vessel remains closed, and another (compensatory) circulation is established.

[OBSTETRICS OR MIDWIFERY 543]

Treatment.--The patient should lie in bed with the leg elevated and swathed in flannel or cotton wet with some quieting lotion. The following is a good lotion:--

Compound Soap Liniment 6 ounces Laudanum 1-1/2 ounces Tincture Aconite Root 1/2 ounce Tincture Belladonna 1/2 ounce

Wet the flannel or cotton with this. After the acute symptoms have passed the following ointment may be put on the leg:--

Ichthyol 45 grains Iodide of Lead 45 grains Chloride of Ammonium 10 grains Alboline 1 ounce

The parts should not be rubbed lest a clot be loosened and travel in the general circulation and thus endanger life.

Diet.--Should be supporting. Salts for the bowels.

[544 MOTHERS' REMEDIES]

ALL ABOUT BABY

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

Preparation, Outfit, Nursing, Formulas for Preparation of Milk for Bottle-Fed Infants; Weaning, Teething, Diet Through Childhood, All the Baby Diseases, etc., from the Best Medical Authority, Infant Hospitals and Nurses.

How long does pregnancy usually last? Two hundred and eighty days.

How can the time be reckoned? Count back three months from the first day of the last menstruation and add seven days to the date thus obtained. To be more accurate, you should add only six days in the months of April and September, five days in December and January, and in February four days.

What time of pregnancy does the form begin to change? It changes a little the first two months. It is flatter and lower down. After the third month there is a progressive enlargement.

What is quickening, and when first felt? It is a motion, of the foetus (child) in the womb, imparted to the abdominal walls, and is felt from the sixteenth to the twentieth week. It has been said to have occurred earlier in some cases.

Can you foretell twin pregnancy? Not to a certainty.

Can a mother influence her child as to character and temperament before birth? Authorities differ very much upon this point. The child inherits the physical characteristics of its parents. The frame of the mother's mind, some think, can be given in some degree to her offspring.

Will nervousness be inherited by the child? Not invariably; if the mother is fretful, irritable, cross, repining, etc., her child may be puny, cross and irritable, etc.

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Do you believe in influences transmitted before birth (parental influences?) All must admit that there is a great deal in heredity, and the characteristics of parents are shown in their children.

Can a mother mark her baby? This is another disputed question.

When should the family physician be informed of the woman's condition? The first month.

Why? So that the woman will know how to live properly, and also that he will be given the urine twice each month to examine. This is for her protection and is necessary, because anything that may be wrong with the kidneys can be corrected much easier, and diet, etc. can be arranged to prevent future trouble.

What kind of diet should a pregnant woman have? She should eat only healthy articles of food. Stimulating, highly seasoned, rich, greasy foods should be avoided. Constipation is frequently present and the diet must be chosen with reference to that also. She should not restrict herself to one line of diet unless it is necessary.

Should she take a daily bath, if so, what kind and when? Yes, if it does her good. The pores of the skin should be kept open so that the kidneys will have less work to do. Spray and baths should be taken cold or lukewarm. Hot baths or Turkish baths are to be avoided. The time should be at the woman's convenience. Morning is preferable, if she does not feel the need of sleep.

Should she take a daily nap and when? Yes, one or two hours in the forenoon, and also in the afternoon.

Should she take exercise? Yes, exercise is necessary. This promotes the proper circulation of the blood, favors rest and sleep, relieves the "blues," tones the whole system, gives her good wholesome air and makes everything look better. It should not be violent. Slow walking and riding in an easy carriage. She should not ride a horse, run, jump, dance, or do any jerky or violent exercise; no heavy lifting or reaching up.

What about clothing? The clothing should be perfectly loose and comfortable. Garters and corsets are injurious, especially when the pregnancy has reached four or five months. The weight of the clothing should be borne by the shoulders instead of the hips. Special waists can be made for pregnant women. There should be no pressure on any part, especially on the womb and breasts.

What is the meaning of the word enciente? The Roman women were accustomed to wear a tight girdle about their waists which was called a cincture. This they removed when they were pregnant. They were then said to be incincta, or unbound. The term enciente is derived from this, and is frequently used to indicate pregnancy.

What are the main symptoms of miscarriage? Pain and bleeding.

[546 MOTHERS' REMEDIES]

Does it usually come on suddenly? Not as a rule. There are premonitory symptoms such as bearing down feeling in the pelvis, backache, frequent desire to pass water, a discharge from the vagina, and sometimes a little bloody flow.

At what period is it most common? Between the ninth and sixteenth weeks when the after-birth is forming.

What are the causes of miscarriage? Diseases of the womb, disease in the father, constipation, falls, over-exertion, violent emotions, such as shock, fright, anger, blows on the abdomen, over-lifting, reaching up, sewing on machine.

What is the first thing to do? Lie down, rest and send for a doctor.

Is it ever possible to stop it? Yes, and often.

Do the breasts need any special care? The nipple, if much drawn in and small, should be "pulled out" once or twice daily. It will do to rub sweet oil on the breasts every evening in order to relieve the tightness and discomfort, especially after the pregnancy has advanced some months.

Are there any diseases to which a pregnant woman is more subject? None. The kidneys need more watching.

Can any dentistry be done during pregnancy? Not if it makes her very nervous; but toothache can cause more harm from a diseased tooth than if it were treated carefully.

Why do pregnant women suffer from "varicose" veins? The enlarged womb presses upon the veins and thus obstructs the return flow of the blood. It is not so common during the first pregnancy.

Can anything be done for this trouble? The woman should lie down a good part of the time if possible, and also wear a perfectly fitting elastic stocking. They can be had of any size and length. The limb should be measured for them.

Does oiling and massaging the body do good? Some women claim it does; it certainly puts the muscles in better condition and strengthens the muscles of the abdomen which have so much part in the labor.

What is the morning sickness and are all women subject to it? Nausea and vomiting without any cause. No; many escape it entirely.

At what period of pregnancy does it usually occur? During the early months it is more frequent and troublesome.

How long does it usually last? Usually three or four months, but it may last during the whole pregnancy.

What can be done for it? In some cases arranging the diet to prevent and cure constipation relieves it. For fuller treatment see this heading under Obstetrics.

Does it ever endanger life? Not often, but a physician should be called if it is bad.

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Can any strict rules be laid down for this trouble? No, but the food should be as concentrated as possible; egg-nog, ice cream, a bit of rare steak, etc., raw oysters, gruels, meat broths, etc., if liquids are well borne. It is surprising how little will keep up some women during pregnancy.

When and how often should the urine be examined? From the beginning and twice each month, and every week after the fifth month.

When should the nurse be called? Long enough before the expected time to get everything ready.

What is lightening? It is caused by the womb sinking down lower in the pelvis the last month, and this lightens the pressure upon the diaphragm and lungs.

What are false pains? They occur during the last few weeks of pregnancy at irregular intervals and are usually in the abdomen.

What is the bag of waters? It is a sac containing the fluid in which the child floats while in the womb. The amount of fluid varies from a pint to a gallon or more. When it ruptures there is a sudden flow of liquid, more or less continuous flow. It may occur at the very beginning of labor and is one of the signs of labor.

What are the other signs of approaching labor? A profuse discharge of mucus from the vagina, and this may be tinged with blood. The "show" pains begin generally in the back and are quite regular, one every twenty minutes or half hour. (Dilatation of the womb).

How should the baby be first washed? See Obstetrics.

What clothing should be put on? See Obstetrics chapter.

Care of the eyes.--Wipe the eyelids with clean gauze and water. If there has been much discharge from the vagina during pregnancy, the child's eyes should be washed cleanly and also one or two drops of the one per cent solution of silver nitrate should be put into each eye as a preventive. (See Obstetrics).

How often should the baby's bowels move? Two or three times daily for the first week, and then once or twice a day.

What is the appearance of the stool? It is soft, yellow and smooth and should not contain any lumps.

How about the urine? It should pass from six to ten times a day, and it should be colorless.

What is the average weight of a healthy baby? Seven to seven and one-half pounds.

Does it lose any weight during the first week? Yes, generally a few ounces, then it begins to gain at the rate of four to six ounces each week.

Should the newly-born babe have its eyes exposed to the light? The eyes are very sensitive, and the sun or artificial light should not be allowed to shine on them. The first day the baby is deaf, but his hearing develops and becomes very acute so that he is very much disturbed by sudden, sharp noises.

[548 MOTHERS' REMEDIES]

What is the "soft" spot on a baby's head? This is called the "fontanelle." Do not touch this spot. This closes in time. At six months of age the fontanelle is somewhat larger than it was at birth because the brain expands faster than the boney matter deposited around the edges in the skull bones. After this another deposit of bone goes on more rapidly than the growth of the brain substance, and by sixteen or eighteen months the opening should be entirely closed.

When should the baby be given the second tub bath? Not until the cord has dropped off.

How and when should this be given? The room should be warm. The head and face should be washed first and dried; then the body soaped and the infant placed in the tub with its head and body well supported by the hands. The bath should be given quickly with no special rubbing, drying with a soft towel. (An hour after feeding).

What should be the temperature of the bath? One hundred degrees F. for the first few weeks, later ninety-eight F. After six months ninety-five F.; during the second year from eighty-five to ninety degrees F.

What should you use in giving the bath? Soft, clean sponges or smooth cloths. There should be separate pieces for each eye, for the head, face and buttocks.

What are the objections to sponges? They are very apt to become dirty and are hard to keep clean.

When should the daily bath be omitted? In the case of infants who are delicate and feeble, when the bath seems to harm them; in all forms of acute sickness, unless the bath is directed. In eczema and many other forms of skin diseases a great deal of harm is often done by soap and water or water baths.

How should a genuine bath be given? If possible the bath should be given in front of an open fire, in a room where the temperature is from seventy to seventy-two F. and the draughts kept off by a large screen. Have everything at hand with which to give the bath. A folding rubber bath-tub is the best, next a papier-mache one; or if tin must be used, put a piece of flannel in the tub to protect the baby from the tin. If necessary place the tub on a low table, place another low table to the right of the one on which the tub sets, and on this table should be the baby's basket containing a soft brush, different sizes of pins in a pin-cushion, several threaded needles, a thimble, squares of soft linen, absorbent cotton, wooden tooth-picks, a powder-box and puff, or a powder-shaker containing pure talcum powder, a box of bismuth subnitrate, one of cold cream, a tube of white vaselin, a dish containing castile, ivory, or pure French soap should be placed by the basket on the table; also a cup containing a saturated solution of boric acid; two cheese-cloth washcloths, a soft towel, a thermometer to test the water, several toothpicks on which a little absorbent cotton is twisted, and the rolled flannel band. Then a basin containing warm water, 98 to 100 degrees F., also one with cold water. The baby-clothes should be hung on a rack close at hand.

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How to take care of a sore navel.--If it looks red or has a thin discharge coming from it, wash it carefully twice a day with saturated solution of boric acid; or if pus is there use a 1-5000 solution of bichloride of mercury. Use for a dusting powder one part of salicylic acid and nineteen parts of starch on it. It needs a physician's attention if it does not soon heal.

Do any physicians advocate a daily bath before the cord drops off? Yes; but not a full tub bath.

When does the cord drop off? In from five to ten days.

Does soap hurt a baby's skin? Some doctors claim it does.

Is it necessary to use a powder after the bath? No, if all moisture is removed, there is no need of powder. The skin can be kept cleaner and healthier without it.

GENITAL ORGANS.

When is circumcision needed? Usually when the foreskin is very long and very tight, so that one must use force to push it back, and always if it produces local irritation.

How should you clean the genitals of a female child? Use good absorbent cotton and warm water, with a solution of boric acid if necessary, about two teaspoonfuls to a pint of warm water. This should be done once a day.

Is the hood of the clitoris ever too tight? Yes, and it needs to be loosened and kept so, or it will produce irritation and sometimes convulsions.

How should you wash the genitals of a male child? In infants and children, this should be attended to daily. The foreskin should be pushed back and the parts washed with absorbent cotton and water. Tight foreskin and unclean parts induce trouble and bad habits.

TREATMENT FOR SORE EYES.

How should a newly-born baby's eyes be treated? They should be kept clean with a soft cloth and warm water. Do not use the same piece of cloth for both eyes.

Should redness and pus appear in the eye or eyes a few days after birth, what should be done? Use a piece of soft linen or absorbent cotton and wet it in a solution of boric acid or salt (one-half teaspoonful to one pint of water, warm) and wash out the eye or eyes, and if pus appears, use a stronger solution of boric acid (ten grains to eight teaspoonfuls of water.) If the lids stick together grease them with vaselin from a tube and rub in at night. If the sore eyes are severe send for a physician as it may be the beginning of ophthalmia neonatorum.

[550 MOTHERS' REMEDIES]

MOTHERS' REMEDIES.--1. Sore Eyes, Mothers' Milk for.--"There is nothing as good as mother's milk." This is very soothing and healing and seems to work better than medicines in small babies.

2. Sore Eyes. A Nurse from New York sends the following remedy for.--"Take a cup of water that has been boiled and cooled and dissolve in it one teaspoonful boracic acid powder. Bathe the eyes thoroughly and often." A nurse in New York state, gives this recipe, and says she has been a nurse for several years and has never had a case of sore eyes which did not heal with this treatment.

How is washing out the baby's mouth done? Use a swab made by twisting some absorbent cotton upon a toothpick. The folds between the gums and lips and cheeks may be gently and carefully cleaned twice a day unless the mouth is sore.

If a baby cries while nursing, what is the cause? It may have a sore mouth. What is thrush or sprue? Patches looking like little white threads or flakes appear inside the cheeks.

What is the cause of sore mouth? It is usually due to uncleanness and carelessness. It may come in delicate babies without any special reason. Babies who suck a "pacifier" or a rag with sugar in it are very apt to have the disease. Bottle-fed babies get it because of uncleanness of the nipple and bottle.

Should the baby continue to nurse? Yes, but the mother should thoroughly cleanse her nipple with a solution of boric acid after each nursing.

What should be done for it? It should be washed before and after every feeding with a solution of baking soda or boric acid of the strength of one even teaspoonful to twenty-four teaspoonfuls of water, or listerine, one teaspoonful to twenty-four teaspoonfuls of warm water, can be used. (This will be treated more fully later under diseases). A solution of borax (twenty grains to eight teaspoonfuls of water) can be applied every two hours with a camel's hair brush. Borax, sage and honey are good old remedies.

Should the scalp have special care at birth? It should then and afterward be kept clean to keep scurf from accumulating. It should be wet before the body is immersed in the bath. The hair should always be dried carefully; brush first with a soft towel and then with a fine, smooth hair-brush. Never use a comb on an infant's head.

Should any dressing be put on the scalp? No, for if the hair is washed and brushed, the oil from the scalp will keep it soft, glossy and healthful.

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QUESTIONS AND REMEDIES FOR SORE MOUTH. CANKER. THRUSH.

Explain more about thrush or sprue? It is an inflammation of the mouth where small particles looking like milk curds appear on the tongue, gums and cheek. This is really a more severe type of sore mouth, and is of a fungus origin.

Causes of sore mouth. Uncleanness, failing to keep the mouth--especially of bottle-fed infants--and the nipples and bottles, clean. Babies who are allowed to suck a "pacifier" or rag with sugar on it. Thrush is parasitic in origin and is always due to uncleanness in bottles, nipples and the mouth, and is commonly associated with the stomach trouble. Diarrhea frequently goes with it.

(See Mothers' Remedies for Sore Mouth, Canker, etc., in general department).

PHYSICIANS' TREATMENT for Thrush. Severe Sore Mouth. 1. Boric acid in a saturated solution (five teaspoonfuls to a pint of distilled water) is a specific for it.

Dr. Tuley, of Louisville, Ky., says:

2. Powdered Borax 8 teaspoonfuls Strained Honey 3 teaspoonfuls Mix thoroughly.

3. Glycerin 1 ounce Distilled water 1 ounce Boric Acid 2 drams

4. Golden seal diluted one-half with boiled water makes an excellent mouth wash. Also a weak solution of alum. Use a piece of absorbent cotton or soft linen on your little finger or small round piece of wood and dip in solution and apply. Dr. Douglas, of Detroit, advises the use of a soft brush. This should be boiled after using.

5. In Mild Cases of Sore Mouth.--The medicines need not be as strong as for thrush. One teaspoonful of boric acid or baking soda to a pint of boiled water is usually sufficient; wash after each nursing or four or five times a day.

6. Powdered Borax 1 teaspoonful Powdered Sugar 4 teaspoonfuls

Put a pinch on the tongue every two or three hours. The child's tongue will work it around. This avoids the pain from washing, etc.

7. Another Mouth' Wash.--

Borax 1/2 teaspoonful Tincture of Myrrh 1/2 teaspoonful Glycerin 1 teaspoonful Boiled water enough for one ounce.

Apply gently to the inside of the mouth several times a day in thrush or any form of sore mouth or gums. Use a camel's hair brush.

[552 MOTHERS' REMEDIES]

WHAT CARE SHOULD BE GIVEN THE DIAPERS?

A diaper should never be used more than once without washing. It should be removed as soon as it is wet and placed in a covered pail in the bathroom, etc., and washed at the first opportunity. Pure white soap only should be used, and the diapers should be thoroughly rinsed and boiled. Dry them in the sun and air and never before the nursery fire. They should be warmed before they are again used. Unclean, soiled diapers frequently cause chafing.

Should a baby cry while passing urine? No; it may be too acid, alkaline, too little of it or too concentrated, or have sand in it. Examine the diapers.

How about bands for the baby? Straight pieces of flannel, twenty-two by five inches or wider. They may be knitted.

How long should they be worn? The snug bands, flannel or knitted should be worn, not tight, three months; then if one is worn it should be loose. It may prevent rupture and bowel trouble.

Do you approve of rubber diapers as an outside covering? No, because they confine the dampness cause more sweating of the parts and may thus cause chafing, etc.

How large should a diaper be? A diaper should be twice as long as wide. They may be different sizes, eighteen by thirty-six inches, twenty-two by forty-four, or twenty-seven by fifty-four.

CHAFING.

Chafing is a very common trouble in infants. What causes chafing? A wet diaper left on too long; not drying the folds of the flesh properly; too much and too strong soap in the bath, or in the diapers when they are washed, or failure to wash the child clean.

Where are the places where baby is most likely to chafe? The buttocks, in the folds of the neck and in the groins.

How can you prevent chafing? Use very little soap; no strong soap; rinse the body carefully; dry thoroughly after rinsing; use clean diapers; use dusting powder in the folds of the flesh, especially in fat babies.

If the skin is very sensitive, what then? Do not use any soap, but use bran or salt baths.

How can you prepare a bran bath? Place one pint of wheat bran in coarse muslin or cheese-cloth bag and put this in the bath water. It should then be squeezed for five minutes until the water looks like porridge.

How is a salt bath prepared? One teaspoonful of common salt to each two gallons of water.

If the parts are chafed what should we do? Do not use any soap, and give only bran or salt baths or use pure olive oil and no water at all on the chafed parts. Dry the parts carefully with old, soft linen and dust them with a powder made of starch and talcum--equal part--with one-fourth as much boric acid, all carefully mixed together. Or use starch two parts and boric acid one part. Pure stearate of zinc powder is also good. Keep a little piece of soft linen between the folds of the flesh, so they will not be irritated by rubbing together.

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