Title: Tousley, William F.

Source text: The Medical and Surgical History of the War of the Rebellion. (1861-65.), Part 2, Volume 1 (Washington, DC: Government Printing Office, 1879), 200.

Keywords:diarrhœa and dysenteryfatal cases of diarrhœa and dysentery, with accounts of the morbid appearances observedfrom the Third Division of the Alexandria Hospital, Virginiadiarrhœa for several weeksengorgement of posterior portion of both lungsliver presented nutmeg appearancemucous membrane of intestines injected, most in large intestinemucous membrane of descending colon, sigmoid flexure, and rectum ulceratedautopsy performed

Civil War Washington ID: med.d1e41667

TEI/XML: med.d1e41667.xml


Case from the case-book of the THIRD DIVISION of the ALEXANDRIA HOSPITAL, Surgeon Edwin Bentley, U. S. V., in charge:⃰


CASE 523.—Sergeant William F. Tousley, company K, 6th Ohio cavalry; age 27; admitted from City Point, Virginia, November 30, 1864. Diarrhœa. [This man appears on the register of the hospital of the 2d Division of the Cavalry Corps of the army of the Potomac , admitted November 2d—remittent fever—sent to depot hospital November 20th. He is borne on the register of the depot hospital of the Cavalry Corps, City Point, Virginia, admitted November 20th—diarrhœa—sent to general hospital November 29th.] Was much emaciated and exhausted; complained of pain in the bowels; had suffered from diarrhœa for several weeks before admission. Three blue-mass pills were given, followed by castor oil; afterward opiates, stimulants and astringents. He continued to have on an average five or six stools daily, and gradually failed. The last week of his illness he had but two or three evacuations daily. Died, December 6th. Autopsy twelve hours after death: There was some engorgement of the posterior portion of both lungs. The pericardium was adherent to the heart. The liver presented the nutmeg appearance. The spleen was very small. The mucous membrane of the intestines was considerably injected; this was most marked in the large intestine. In the descending colon, sigmoid flexure, and rectum the mucous membrane was ulcerated.


⃰ It is to be regretted that, in most instances, the records of this hospital do not show by whom the autopsies were made. It is known that many of them were made by Surgeon Bentley himself, or under his immediate supervision, but it is only possible to distinguish these from the others in a few cases.