Civil War Washington

CASE 100.—Chills; pale, coated tongue and offensive breath; jaundice and epigastric pain; bowels quiet; cerebral symptoms not marked; record unfinished.—Private George H. Peters, Co. F, 4th Mich. Vols.; age 21; of weakly constitution, was admitted Nov. 1, 1861, as a case of typhoid fever. On October 23 he was taken with headache and chills which lasted for three days, and with anorexia, weakness, diarrhœa, cold feet, tinnitus aurium and fever, for which Epsom salt and quinine had been administered. On admission he was dull and unable to collect his thoughts on account of a fulness​ in the head and ringing in the ears; his pulse was 98 and strong, skin warm and soft, left cheek flushed darkly, tongue dry and moist by turns, pale, clean at the tip and thickly coated whitish-gray at the base; he had no appetite but much thirst, acute epigastric and right iliac tenderness, tympanites, but no diarrhœa; respiration was normal, but the breath was very offensive; there was also some pain in urinating. Brandy-punch and beef-essence were given with quinine, calomel and opium three times daily. A few rose-colored spots appeared next day. On the 4th the skin was dry, warm and somewhat jaundiced; the tongue red at the tip and edges, pale and coated white in the centre and at the base, the bowels meanwhile remaining tympanitic and tender but unmoved. He slept well during the night, and on the 5th his mind was clear and eyes intelligent, skin dry, tongue moist, pale and slightly coated in the centre, breath free from all offensive odor. On the 6th a few more rose-colored spots appeared, but the bowels remained quiet, and the slight tenderness present was in the epigastric region; the abdomen was soft. He had two stools on the 7th. Turpentine was administered. On the 8th the skin was warm and soft and presented a few dark-red spots which were imperceptible to the touch and disappeared on pressure; pulse 56, small and compressible; tongue moist and thickly coated in the centre. At this time he did not sleep well and his appetite continued poor. Here the record leaves him, concluding with a statement of his transfer to Annapolis, Md., on the 18th.