HEALTH HINTS.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 18, 15 July 1911, Page 2 (Supplement)

HEALTH HINTS.

BROKEN LIMBS. Among the more serious of every-duy accidents is the fracture of a Lone, most commonly in the arm or leg. Such a fracture may be either simple or compound, the former being a bone which, though broken, does not wound the Jlesh, the latter showing an open wound ih addition to the injured bone. Often the broken limb will appear shorter and thicker than its fellow, owing to the crossing of the broken pieces of bone, and the skin in the neighbourhood of the injury will swell and go discolored from the blood which escapes into it. The first thing to be remembered in all cases of fracture is that the limb must he moved as little as possible, and even if you are not quite certain whether the bone is broken this is still a very safe precaution. A broken limb cannot be moved by the patient—that is, it will be limp; any effort to move it will cause great pain, and frequently an audible rasping o( the rough ends of the bone as they rub together. Movement is apt to further damage the bone and the surrounding structures, and a simple fracture may thus be converted into a compound one. Should the accident happen away from home and removal be necessary, splints should be extemporised from anything that can be got, walking sticks or the like, and fastened to the limb to keep it rigid. On arrival at the house the patient should be laid on a couch or bed, but it is often best to postpone undressing till a doctor arrives to direct the operation. The swelling may be slightly reduced and the pain sometimes relieved by laying on the broken limb cloths wrung out of cold water. EARACHE IN CHILDREN.

One of the most distressing of common ailments from which children of all ages suffer is earache. It may arise from nothing more serious than a cold, which attacks the throat and extends upwards to the car, but in too many cases it denotes the presence of inflammation of the drum of the ear. The slightest pressure will cause agonising pain, the child cannot lay its head down, whereas in ordinary earache from cold relief will be obtained on laying the ear against the mother's breast or a warm pillow. Where the pain does not rapidly subside upon the application of repeated hot fomentations or bags or hot salt, together with a mild aperient, medical advice suould be sought without delay, and the consequences may be very serious. The membrane of the drum of the ear is extremely sensitive, and every sound from without only reaches our brain through the movement produced by it on this membrane. The differences of sound are all recognisable only by the sensitiveness of the tympanic membrane, and inflammation of the middle ear is sometimes followed by perforation of this membrane, the inflammatory fluid thus cscajjing into the outer ear, There is then a so-called "running from the ear," which lasts a variable time, according to the case. Doctors differ as to the best treatment •for aural discharge; some advise that' the ears be syringed daily with warm boracic acid lotion; others that no water be used, but that the ears be wiped out with boracic wool, and a little powdered, boracic acid blown into them afterwards.

THE SCALP. The skin of the head is thicker and denser in texture than that of any other part of the body, and it is connected with the parts immediately beneath it ■by cellular tissue. It has thus a peculiar power of resistance, and blows and bruises are less injurious to the scalp than to other parts. This, however, must be taken as referring only to the skin, as a blow on the head sufficiently heavy to injure the bone or skull is extremely serious on account of the proximity of the brain, Great care must be taken in all cuts or abrasions of the scalp to cleanse the wound very carefully, and after washing with tepid water a 5 per cent, solution of carbolic acid should be applied. It; is generally necessary to cut away the hair as close as possible so that the edges of the cut may be drawn together and held by strips of adhesive plaster; where the cut is very deep it may be necessary to put in a few stitches. If bleeding be very profuse it means that an artery has been injured, but as a rule simple pressure is enough to arrest bleeding.

PLEURISY. The commonest cause of this is exposture to cold, which sets up inflammation of the serous membrane enclosing the lungs. The blood vessels of the membrane become congested; the surface, of its folds, usually gliding over each other as if oiled, become roughened, and on listening the practised ear can distinctly hear the sound of the grating. Pain in the side is complained of, and increases when a deep breath is taken or when the arm is moved. The patient becomes weak and feverish and loses appetite, the breathing is short and shallow, and a short, dry cough is very usual.

The first thing is to get the patient to bed, and to discourage talking as far as possible. A dose of opening medicine, such as a seidlitz powder, will be useful if given at the beginning of the attack; all nourishment must be light and easily digestible, and no stimulants must be allowed. The pain may be greatly eased by the application of hot linseed poultices, a little mustard being added to these now and then. A dry, warm flannel should be laid round the chest and back when a poultice is removed. As a consequence of the pleurisy fluid accumulates and presses on the lung, but as recovery begins this is absorbed by the blood vessels and lymphatics, but this process is slow and lasts over many weeks. No one can be said to be free from pleurisy till the ausorption is complete, and for this reason anyone who has suffered from an attack ought to employ special care for months afterwards. To begin the winter with pleurisy is a great misfortune, and unhappily too often this need for care is not recognised, so that the "cold, biting winds later on find the patient's strength at a low ebb, and he contracts a final cold which ends fatally.