BELLADONNA.

857

c 0ntr ’ counteract that condition of brain which is accompanied withti 0n ^ c hon of the pupil; and to lessen rigidity and spasmodic contrac-ph ? muscular fibres. These uses obviously arise out of the ascertainedological effects of the remedy. There are others, however, whichSoly e e re garded as altogether empirical: such as its employment to re-Th ° r d \ scuss scirrhous tumors.

es tahr ln, ^ cat -i° ns and contra-indications for its use are not sufficientlye*.w. e< l to induce us to place much confidence in them. My own

^Pcrienci

place

e leads me to believe that it is not a remedy fitted for plethoric

ij s ltut ions, or for febrile and acute inflammatory cases ; and I am nottjj * e u to admit the observations of Dr. Graves, hereafter to be men-1 > as offering any valid objections to these statements.

ii)tei-r/° a ^ a y P a ^ n and nervous irritation. —As an anodyne in mosta» e a pains no remedy hitherto proposed is equal to opium ; but thispt- 0s ^°tally fails us in many of those external pains known as neuralgia,Ce e q or tic douloureux. In such, belladonna occasionally suc-

abating, sometimes in completely removing, pain; while it totallyopj. 0 give relief in the internal pains for which experience has foundSo efficacious. It is remarkable, therefore, that while both thesedi Sa r °' s pinants (narcotics, auctor.) agree in lessening pain, they totally>H(]ip? e as to the cases in which they succeed, and for which they arej u ally applicable. In the treatment of neuralgia, belladonna isfur -°^ ed both internally and externally. I believe that, to be success-1} ’ Squires, in many cases, to be persevered in until dryness of theJ Ust dilatation of pupil, and some disorder of vision, are produced.ci (!l ^ a ' s m many diseases for which mercury has been found a most effi-tl >outL emed y> i s necessary to continue the use of this mineral until theth e U 1 be affected, and often even to use it for some time afterwards. Of'lam SUc . cess of belladonna in the treatment of neuralgia, we have abun-f4 e ® v idence in the published cases of Mr. Bailey ( Observ. relat. to theof v Belladon. in painful Disord, of the Head and Face, 1818) andf ieJ Veral other practitioners (Bayle, Bibl. Therap. t. ii.) My own expe-inf 0 . e °f' the use of this remedy leads me to regard it as very muchp ° r to aconite as a local remedy for this disease.

"'hi e ^ ldes neuralgia there are many other painful affections againstMn belladonna is used as a local anodyne. Such are arthriticVot’ Panful ulcers, glandular enlargements which are tender to the^ > &c.

t'ou an an tispasmodic. —To relieve rigidity and spasmodic contrac-ts: muscular fibres, belladonna sometimes proves serviceable as a

I>U e Ca * re medy. In rigidity of the os uteri, during lingering labours orconvulsions, the extract or an ointment of belladonna (seeI)f 0 belladonna) has been applied to the part by way of friction.

C 0n U Sb the practice has been lauded by Chaussier ( Consid. sur lesqui attaq. les Femmes enceint., 2nd ed. 1824), and adopted by"Ye aU (Traite compl. des Accouchem.), Conquest ( Outlines of Mid-and others, yet it has not found much favour with Britishgoners. It cannot be regarded as a substitute for, but only anto;' ailt to, depletion; and its use is not devoid of danger: for, notcffg on the possibility of absorption, and the consequent injuriousItpj s therefrom, it is obvious that the long-continued friction of theer Womb, and the removal of the lubricating mucus, may dispose to