Victorian Medicine
Use of Laudanum and
Treatment of the Sick
Amongst the manuscripts I have consulted over the
years is a Receipt Book in the hand of The Honourable Ellen Jane
Prideaux-Brune, dated 8th October 1846.
Included within these “Receipts”, or Recipes as we
now describe them,
were medicines to be made up by the household.
There is another page on this website giving more
detail on medicine and care of the sick.
Ellen Jane was the
second daughter of Robert Shapland, First Baron Carew.
She was born in
County Wexford, Ireland 2nd April 1821
and was married to
Charles Glynn Prideaux-Brune
on the 21st
July 1846 at St, George’s, Hanover Square, London.
Units of measure
There are eight
drachms to the ounce
and three scruples
to the drachm
and 20 grains to
the scruple.
One Troy ounce is
equal to 31.1 grammes,
not quite the same
as one ounce avoirdupois
( which would not
have been used for these purposes )
which is 28.35
grammes.
A Fatal dose of
Laudanum
would be 2 drachms
and of Opium, four grains.
Laudanum Tincture of opium.
Usually
a liquid, but the alcoholic extract can be subsequently dried as well.
Preparation instructions from Culpepper's Complete Herbal, 1653: Take of
Thebane Opium extracted in spirit of Wine, one ounce, Saffron alike extracted,
a dram and an half, Castorium one dram: let them be taken in tincture of half
an ounce of species Diambræ newly made in spirit of Wine, add to them
Ambergris, Musk, of each six grains, oil of Nutmegs ten drops, evaporate the
moisture away in a bath, and leave the mass.
Minimum Fatal Dose of Opium.
In the adult gr. 1/6 of Morphine, or gr. iv of Opium has
proved fatal.
Treatment
of Opium Poisoning.
The chief indications are-to evacuate the
stomach, maintain respiration, and keep up the circulation. Potassium
Permanganate, in dose one-half greater than the amount of Morphine
ingested, is said to be a perfect antidote to Opium or Morphine in the stomach.
Atropine antagonizes its cerebral action, also its action on the pupil,
respiration, heart and arterial tension (?), but if given too freely will
endanger the case by substituting Belladonna narcosis for Opium narcosis ; gr. 1/120, hypodermically, every 15 minutes, for
three doses, is generally sufficient. Strychnine. Coffee, Caffeine, and Cocaine
are also physiologically antagonistic to Morphine. Faradisation of
the chest muscles, cold effusion and artificial respiration are of great value.
Flagellation is a very dangerous procedure, from the exhaustion produced
; strong faradic currents are much more efficient. Evacuation of the bladder
is important, to prevent re-absorption.
The
chief indications for the use of Opium are (1) to relieve pain ; (2) to produce
sleep ; (3) to allay irritation; (4) to check excessive secretions ; (5) to
support the system; (6) as a sudorific. It is badly borne usually by women and
children, and in some persons great nausea and depression follow its use, which
may usually be averted by the conjoined administration of Potassium Bromide,
Hydrobromic Acid, or Spirit of Ether, with each dose of the opiate used.
Transcribed from The Receipt
Book 1846
The Household
Take a basketful
of withered poppies and set about making laudanum.
Pick out the poppy
heads one by one,
pierced the
capsules with a sewing needle
and then drop them
into a small glazed crock
and set it near
the stove for the opium to sweat out.
Afterwards, the
extract would be
mixed with sugar
and/or alcohol to make it easier to drink.
Strengthening Medicine
Two and a half drachmas of Camomile flowers
half a drachma of bitter orange peel
half a drachma of root ginger
15 grains of root rhubarb
2 scruples of carbonated soda.
Pour a quart of boiling water on these ingredients.
Let it stand till cold,
strain it and put into a bottle for use.
A good sized wine glass full to be taken one hour
before breakfast and one hour before dinner.
For rheumatism
One spoonful of
gum-guacum mixed with two teaspoonfuls of milk,
add six drops of
laudanum, and take it three times a Day.
This is the
quantity for one taking.
For a cough
Two tablespoonfuls
of vinegar,
Two tablespoonfuls
of Treacle
60 drops of
Laudanum.
take a teaspoonful
of this mixture night and morning.
A Rub for Rheumatism and
other pains
2 ounces of
laudanum.
2 drachms oil of
sassafras.
2 drachms oil of
cedar.
2 drachms spirits
of turpentine.
2 drachms of gum
camphor.
2 drachms tincture
of capsicum.
1 pint of alcohol.
Poultice
Poultices of bread
and milk, flaxseed, slippery elm, or any other
kind, may be worn
with more comfort,
and removed with
more ease,
if the surface is
spread over,
before applying,
with a little perfectly
fresh lard or
sweet oil.
If there is much
pain, a few drops
of laudanum may be
mixed with the poultice.
Spread always on
soft old cloths.
Notes
In 1520, Paracelsus of Switzerland, promoted a mixture of
opium, wine and various spices as a curative for anything. He called it
laudanum. Laudanum remained popular and acceptable in Europe some 400 years. Laudanum
was cheaper than gin or beer and was generally praised as a mood elevator.
In
19th century Britain it was the drug indicated in the treatment for any pain
from infant teething to rheumatism, as well as for sleeplessness, diarrhoea,
coughs and colds, and depression. It was largely self prescribed, since
medical care for the mass of people was still mostly a matter of traditional
remedies, and it was as popular as aspirin is now. Every home had its bottle of
laudanum -- opium dissolved in alcohol --, and in areas where living and
working conditions were their worst, shop counters on Saturday market day would
be laden with two or three thousand vials to meet the demand for the week.
Side Effects of Laudanum
Cold,
clammy skin; confusion; convulsions (seizures); dizziness (severe); drowsiness
(severe); low blood pressure; nervousness or restlessness (severe); pinpoint
pupils of eyes; slow heartbeat; slow or irregular breathing; weakness (severe).
bloating; constipation; loss of appetite; nausea or vomiting; stomach cramps or
pain, rarely - Fast heartbeat; increased sweating; mental depression; redness
or flushing of face; shortness of breath, wheezing, or troubled breathing; skin
rash, hives, or itching; slow heartbeat – all of which require medical
intervention and care ….
also
Difficult or painful urination; dizziness, lightheadedness, or feeling faint;
drowsiness; frequent urge to urinate; nervousness or restlessness; unusual
decrease in amount of urine; unusual tiredness or weakness
After
stopping use of laudanum, the body aches; diarrhea; fever, runny nose, or
sneezing; gooseflesh; increased sweating; increased yawning; loss of appetite;
nausea or vomiting; nervousness, restlessness, or irritability; shivering or
trembling; stomach cramps; trouble in sleeping; unusually large pupils of eyes;
weakness (severe).
Laudanum
was a wildly popular drug during the Victorian era. It was an opium-based
painkiller prescribed for everything from headaches to tuberculosis. Victorian
nursemaids even spoon fed the drug to infants, often leading to the
untimely deaths of their charges. Originally, Laudanum was thought of as a drug
of the working class. As it was cheaper than gin it was not uncommon for
blue-collar men and woman to binge on laudanum after a hard week's work. Use of
the drug spread rapidly. Doctors of the time prescribed it for almost every
aliment. Many upper-class women developed habits.
The
outbreak of tuberculosis may have been another factor in the drug's rising
popularity. For a short period of time the tuberculosis "look" (very
pale skin and frequent fainting spells) was quite in vogue. Victorian women
went to great lengths to emulate the look, often taking arsenic to pale the
skin (slowly poisoning themselves to death).
Most Households would have a
copy of a complete household adviser,
or be well aware of the
following information ….
The
Sick Room. -- Insist upon the most perfect cleanliness, and secure as far as
possible a supply of pure air. Ventilate the room at least once a day. Carry
the bed-clothing into the open air, if dry weather, if not into another room. If the patient is unable to sit up, in
the meanwhile, let others be supplied. Keep the room quiet and in perfect
order. Address the patient gently, and any conversation that may be allowed, be
pleasant and cheering in tone. Never tell discouraging stories. Never whisper
in the room. All vials and powders should be labelled to prevent mistakes.
Daily sponge baths should be made use of where the case admits. Change the
garments frequently and rinse the mouth often. A pleasant and agreeable nurse
should always be chosen. Never dispute with a very sick person, nor reprove him
for any inconsistency. Remember he is not a responsible being. Contagious
diseases need still greater precautions. Small pox, scarlet fever and
diphtheria particularly. Remove the patient to a separate apartment, as near
the top of the house as possible, from which remove curtains, carpets,
bed-hangings, all woollen articles, and other needless articles. Wooden chairs,
a table, a plain single bed and a lounge for the convenience of the nurse, are
all the needful articles. Afterward everything that is not disinfected should
be burned. No one should be admitted to the room except the medical attendant
and nurse. Chloride of lime and other disinfectants should be plentifully used,
and a little chloride of lime solution should be put in the water that the
nurse uses for bathing her hands. Rinse in pure water. Disinfectants. -- Coffee
roasted, ground and sprinkled on live coals or a hot shovel is one of the best
known disinfectants, removing instantly all manner of animal and vegetable
effluvia. Simply putting the ground roasted coffee on plates, in rooms to be
disinfected is very successful, and sprinkling in drains or sinks. Onions
sliced and put in a sick-room where there is any contagious disease are a
valuable antiseptic. Replace every hour with a fresh one, burning the old. It
is astonishing the rapidity with which one will shrivel away. It has been repeatedly
observed that an onion-patch in the immediate vicinity of a house acts as a
shield against pestilence, but during an epidemic a confirmed eater should,
however, eschew his usual diet, as the germs of the disease are present in the
onions and contagion may easily result. Outside the door of the sick-room
suspend a sheet so as to cover the entire doorway. This should be kept
constantly wet with a solution of chloride of lime. This will keep every other
part of the house free from infection. To Cool a Sick-room when oppressively
warm, hang wet towels or canvas in windows and doors. This will speedily lower
the temperature five or six degrees, besides rendering the air moist and
agreeable. Charcoal is an invaluable antiseptic used in sickrooms or crowded
sleeping rooms. A dozen pieces the size of hazel-nuts placed in a saucer and
daily moistened with boiling water, will, in the course of a week, have
gathered their own weight in impurities, when they should be burned and fresh
taken.