DEP/DUA/1/30/31 (Normalised version)

William Williamson

(1782-1783)

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XIII

William Williamson at 24 of a dark complexion, a shoe maker. complains of great flatulence & acidity in the primae viae arising from almost every kind of aliment.

Immediately after eating his stomach is distended & he feels great oppression about the precordia until he is relieved by spontaneous vomiting which is attended with copious acid eructations & the matter rejected is of a very sour taste. After this operation he always finds considerable temporary relief. He is affected also with headache vertigo tinnitus aurium & sometimes pains in the abdomen which frequently shift their place. Pulse about 100 small & weak. Tongue white but moist. For seven weeks he has not had passage of his belly without an injection. His faeces which are generally thus brought off once in 24 hours are hard black & sometimes tinged with blood. He has a pale & livid countenance is very weak & much emaciated. His appetite is greatly impaired. But he finds it better in a morning than at any other time. He finds the greatest uneasiness from all liquid aliment. from Tea, from broths from all vegetables even from those of the onion & garlic tribe. The strongest food agrees best with him & that which has its juices most extracted by the fire. He finds pepper & mustard very useful to him as condiments.

He makes his breakfast of bread & milk which he can generally retain. But he always vomits his dinner & supper unless they are made of strong animal food. After vomiting he is generally thirsty but finds that a large quantity of any liquid produces a renewal of his complaints. He finds this remarkably the case from all vinous liquors. He has sometimes tried spirits but thinks a small quantity of toast & water agrees better with him than any other drink.

He was for six years affected with flatulence & costiveness which he attributes to his sedentary employment. But within these seven weeks he has been chiefly confined to his bed by the severity of his stomach complaints. He attributes the aggravation of his disease to exposure to cold. Last week he has taken an aloetic pill every night which has produced violent pains in the Hypogastric region, but has not procured a single natural stool.

He has taken a small quantity of the powder of Rhubarb & Magnesia which the first day he took them seemed to prevent the vomiting & allay the other disorders in his stomach. But though he has persisted in their use regularly every day he has been affected in the same manner as before. He has been long in the habit of smoking tobacco which he thinks breaks the wind upon his stomach as he expresses it.

Cap. bis indies.  Pul Cret. ℥i ex Ag. Menth Pip ℥i.