The Consultation Letters of Dr William Cullen (1710-1790) at the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh
[ID:1610] From: Dr John Heysham / To: Dr William Cullen (Professor Cullen) / Regarding: Mr Thomas Irwin (Irwine, at Moss Side) (Patient) / 7 January 1779 / (Incoming)
Letter from John Heysham concerning the case of Mr Irwin.
- Facsimile
- Normalized Text
- Diplomatic Text
- Metadata
- Case
- People
- Places
Facsimile
There are 4 images for this document.
[Page 1]
[Page 2]
[Page 3]
[Page 4]
Metadata
| Field | Data |
|---|---|
| DOC ID | 1610 |
| RCPE Catalogue Number | CUL/1/2/701 |
| Main Language | English |
| Document Direction | Incoming |
| Date | 7 January 1779 |
| Annotation | None |
| Type | Authorial original |
| Enclosure(s) | No enclosure(s) |
| Autopsy | No |
| Recipe | No |
| Regimen | No |
| Letter of Introduction | No |
| Case Note | No |
| Summary | Letter from John Heysham concerning the case of Mr Irwin. |
| Manuscript Incomplete? | No |
| Evidence of Commercial Posting | Yes |
Case
Cases that this document belongs to:
| Case ID | Description | Num Docs |
|---|---|---|
| [Case ID:794] |
Case of Mr Thomas Irwin [Irwine] who suffers from swollen legs, itchiness and biliousness and which eventually proves fatal. |
18 |
People linked to this document
| Person ID | Role in document | Person |
|---|---|---|
| [PERS ID:477] | Author | Dr John Heysham |
| [PERS ID:1] | Addressee | Dr William Cullen (Professor Cullen) |
| [PERS ID:889] | Patient | Mr Thomas Irwin (Irwine, at Moss Side) |
| [PERS ID:1] | Patient's Physician / Surgeon / Apothecary | Dr William Cullen (Professor Cullen) |
| [PERS ID:477] | Patient's Physician / Surgeon / Apothecary | Dr John Heysham |
Places linked to this document
| Role in document | Specific Place | Settlements / Areas | Region | Country | Global Region | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Place of Writing | Carlisle | North-West | England | Europe | certain | |
| Destination of Letter | Edinburgh | Edinburgh and East | Scotland | Europe | certain | |
| Place of Handstamp | Carlisle | North-West | England | Europe | certain |
Normalized Text
I who am in some measure ac¬
quainted with your humanity
& good disposition could never impute
the apparent delay to wilful neglect.
And I am sorry the negligence of
the Post should be the occasion
of uneasiness in you.
The very day after I wrote my
second we received your first
letter, & found from the date that
it had been detained upon the Road
10 or 12 days.
I began with 15 drops of the Tinct. Mart.
which sat easy on Mr Irwens stomach
& immediately on the receipt of your
[Page 2]
second favour the Tinct. Aromat. was
added of which he takes 30 drops three
times a day & they likewise sit easy
on his stomach. The solution has
been omitted for some time, but as
there was some tendency to costive¬
ness I ordered him a a little Elect.
Lenit. Crem. Tart. & Pulv. Jalap.
which has kept his belly pretty
regular. It is now near a month
since he began these medicines
& tho they have had some good
effects I could have wished they
had had more. The swelling of
his legs is considerably diminished
& his appetite somewhat improved,
he says it is rather craving for
Broth &c. & he frequently eats a couple
of poached eggs; but the itchiness
still continues with unabated
[Page 3]
violence. This I think is nearly his pre¬
sent situation & whether any thing can
be devised to remove it entirely I
fear is doubtfull. I do not recollect
whether I ever mentioned the color of his
face or not which is some what of a
pale yellowish huw. It has been
conjectured by some of his friends that
he colours under the Jaundice which
I am persuaded is not the case. His
is if any thing paler than natu[ral]
his stools sufficiently tinctured {illeg}
bile, nor has he at present or ever had
any complaint about the Liver. The yellow¬
ness therefore of his face may I think
be accounted for from the impaired
vigor of circulation, serum now
filling the small vessels which were
formerly filled with red blood. As a
proof of this his cheeks were when in
health extremely florid, they are now
very pale.
With sincere wishes for many
happy returns of the season
[Page 4]
Dr Cullen
Edinburgh
Heysham Query Irwin
January 1779
9. p. 102
Diplomatic Text
I who am in some measure ac¬
quainted with your humanity
& good disposition could never impute
the apparent delay to wilful neglect.
And I am sorry the negligence of
the Post should be the occasion
of uneasiness in you.
The very day after I wrote my
second we received your first
letter, & found from the date that
it had been detained upon the Road
10 or 12 days.
I began with 15 drops of the Tinct. Mart.
which sat easy on Mr Irwens stomach
& immediately on the receipt of your
[Page 2]
second favour the Tinct. Aromat. was
added of which he takes 30 drops three
times a day & they likewise sit easy
on his stomach. The solution has
been omitted for some time, but as
there was some tendency to costive¬
ness I ordered him a a little Elect.
Lenit. Crem. Tart. & Pulv. Jalap.
which has kept his belly pretty
regular. It is now near a month
since he began these medicines
& tho they have had some good
effects I could have wished they
had had more. The swelling of
his legs is considerably diminished
& his appetite somewhat improved,
he says it is rather craving for
Broth &c. & he frequently eats a couple
of poached eggs; but the itchiness
still continues with unabated
[Page 3]
violence. This I think is nearly his pre¬
sent situation & whether any thing can
be devised to remove it entirely I
fear is doubtfull. I do not recollect
whether I ever mentioned the color of his
face or not which is some what of a
pale yellowish huw. It has been
conjectured by some of his friends that
he colours under the Jaundice which
I am persuaded is not the case. His
is if any thing paler than natu[ral]
his stools sufficiently tinctured {illeg}
bile, nor has he at present or ever had
any complaint about the Liver. The yellow¬
ness therefore of his face may I think
be accounted for from the impaired
vigor of circulation, serum now
filling the small vessels which were
formerly filled with red blood. As a
proof of this his cheeks were when in
health extremely florid, they are now
very pale.
With sincere wishes for many
happy returns of the season
[Page 4]
Dr Cullen
Edinburgh
Heysham Q Irwin
Jany. 1779
9. p. 102
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