Apis

Authorities. 25, Edinb. IMed. and Surg. Journ., vol. xiii, 1817, p. 130, James G., aged thirty nine, was stung by a bee on the middle finger of the left hand ; 26, Drs. Bell and Rithe, Am. Journ. of Med. Sci., vol. xix, 1836, p. 266, a man, aged twenty-six years, was stung by a bee on the under side of the tip of the nose ; 27, Dr. Krieg, Caspar’s Woch. (Lancet, 1842-3 (2), p. 654), a man, aged sixty years, was stung in the centre of the cornea by a bee ; 28, G. H. Spalsbury, Bost. Med. and Surg. Journ., vol. liii, 1855, p. 285, Mrs. H. was stung by a honey-bee on the left forefinger (she had ulcers in her mouth produced by kreasote); 29, Dr. N. Division, N. Y. Med. Journ., 1857, p. 339, a farmer, aged fifty years, was stung by a bee on the side of the neck, death on the sixth day; 30, C. Hanbury, Jr., Med. Times and Gaz., 1860, p. 233, Mr. J. was stung behind the ear; 31, M. Monquin-Tandou, ibid., quotes the case of a man, aged thirty-six years, who was stung on the back of the right hand by three or four bees; 32, John Wens, Med. Times and Gaz., 1860 (2), p. 359, a man was stung by a common bee below the right ear; 33, same, Lancet, 1872 (2), p. 437, an elderly lady was stung ; 34, E. W. South, M.D., Am. Journ. of Horn. Mat. Med., vol. vi, 1873, p. 18, a man, aged thirty-five years, was stung twenty-seven times by bees; 35, H. King, M.D., Ohio Med. and Surg. Rep., vol. vii, 1873, p. 285, Mr. W. S. aged fifty years, was stung on the back of his hand ; 36, Dr. James Kitchen, Am. Journ. of Horn. Mat. Med., vol. vi, 1873, p. 249, a farmer was stung in nine places by honeybees; 37, George Walker, Lancet, 1874 (2), p. 833, the writer was stung on the forearm by a bee ; 38, Bull, de la Sac. Med. de la Suisse Roman, 1874, No. 8 (Hahn. Month., vol. xi, p. 506, 1876), a boy, aged eighteen years, was stung in the middle of the right palm; 39, E. W. Berridge, Am. Journ. of Horn. Mat. Med., vol. ix, 1876, p. 246, Miss-, was stung by a bee on the forehead ; 40, Dr. Tinker, copied from MSS., Mrs. A., aged forty years, not pregnant, for abdominal enlargement and cessation of menses, took 15 drops tincture, and repeated the dose after three hours.

The conjunctiva was greatly hypertrophied, and the cornea covered with a dense opaque layer of membrane. There was every reason to believe that the internal structures also, fully participated in the diseased proce.-s. On closely examining the eye a dark and slightly prominent spot was discovered in the centre of the cornea, around which much vascular injection was perceptible, and from this spot was extracted a long filiform body, the sting. The inflammation soon began to subside, but some striking results became permanent in consequence of the injury. The tint of the iris had changed from its natural grayish blue to a perfect blue, the pupil remained dilated and immovable on the stimulus of the light, and the patient, who before the accident was obliged to use convex glasses, now required one concave, being nearsighted on the left side,‘^h—Very soon after, he became faint and began to vomit, which was repeated nine times, his bowels also were relaxed, though he did not mention how many times,"*®.—Shortly after attacked by sharp crampy pains in the stomach and abdomen, followed presently by severe vomiting and diarrhoea, which lasted at intervals for about two hours, and which simulated closely an attack of cholera morbus,—Nausea, followed by profuse vomiting (second day); breathing oppressed and sighing (third day); diarrhoea; countenance shrunken, wan, and anxious; pulse reduced in force and volume; tongue covered with a dirty white fur, pale, soft, and flabby (fourth day); sleeplessness; great restlessness and jactitation,— Vomiting; slight spasm or convulsion; pulseless and breathless; lips livid; mouth open; eyelids closed, pupils insensible to light; skin cold and clammy. System very much relaxed, urine passed involuntarily. On the skin of the extremities, small purple spots, about three or four lines in diameter, nails on fingers and toes purple, and skin on feet the same,®®.—Soon after the sting there was faintness, vomiting, and purging, followed by prolonged fainting and low pulse, with repeated rigors and profuse sweating. On another occasion there was a severe attack of asthma in addition to the other symptoms,^®.—He was instantly affected with an indescribable sensation over his whole body, with a prickly feeling, and white and red spots in the palms of his hands, and on his arms and feet. Tears at the same time involuntarily flowed, the nose and face swelled, accompanied with hoarseness, loss of taste, oppression at the pit of the stomach, and difficulty of breathing. On his way home, which was distant about half a mile, he felt a great disposition to sleep, with increased difficulty of respiration, and by the time he reached his house, his face, throat, breast, and limbs were considerably swelled, with an increase of the other symptoms. He was soon seized with chilliness, cold extremities, and nausea,®®.—Immediately on receiving the injury, she put her finger to her mouth in order to relieve the pain by suction ; in a few moments she felt a prickling sensation in the lips and tongue. This sensation extended rapidly over the face, temples, and head, thence over the entire body ; the sensation now resembled the pain in the finger from the sting. A few minutes after the accident happened, there was a good deal of tumefaction of the face, so much so, that the eyes were nearly closed, and the lips and tongue were so much swollen, as to interfere with speech. There was distressing sensation of fulness in the head, the patient declaring that her temples would burst. She complained of oppression at the chest, and inability to take a full inspiration ; the skin was intensely red, and covered with an eruption over the entire body, except the feet, resembling urticaria, causing distressing itching and |)rickling. There had been severe rigors. Pulse 67 and full,®®.—Immediately seized with obscuration of vision, loss of strength, profuse perspiration over the whole body, suffusion of the face, acute pain in the head, oppression, anxiety, and fear of death ; urticaria, with swelling of the lower extremities, and intense fever,—l990.] In twenty minutes he began to experience a sensation of itching, almost intolerable, in the ears, first the right, then the left. The right hand then felt benumbed, and this was followed immediately by intense itching of the palm, and the pulse was discovered to be very feeble. Then the skin of the forehead and face felt full and constricted, and began to swell, and red streaks made their appearance on the face. Gradually the swelling extended to the body and extremities, and the whole surface was covered with an eruption resembling urticaria. At the same time all symptoms of a collapse developed (first day). Feels dull, sleepy, and complains of lassitude, and a rumbling sound in both ears, and a general confusion, also incapability of fixing his attention on a book requiring thought (second day),'*^—In a few minutes he was seized with nausea and vertigo, and a general sense of distress and prostration, accompanied with mental anxiety. When seen by me within half an hour, he was lying on his back with flushed and slightly puffed face and ears, and flushed neck, breathing with some difficulty, a sense of fulness and choking as if filling up his throat; oppression over the chest and epigastrium, troublesome itching or stinging of the face, ears, and throat, and also of the hands and wrists, feet and ankles. There was little or no itching on any other part of the body. An examination of his limbs discovered a marked redness of the hands as far as the wrists, and of the feet and ankles, none farther up the limbs. The itching on the limbs seemed to be confined to the backs of the hands and the upper part of the feet. The pulse was quick and full, not hard. An examination of the place where he was stung showed that the bee had struck directly upon a prominent vein on the back of one of the hands. There was no swelling at this point. The precise order of development of all the symptoms could not be accurately ascertained. He suffered in this way about two hours, and then the symptoms gradually disappeared,®^—The whole forearm was affected with a cutaneous erysipelas, and there was disorder of the nerves, accompanied with heat, redness, swelling, and pain,®^—Immediately after the first pain from the sting he was taken with a very intense itching, which very rapidly extended up his arm and over the entire upper part of the body; ten minutes later in a cold bath, the itching assumed an intolerable intensity ; very intense headache, rumbling in the ears, appreciable diminution of hearing, rough and laryngeal voice (perhaps caused by emotion) ; excitement approaching delirium. The trunk, arms, and the entire surface of the thorax were overspread with a very intense erythematous redness, the body appeared bloated, and the conjunctivse were injected. Pulse weak and very quick. Washing with ammonia diluted with water gave great relief, but could not be extended to the thorax as the ammoniacal fumes prevented respiration. At a quarter after two, the pains in the head continuing, a mustard bath was administered to the feet, which immediately caused an erythema of the ^ower extremities, identical with that of the upper part of the body. At 4 oclock vomiting, which relieved him, and was followed by sleep. At 7 oclock notable diminution of the eruption on the arms and chest; the head was still free from it, but it was still very prominent on the limbs. Slight headache. He had a very agitated night, and the next day there was a little dulness of the head, and some red spots on the extremities. In the evening the symptoms entirely disappeared,^*.—White swelling of the forehead and face, so that her friends did not recognize her, with pain in the forehead, and nausea,**.—The next morning the second right finger began to avell (except the tip), the middle joint especially, red, hot; burningstinging pains, with tingling extending up arm to body, and down right side and leg to foot; the pains were worse from sundown (5 p.m.) to 6-8 A.M., preventing sleep ; relieved by hot applications and gentle rubbing, or by pinching end of finger, aggravated by cold applications. Constant and persistent aggravation from Apis 30th, 200th, and 1000th. Improving under Ledum,^“.—General malaise; severe attack of nettlerash,**.