TO RESTORE PERSONS APPARENTLY DEAD.
From Drowning.
Loose no time in sending for medical assistance.
Convey the body carefully, with the head and shoulders supported in a raised position, to the nearest house.
Strip the body and rub it dry; then wrap it in hot blankets, and place it in a warm bed, in a warm chamber.
Wipe and cleanse the mouth and nostrils. In order to restore the natural warmth of the body,—
Move a heated covered warming-pan over the back and spine.
Put bladders or bottles of hot water, or heated bricks, to the pit of the stomach, the armpits, between the thighs, and to the soles of the feet.
Foment the body with hot flannels; but if possible,—
Immerse the body in a warm bath as hot as the hand can bear without pain, as this is preferable to the other means for restoring warmth Rub the body briskly with the hand, do not, however, suspend the use of other means at the same time.
Apply sal volatile, or hartshorn, to the nostrils. Avoid all rough usage. Never hold the body up by the feet, nor roll the body on casks, nor rub the body with salt or spirits; nor inject tobacco-smoke or infusion of tobacco.
From Intense Cold.
Rub the body with snow, ice or cold water. Restore warmth by slow degrees; and after some time, if necessary employ the means recommended for the apparently drowned. In these accidents it is highly dangerous to apply heat too early.
From Hanging.
In addition to the means recommended for the apparently drowned, bleeding should early be employed by a medical assistant.
From Noxious Vapors, etc.
Remove the body into a cool, fresh air. Dash cold water on the neck, face and breast, frequently. If the body be cold, apply warmth, as recommended for the apparently drowned.
From Intoxication.
Lay the body on a bed, with the head raised; remove the neckcloth and loosen the clothes. Obtain instantly medical assistance, as the treatment must be regulated by the state of the patient; but in the mean time, apply cloths soaked in cold water to the head, and bottles of hot water or hot bricks, to the calves of the legs and to the feet.
From Appoplexy.
The patient should be placed in a cool air, and the clothes loosened, particularly about the neck and breast. Bleeding must early be employed by a medical assistant. Cloths soaked in cold water, spirits or vinegar and water, should be kept applied to the head, which should be instantly shaved. All stimulants should be avoided. In cases of coup-de-soleil, or strokes of the sun, the same means to be used as in apoplexy.
General Observations.
On restoration to life, if the power of swallowing be returned, small quantities of warm wine or weak brandy and water may be given; the patient should be kept in bed, and a disposition to sleep encouraged, except in of cases apoplexy, intoxication and coup-de-soleil. Great care is requisite to maintain the restored vital actions, and at the same time to prevent undue excitement.
The treatment recommended is to be persevered in for three or four hours. It is an erroneous opinion that persons are irrecoverable because life does not soon make its appearance, and it is absurd to suppose that a body must not be meddled with or moved without the permission of a coroner.