Kitap 6
6
The more severe the inflammation, the milder should the application be made, by adding to it white of egg or woman's milk. But if neither doctor nor medicine is at hand, either of the above, dropped into the eye with a little screw of lint prepared for the purpose, often relieves the trouble. But when the patient has been relieved and the discharge of rheum is already checked, any slight symptoms which remain may be got rid of by making use of the bath and of wine. Therefore when at the bath the patient should be first rubbed over gently with oil, especially over the legs and thighs, and he should bathe his eyes freely with hot water, next hot water should be poured over his head, followed by tepid water; after the bath he must take care that he is not harmed by cold or draught: subsequently he should use a diet rather fuller than had been customary for those days, whilst avoiding everything which may render the rheum thinner. He should drink mild wine, not too dry, and moderately old, taking it neither too freely nor too sparingly, so that, without causing indigestion, it may nevertheless induce sleep, and mollify the internal latent acrid humour. If at the bath the patient feels the trouble in the eyes becoming worse than before he entered, which often happens to those who have hurried on to this course of treatment whilst there is still a discharge of rheum, he ought immediately to leave the bath, take no wine that day, and less food even than on the previous day. Afterwards, as soon as the flow of rheum has subsided sufficiently, he may return again to the use of the bath. Nevertheless, from the fault of the weather, or of the patient's constitution, if on happens that for many days neither the pain nor inflammation is checked, and least of all the discharge of rheum. When this occurs and the affection is now established by reason of its long standing, recourse must be had to these same remedies that is, the bath and wine. For whilst they unsuitable early in the complaints because they can then irritate and stir up inflammation, yet in inveterate cases which have not yielded to other remedies, they are quite effectual, that is to say, in this as in other instances, when ordinary remedies have proved useless, contrary ones are beneficial. But beforehand the patient should be shaved down to the scalp, then in the bath he should foment both his head and eyes with plenty of hot water, next clean both with a little roll of lint, and anoint the head with iris ointment: and he should keep to his bed until all the heat so produced has ended, and the sweat which of necessity has collected in the head has passed off. He is then to take food and wine of the same sort as above, drinking the wine undiluted; and he must rest with the head wrapped up. For often after these measures a sound sleep, or a sweat, or a clearance of the bowel, terminates the discharge of rheum. If, as more often happens, the malady is in some measure relieved, the same regimen is pursued for a number of days until recovery is completed. If, meanwhile, the bowels do not act, clysters are given to relieve the upper parts of the body. But occasionally a violent inflammation breaks out with so much force as to push forwards the eyes out of their place: the Greeks call this proptosis, because the eyes drop forwards. In this cases especially, if the strength allows of it, blood is to be let; if that is impracticable, then a clyster and prolonged abstinence should be prescribed. The blandest medicaments are required; hence some use that salve of Cleon's which has been noted above, as consisting of two ingredients, poppy-tears and gum, but the best is the salve of Nileus, and this point is agreed on by all authorities.
