[A remembrance of Clarín's illnesses in his centenary]

The Spanish famous writer Leopoldo Alas, also known by the pseudonymous of "Clarín" suffered from two main kind of illnesses: nervous and digestives. Both began early, when he was only thirty two. At that moment, and during all his thirties, nervous ailments were conspicuous, but digestive problems were growing up slow but steadily and became the most serious and even menacing during his forties. Nervous pathology was double: on the one hand, some attacks of migraine with visual disturbances (scotoma), dysphasia and other "indescribable nervous oddities", which happened about 4-5 times per year; on the other, several emotional and vague symptoms, such as melancholia, dejected mood, anxiety, nervousness, etc. Digestive symptomatology, consisting of atonic constipation, intestinal dyspepsia, febricula, and a feeling of being "as a blocked drain", is due--no doubt--to tuberculous peritonitis diagnosed by his young nephew Dr. Martínez. This serious illness was the cause of his death on the 13th June 1901, when he was only 49.

[On paludism/malaria and other intermittent, tertian and quartan fevers in France from the XVIIIth to the XXth century]

This article aims at bringing an update on paludism and intermittent fevers which plagued France until the end of the XIXth century. Relying on present day medical data, an attempt at interpreting demographical data is presented in order to draw a social and physical geography of paludism and intermittent fevers in XVIIIth and XIXth century France. A history of paludism over two centuries is also sketched. It allows the observation of fever fluctuations, dependent on political events or economic activities of the time.

Smallpox nursing in Britain, Part II: Nursing care and nurse training

Part I of this paper attempted to justify the need for this research for historical purposes, that is, to fill a gap in the history of nursing, and sought to raise awareness of possible bioterrorist activity with the smallpox virus. The disease process, now unfamiliar to most nurses, was briefly described, and reference was made to the change from a predominantly childhood to adult disease. The gradual removal of patients from home to hospital or other institutions was considered and the diverse nature of their attendants was discussed. Smallpox was then explained from two nursing perspectives: firstly, the concept of smallpox as a nurses' disease. In this, it was universally acknowledged that only nurses could make some difference to a patient's survival and minimal disfigurement, but secondly, in so doing, they put their own lives at risk. Examples were given of nurses who succumbed. Finally, some central and local government measures which endeavoured to prevent the spread of the disease were outlined. Part II focuses specifically on nursing care and training as it is through this medium that knowledge may be passed from earlier to present day nurses.

Poetry, physiology, and puerperal fever: understanding the young Oliver Wendell Holmes

The 19th-century American physician Oliver Wendell Holmes (1809-1894) is known, internationally, more for his literary output than for his contributions to medical science. Yet a single paper he wrote in 1843--"The Contagiousness of Puerperal Fever"--has made him a hero in the eyes of many (especially in the United States) of the struggle against that scourge. Why that one article, written when Holmes was still in his thirties, should--even in its expanded 1855 version--so routinely be referred to as a "classic of medical literature", and why its author should have been raised on such a high pedestal that some grant him a position beside Ignác Semmelweis, are complicated questions. This present paper is an attempt to begin assessing what it is that makes someone a medical hero by looking at three different aspects of Holmes's early career. He was even as a young man a poet and a physiologist/anatomist as well as the author of this important essay. Whether and how those three features of Holmes's many-sides public persona are connected is discussed as a prelude to considering whether his work on puerperal fever legitimates his status as a medical hero.

The rise and demise of fever nursing

This important branch of nursing history has been virtually ignored, and yet, as will be seen, it could offer lessons for the future. This paper relies mainly on primary sources. It also demonstrates the value of a nursing journal as a vehicle for records, in this case, those of the Fever Nurses' Association. This original study illustrates how fever nursing arose and declined in an endeavour to serve the needs of society.

Fever nurses' perceptions of their fever nurse training 1921-1971

This paper is based on evidence from 118 ex-fever nurses. The method used, postal questionnaires, is rarely mentioned by oral historians, yet it proved invaluable in such a scattered target population. It shows the importance of collecting evidence before it is too late. This study gave the respondents a welcome opportunity to recall, analyse and reflect on their fever nursing practice. It complements the previous paper, 'The rise and demise of fever nursing' and confirms its findings.