Epidemics (1.3.19-1.3.21)

Now the number of illnesses was great. And of the patients there died chiefly striplings, young people, people in their prime, the smooth, the fair-skinned, the straight-haired, the black-haired, the black-eyed, those who had lived recklessly and care-lessly, the thin-voiced, the rough-voiced, the lispers, the passionate. Women too died in very great numbers who were of this kind. In this constitution there were four symptoms especially which denoted recovery:—-a proper hemorrhage through the nostrils; copious discharges by the bladder of urine with much sediment of a proper character; disordered bowels with bilious evacuations at the right time; the appearance of dysenteric characteristics. The crisis in many cases did not come with one only of the symptoms described above, but in most cases all symptoms were experienced, and the patients appeared to be more distressed; but all with these symptoms got well. Women and maidens experienced all the above symptoms, but besides, whenever any took place properly, and whenever copious menstruation supervened, there was a crisis therefrom which resulted in recovery; in fact I know of no woman who died when any of these symptoms took place properly. For the daughter of Philo, who died, though she had violent epistaxis, dined rather unseasonably on the seventh day.

In acute fevers, more especially in ardent fevers, when involuntary weeping occurs, epistaxis is to be

The painful swellings by the ears in fevers in some cases neither subsided nor suppurated when the fever ceased with a crisis. They were cured by bilious diarrhœa, or dysentery, or a sediment of thick urine such as closed the illness of Hermippus of Clazomenæ. The circumstances of the crises, from which too I formed my judgments, were either similar or dissimilar; for example, the two brothers, who fell sick together at the same time, and lay ill near the bungalow of Epigenes. The elder of these had a crisis on the sixth day, the younger on the seventh. Both suffered a relapse together at the same time with an intermission of five days. After the relapse both had a complete crisis together on the seventeenth day. But the great majority had a crisis on the sixth day, with an intermission of six days followed by a crisis on the fifth day after the relapse. Those who had a crisis on the seventh day had an intermission of seven days, with a crisis on the third day after the relapse. Others with a crisis on the seventh had an intermission of three days, with a crisis on the seventh day after the relapse. Some who had a crisis on the sixth day had an intermission of six and a relapse of three, an intermission of one and a relapse of one, followed by a crisis; for example, Euagon the son of Daitharses. Others with a crisis on the sixth had an intermission of seven days, and after the relapse a crisis on the fourth; for example, the daughter of Aglaidas. Now most of those who fell ill in this constitution went through their illness in this manner, and none of

In these diseases most died on the sixth day, as did Epaminondas, Silenus and Philiscus the son of Antagoras. Those who had the swellings by the ears had a crisis on the twentieth day, but these subsided in all cases without suppuration, being diverted to the bladder. There were two cases of suppuration, both fatal, Cratistonax, who lived near the temple of Heracles, and the serving-maid of Scymnus the fuller. When there was a crisis on the seventh day, with an intermission of nine days followed by a relapse, there was a second crisis on the fourth day after the relapsein the case of Pantacles, for example, who lived by the temple of Dionysus. When there was a crisis on the seventh day, with an intermission of six days followed by a relapse, there was a second crisis on the seventh day after the relapsein the case of Phanocritus, for example, who lay sick at the house of Gnathon the fuller.