Authors

1Daniel Leno González, 2Juan Luis Leno González, 2María José Lozano Guerrero

Position

¹Diplomado en Enfermería. Licenciado en Antropología Social y Cultural. Unidad de Hospitalización, Hospital Ciudad de Coria.²Diplomado en Enfermería. Hospital Ciudad de Coria.

Contact address

Avenida del Valle, 33 A-1º A. 10600 Plasencia (Cáceres).

Contact email: danileno@yahoo.es

Abstract

Cholera, an infectious disease caused by the Vibrio Cholera organism, is endemic in certain Asian countries and rose to its height in the second quarter of the 19th century with four successive waves which marked it as a true epidemic. Taking into account that in 1833 (first epidemic in Spain) there was no specific treatment that cured the disease, several actions were carried out to fight it. The epidemic feature of this disease explains the importance given to these kinds of diseases from a historical perspective. The panic that accompanies infectious also becomes an epidemic, spreading much further than the actual disease and creating unrivalled terror. The objective of this study is to carry out a review on the efforts taken. In the first part of this study, we look at several definitions of cholera pertaining to different authors who lived at the time, as well as the main pathogenic theories of disease manifestation (nervous, spasmodic, humoral and gastroenteric or inflammatory manifestations). The second section presents the methods used for symptom control and treatment (bloodletting, induced vomiting and purging, diaphoretics, external stimulants, narcotics, etc), highlighting the anarchy that reigned regarding treatment.

Keywords:

epidemic; Asian choleraanticholera therapy

Versión en Español

Título:

Control de síntomas y tratamiento del cólera durante las primeras epidemias del siglo XIX