Epidemic Conditions and Epidemic Remedies.

In the consideration of the action of our remedies, the older writers, quoting Rademacher, who has been called the German Eclectic, with Scudder and others, have frequently referred us to what they have called the epidemic remedy. They use this term to express the fact that some certain single remedy seems to be indicated at certain seasons, or during certain periods of time, much more frequently than other remedies, or than it is indicated at other times. The indications for this remedy at that time not only appear oftener, but the remedy seems to be beneficial to a very much wider extent, than at other times, and in conditions when its indications are not usually so apparent. Furthermore there are certain precise conditions of disease, without regard to the name of any given disease, which prevail quite generally at certain times. It has been found often, that single remedies or specific methods of treatment will prove satisfactorily curative to the condition under these circumstances. This is called an epidemic condition, and the curative remedy is called the epidemic remedy. It is well to take this fact into consideration in the selection of remedies during prevailing conditions. It will assist very materially in enabling us to prescribe more simply, and with a greater degree of accuracy.

Ellingwood's Therapeutist, Vol. 2, 1908, was edited by Finley Ellingwood M.D.