LEUCORRHŒA—WHITES—FLOUR ALBUS

The word leucorrhœa is derived from two Greek words, and means literally a “white discharge.” It is also known as “flour albus,” “whites,” and “female weakness,” and consists of a “light colorless discharge from the genital organs, varying in hue from a whitish or colorless to a yellowish, light green, or to a slightly red or brownish; varying in consistency from a thin, watery, to a thick, tenacious, ropy substance; and in quantity from a slight increase in the healthy secretion to several ounces in the twenty-four hours.” This discharge generally occurs between the ages of fifteen and forty-five, seldom during infancy or old age. When it occurs in young female children, it will not infrequently be produced by the presence of pinworms in the vagina, which make their way there from the rectum. There will be intense itching of the parts, and the worms can be removed with a small piece of cloth, after separating the lips.

This disease may be either acute or chronic. The acute form generally results from taking cold, and is simply a catarrhal inflammation of the mucous membrane lining the vagina. The chronic form is but a continuation of the acute, and is generally caused by the acute stage having been neglected or improperly treated. Ulceration of the neck of the womb sometimes results. There are two forms of leucorrhœa: Vaginal leucorrhœa, when the discharge comes from the walls of the vagina; and cervical leucorrhœa, when the discharge proceeds from the neck of the womb.


Causes: Taking cold from sitting on the ground, or exposure of the neck and shoulders; over sexual excitement, and sexual intercourse; tight lacing; piles, miscarriages, and abortions; displacements of the womb; purgatives, improper articles of diet; warm injections, or injections of any kind; late hours, etc. It may also be hereditary.

TREATMENT.

The treatment, to be successful, requires that the patient should first be placed in a favorable condition. Anything which tends to excite the disease must be avoided, as dissipations, late suppers, etc. The diet must be plain and nourishing without being stimulating, and be taken regularly. Exercise, short of fatigue, will be beneficial. The clothing should be warm and worn loosely, especially about the waist. Water is of great importance in the treatment of this trouble. The sitting-bath may be used every day, and injections of cold or tepid water should be used three or four times a day, according to the severity of the discharge.
An injection of weak green tea will be found good in some mild cases, as also sweet cider or a weak solution of alum.

One of the best tonics is the muriated tincture of iron, of which take twenty or twenty-five drops in half a tumbler of water three or four times a day. An excellent injection is made by taking three drams of tannic acid and an ounce of alum, dissolving in a quart of water, and inject one-third three times a day. The bowels should be kept open by Rochelle or Epsom salts, or seidlitz powder. When there is great debility of the organs, or when the disease has been brought on by exposure to cold, pregnancy, abortions, etc., the following will be found very successful:

Tincture of aloes, two ounces; muriated tincture of iron, four drams. Mix. Dose: Thirty-five drops in water three times a day. At the same time use the following injection: Sulphate of zinc (white vitriol), two drams; sugar of lead, two drams. Mix in one quart of water, and use one-fourth for each injection.