VIPERA.
Including the following species and varieties:
Vipera Berus
, Daudin (Pelias Berrus,
Merrem; V. trilamina, Millet; Coluber Berus, Linn.); including three
varieties, Cinerea, tartarea, rubiginosa.
Common names
, Petite vipère or vipère
peliade; the common viper of the North, or Germany; the adder of
England.
Vipera Aspis
, Merrem (including the
quondam species V. Chersea, Delalande; V. Blaniensis, Leray; V. Redii;
V. Delalandei; V. Praester and V. ocellata). This is the Vipera Berus of
Delalande non aliorum; V. communis,
Millet.
Common names
, Vipère commune, or Aspic;
the common viper of the South, or Italy, etc.
Authorities.
1,
Dr. Merschner, Lond. Med. and Phys. Journ., 1826, p. 198, a boy æt.
thirteen years, was bitten on third right finger; 2, Revue Med., Oct., 1826 (Lancet, vol. xi,
p. 284), a gardener was bitten on the hand; 3,
M. Piorry, Lancet, 1826, p. 560, a man æt. forty-six years, was bitten
on the hand; 4, Arch. Gen., from
Rust’s Mag. (Bost. Med. Intell., vol. v, 1827, p. 262), a shepherd was
bitten on the tongue; 5, Dr.
Marianini, Repert. di Med. Torino, 1828 (Lancet, 1828-9 (1), p. 580), a
woman, æt. twenty years, was bitten on the right ankle; 6, M. Beaumont, Compte des Travaux Méd. du
Dép. de la Moselle (Lancet, 1830-1 (1), p. 384), a boy was bitten on
the finger; 7, Dr. Kaiser,
Heidelberg Clin. Annals, 1832 (Frank’s Mag. 3, 145), a boy was bitten; 8, Heyfelder, Sanitäts, Ueber das Furst.
Hohenzollern, 1833 (S. J. 8, 123), a man was bitten on the leg; 9, Dr. Franchi, Antologia Med., Agosto, 1834
(S. J. 9, 57), a boy was bitten on the foot; 10,
Dr. Paulet, Bull. de Thérap., 1835 (S. J. 9), a woman was bitten on the
toe, during hot weather; 11, Dr.
Chas. P., Bibliothèque Hom. de Geneva, vol. v, 1835, a boy was bitten; 12, Dr. Butazzi, Feliatre di Napoli
(Med.-Chir. Rev., vol. xxvi, 1836, p. 509), a man æt. forty-four years,
was bitten between the forefinger and thumb of right hand; 13, Geis, Med. Zeit. Preuss., 1836 (S. J.
15), a girl was bitten; 14,
Schumaker, ibid.; 15, Dr. Koch.
ibid., effects of bite on the little toe; 16,
Dr. Lebrun, Zeit. für Geburstande, 1837 (A. H. Z. 15, 110), effects of
the bite; 17, Casper’s Woch. and
Arch. de Med., Dec. 1839 (Lancet, 1839-40 (2), p. 111), a man was bitten
on the tongue; 18, John Moodie,
M.D., Med. Phys. Journ., vol. xi, p. 481, Catharine Bishop, æt. seventy
years, was bitten twice on the back of the hand; 19, Gluckselig, Œst. Med. Jahrbuch, vol.
xxiii (A. H. Z. 19, 335); 20, same,
another case; 21, Bull. de Thérap.,
vol. vii (A. H. Z. 7, 259), a man was bitten; 22,
Harvey K. Owen, Lond. Med. Gaz., vol. xxvi, 1840, p. 337, John Burr,
æt. twenty years, was bitten on the hand; 23,
Francis Adams, Lond. and Edinb. Month, Jour., vol. i, 1841, p. 796, a
woman, æt. thirty-five years, was bitten by an adder on her leg; 24, Herbert Mayo, Magendie’s Journ. of Exper.
Phys. (Lond. Med. Gaz., vol, xxix, 1841-2 (1), 487), a man, æt.
twenty-six years, was bitten on his inner ankle; 25, same, a robust woman, laboring under
ague, was bitten on the ankle; 26,
Wm. Stockbridge, Bost. Med. and Surg. Journ., vol. xxix, 1843, p. 42, a
lady æt. twenty-two years, was bitten by an adder; 27, Pemberton, Lancet, 1849 (2), p. 638, a
man, æt. fifty-one years, was bitten on the thumb by an adder; 28, Dr. Weger, S. J. 23, 218, a man was
bitten on the tongue; 29, George
Lambert, Lancet, 1851 (2), p. 437, a man, æt. twenty-three years, was
bitten on the right ring finger by an adder; 30,
Dr. Nick, Würt. Corr. Blat., 1851 (S. J. 71, 307), a pharmaceutist was
bitten on the right index finger; 31,
Pemberton, Lancet, 1851 (2), p. 157, a man, æt. thirty-one years, was
bitten on the cheek by an adder; 32,
Ipawitz, Œst. Med. Jahrbuch, 1857 (S. J. 17, 29), a woman was bitten on
the foot; 33, Dr. Jarjavay, Gaz. des
Höp. (Journ. de Chim. Méd., 1857, p. 604), a person was bitten on the
hand by a V. aspis; 34, Philip
Weston, Lancet, 1859 (1), p. 522, the author was bitten on the right
forefinger by a viper; 35, Hussa,
Allg. Wien. Med. Zeit., 1861 (A. H. Z., M. B., 4, 50), a person, æt.
fifty-two years, was bitten on the foot; 36,
M. Soubeiran, Sydenham Yearbook, 1863, p. 437, a gentleman was bitten; 37, M. Demeuret, Gaz. Hebd. de Méd. et
Chir., Nov. 6, 1863 (Ranking’s Abstract, vol. xxxviii, 1863, p. 195), a
woman was bitten on the forearm, May 25, 1824; 38,
Dr. Heinzel, Wien. Med. Woch., 1866 (S. J. 133, 192), symptoms from bite
on himself, and from other observations; 39,
Hering’s Monograph “Schlangengift”, 1837, Vipera torva; 40, same, Vipera redi (41 to 54,
Vipera aspis, from Dr. Viaud Grand-marais, Gaz. des Hôp., 1868, No. 62,
and 1869, and Études méd. sur les serpents de la Vendée et de la
Loire-inférieure, first and second edition); 41,
Thomas of Nantes, a man was bitten in the left foot; 42, Merel, Boussay; 43,
Dr. Bourdin, a woman, æt. sixty-one years, was bitten in the foot; 44, same, case of a child; 45, Drs. Clochard and Guitter, a child, æt.
six years, was bitten on the right hand; 46,
Dr. Duchaine, a child, æt. six years, was bitten on the foot; 47, Drouet, a man, æt. sixty years, was
bitten on the left hand; 48, Dr.
Clochard, a man, æt. nineteen years, was bitten on the left leg; 49, M. Pestre, a woman, æt. fifty-four
years, was bitten on the right hand; 50,
Riviere, case of a woman; 51,
Lihorean, a woman was bitten on the hand; 52,
Viaud Grand-marais, a boy was bitten on the hand; 53, same, another case; 54, same, general remarks; 55, Dr. J. B. Feuvrier, Deux Cas de Morsure
de Serpent Venimeux, Paris, 1874, a child, æt. ten years, was bitten on
the hand.
MIND.
►
Delirium and raving, [54]. ► Delirium with vomiting, [40]. ►
Somewhat delirious in the interval of fifty minutes between the bite and
death, [39]. ►
Appeared wandering, as if drunk, and answered questions in a mumbling
incoherent manner (in two hours), [31].
► During the night sick with delirium
and vomiting, followed by profuse perspiration, [40]. ►
Extremely melancholy, delirium alternating with sopor (after two hours),
[9]. ►
Irrational talking, with sleeplessness and pains, [40]. ►
Screaming, followed by convulsions, [39].
► Great agitation and anxiety, [54]. [10.]
► Great depression, [27]. ► Very
great uneasiness of mind, [11]. ► Premonition of death, [39]. ►
Anguish, [50]. ► Anxiety and vomiting, [39]. ► Great
anxiety, [43]. ► Indescribable anxiety preceding death, [39]. ►
Intellect confused (after two hours), [10].
► State of great intellectual torpor,
[54]. [20.]
► Loss of mental functions, with
drawn features, [40]. ► Stupor, [55].
► Stupefaction, with cutting pain in
the abdomen, [39]. ► Loss of consciousness and a paralytic
condition, [39]. ► Loss of consciousness with swelling, [39]. ►
Loss of consciousness and sinking down, [39].
HEAD.
►
Confusion in the head, [34]. ► Vertigo, [6],
[38]. ►
Frequent vertigo, [40]. ► Vertigo, headache with nausea, [40]. [30.]
► Vertigo, headache and vomiting, [40]. ►
Vertigo frequently recurring, with nausea and vomiting, so that he fell
into a faint, [40]. ► Staggering with vertigo and falling
forward, [39]. ► Giddiness increased to loss of vision, [34]. ►
Stupefaction of the head (after half an hour), [39]. ►
Dulness of the head, [21]. ► Head felt heavy (after ten hours), [1]. ►
Violent headache, [35]. ► Persistent headache for several days, [54]. ►
Raging pains in the head, jaws, and abdomen, with general spasms, [49]. [40.]
► Tearing and sticking pain in the
head on every change in the weather, chronic effect of the bite, [39].
EYE.
►
Eyes glistening with the headache, [40].
► Eyes pressed out, with swelling of
the face, [39]. ► In a short time the eyes became red,
inflamed, and very watery, [39]. ► Eyes sunken, [39]. ► The
eyes immediately became dark yellow, [40].
► Lids. ►
Paralysis of the lids (second day), [55].
► Lids dropped over the eyes, [55]. ►
Ball. ► Eyeballs
immovable, [55]. ► Pupil. ►
Pupils dilated (after two hours), [9],
[12], [55]. [50.] ► Right pupil contracted, the left dilated
(second day), [55]. ► Vision. ►
Vision became indistinct (after two hours), [10], [55].
► Vision of the right eye lost, of
the left dim (second day), [55]. ► Obscuration of vision, though he hears
everything distinctly, [40]. ► Loss of vision, [34]. ► Loss
of vision for several minutes during the excessive violence of the
attack, though voices were still recognized, [39].
NOSE.
►
Blood from the nose with vertigo, with anxiety, [39].
FACE.
►
Staring look, [39]. Face expressed
terror, [43]. ► Great anxiety expressed in countenance
(after six hours), [29]. [60.] ►
Countenance, naturally pale, has now an appearance of anxiety about it, [27]. ►
Countenance, pallid, extremely anxious, covered with drops of
perspiration (after half an hour), [22].
► Face pale, [39]. ► Pale
face with chilliness, [39]. ► Extreme paleness of the face, [55]. ►
Face pale and hippocratic, with cold sweat on the forehead (after two
hours), [9]. ►
Face pale yellow, [13]. ► The face soon became yellowish, and
assumed an expression of anxiety, [11].
► Face livid, with an subicteric
color, [54]. ►
Excessive swelling of the face, [40].
[70.] ►
Swelling, especially of the lips and eyelids, [40]. ► Face
swollen and anxious, [17]. ► Enormous tumefaction of the face (after
two hours), [3]. ► Face swollen, and nearly double its usual
size; the neck also participated in the swelling, [2]. ►
Excessive swelling of the face in a few minutes, so that he could not
open his eyes, neither like erysipelas nor œdematous, not very painful,
but very tense and blackish, with closure of the throat for eight days, [39]. ►
After ten years there was still œdematous puffiness of the face at the
place of the bite, [39]. ► Entire face presented a swollen
appearance, and the parts immediately adjacent to the bite were
discolored, of a livid hue (after two hours); diffuse cellular
inflammation extended from the wound to the neck and sternum, and to the
opposite side of the face (second day), [31].
► Features considerably altered; the
cheeks puffed; the lips and tongue enormously swollen, but not painful,
covered with saliva, and very pale (after one hour and a half). The
swelling of the tongue rapidly increased, so that is at last almost
filled the cavity of the mouth, and caused great difficulty of
breathing, [5]. ► Face convulsed (second day), [12]. ►
Lips blue, [39]. [80.] ►
Lips and tongue livid, swollen and protruding, [34]. ► Acid
burning sensation in the lips, mouth, and throat, [34]. ► Raging
pains in the jaws, [39]. ► The lower jaw has no longer any power, [39].
MOUTH.
►
Gums. ► The gums often
have the scorbutic line, [54]. ► Tongue. ►
Tongue dry, swollen, [13]. ► Tongue swollen, brownish black,
protruding from the mouth, [40]. ► Tongue swollen, can be protruded but
slowly, and in a small degree, and is evidently directed to the side
affected; voice hesitating and thick, and somewhat resembling a man
suffering from intoxication (after half an hour), [22]. ► His
tongue began to swell, so that he could not articulate, [6]. ► The
tongue immediately swelled so much that when he reached the nearest
village he was unable to speak; the swelling increased rapidly so that
his tongue hung partly out of his mouth, and two hours afterwards he
died, [4]. [90.] ► A
few minutes after the bite the tongue began to swell, and on the next
morning he was found sitting up in bed, anxious, gasping for air, face
pale, with an expression of the greatest anxiety, terrible swelling of
the submaxillary and parotid glands, the tongue was immovable, blue,
enormously swollen, protruding from the teeth, filling the whole cavity
of the mouth, constant dribbling of saliva, [28]. ► The
tongue at once became enormously swollen, and during the night the man
could hardly breathe. The next day the tongue was scarified, but the
swelling soon returned again, and he fell to the gound in a state of
asphyxia. The respiration and pulse were now completely suspended; the
face became purple, and the neck swelled to such a degree, that its
circumference exceeded that of the head, [17].
► Enormous swelling of the tongue
(though bitten in the foot), [54].
► In fatal cases the tongue became
fuliginous, and the breath fetid, [54].
► Protrusion of the tongue, paleness,
[39]. ►
Tongue black, dry, [21]. ► Black tongue, [48]. ► Tongue
white in the middle, moist on the edges, with thirst, [40]. ► Tongue
coated with a white fur (second day), [31].
► Tongue generally, white, slightly
tremulous, [27]. [100.] ►
Tongue yellow, tip red, [19]. ► Thickly-coated tongue, with headache and
bad appetite, [40]. ► Tongue discolored, [39]. ► Dry
tongue (after two hours), [9], [39]. ►
General Mouth. ► Mouth and
throat so parched and swollen that to swallow any liquid was impossible,
[34]. ►
Swelling of the mouth after sucking the wound, [39]. ► Saliva.
► White saliva flows from the mouth,
with deathly faintness, [39]. ► Speech. ►
Speech difficult, with swollen tongue and closed jaws, [40]. ►
Replies with difficulty, in a deep voice, [55].
► Stammering a few unintelligible
words, with weakness and sleepiness, [40].
[110.] ►
Speech thick and inarticulate, [34].
► Speech inarticulate (third day), [18]. ►
Loss of speech on account of weakness, [39].
THROAT.
►
Closure of the throat, so that for eight days she could only swallow
water and milk; afterwards biting in the fauces, the swelling of which
became blackish, [39]. ► Pain in throat, with some difficulty in
deglutition, and on examination a copious secretion of viscid mucus was
seen to be adherent to the pharynx (after two hours), [31]. ►
Violent pain in throat, [6]. ► Deglutition was greatly impeded. [18]. ►
Great difficulty in attempting deglutition, [22]. ►
Salivary glands tumified, [17]. ► Swelling like a goitre on the throat,
remaining a chronic result, [39].
STOMACH.
►
Appetite and Thirst. [120.]
► Complains of hunger and thirst just
before death, [39]. ► Complete loss of appetite, [19]. ►
Thirst, [34]. ► Great thirst (after ten hours), [1], [13],
etc. ► Troublesome thirst and craving
for cold drinks (after half an hour), [22].
► Thirst with the heat, [39], [40].
► Thirst, with moist tongue, [40]. ►
Febrile thirst, with shivering, [39].
► Desire of water during the coma, [40]. ►
Heartburn. ► Cardialgia, [52]. ►
Nausea and Vomiting. [130.]
► Nausea, [3], [8],
etc. ► Sickness at stomach and
vomiting (within less than half an hour), [18].
► Nausea and slight attempt to vomit,
which appear to aggravate the suffering (after half an hour), [22]. ►
Nausea is caused by sucking the yellow poison from the wound, which had
a flat taste, [40]. ► Nausea with shuddering, [39]. ►
Violent nausea, with oppressed respiration, [39]. ►
Nausea, spasmodic vomiting (after two hours), [10]. ►
Violent nausea, with vomiting, [39].
► Nausea and vomiting, [11], [49].
► Nausea and bilious vomiting, [43]. [140.]
► Immediately inclined to vomit, with
attacks of faintness, [39]. ► Violent retching, [34]. ►
Frequent efforts of vomiting (second day), [12]. ►
Spasmodic retching and bilious vomiting affording transient relief, [8]. ►
Vomiting, [3], [5], etc. ►
Frequent vomiting, [15], [16], etc. ►
Immediate vomiting, [39]. ► Vomiting, with violent thirst, [39]. ►
Vomiting, with colic, [40]. ► Vomiting, with colic and thirst, [39]. [150.]
► Vomiting, purging, and urinating, [40]. ►
Vomiting, with diarrhœa, [40]. ► Vomiting and diarrhœa, lasting a long
time, [39]. ►
Vomiting, with distension, [40]. ► Vomiting, with faintness, [39]. ►
Vomiting, with shivering and violent thirst, [39]. ►
Vomiting, with coldness of the body, [39].
► Vomiting, with erysipelas, [39]. ►
Vomiting, with great weakness; somewhat better after repeated vomiting
(second day), [39]. ► Violent vomiting and diarrhœa
constantly, renewed with great violence, [39].
[160.] ►
Vomiting after drinking milk, [39].
► Vomiting affords relief, [39]. ►
Drink can be borne by the stomach only after seven days, food only after
fourteen days, [40]. ► Bilious vomiting, [39], [40].
► Vomited, first alimentary matter,
then bile, the last repeatedly, [24],
[25]. ►
Vomiting of mucous and bilious matter, [2].
► Vomiting of a bitter yellow fluid
(after twenty minutes), [29]. ► Constant vomiting of bilious matter (in
two hours), [31]. ► Vomited a large quantity of bile, [6]. ►
Incessant vomiting of a viscid greenish fluid, in color and taste like
inspissated bile, followed by severe attack of bilious diarrhœa, [34]. [170.]
► After a few minutes she became
faint and vomited a large quantity of black blood, followed by bloody
stools; these bloody evacuations upward and downward were repeated at
short intervals, [35]. ► Vomiting of blood, [38]. ►
Vomiting of blood, followed by prostration and death, [54]. ►
Vomiting of green liquid, [19]. ► Incessant vomiting of green substances, [9]. ►
Stomach. ► Digestion slow,
[54]. ►
Pain in epigastrium and stomach (after one hour and a half), [5]. ►
Pain in the pit of the stomach and in the bowels was excruciating, [34]. ►
A sensation of uneasiness about the epigastrium, [27]. ►
Extreme degree of pain at epigastrium, the least pressure causing great
suffering (after half an hour), [22].
[180.] ►
Sudden attack of severe pain at scrobiculus, with considerable thirst, [22]. ►
Pain in the epigastrium or umbilical region is almost always present,
accompanied by anxiety and vomiting, and, in many cases, excessive
thirst, though the patient cannot tolerate much liquid; substances
vomited bloody and mucous; stool diarrhœic and bloody, [54]. ►
Terrible pain in the epigastrium.
ABDOMEN.
►
Hypochondria very tense, [19]. ► Extreme soreness of hypochondria, [24]. ►
Intense pain about umbilicus, greatly augmented by pressure (in two
hours), [31]. ► Swelling of the abdomen, raging pains and
spasms, even to faintness; after drinking milk vomiting of a large mass
of round worms; since that time the patient has been completely free
from the worm troubles which he had before, [39]. ► Sudden
flatulent distension of the abdomen, with colic, violent pain in the
back and vomiting, [40]. ► Abdomen tense, pressure causes distension
of the facial muscles, [39]. ► Rumbling in the bowels, [21]. [190.] ► Pains in the abdomen and back, [39]. ►
Pain in the abdomen alternating with pain in the limbs, after the bite, [39]. ►
Pain in the abdomen, with violent thirst and vomiting, [39]. ► Colic,
[25], [51]. ► Colic,
with profuse diarrhœa (third day), [39].
► Colic, with headache instantly,
which completely stupefies; with vomiting and violent swelling and
blueness of the foot, [39]. ► Violent griping in the abdomen, [54]. ►
Cutting colic, [39]. ► Violent pain in belly, [24]. ►
Violent pains in the abdomen, immediately, [39]. [200.] ► Violent pains in the intestines and in
the shoulders, [39]. ► Raging pain in the abdomen, afterwards
also in the jaws and head, exceedingly like destruction, [39].
RECTUM AND ANUS.
►
Pain and tenesmus in the rectum, [39].
► Urging to pass stool and urine, [40].
STOOL.
►
Diarrhœa, [21]. ► Much purged (after twenty minutes), [29]. ►
Diarrhœa and vomiting, [39]. ► Diarrhœa with colic, [39]. ►
Diarrhœa; bowels have acted five times since last night, 9 A.M. (second
day), [27]. ►
Bilious purging, [24], [25], [34].
[210.] ►
Bowels acted frequently and involuntarily, and both blood and mucus were
mingled with the motions (after two hours), [31]. ►
Involuntary stools, [3], [39]. ►
Copious stools (after two hours), [10].
► Numerous stools, with urging
shivering, and thirst, [39]. ► Evacuation of the bowels soon after the
bite, [39]. ►
Evacuation of the bowels very offensive, black (after two hours), [9]. ►
Bloody stools, [39]. ► Discharge of much blood from the bowels,
just before death, [10]. ► Discharge from the bowels of black
coagulated blood, [32]. ► Stool on the second day consisting of
masses of dark, horribly offensive blood, apparently from the
scarification of the tongue, [28].
[220.] ►
Stools very fetid, [2].
URINARY ORGANS.
►
Sticking pains in the kidneys, [39].
► Desire to micturate, but could not
(after twenty minutes), [29]. ► Involuntary micturition, [39]. ►
Increased secretion of urine, [40].
► Frequent emission of watery urine, [19]. ►
Copious secretion of clear urine, with constipation and headache, [40]. ►
Profuse emission of urine, with pains in the back and abdomen, vomiting
and purging, [40]. ► Incontinence of urine and fæces at
times, [38]. ►
The urine is usually completely suppressed, [54]. [230.] ► Strangury, [38].
RESPIRATORY ORGANS.
►
Anxious respiration, as in croup, with threatening asphyxia, [54]. ►
Respiration very anxious, [13]. ► Anxious, oppressed respiration (after two
hours), [9]. ►
Respiration was short and oppressed (after ten hours), [1], [18]. ► Difficult respiration, [10], [12],
etc. ► Difficult breathing, with
sticking pains in the heart, [40].
► Great difficulty of respiration, [18], [43].
► Dyspnœa, [22]. ►
Suffocative sensation, with retching, [40].
[240.] ►
Suffocation, [50]. ► He tore his shirt because suffocation
threatened, preceded by vomiting, [40].
► After being carried to the hospital
the patient suddenly ceased to breathe, the heart stopped, the face
became livid, etc., whereupon tracheotomy was immediately performed;
blood drawn from the arm flowed scantily, was dark mixed with bright
streaks, [28].® 2000
Article