Desc ip ion o scu y in Vybo g by Ni zsch (1732, 1734)
Summa y by James Lind (1772)
This is James Lind’s summa y o Ni zsch’s desc ip ion o scu y in Vybo g in 1732 and 1734.
Yellow is used o indica e mo e impo an sec ions.
This ex is a ailable a :
h ps://doi.o g/ 10.5281/zenodo.17295495
2025-10-7
This e sion was p epa ed by:
Ha i Hemilä, Uni e si y o Helsinki, Finland
h ps://www.m .helsinki. i/home/hemila
h ps://o cid.o g/0000-0002-4710-307X
h ps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.go /pubmed/? e m=hemila+h
h ps://schola .google.com/ci a ions?use =2mkomzUAAAAJ
h ps://doi.o g/10.5281/zenodo.17085738 Repo s on scu y uploaded o Zenodo by Ha i Hemilä
The ex below is om James Lind (1772; 3 d ed) p.395-399.
h ps://a chi e.o g/de ails/ ea iseonscu y1772lind/page/394/mode/2up
h ps://a chi e.o g/de ails/b30511902/page/394/mode/2up
h ps://babel.ha hi us .o g/cgi/p ?id=ucm.5320216006&seq=419
h ps://wellcomecollec ion.o g/wo ks/ 7 pba /i ems?can as=417
1
James Lind’s commen s on Ni zsch:
p.31
Mo eo e , he sea-scu y is called by se e al
au ho s he Du ch dis empe ; especially by he
celeb a ed F ancis Gemelli Ca e i, who has w o e
he bes oyages in he I alian language. The
F ench o me ly ga e i he name o he land
e il. And indeed he symp oms o he ma-
lady a e a his day uni o m and he same, bo h
a sea and land; in Holland, G eenland,
Hunga y (K ame ), C ons ad , Wibu gh (Ni zsch), Sco -
land (G ainge ), &c. which su icien ly e inces he
absu di y o he asse ion ad anced by se e al
au ho s, ha since he i s accoun s o i we e
published, he ace and appea ances o he cala-
mi y ha e been g ea ly changed.
h ps://a chi e.o g/de ails/ ea iseonscu y1772lind/page/30/mode/2up
p.44-45
Thus, whe e he causes p oduc i e o i
a e gene al, and iolen in a high deg ee, i
becomes an epidemic o uni e sal calami y,
and ages wi h g ea and di usi e i ulence:
as happens o en o seamen in long oyages;
some imes o a mies (Ni zsch), e y la ely o he
Ge man soldie s in Hunga y (K ame ); equen ly
o oops when closely besieged, as o he
Saxon ga ison in Tho n (Bachs om), he besieged in
B eda (Vande Mye), in Rochelle, as also S e in: and
a o he imes o whole coun ies; as in
B aban , in he yea 1556; and in Holland, ann. 1562.
h ps://a chi e.o g/de ails/ ea iseonscu y1772lind/page/44/mode/2up
p.61
This disease is no indeed peculia o he ocean, he e being
many ins ances o i s aging wi h equal iolence a land
(Vid. he case o he Ge man oops in Hunga y (K ame ),
o he Russian a mies (Ni sch)).
h ps://a chi e.o g/de ails/ ea iseonscu y1772lind/page/60/mode/2up
2
1732. 1734. An accoun o he scu y
a Wibu g1. Communica ed by D . Ab aham
Ni zsch o D . Schulze. Comme c. li e a .
No imb. ann. 1734, p. 162.
p.395
I may be p ope , i s , o obse e, ha
he scu y is he e a common disease. Bu
wha d ew pa icula a en ion o i his yea ,
1732, was he uncommon numbe o he
a lic ed, and o hose who died, oge he
wi h i s unusual du a ion. I pe sis ed in
i s a age om he beginning o he yea
un il he mon h o Augus , wi h such e-
ma kable iolence, ha I was sen hi he
by exp ess o de s in he mon h o June.
I obse ed he appea ances o he disease
we e no he same in all; bu a ied acco -
ding o he di e en cons i u ions o he
pa ien s.
Those who we e o a lax habi , labou ed
unde swelling o he legs, ( a ely o he
belly) yielding easily o he imp ession o
he inge , bu o en becoming ha de upon
he con inuance o he malady. The hypo-
chond ia2 o he mos pa we e umid, he
lexo endons o he leg always con ac ed,
wi h li id spo s on he legs, knees, highs,
and back. Those spo s, pa icula ly on
he legs and i he pa ien was ull o blood,
became o en in lamed, and we e a ended
wi h mos acu e pain, and quickness o he
pulse. Now and hen he whi e o he eye
p.396
al oge he bloody; and some imes he eye
lids we e g ea ly swelled, being dis ended
wi h e used, s agna ing blood. In some
he spo s we e p e y la ge, especially upon
he highs and back; in o he s hey esem-
bled only lea-bi es, and we e accompanied
wi h swelling o he legs, uni e sal lassi-
ude, swelled, bleeding, and pu id gums;
as also a pale wan coun enance. Se e al
we e dis essed wi h a g ea di icul y o
b ea hing, cough and spi ing, giddiness,
and ain ings, mos commonly when in an
e ec pos u e; he la e o en p o ed a al
o hose who had been long a lic ed. The
appe i e om he beginning was somewha
impai ed, o en lea ing he pa ien upon
his being a ec ed wi h la ulencies and
nausea, bu e u ning upon he accession o
a pu ging. The ee , sc o um and belly
we e some imes g ea ly dis ended wi h a
anspa en wa e y swelling, and he skin
in lamed. The gums ha ing become a mass
o spungy lesh, discha ged, upon squeezing,
a hin œ id ma e ; and he sali a y glands
we e some imes so s u ed, as o acqui e he
ha dness o a sci hus, which could no be
esol ed by any o he means han by a na-
u al and spon aneous sali a ion.
Pe sons o a hin habi we e a lic ed wi h
symp oms di e en om hose who we e
co pulen . They we e e e y day mo e and
mo e emacia ed, and acked wi h iolen
p.397
shoo ing pains on he bones o he legs
accompanied wi h a e e . The anguish
did no ix in one place, bu by shi ing
p oduced gou y pains, colics, he spas-
modic as hma, headachs, oo hachs, and con-
ac ions. By ola ile medicines ha ing
been imp ope ly gi en, he bowels, he li e
and spleen, became ha d; upon which
ensued ei he a d opsy3, consump ion o
lux, which cons an ly p o ed a al. The
gums we e swelled and ha d, pain ul o he
ouch, and o en o e - un wi h a cance ous
ulce a ion.
In o de o pu a s op o his d ead ul ca-
lami y, i was necessa y ha he emedies
should be sui ed o he habi and cons i u ion
o he pa ien .4
p.398
This p esen yea , he Cui assie s la ely
come om he Uk aine o Pe e sbu g ha e
1 Vybo g. A Russian ci y nea he Finnish bo de .
h ps://en.wikipedia.o g/wiki/Vybo g
2h ps://en.wikipedia.o g/wiki/Hypochond ium
3
u nished me wi h se e al o he obse a ions
upon his disease. The symp oms we e as
usual. I was always a salu a y sign when
he spo s appea ing con inued ou . In wo
cases hei sudden disappea ance p o ed
a al. Besides he use o a decoc ion o pine
ops,5 I ound i necessa y, e e y second o
hi d day, o gi e a p e y sma pu ge:
which had so ema kable good e ec s, ha
hough many we e bloa ed, ye none became
d opsical. Bleeding wi h cau ion nea he
decline o he disease, when he pulse was
p.399
s ong, e iden ly assis ed in he cu e. I
can solemnly a i m i was ollowed wi h an
inc ease o s eng h, a pe ec elaxa ion o
he endons, which had be o e been a -
emp ed o no pu pose by wa m s eams
and ba hs, and a mo e speedy eco e y.
The disease le us in May, ha ing acqui ed
i s i ulence in Feb ua y.
3 D opsy.
The his o ical diagnosis o d opsy – which is now obsole e – indica ed simply an abno mal accumula ion o luid.
The wo d de i es om he G eek hyd ops (wa e ). Al e na i e o supplemen a y e ms included hyd o ho ax ( luid
in he ches ca i y), asci es (which s ill indica es excess ee luid in he abdominal ca i y), anasa ca (s ill used o
desc ibe gene alized edema h oughou he body).
h ps://doi.o g/10.1017/CHOL9780521332866.101
An ancien medical e m used o indica e di e en condi ions including ch onic hea ailu e.
h ps://doi.o g/10.1016/j.ijca d.2017.07.104
Scu y can cause hea ailu e, eg.
h ps://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.go /a icles/PMC10949735
h ps://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.go /a icles/PMC8913583
4 He he e o e p esc ibed o hose who labou ed unde he slow o cold scu y, a decoc ion…
Whe e he e was eason o app ehend a swelling o he abdominal isce a, he ga e he neu al sal s,
and alcaline inc u es: bu whe e he e was a e e , and in lamma ion on he ibia…
Fo he s i endons he used… o he swelled, bleeding gums…
The ai was co ec ed h ee imes a-day by a ume o junipe wood and be ies.
The pa acen esis o en succeeded wi h hose who had he asci es, when ee om a e e ,
and an œdema ous swelling o he abdomen.
I es o ed hem o pe ec heal h; as did also sca i ica ions upon he cal o he leg and sc o um,
when he e appea ed a ense wa e y swelling upon hese pa s; p o ided p ope in e nals we e adminis e ed…
I he e was any dange o a gang ene om hese sca i ica ions, as o en happened,
i was s opped by ne ous and an isep ic applica ions.
In he pain ul scu y, upon accoun o he d y habi o body, medicines hea ing and exagi a ing he blood,
o me ly gi en, we e laid aside, and emollien emedies we e p esc ibed… which o en mi aculously allayed
a h i ic pains, and he opp essi e complain s in he b eas .
An ispasmodics we e some imes gi en…
When he hypochond iaca we e obs uc ed…
and o he swelling, hea , and pain o he gums, he pulp o ci on p o ed an excellen and ag eeable emedy.
By his ea men , and he blessing o Hea en, a s op was pu o he calami y; insomuch ha he numbe o he
diseased, and o hose who died, diminished e e y day, and in he space o a mon h i qui e disappea ed.
5 See discussions o i amin C con en in sp uce and i ees.
h ps://doi.o g/10.3138/cbmh.7.2.161
h ps://doi.o g/10.1001/jamade ma ol.2014.4582
h ps://doi.o g/10.1126/science.99.2563.125.a
h ps://doi.o g/10.1126/science.98.2545.325.a
h ps://doi.o g/10.1126/science.98.2541.242.a
h ps://doi.o g/10.1126/science.98.2541.241
h ps://doi.o g/10.1126/science.98.2536.132.a
h ps://doi.o g/10.1126/science.97.2520.354.c
h ps://doi.o g/10.1126/science.92.2376.35.b
4
