Medical Terms from the 1800s

Medical terms of the 1800s

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Ablepsia blindness

Ague intermittent fever or chills

Ambustio burn

Amputation, primary usually done in within the first 24 hours of original injury

Amputation, secondary performed to improve the primary amputation

Anodynes medication that help with pain

Apoplexy stroke, or impairment from a brain hemorrhage

Aphtha Thrush

Army Itch Scabies

Asthenia weakness

Bilious fever malaria or typhoid

Black water fever fever accompanied with dark colored urine

Bright’s disease Kidney disease

Camp state or fever symptoms which happened when troops were crowded together like

fevers and diarrhea.

Catalepsy seizures or trances

Catarrhus mucus membrane inflammation

Child Bed Fever infection after childbirth

Chlorosis anemia

Cholera infectious disease, including diarrhea, often leading to death

Colica abdominal pain

Consumption tuberculosis, or a general wasting away

Coryza acute inflammation of nose and tonsils.

Cow Pox a virus similar to smallpox. Caught from the udders of cows which have

blisters, caught by touch, usually localized. Was used as a successful

vaccination against smallpox.

Crop Sickness bloated stomach

Crowd Poisonings fevers and sickness when troops were camped crowned together

Debility lack of strength, a lasting symptom

Dementia insanity, many different levels

Dengue fever from a mosquito bite

Dropsy congestive heart failure

Dysentery inflammation of intestines, caused by bacteria or parasites

Dyspepsia stomach discomfort after meals

Dyspenia trouble breathing

Erysipelas contagious skin disease, redness and swelling of affected areas

Falling Sickness epilepsy

Flux diarrhea

Glanders an infectious disease that can start with horses, donkeys and mules. Attacks

the respiratory system.

Goiter swelling of lymph gland

Grippe influenza, flu

Hemophthis spitting up blood

Impetigo contagious skin disease

Inflammatory Rheumatism rheumatic fever

Lockjaw tetanus

Malaria transmitted by mosquitoes. Chills, fever and sweating, can be recurrent

Marasmus infant wasting away from causes unknown

Miasma poisonous vapors thought to have infected the air.

Milk Leg swelling of legs of women who recently gave birth

Milk Sickness sickness from the ingestion of milk, milk products or meat products from

animals having the “trembles”

Morphew scurvy blisters

Mortification death

Osteomylitis inflammation of the bone, or a surgical fever

Neurasthenia neurosis caused by worry, and causing indigestion, etc.

Parotitis mumps

Peritonitis frequently the cause of death in abdominal wounds.

Pleurisy lung inflammation

Pneumonia inflammation of the lungs

Podagra gout

Pox syphilis

Prostration extreme exhaustion

Pyemia pus in blood, used to be for all types of blood poisoning, usually fatal.

Pyrosis heartburn

Quinsy abscess of the tonsils

Rheumatism inflammation of the joints, muscles

Rubella measles

Scarlatina scarlet fever

Scrofula tuberculosis of the lymph nodes

Scurvey vitamin C deficiency disease. In Civil War they tried to prevent this by having

soldiers eat desiccated vegetables as a ration.

Sleeping sickness encephalitis

Sub-Laxatio non complete dislocation

Suppuration formation of pus, thought to be a good thing in the 1860’s

Trench Mouth sores or ulcers in the mouth at the gum line

Variola smallpox

Venesection bleeding

Vulnus Incisim incisional wound

Vulnus Punctum puncture wound

Vulnus Sclopeticum gunshot wound

Winter Fever pneumonia

Yellow Fever Virus, was thought to have been brought by air, instead of mosquitoes.

Sources:

http://ehistory.osu.edu/uscw/features/medicine/cwsurgeon/commonterms.cfm

http://freepages.computers.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~grundyconnections/medterminolgy.html

“Civil War Medicine” by C Keith Wilbur MD, 1998

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This page was last updated on -03/17/2024