THE NAPOLEONIC MEDICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA

Scurvy
Introduction/HOME
Venesection
Human Element
Deaths in British Army Hospitals: 1812-1815
Life in the British Navy
Napoleonic Surgery
Medical Hygiene
Medical Evacuations
Disease!
"The Flying Ambulance"
Baron Dominique-Jean Larrey
Scurvy
Bonaparte's Demise
British Medical Services

Scurvy was a miserable disease the affected those with a vitamin C defiency.  Those most infected were the Sailors.

 THE DISEASE   
    Scury is a collagen disease which results from dietary deficiencies.   Some of the symptoms of scurvy are gradual weakeining, pale skin, sunken eyes, tender gums, muscle pain, loss of teeth, internal bleeding, and the opening of wounds such as sword cuts that healed many years before.  Exhaustion, fainting, diarrhea, and lung and kidney trouble followed.  Eventually the sailor died.

Scurvy
image7.gif
Illustration from "Man-of-War" by Stephen Biesty (Dorling-Kindersley, NY, 1993).

FIGHTING BACK!
    The main reason for scurvy was from the lack of vitamin C.  It was difficult to carry fruits on ships and the obvious method preservation actually made the fruit lose their vitamin C.  Do the lack of understanding and the preservation methods, scurvy was a major problem.  On British Ships during the 18th century, Lemons and limes were used to counter scurvy.  Hence the nickname, "limeys" given to the British sailors.  However, limes and lemons were rare in northern Europe and as I already said the preservation methods lost the essential vitamins.

MARCH 2005

Term Project
Abraham Schreier
Mr. Crowley
Honors World History
March 2005