"He had WHAT??? What in the heck is Erycipelas?? Below is a list of diseases that you may find mentioned on your Civil War patron's papers. These were diseases that were prominent at that time. |
| DISEASE | DEFINITION |
| Ague | Used to define the recurring fever and chills of malarial infection |
| Aphonia | Laryngitis |
| Cholera | An acute, infections, often fatal disease causing diarrhea, vomiting, cramps and dehydration. |
| Consumption | TB (tuberculosis) |
| Dropsy | An excess accumulation of fluids in a cavity or in the subcutaneous cavity. |
| Dysentery | An infectious disease marked by inflammation and ulceration of the lower part of the bowls and diarrhea. |
| Dyspepsia | Deranged or impaired digestion - indigestion |
| Erycipelas | Acute, infectious disease evidenced by a deep red inflammation of the skin. |
| Flux | Abnormal discharge from the bowls - dysentery. Sometimes a lead-in to cholera or diagnosed as cholera. |
| Gravel | Kidney stones |
| Mortification | Gangrene or death of tissue |
| Qluinsy | Tonsillitis |
| Scrofula | A form of TB causing swelling and degeneration of the lymphatic glands especially in the neck and joints. |
| St. Vitus Dance | Cholera - primarily in children, a bacterial or organic degeneration, irregular or jerky, involuntary muscular movements. |
| Appoplectic | Modern day equivalent is a stroke. |
| Billious Colic | Bilious pertains to an ailment of the bile or liver resulting in headache, indigestion, nausea, etc. Supposed to be caused by an abnormal liver - likely gall bladder disease or stones. |
| Biliousnes | Jaundice or other symptoms associated with liver disease |
| Brain Fever | Encephalitis |
| Brain Infirmation or Inflammation | Likely meningitis |
| Camp Fever | Typhus |
| Canine Madness | Hydrophobia |
| Chlorosis | Iron deficiency anemia |
| Cholera Infantum | Intestinal disease occurring in warm weather, characterized by pain, vomiting, diarrhea, fever and prostration. An acute intestinal poisoning of bacterial origin starting with severe vomiting and diarrhea, followed by fever, shock, and collapse. |
| Congestion of the Brain | Hydrocephalus |
| Congestion of the Lungs | Pulmonary Edema |
| Corruption | Infection |
| Coryza | A Cold |
| Costivenness | Constipation |
| Coup de Soliel | Translates as "Stroke or blow of the sun" -= sunstroke |
| Cramp Colic | Appendicitis |
| Cynanche Tracheitis | Cynache is any inflammatory disease of the throat. Cynanche cellularis would mean a sore throat accompanied with excessive cellular growth (hyperplasia). Cynancehe is an old term for any acute disease of the throat in which the patient struggles for breath. |
| Dropsey | Edema - swelling, often caused by kidney or heart disease. |
| Dysepsia | Acid Indigestion |
| Eruption of Vessel | Varicose Vein |
| Extravasted Blood | Rupture of a blood vessel |
| Falling Sickness | Epilepsy |
| Female Disease | Could be a problem such as endometriosis |
| French Pox | Venereal disease |
| Gangrenous Diphtheria | Gangrene refers to a death of a part due to a lack of blood supply in that area. Diphtheria is characterized by the formation of a false membrane adhering to the larynx, pharynx and trachea, although occasionally of the vagina and conjunctiva. |
| General Debility | Debility means feeble and refers to the state of abnormal bodily weakness |
| Green Sickness | Anemia |
| Hip Gout | Osteomylitis |
| Inflammation of the Bowels | Gastritis or gastroenteritis |
| Intermittent Fever | Recurring fever, malaria |
| Jail Fever | Typhus |
| Kings Evil | Tubercular infection of the throat lymph glands |
| La Grippe | Influenza |
| Lues Venera | Venereal Disease |
| Lumbago | Back pain |
| Lung Fever | Pneumonia |
| Lung Sickness | Tuberculosis |
| Mania | Insanity |
| Mortification | Infection |
| Nostalia | Homesickness |
| Neuralgia of the brain | Neuralgia is a nerve pain, possible migraine |
| Phthises Pulmonales | A wasting away of the body, an old term used for pulmonary tuberculosis, with subsequent emaciation and loss of strength caused by tuberculoses. |
| Puerperal Fever | Septic poisoning, sometimes occurring after childbirth, childbed fever, childbirth complications |
| Pulmonary Consumption | Tuberculosis of the lungs |
| Putrid Fever | Diphtheria |
| Putrid Sore Throat | Sore throat with a fouls smell |
| Quinsy | Tonsillitis |
| Remitting Fever | Malaria |
| Sanguinous Crust | Scab |
| Screws | Rheumatism |
| Scrofula Dysipales | Scrofula is tuberculosis of the lymph glands |
| Ships Fever | Typhus |
| Strangery | Rupture |
| Summer Complaint | Caused by spoiled food (often milk products), generally affected children, causing severe dehydration and frequently death - food poisoning. |
| Suicide by Loderium | Laudenum - a preparation of opium, usually in solution of alcohol it was a liquid opiate used as a cough syrup, pain killer, tonic, and general elixir for what ever ailed you. |
| Ulcerated Bowels | Could be ulcerative colitis or infections colitis characterized by bloody diarrhea |
| Venesection | Bleeding |