In administering this bath, prepare the patient precisely as directed
for the vapor bath. Instead of placing under the chair a vessel of hot
water, place a large alcohol lamp or a small dish containing a few
ounces of alcohol. When all is ready, light the lamp or alcohol, and
carefully exclude the air. It is hardly necessary to suggest the
propriety of putting the lamp in such a position as to insure safety
from fire. If alcohol is used in an open dish, it is important to wipe
the outside of the vessel quite free from any trace of the fluid, as
otherwise it might be communicated to the floor or carpet. Also avoid
spilling any portion in putting it in place, for the same reason. It is
a very good precaution to place the dish containing the burning alcohol
in a plate or shallow vessel containing a little water.
This bath should be conducted in the same manner as the vapor bath. A
temperature of 140° to 160° is not at all disagreeable to the patient.
At 170° or 180° the same effects are produced as in the vapor bath at
120°. The bath should be followed by cooling baths as directed for the
vapor bath.
This is a very valuable remedy for the same class of diseases for which
the vapor bath is recommended. It is of very great service in cases of
dropsy, Bright’s disease with poisoning from retained urea, and all
cases in which a vigorous elimination by the skin is desired. It should
not be continued longer than the vapor bath, and much harm may result
from its too frequent employment. Like the vapor bath, this may be
conducted in a suitable box with an opening for the head.