ABSTRACT
“The young practitioner may bear in mind that patients are more often damaged than helped by the promiscuous drugging which is still only too prevalent.” These were the words of Sir William Osier in the introduction to the fifth edition of his textbook of medicine (Osier, 1920). Dr. Eugene DuBois, in his presidential address to the Association of American Physicians, quoted Osier’s remarks but further pointed out that Osier, after giving his admonition, went on in the body of his book to recommend for the therapy of pneumonia “bleeding, veratrum viride, Paquelin cautery, hot poultices, cold baths, Dover’s powers, and strychnine” (DuBois, 1937). None of these agents would be expected to exert a significant effect on a patient suffering from pneumonia.
