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SULPHURIC ACID. 237

substitute for the diluted form hi debility with night sweats, loss
of appetite during convalescence from fevers, hemoptysis and
other hemorrhages, and epidemic dysentery. Externally it is ap-
plied to carious bone, ulcers, in the treatment of pyorrhoea alveo-
laris, especially where there is necrosis of the alveolar walls,
when it is applied on cotton packed in the pockets ; also in
chronic alveolar abscesses. For such purposes it must be kept
in the pockets, sinuses and abscesses for several hours in order to
insure its full effects. It is also employed locally in cancrum
oris and gangrene of the mouth, and largely diluted, it forms an
efficient astringent mouth wash in simple stomatitis, etc.
Dose.—Of aromatic sulphuric acid, Hlv to lUxxx, three times
a day, in water.
Dental Uses of the Different Forms of Sulphuric Acid.—The
concentrated sulphuric acid is employed as a caustic in malignant
ulcers, cancrum oris, gangrene, etc., in the form of a paste, made
by mixing it with powdered sulphate of zinc. The concentrated
sulphuric acid is also used in the dental laboratory to cleanse
metal plates, preparatory to and after soldering, for which purpose
it is generally diluted with one-third of water, its action being
greater when it is in a warm state. The concentrated acid is also
used in combination with nitric acid to reduce hemp paper to
pyroxylin, in the preparation of the celluloid base.
The aromatic sulphuric acid is similar in its action to the di-
luted form, and is more agreeable for use about the mouth.
It is a valuable application in pyorrhoea alveolaris (Riggs' dis-
ease), and in caries and necrosis of the maxillarv bones, as an in-
jection or lotion, as it stimulates the parts to healthy action by
favoring healthy granulation. It may be applied to parts about the
teeth, in cases of recession of the gums and absorption of the
processes, on a properlv-shaped piece of orange wood. It is also
valuable in alveolar abscesses as an injection, especially in slug-
gish cases, when the addition of a few drops of tincture of cap-
sicum will prove serviceable. It has the power of dissolving the
thin, carious portions of the bones, such as the margins of the
alveolar cavities, and can be applied on cotton saturated with it
and permitted to remain for several hours, when the parts should