Thomas Sutton (1767–1835), a

physician A physician, medical practitioner (British English), medical doctor, or simply doctor is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through the Medical education, study, Med ...

Kent, England Kent is a ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Greater London to the north-west. ...

, was the first to publish a description of

delirium tremens Delirium tremens (DTs; ) is a rapid onset of confusion usually caused by withdrawal from alcohol. When it occurs, it is often three days into the withdrawal symptoms and lasts for two to three days. Physical effects may include shaking, sh ...

(the "DTs") and to connect the illness to an over indulgence in

alcohol Alcohol may refer to: Common uses * Alcohol (chemistry), a class of compounds * Ethanol, one of several alcohols, commonly known as alcohol in everyday life ** Alcohol (drug), intoxicant found in alcoholic beverages ** Alcoholic beverage, an alco ...

. Sutton was born in

Staffordshire, England Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation ''Staffs''.) is a ceremonial county in the West Midlands of England. It borders Cheshire to the north-west, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, Warwickshire to the south-east, the West Midlands cou ...

about 1767. He studied

medicine Medicine is the science and Praxis (process), practice of caring for patients, managing the Medical diagnosis, diagnosis, prognosis, Preventive medicine, prevention, therapy, treatment, Palliative care, palliation of their injury or disease, ...

in London, England, Edinburgh, Scotland, and

Leiden Leiden ( ; ; in English language, English and Archaism, archaic Dutch language, Dutch also Leyden) is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Provinces of the Nethe ...

, The Netherlands, which granted him an

M.D. A Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated MD, from the Latin ) is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the ''MD'' denotes a professional degree of physician. This ge ...

in 1787. He became a Licentiate of the

Royal College of Physicians The Royal College of Physicians of London, commonly referred to simply as the Royal College of Physicians (RCP), is a British professional membership body dedicated to improving the practice of medicine, chiefly through the accreditation of ph ...

in 1790. He served in the Army and then settled in Greenwich, England to become a consultant at the Kent Dispensary and to practice medicine. In 1813, Sutton published his book, ''Tracts on Delirium Tremens, on Peritonitis, and on Some other Internal Inflammatory Affections, and on the Gout''. The chapter on delirium tremens contains sixteen case-reports with detailed description of the symptoms and the differential diagnosis from "phrenitis" (another term for delirium) due to inflammation of the

brain The brain is an organ (biology), organ that serves as the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate and most invertebrate animals. It consists of nervous tissue and is typically located in the head (cephalization), usually near organs for ...

and from

mania Mania, also known as manic syndrome, is a Psychiatry, psychiatric Abnormality (behavior), behavioral syndrome defined as a state of Abnormality (behavior), abnormally elevated arousal, affect (psychology), affect, and energy level. During a mani ...

. He described the unusual case of a woman not known to be inebriated but he discovered that she frequently imbibed large quantities of

Tincture A tincture is typically an extract of plant or animal material dissolved in ethanol (ethyl alcohol). Solvent concentrations of 25–60% are common, but may run as high as 90%.Groot Handboek Geneeskrachtige Planten by Geert Verhelst In chemistr ...

Lavender ''Lavandula'' (common name lavender) is a genus of 47 known species of perennial flowering plants in the sage family, Lamiaceae. It is native plant, native to the Old World, primarily found across the drier, warmer regions of the Mediterranean ...

, which has an alcohol base. Sutton's treatment for delirium tremens discarded the use of

bleeding Bleeding, hemorrhage, haemorrhage or blood loss, is blood escaping from the circulatory system from damaged blood vessels. Bleeding can occur internally, or externally either through a natural opening such as the mouth, nose, ear, urethr ...

, an accepted medical method unless the patient was plethoric. Instead, he used

opium Opium (also known as poppy tears, or Lachryma papaveris) is the dried latex obtained from the seed Capsule (fruit), capsules of the opium poppy ''Papaver somniferum''. Approximately 12 percent of opium is made up of the analgesic alkaloid mor ...

in sufficient dosage to induce sleep from which the patient awoke improved. He suggested purgation if needed noting that opium may cause a confined

bowel The gastrointestinal tract (GI tract, digestive tract, alimentary canal) is the tract or passageway of the digestive system that leads from the mouth to the anus. The tract is the largest of the body's systems, after the cardiovascular system. T ...

state and that blistering appeared to be of no use. Sutton died at Greenwich in 1835.

Works

Sutton, Thomas. ''Dissertatio medica inauguralis de febre intermittente ...'' eyden Lugduni Batavorum, Fratres Murray, 1787. Sutton, Thomas. ''A Practical Account of a Remittent Fever, Frequently Occurring among the Troops in this Climate''. Canterbury, Printed by James Simmons, 1806. Sutton, Thomas. ''Tracts on Delirium Tremens, on Peritonitis, and on Some other Internal Inflammatory Affections, and on the Gout''. London, Underwood, 1813. https://archive.org/details/tractsondelirium00sutt Sutton, Thomas. " ase reports" ''Edinburgh Medical and Surgical Journal'' (1813): 318–321. Sutton, Thomas. "On the Effects of Temperature in Pulmonary Consumption," ''The Medical and Physical Journal'' (1815): 89–97. Sutton, Thomas. "On the Influence of Climate in Pulmonary Consumption," ''The Medical and Physical Journal'' (1817): 456–466. Sutton, Thomas. ''Abhandlung über das Delirium tremens. Aus dem Englischen übers. von Philipp Heineken''. Bremen, Kaiser, 1820. Sutton, Thomas. "On the advantages of Milk as a Food in Fever," ''The London Medical Repository and Review'' (1822): 194–196.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sutton, Thomas 1767 births 1835 deaths People from Staffordshire Licentiates of the Royal College of Physicians 18th-century English medical doctors 19th-century English medical doctors People from Greenwich