Thread by @shouldergeek

I keep track of things and I like old books. The other day this old ledger caught my eye online so I bought it. I thought I could keep track of case notes. I like a little bit of history in my books.

It was interesting because it was the ledger from the Canada Southern Railway Line and had been used in 1877. It was mostly blank so I bought it. The ad mentioned that some pages had been used.

When it arrived, it had old book smell but it was in great condition. I pulled it open and noticed the perfectly written script and math scrawled on the inside cover.

I opened to start reading and realized that there was a series of recipes in that tight, neat script written on the first few pages. As I deciphered the script, I realized that this was the treatment for the railroad apothecary.

I wondered if @RyanMarino would find this recipe a solution to his #WTFentanyl mission. Perhaps this #PainExtract won't jump through skin.

I'm not sure what this one is for, but it requires melting so that must be a good thing. Also, since it has hemlock, I wondered if it involved #palliativecare and thought of @nsharpermd

No. 3 was the easiest recipe. It's brought to you by the #sacklerfamily

No. 4 took us to the nervous system. Do you think this would be helpful, @Neuro_Edu_ET

No. 5 is for fevers, but it involves bromide which is a salt... @DrSuperSalty

No. 6 Is another nerve med. Maybe this one would work in the #NeuroICU? What do you think, @MEBroganMD?

Nothing reminds me of #NiagaraFalls like oil of white pine. It's a major ingredient in No. 7 Diuretic Drops. Think it would diurese adequately, @jmugele?

Our recipe writer stopped counting after 7.
I don't know if this would improve your spirits but if anybody would know it would be @KazJNelson. The last ingredient might be why it was so popular!

If you have "Gravel in bladder" there is only one treatment. Can you incorporate this into peds nephrology as well, @rheault_m? It even helps in "severe cases" according to the recipe.

This is a good recipe for aches and pains. It requires pulverizing, so I immediately thought of @NaanDerthaal.

For curing your cough and cold, please consult Mrs. Hungals. Where do I get blood root again? It predates the #flushot but maybe it would work? @DrGRuralMD

I don't know Dr. Perkins, but perhaps this is the next avenue for hepatobiliary exploratory research, @drsuswarner? It looks like it would cure the kidneys, too!

Lastly, there is one for your blood, kidneys, and rheumatism. @_NancyMD and @Orthofacts I think you could both cure rheumatism without this!

Thanks for coming on the journey.

For me, it reminds me of how outdated my surgeries, treatments, and "facts" will look in 100 years. As far as we have come as a profession, medicine has so much more to learn and we must always remain open to our own blindspots.

@threadreaderapp please unroll