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Acriflavine

E

Edifi

master brummie
In 1949 in Dolman St I came of my bike and unfortunately rubbed my face on the newly resurfaced gritted road quite badly.I was rushed to the General Hospital by someone's car.Iwas treated with a newfound dressing called ACRIFLAVINE which was a Gauze covered in a yellow liquid which I had to keep onmy face .to save infection.It was fairly new having been used to treat War Wounds.It as now been replaced by Antibiotics
 
Yes, Edifi, this was used to treat gunshot wounds and was very good. I'm not sure whether you can buy it over the counter in the UK. I acquired some from an Army doctor many years ago in a small metal tin. Next time I'm in a Greek pharmacy, I'll see if it is available here as you can buy almost anything that isn't derived from an opiate!

Maurice :cool:
 
That brings back memories of falling on a step
I believe I was taken by car to a hospital, where in a darkened room I received a dressing which was a yellow gauze. I still have a small scàr, though hidden by an eyebrow. This was when I was quite young and probably 1939/40.
 
Edifi said:
In 1949 in Dolman St I came of my bike and unfortunately rubbed my face on the newly resurfaced gritted road quite badly.I was rushed to the General Hospital by someone's car.Iwas treated with a newfound dressing called ACRIFLAVINE which was a Gauze covered in a yellow liquid which I had to keep onmy face .to save infection.It was fairly new having been used to treat War Wounds.It as now been replaced by Antibiotics
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Hi Edifi,

That brings back a few painful memories of coming off bikes onto gritted roads (my poor old knees & elbows), I always thought that yellow stuff was known as "AQUAFLAVIN"? I remember it stung like mad lol.

Lozellian.
 
A Sparks said:
I remember that name too, I think maybe my grandmother had some :)
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I remember we had a tube of bright yellow cream called Acraflavine in our first aid / medicine chest. In reality the chest was an old biscuit tin filled with whatever we picked up from various places. Eye patches, Sal Volatile, Sloan's liniment were amongst the things we had, together a small round cardboard tub filled with an ointment called "Blackjack" which dad claimed would cure anything!
 
jmadone said:
I remember we had a tube of bright yellow cream called Acraflavine in our first aid / medicine chest. In reality the chest was an old biscuit tin filled with whatever we picked up from various places. Eye patches, Sal Volatile, Sloan's liniment were amongst the things we had, together a small round cardboard tub filled with an ointment called "Blackjack" which dad claimed would cure anything!
Click to expand...

Blackjack was brilliant stuff, when you had those big deep splinters, a gob of blackjack and a plaster for a few days would soon draw it out.
 
Can someone please tell me what was Blackjack and what was it made of.My mother had some so did my wife's mother when we were young
 
As far as I know it was a shale oil based compound mixed with sheep wool oil and a few other things
 
Edifi said:
Can someone please tell me what was Blackjack and what was it made of.My mother had some so did my wife's mother when we were young
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Hi Edifi,

As far as I'm aware it was an ointment that the older generation swore by to "draw out" items you got stuck in your limbs (arms, legs fingers etc), e.g. wood / metal splinters rose thorns etc.

Lozellian.
 
Sospiri.Why did we all have Boils in our childhood.And as you say Blackjack always got rid of them
 
Well I was told "poor diet", Edifi, and certainly we were short on Vitamin C and some minerals. But I'm not a doctor, but I must admit they have all but disappeared these days.

Maurice
 
sospiri said:
Well I was told "poor diet", Edifi, and certainly we were short on Vitamin C and some minerals. But I'm not a doctor, but I must admit they have all but disappeared these days.

Maurice
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The poor diet bit I can understand, not so much the basics e.g. meat and two veg. but the vitamin C providers as in fruit were a luxury. Apples and pears were not so rare but the likes of oranges, grapes and peaches etc. were unheard of.
We used to say that a sign of being posh was having those sort of fruits in the house even if no-one was sick!
( there was also a saying about being posh involving baths and needing the toilet which I won't go into !!!!!!!)
 
Posh people would hire a pineapple to place on the dinner table. No to eat, just a show of status.
 
I'm sure it did, Edifi. I can't remember the timetable when all the goodies started to reappear after WW1, but I know butter was still on ration in the UK in 1952. It was the year my father suddenly died and my uncle took me on holiday with him to Ireland for three weeks and I brought back two packs of butter from Co. Wicklow. I also remember having my first banana, but I can't remember the year.

"Baby" orange juice was, of course, wonderful, but I think we needed a wide variety of other fruit & vegetables and the minerals they contained, to build up our immune systems and resistant to boils & carbuncles. I think that whitlows also fell into the same category - you don't see those these days either.

Maurice
 
jmadone said:
I remember we had a tube of bright yellow cream called Acraflavine in our first aid / medicine chest. In reality the chest was an old biscuit tin filled with whatever we picked up from various places. Eye patches, Sal Volatile, Sloan's liniment were amongst the things we had, together a small round cardboard tub filled with an ointment called "Blackjack" which dad claimed would cure anything!
[/QU0TE/)
Listening to 'Whatever became of the Likely Lads' on Radio 4 Extra this morning, Sal Volatile was mentioned. Does it still exist? I had a Great Grandmother who when I visited her as she lay in her bed in the front room of my grandmother's house, would suddenly from under the covers bring out a bottle of smelling salts and wave it under my nose, cackling like an old witch as she did, I was 5/6 at the time.
Bob
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Ammonium carbonate
Ammonium carbonate is a salt with the chemical formula2CO3. Since it readily degrades to gaseous ammonia and carbon dioxide upon heating, it is used as a leavening agent and also as smelling salt. It is also known as baker's ammonia and was a predecessor to the more modern leavening agents baking soda and baking powder. It is a component of what was formerly known as sal volatile and salt of hartshorn.
Well Ebay claim to sell it, but that may only be in certain countries.

I was too old, it seems, to qualify for the orange juice, or maybe there was another reason. However, i did like it, if I got the chance to be offered some. Two pages about in this thread:

Food Office Orange Juice

Can anyone remember this "nectar" that we used to have in early to mid-50's. (probably went back to the war years) I remember it having a gorgeous taste so I am wondering if it was some sort of Government concoction to ensure we all got a proper dose of vitamins. But how did it work? Did our...
birminghamhistory.co.uk birminghamhistory.co.uk
 
Sospiri, you mentioned that you can't remember when you had a banana - well, it may have been in 1947 because that was when I tasted my first banana which was probably the time after the War when the banana became available.
 
Thanks, Anthea. I was sick after my first one - I do remember that - and refused any more for several years. In fact I am not really keen on them now, even though they are grown locally here in Crete and are consequently quite inexpensive. My other half insists I each one occasionally because she says they are a good sauce of potassium. But they still don't go down easily! :)

Maurice
 
Going on about fruit and the benefits of it.Afew months ago I suddenly took a liking to Grapes,used to get a punnet from Aldi every week,they we're lovely.But after a few weeks I found out I was going to the T let a lot more often,as well has having my normal meals.So stopped having them.Can anyone explain what was in them that caused it.
 
Lots of fibre and they retains lots of moisture. Just the contents that you need to eat with less friendly items such as bread, Eric. As the old saying goes, "an apple a day.........", but I certainly miss the winter when the majority of soft fruits are not so readily available. Always buy the orange juice with juicy bits, or better still squeeze your own. And don't eat grapefruit if you are taking heart tablets - it has the effect of accentuating the dosage. :cool:

Maurice
 
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