fomentation

Definition

The act of fomenting; the application of warm, soft, medicinal substances, as for the purpose of easing pain by relaxing the skin, or of discussing (dispersing) tumours.

Etymology

From Middle English fōmentāciǒun (“act of fomenting; lotion or poultice applied to a diseased part of the body”), from Late Latin fōmentātiō, fōmentātiōnem, from fōmentāre (from fōmentum (“lotion; compress, poultice; warm application; fomentation”), from foveō (“to warm, keep warm; to cherish, nurture; to bathe, foment”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *dʰegʷʰ- (“to burn; warm, hot”)) + -ātiō, -ātiōnem (suffix forming a noun relating to some action or the result of an action); analysable as foment + -ation.

Example Sentences

• "Twenty leeches were ordered to be applied round the nose every two days; frequent emollient fomentations; the local vapour bath; general bathing; stimulating pedilavia; a strict regimen; vegetables, milk, white meats; demulcent or acidulated drinks; avoidance of exposure to the sun or to cold air; flannel waistcoat and trousers. This treatment, being strictly observed for two months, caused all the inflammatory symptoms to disappear, […]"
• "We have already spoken of the great utility of hot fomentation to the stomach and bowels, as a means of relieving intense suffering in any internal organ of the body, or in the extremities."
• "Keeping bhūjra patra or banana leaf above the fourfold cloth is essential. Apart from their attributes to help in this chemical process, they prevent the fall of mercury from the paste through the cloth into the bottom of the pot of dolā yantra. If during fomentation mercury penetrates through the layer of paste then it will remain above the layer of leaf placed over the cloth, thus permitting the intended chemical action to continue."

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