Digitalis

(dīj-e-ta'lis.) [L., literally pertaining to the finger, from its five-parted, leafy calyx.] (Bot.) A gen. of plants, O. Scrophulariaceæ. The Foxglove, D. purpure a, a European species, cultivated in gardens for its stately beauty, po e es in all its parts powerful medicinal properties, which are due to an extremely poisonous substance called dig italia. In medicine, the leaves are the parts used, in the form of tincture and infusion. The effects of this drug are various and remarkable; that most frequently observed is a loosening of the force and frequency of the pulse. It is most frequently employed in certain cases of dropsy and of heart disease, with great benefit, though its use demands care and vigilance on the part of the practitioner. [s. 287]