` :::::No, you don't necessarily need to discount them, but you certainly need (if they are used) to qualify and explain the issues with them (the reader shouldn't have to do any more work than reading the article. An encyclopaedia is, after all, a compendium of already published thought and so should act as a definitive reference for the average reader. Yes, some medical advice from the 1880s is relevant today, but it has been backed up by modern research: it wouldn't be acceptable on its own merits alone. Perhaps you could suggest a rewrite (here) and we could see how people feel about that?  -s- `