Anatomical and physiological observations (continued) / by John Struthers.

  • John Struthers
Date:
[1858?]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Anatomical and physiological observations (continued) / by John Struthers. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The Royal College of Surgeons of England. The original may be consulted at The Royal College of Surgeons of England.

    19/28 (page 257)
    XVIIl. DEMONSTEATION ON THE USE OF THE HOUND LIGAMENT OE THE HIP JOINT. [Communicated to the British Association, September 1855; to the Edinburgh Medico-Chirurgioal Society, February 1857; and Reprinted from the Edinburgh Medical Journal, November 1858.] Previous writers have erred regarding the use of this important ligament, from not employing a right method. By removing more or less of the capsular ligament, they destroyed a structure which naturally prevents several motions from going so far as to put the round ligament on the stretch. They have therefore attributed to it uses which it has not; while, from not seeing it in its natural position, they have unavoidably failed to recognise its true use. If we sit down to examine it in a preparation in which the cap- sular ligament has been completely divided, the matter becomes extremely puzzling, and we hardly wonder at the conclusion of our own time-honoured Dr Barclay, that the use of the round ligament seemed “ the restoring the head of the bone to a right direction, when it had partially quitted, or was disposed to quit, the cavity of the acetabulum, and the maintaining it in that direction, so as to replace the head of the femur readily in its socket, under a variety of circumstances.” On further examination, we might agree with Mr Mayo, that it checks rotation inwards ; next with Dr Knox, that it checks all the rotatory movements, simple or combined. Then, on considering the anatomy of the ligament, and G. and E. Weber’s remarks and drawing, we might be persuaded that these anatomists had finally proved the correctness of the view of various previous writers, that this ligament checks adduction. The more so, as the Webers’ plausible theory is, that by checking adduction, the liga- ment serves, when we stand on one leg, to balance or keep up the trunk, preventing it from falling over to the unsupported side. But, when we consider that the trunk can be bent over laterally to a con-