Malignant pustule ; Acute farcy or glanders in the human subject ; Cases of muscular anaesthesia? / by Alfred Carpenter.

  • Carpenter, Alfred, 1825-
Date:
[1874]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Malignant pustule ; Acute farcy or glanders in the human subject ; Cases of muscular anaesthesia? / by Alfred Carpenter. 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.

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    colouredwith about | albumeii'and contained much bile pigment; is now neutral, sp. gr. I'Oll. The neutrality did not continue, for next day it was slightly acid, and without albumen, but it presented a deposit which the microscope shewed to be granular exudation corpuscles, but no casts could be found. On March 23rd she revived, and had lost much of the acute pain in the costal cartilages, except when pressure was used: she did not complain of pain when pressure was made over either liver or kidneys, whilst no swelling could be de- tected in either organ. This revival was transient, for on the 24th she had a rigor, which was followed by an attack of spinal convulsion lasting 20 minutes ; but it did not produce uncon- sciousness. This was followed by severe pain in the abdomen, and when visited two hours afterwards, the epigastric vein on right side could' be felt along its whole course as a thick cord, whilst several branches could be felt through the now thinner abdominal walls as if the mesenteric veins were plugged. The heart’s sounds were weak, pulse 115, small and feeble. For a short time she appeared to be dying. The ammonia was im- mediately resumed in small doses every few minutes, then every half hour, and, as soon as she revived, at longer intervals. The urine passed in the morning before the fit, had a sp. gr. of I’OOS, no albumen, slightly acid, but a slight quantity of coulouring matter still there. [Such was her condition when the paper was read : the rest of the history of her case has been written subsequently.] At 11 p.m. the pain was relieved, the pulse had recovered its power, 116, the convulsions had not returned, and she expressed herself as very much better. The knees were drawn up, but pressure could be easily borne on the abdomen. Immediately she began to take the ammonia again she felt relieved, and began to revive; she had a fairly good night, and on the 25th continued to improve. On the 26th the pain in the illiac region was considerable. Pulse 110. Temp. IOO5. But from that time all unfavourable points decreased, dangerous symptoms never returned, and she continued day by day to recover her power. The colouring matter disappeared from the urine; the white alvine evacuations which made their appearance after the convulsion, gave way to properly coloured ones. The cords in the abdominal region departed very slowly, and on April 21st the positive signs of disease were all gone. Pulse 86, tongue