Licence: Public Domain Mark
Credit: Outlines of human pathology / by Herbert Mayo. Source: Wellcome Collection.
Provider: This material has been provided by the Francis A. Countway Library of Medicine, through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the Francis A. Countway Library of Medicine, Harvard Medical School.
104/640 page 68
![of the vertebral column, or irritated by contiguous sympa- thy, diminution of sense and motion of the lower part of the frame, with spasms, and pains of the legs, and inconti- nence of urine, and constipation of the bowels, are liable to follow. Finally, as another consequence of contiguous sympathy, there are liable to occur in the adjacent cellular tissue ex- tensive formations of matter, which point either in the loins or at the groin, under the names of lumbar or psoas abscesses. There is no period of these complaints so advanced as not to admit of their being either cured or arrested. I have already given examples of recovery from the first or simply inflammatory stage. When the ulcerative stage has set up, and the intervening fibro-cartilages have been extensively absorbed, the bones, if not far advanced in caries, admit of being permanently anchylosed. [g. 52.] The loss of the fibro-cartilage neces- sarily causes the spine to bend forwards permanently at the diseased part. Even when matter has formed, temporary recovery may take place. A woman, thirty years of age, had all the symptoms of spinal disease. There was pain and projection at the middle dorsal vertebrae. She was kept in bed a year, and had issues made upon the back. She seemed to have perfectly reco- vered at the expiration of this period, some prominence only remaining of two or three spinous processes. She re- mained well for ten years. Symptoms of her former com- plaint then returned; and she was admitted into the Mid- dlesex Hospital, with constipated bowels, diminished feeling and motion of the legs, and incontinence of urine. Not- withstanding the remedies now resorted to, she became rapidly worse, and died. Very little recent action appeared to have taken place in the back. What is to be described had evidently been left by the former attack. Upon dis- playing the fore-part of the vertebral column, a strong mem- branous cyst was found in front of the part diseased. This cyst was full of inspissated matter nearly as thick as putty: the matter contained fragments of bone, which](https://iiif.wellcomecollection.org/image/b21066735_0104.jp2/full/800%2C/0/default.jpg)
