Volume 1
The science and practice of medicine / By William Aitken ... From the 4th London ed., with additions, by Meredith Clymer.
- William Aitken
- Date:
- 1866
Licence: Public Domain Mark
Credit: The science and practice of medicine / By William Aitken ... From the 4th London ed., with additions, by Meredith Clymer. Source: Wellcome Collection.
Provider: This material has been provided by the University of Massachusetts Medical School, Lamar Soutter Library, through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the Lamar Soutter Library at the University of Massachusetts Medical School.
946/972 page 936
![the superficial part of the cutis, or even ou the surface of the latter, —the cuticle being raised. Another and smaller specimen most clearly showed the develop- ment of the fungi at the very spot where, in all probability, their germs were first produced. In other parts there is a prolongation of the growth into the subjacent tissues, and their pink-colored particles were to be seen. The local nature of the whole affection —its very beginning—was here unmistakably displayed; and the superficial appearance of the skin gave the impression that a vesicle or blister had once existed there, not at all unlike that left after a Guinea worm has begun to discharge, as it is well known that the end of the worm makes its appearance in the centre of such a cir- cular spot. A further examination of the fungous particles showed their perfect resemblance to those of older specimens, and bodies not unlike spores were occasionally seen. [It may be regarded as certain, that the hand or foot becomes accidentally inoculated with the spores of some fungus, which, at certain periods of the year, most likely during the wet season, makes its appearance on the soil of particular localities. The naked, unwashed feet of the agricultural laborer must be peculiarly liable to receive it, and the pre-existence of an abrasion of the skin is not necessary, for the spores are abundantly capable of passing into natural apertures—e. g., the sweat-ducts. The pinkish streaks on examination have been found to contain numerous spore-like cells in various states of growth, and probably constitute the first stage of the disease (Carter).] LAKVA OE GRUB THE EXCITING CAUSE OE BULAMA BOIL. My friend Dr. Albert A. Gore, Staff Assistant-Surgeon on the West Coast of Africa, has kindly favored me with the following account of this parasite and the disease which it induces: This small larva or grub is of a white color, a line or two in length, and is the exciting cause of a boil oecasionall}' seen in the Island of Bulama and its neighborhood (Fig. 47). When magnified under a low power (Fig. 48), it appears to be divided into a series of joints, and covered with minute bulbous hairs. On the anterior division are placed four or five red spots (b), and from either side project two hollow suc- tion tubes (a, «). The posterior extremity seems to be terminated by a blunt hook. In applying a higher power the bulbous hairs turn out to be a number of beautiful black hooklets (Fig. 49), which have a very pretty appearance on the white surface. A faint outline of a central cavity can be discerned. The hooklets are directed anteriorly. Symptoms, Treatment, &c.—Attention is first attracted to the part](https://iiif.wellcomecollection.org/image/b21196606_sciencepracticeo00aitk_0946.jp2/full/800%2C/0/default.jpg)
