A treatise on the science and practice of midwifery / By W. S. Playfair.
- William Smoult Playfair
- Date:
- 1885
Licence: Public Domain Mark
Credit: A treatise on the science and practice of midwifery / By W. S. Playfair. Source: Wellcome Collection.
Provider: This material has been provided by the Augustus C. Long Health Sciences Library at Columbia University and Columbia University Libraries/Information Services, through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the the Augustus C. Long Health Sciences Library at Columbia University and Columbia University.
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![sign of pregnancy; and it was distinguished from the corpus hiteum of the non-pregnant state by being called a true as opposed to a false corpus luteum. From what has been said it will be obvious that this designation is essentially wrong, as the difference is one of degree only. Dalton ^ applies the terra false corpus luteum to a degenerated con- dition sometimes met with in an unru])tured Graafian follicle consisting in reabsorption of its contents and thicKcning of itswalls (Plate III. Fig. 3), It differs from the true corpus luteum inbeing_deeply seated in the substance of the ovary, in having no central clot, aiidin being uncon- nected with a cicatrix on the surface of the ovary. Nor do obstetricians attach by any means the same importance as they did formerly to the presence of the corpus luteum as indicating impregnation; for even when well marked, other and more reliable signs of recent delivery, such as enlargement of the uterus, are sure to be present, especially at the time when the corpus luteum has reached its maximum of develop- ment ; while after delivery at term it has no longer a sufficiently charac- teristic appearance to be depended on. Mendruation.—By the term menstruation (cataraenia, periods, etc.) is meant the periodical discharge of blood from the uterus which occurs, in the healthy woman, every lunar month, except during pregnancy and lactation, when it is, as a rule, suspended. - Period of Establislwient.—The first appearance of menstruation coin- cides with the establishment of ])uberty, and the physical changes that accompany it indicate that the female is capable of conception and child- bearing, although exceptional cases are recorded in which pregnancy occurred before menstruation had begun. In temperate climates it gen- erally commences between the 14th and 16th years, the largest number of cases being met with in the 15th year. This rule is subject to many_ exceptions, it being by no means very rare for menstruation to become established as early as the 10th or 11th year, or to be delayed until the 18th or 20th. Beyond these physiological limits a few cases are from time to time met with in which it has begun in early infancy, or not until a comparatively late period of life. Influence of Climate, Race, _etc.—Various accidental circumstances have much to do with its establishment. As_a rule, it occurs somewhat earlier in tropical, and later in VCTy^cold than in_teniperate climates. The influence of climate has been unduly exaggerated. It used to be generally stated that in the Arctic regions women did not menstruate until they were of mature age, and that in the tropics, girls of 10 or 12 years of age did so habitually. The researches of Robertson of Man- chester^ first showed that the generally received opinions were erroneous; and the collection of a large number of statistics has corroborated his o])iiiion. There can be no doubt, however, that a larger pro])ortion of girls menstruate early in warin climates. Joulin found that in tropical climates, out of 16.35 cases, the largest pro]-)()rtion began to menstruate tljetwcen the 12th and l:3th years; so that tliere is an average difference of more than tAvo years between the period of its establishment in the tropics and in temperate countries. Harris^ states that among the ' Op. ciL, p. 64. ■■' Edin. Med. and Surf/. Journ., 1832. ^ Amer. .Jon.rn. nf OIjhIpI., 1871, li. I'. Iljirris on early puljerty.](https://iiif.wellcomecollection.org/image/b2121072x_0095.jp2/full/800%2C/0/default.jpg)
