Bokelmann, O.: Blood Changes in the Menstrual Cycle

540

AMERICAN JOURNAL OF OBSTETRICS AND GYNECOLOGY

c.omparable at corresponding hour~ on different day~. 'l'he hourly variations are as marked during the interrnenstrnu l J•Prind as ,Juring the menstrual period. 'l'here is usually a dindnntion in the hemoglobin during menstrnation, the amount varying conHidPrably with differ·ent imlivi tend~ to lot' n rise in lu•moglohin which continues to increas•· ~lightly during thP intt>rmen~tmal pha"'· \V. H. SERB! X

Bokelmann, 0.: Blood Changes in the Menstrual Cycle, Arch. f. Gynlik. 164: :397, )937.

There is a definite decreaBe in both erythrocytes and hemoglobin content duringmenstruation. During the premenstrual and postmenstrual periods both are increased. The drop during menses is not due to a thinning or dilution of the blood nor to the blood lo8s. 'l'here is also a decrease in thromboeytes during the men strual phase. 'l'he reticulocytes increaRe during· the premenstrual, menstrual, an•l postmenstrual phases. '!'here is al~o nn increase in bleeding time during thf' menstrual phase. No
Gebert, Willy:

Capillary Function and Menstruation, Klin. Wchnsehr. 15: 828,

1936.

Gebert discusses the various eirculator~· changes which are found as regular accompaniments of the menstrual cycle such as the premenstrual migraine, pre· menstrual rise in blood pressure and vicarious menstruation, etc. An attempt was made to study the capillary changes during the menstrual cycle, as it seemed these changes might be important in the understanding of premenstrual migraine and the various types of intracranial bleedings which accompany menstruation. He therefore investigated the changes in the dermographic latent period and found that capillary function is directly influenced by the various changes associated with the menstrual cycle. 'l'here is a definite decrease of the dermographic latent period during the immediate premenstrual days which is followed by a marked rise which reaches Hs peak with the onset of the menstrual flow . .b'ollowing this peak there is a rapid falling off until the latent period reaches the normal level again. This occurs as the menstrual flow ends. This premenstrual ri~e must he due t.o a spastic condition of the capillary bed. RALPH A. REI8

Mazer, Charles, Israel, Leon, and Kacher, Leon:

Pseudomenstruation in the

Human Female, Surg. Gynec. Obst. 65: 30, 1937. Cyclic uterine bleeding, clinically indistinguishable from a normal menstrual flow, but coming from an endometrium totally lacking the u-sual secretory changes, occurs in 30 per cent of sterile women who present no abnormality. 'l'he condition is rarely encountered in fertile or potentially fertile women. 'l'he condition may be due to failure of ovulation, a developmental or acquired la••,k of responsiveness of the uterus to a normal ovarian activity or to a quantitative or qualitative disharmony between the two ovarian hormones, estrin and progestin. When the diagnosis is based on endometrial findings alone, the term ''pseudomenstruation'' is preferable to '' anovular menstruation'' because the presence of the latter cannot be proved without concomitant study of the ovaries. WM.

Gillman, Joseph:

C.

HENSKE

Experimental Studies on the Menstrual Cycle of the Baboon,

South African J. M. Sc. 2: 156, 1937. Hartman in 1U32 reported that repeated laparotomies and manipulation of the ovaries do not apparently interfere with the course of the menstrual cycle in the MMM'!/,8 rheS'lkS.