THE MEDICAL SCHOOLS.

THE MEDICAL SCHOOLS.

235 kidncy, or the liver results in anorexia, or perhaps vomiting. Gripf, joy, worry, and pain lead to similar results. When there is toxsemia from co...

190KB Sizes 1 Downloads 84 Views

235 kidncy, or the liver results in anorexia, or perhaps vomiting. Gripf, joy, worry, and pain lead to similar results. When there is toxsemia from constipation, or renal or cutaneous insufficiency, or other sources,

the testicle, the

Finally, he submitted to the operation of a woman dentist whose agency was to arrest tooth worms. Her general operation is as follows: a chopstick and a silver pin are the only instruments she requires in her normal act. She is willing to exhibit them to anyone who conceives an inclination of discerning her trickery. She brings the chopstick in contact with the diseased tooth and cautiously pokes it through with a pin in fearch of the odious worms ; after a while scrapes out a lump of yellow minute worms on the chopstick and immerses it in a cup of water. Each lump consists of from ten to fifteen worms, and sometimes two or three hundred worms arerscrapEd it the patient makes an exact bargain at first that the fee should be defrayed according to the number of ’Worms scraped. The general fee is 400 cash (Is. 2d.), and only the poor may take advantage of being in penury to pay 200 cash." -

THE MEDICAL SCHOOLS. SINCE the publication of our table showing in detail the number of students who had entered upon or who were continuing their medical curricula during the session 1894-95,1 we have received returns from the University of Edinburgh, St. Mungo’s College, Glasgow, and Queen’s College, Belfast. The new entries at the Edinburgh University show a total of 136, the number of students on the roll, including the fifth year and upwards, being 1213. St. Mungo’s College has 21 new entries, with 25 students of the first year, 20 of the second year, 33 of the third year, and 12 of the fourth year. The total number of medical students attending Queen’s College, Belfast, is 187, of whom 33 are new entries. NEED OF NOTIFICATION AT YEOVIL. THE Yeovil School Board have been in some difficulty owing to the fact that the town council have not adopted the Act relating to the notification of infectious diseases. They observed a falling off in attendances ; they knew it was, in part at least, due to infectious sickness, and they sought the advice of the borough medical officer of health as to the significance of the facts and as to the action which they ought to take in them. But Mr. Garland explained that he could not help them. The town council gave him no means of securing accurate information as to the condition of his district as regards disease, or as to the prospects of further spread or of abatement of the current disease. The School Board then did the best they could under the circumstances. They decided to close the infants’ school, and then to bring the whole matter under the notice of the town council. It remains to be seen whether the latter body will decide that for the future it is their duty to use the available means for learning what is the true sanitary state of their district, whether suspension of elementary education or other action be in question.

it is the stomach that raises the alarm. In the cerebral anaemia of sea-sickness or of a fainting fit and in the cerebral congestion of sunstroke the gastric are in the tumultuous front of the anarchistic functions. Now, of those suffering from these various irritations-any of which, either through toxasmia or reflex disturbances, may lead to the gastric symptoms - if the stomach contents were examined there would be found no evidence of subacute gastritis, none of the "ropy mucus " which is so much talked and written about, but which those who have largely studied gastric contents usually fail to discover ; but there would be found testimony that there had occurred a serious derangement in gastric innervation, exhibiting itself to some extent as excitement, to some extent as depression, and in some instances it is impracticable to say that either of these states predominates. Where will the trouble be found?7 The nerve irritation may be prone to be some central structural disease or persistent circulatory disturbance, or it may follow excessive mental strain, as seen in actors, school teachers, &:3., or it may be, and in fact often is, accounted for by defects in the development of functional disorders. It will also be found that irritation of the spinal cord-either directly, as from pressure in lordosis, scoliosis, and other sources, or interference with innervation, as in tabes and myelitis ; or indirectly, as in irritation from hysterical spine-is a common source of gastric disorder. Further than this, the mischief may be lurking in the genito-urinary apparatus. As regards the influence of toxsemia, one of the most common forms results from defects of the kidneys, either dependent upon nephritis or upon renal inadequacy. So alcohol, tobacco, coffee, and other substances may induce digestive disturbance indirectly through the blood and nervous system. Malaria, gout, and tuberculosis often offend in the same manner. Finally, Dr. Stockton lays stress upon the later phases of syphilis being a cause that has apparently passed unnoticed.

THE " NEW STREET DANGER."

THE "new street danger" is losing its novelty. In THE LANCET of Nov. 17th last there appeared comments on the accident connected with electric lighting mains in Cannon-street. Since that time Easton-road and more recently St. James’s-street have each been the scene of a similar disaster. Owing to the alarm caused by the frequency and danger of such accidents, it is now proposed to present a petition to the Board of Trade that immediate steps be taken to prevent their recurrence. It is, however, difficult to believe that that Board, aware of the FUNCTIONAL GASTRIC DISORDERS. danger and fully informed of the facts, will delay effective until urged forward under pressure of a public action IN the j1{edical News of Dec. 15th, 1894, Dr. C. G. Stockton draws attention to gastric disorders dependent upon func- petition. It is not to be doubted-(l) that serious explosions tional disturbances. We quite agree with him that themay occur in connexion with electrical leakage in underquestion of persistent functional disorders of the stomach isground mains both on the high-pressure and on the lownot sufficiently frequently raised. In the treatment of thepressure systems ; (2) that in consequence of leakage from various forms of indigestion direction is given, as a rule, high-pressure mains into the surrounding ground men have purely to an attempt to aid the gastric functions to a better. been injured and horses killed by electric shock; and (3) that performance of their duties, and sufficient attention is notsuch accidents are to be regarded as "preventable." The paid to the cause of these disturbances. In the first place, causes that lead to them are becoming fairly well known. It recognised that amongst the measures to avert these occurit may be said that the functional gastric disorder is very rarely a primary trouble. In ratio to the ability tcrences are to be enumerated a due regard to the kind and conhunt down and remove the causal factor will be thestruction of cables, care and foresight in the laying of mains, success in relieving the neurosis. The stomach, like aa proper "earthing" of the outer conductor of concentric mirror, reflects pretty nearly every influence to which thEcables, efficient insulation, precautions to secure ventilation organism is subjected. Irritation of the brain, the spinal cord, and drainage of culverts and junction boxes, and an efficient inspection of the entire system. Such accidents are to be 1 THE deplored, not only on account of danger to the public, but LANCET, Nov. 3rd, 1894, p. 1051. -

.

J

is