The operative treatment of intra-thoracic effusion / by Norman Porritt.

  • Porritt, Norman, 1858-
Date:
[1883?]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: The operative treatment of intra-thoracic effusion / by Norman Porritt. 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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    CHAPTER I. Intra-thoracic Effusion. By the term Intra-thoracic Effiision we denote that class of diseases or form of accident characterized by the accumulation or deposition of liquid or gaseous matter—mixed or alone—in one or more of the cavities within the thorax. The cavities in which effused material has been found are the following:— 1. The mediastina. 2. The pericardium. 3. The pleura. The nature of the effusion varies, and the products here mentioned have been met with :— 1. Serum. 2. Pus. 3. Air; either alone or mingled with serous, purulent or sanguineous fluids. 4. Blood. 5. The fluid of hydatid cysts. 6. Intestinal contents, with abdominal viscera. 7. Contents of the stomach. It is the pleural cavity that is most frequently implicated, and the surgical means and operative measures of service in restoring it to the normal con- dition vv^ill, therefore, first receive attention ; the treatment necessary when effusion takes place into the pericardium and mediastina being reserved for consideration afterwards. Preliminary allusion to certain anatomical and physiological points respecting the Thorax, vv^ill, however, be desirable. The Thorax. The Thorax is a barrel-shaped conical cavity, con- taining the larger organs of respiration and circulation.