Volume 2

The American encyclopedia and dictionary of ophthalmology / edited by Casey A. Wood, assisted by a large staff of collaborators.

Date:
1913-1921
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: The American encyclopedia and dictionary of ophthalmology / edited by Casey A. Wood, assisted by a large staff of collaborators. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    779/814 (page 1477)
    CATARACT, CURATIVE MEASURES FOR in position for a minute or two, after which the point was slowly raised to see if the cataract had been permanently dislocated; if not, the depression was repeated. The reclination operation of Willhurg. Willburg, to obtain better results than those furnished by depression, modified the operation so that the lens occupied a horizontal position in the vitreous humor; the anterior capsule looking upwards and the posterior downwards. The steps of Willburg’s operation are the same as in depression except that the point of the needle is placed above the antero-posterior axis of the lens and pressure made backwards and downwards, so that it disappears from the line of vision and occupies a horizontal plane in the vitreous. This operation gave somewhat better results than depression. Reclinatio^i hy means of scleronyxis. Axenfeld has sought to avoid some of the dangers of reclination by doing a preliminary iridectomy. The needle point is passed through the sclera in the usual way and the pressure against the lens is mostly exercised in the coloboma, as shown in the illustration. However, although the iridectomy may render less likely a secondary glaucoma it does not, unfortunately, preclude the possibility of expulsive hemorrhage (for which most couching operations seem to have their chief value) because second- ary bleeding is known to follow excision of the iris. Holmes Spicer also gives an account of a successful couching by . means of a Scarpa’s needle passed through the sclera behind the ciliary body. The (one-eyed) patient was able to resume his occu- pation.—(P. A. C.) Cataract, Curative measures for. See Cataract. Cataract, Cystic. Puese-ltke cataract. Putrid cataract. Puru- lent CATARACT. Fetid CATAR.4.CT. In this Very rare form of the disease the cataract has the shape of a bag, a portion of which projects hernia-like into the anterior chamber. This condition results from the liquefaction of the lens fibres in certain forms of congenital cat- aract. When advanced liquefaction occurs the mass sometimes becomes putrid and if the capsule be incised a disagreeable odor may be observed—hence the terms fetid and purulent. I Cataract, Depression of. See Cataract, Couching of. I Cataract, Diabetic. Just as diabetes in persons over 45 years of age is ‘ a much less serious disease than when it occurs in youth, so do cataracts occurring in elderly subjects with diabetes differ from the diabetic cataract of childhood. While nearly all cataracts occurring beyond middle age partake of the usual senile characteristics the lenticular opacities in juvenile diabetes have theii special signs. As