Congenital deformities of the upper extremities / by Arne Birch-Jensen.

  • Birch-Jensen, Arne (Arne Sofus Wind), 1910-
Date:
1949
Catalogue details

Licence: Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0)

Credit: Congenital deformities of the upper extremities / by Arne Birch-Jensen. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    All writers agree lhat X-rays injure the specific ovarian tissue, but they disagree as regards the interstitial tissue. Gaffier, 1933, found through histological investigations that the primordial follicles are far less susceptible than Ihose about to mature. Wintz, 192<S, among others, therefore alleged that injury al subsequent conceptions is very unlikely, provided thai concep tion does not lake place till 4 months after an X-ray treatment. Other writers, e.g. Gauss, 1930, permit X-ray treatment only to patients who are no longer to conceive. In this country Ostergaard Ghristensen, 1935, has studied the effect on the offspring of X-rays to the sexual glands of the parents. He arrived at the following result: »The radiologist must, when administering X-rays, bear in mind the faci that in man the rays may lo a great extent induce hereditary changes in the sexual cells, manifesting themselves by a reduced quality of the offspring«. 0stergaard Christensen's conclusion is of interest in this connexion, even though absence deformities of the upper extremities are not expressly mentioned. The injourious effect of X-rays direct on the foetus is believed to have been proved. Feldweg, 1927, for instance, reported as follows: A woman, aged 36, with adiposity was submitted to X-rays for castration (160 r per ovary). She was then 4 to 6 weeks pregnant. The child, which was born prematurely, was normal except for absence of radius and thumb. In 1939 Engelhardt and Pischinger gave another proof: A woman, aged 34, with 3 living, normal children and one abortion (normal family) was sub mitted to X-rays on account of a myoma, when, without knowing, she was 5 or 6 weeks pregnant. Abortion was induced. The foetus was macerated, and, in addition to defects of nose and lips, there was micromelia of upper and lower extremities and 3 rays in the hands. These intra-uterine foetal disturbances due to X-rays and radium seem nowadays to play no noticeable part, for, with the above and many similar shocking observations in mind, most therapists are scrupulous about instituting radiation treatment to women of the child-bearing age (Nau- joks 1936). 9. Physical injury to the foetus in utero. Direct injuries to the foetus play an extremely small part (Ostertag 1940), for an instrument introduced into the uterus will either terminate the pregnancy or not injure the foetus. In rare cases only have there been traces on the skin, but never defects of extremities (Naujoks). 10. Physical injury to the mother. Injury to the mother's abdomen may lead to partial detachment of the ovum, laceration of the placenta, and haemorrhage, which in certain cases give rise to developmental disturbances and malformations (Kiewe). This