Notes on the medical application of electricity / by William F. Channing.

  • Channing, William F. (William Francis), 1820-1901.
Date:
1852
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Notes on the medical application of electricity / by William F. Channing. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the Harvey Cushing/John Hay Whitney Medical Library at Yale University, through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the Harvey Cushing/John Hay Whitney Medical Library at Yale University.

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    vessels and blood contained in them. A persistent clot can be obtained by proper management, with a con- stant current, without cauterizing the arterial tissue, or producing grave derangements. The hemorrhage, on withdrawing the needles, is generally from the negative pole, and easily arrested by cold water. 261. The vital character of the coagulum, formed by galvanism, has been denied elsewhere,* but ap- parently without sufficient reason. M. Petrequin, surgeon-in-chief of the Hotel Dieu, of Lyons,—to whom the priority of this application is generally accorded, though a claim has also been made by Mr. B. Phillips, of London, — performed his first experi- ments upon human blood immediately after its ex- traction. Blood, therefore, seems to be susceptible of coagulation while its vitality lasts, although with- drawn from the vessels. 262. In the session of the French Academy of Oct. 27, 1845,f M. Petrequin communicated the first case of aneurism treated by this method. This was a traumatic aneurism of the temporal artery of the size of an almond, of a soft consistence, and slightly sensible on pressure. Two fine needles of steel (gold or platinum should always be employed) were plunged about four fifths of an inch into the tumor, so as to cross at right angles. A battery, gradually increased to fifteen pairs, was connected with these for ten or twelve minutes. Considerable pain was experienced, the pulsations gradually diminishing to * Banking's Abstract, No. 5. t Encyclog. des Sc. Med. Nov. 1845. — Comptes Rendus.