Medical jurisprudence / by Alfred S. Taylor ; edited with notes and additions by R. Egglesfield Griffith.

  • Taylor, Alfred Swaine, 1806-1880.
Date:
1845
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Medical jurisprudence / by Alfred S. Taylor ; edited with notes and additions by R. Egglesfield Griffith. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the National Library of Medicine (U.S.), through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the National Library of Medicine (U.S.)

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    buting it to poison. It is only where by a coincidence the symptoms come on at or immediately.after something has been swallowed by the patient, that any doubt of the cause to which they may be due, can arise; and here, the doubt would be speedily removed by a post-mortem examination of the body. We must not expect, however, that in these fatal affections of the heart, well marked post-mortem appearances will be always met with. Some pathologists have described a singular condition of this organ, under which the person dies suddenly after experiencing nausea, vertigo, and fainting. In such cases, the parietes of the heart have been found only preternaturally flaccid, and its cavities empty. This has been called by Mr. Chevalier, idiopathic asphyxia, and others have termed it syncopal asphyxia. It does not appear 1o be very common, for very little is known concerning it, or on what the cause of death really depends. In regard to its diagnosis in suspected cases, all that we can say is, that if poi- soning be not clearly negatived by concurrent circumstances, the usual affirma- tive characters are entirely wanting. Distention of the stomach.—This is by no means an unfrequent cause of sudden death. In some instances, the distention of this organ appears to act by inducing apoplexy, the usual marks of that disease being found in the brain. In other cases, death appears to be due to a fatal impression analogous to shock, arising simply from the excessive mechanical distention of the organ: it is not surprising, that a suspicion of poisoning should occasionally arise under such circumstances. I have known several instances to have occurred within the last few years in this metropolis, where .the individuals have gone to bed in their usual health after eating a hearty supper, and have been found dead the following morning. On dissection, no marked changes were found, excepting in some, slight congestion of the cerebral vessels. The most striking appearance was the enormously distended state of the stomach itself. In December, 1839, a girl aged twenty-two, after eating a hearty supper, retired to rest. In about two hours she was found insensible, and she died in the course of a few minutes afterwards. No post-mortem examination was required by the coroner; although it is difficult to understand why, without it, there should have been any necessity for holding an inquest: as the cause of death, which, however, was probably due to the dis- tention of the stomach, was left unexplained. In April, 1841, a man aged thirty-four, ate a very hearty breakfast, consisting of three- quarters of a pound of beef with bread, and a pint and a-half of coffee. In a few minutes afterward, he sat on a barrel to rest himself, but almost immediately fell backwards and expired. This cause of death may be met with in persons of all ages. In November, 1842, a girl aged thirteen, ate a full breakfast: and about an hour after- wards she became insensible, and died in the course of a short time. The only cause which could be assigned for her death, was over distention of the stomach with food, pro- bably leading to apoplexy. The following case, which was the subject of an inquest in August, 1841, is of a doubtful nature. A man aged thirty-seven, who had for some time complained of cramp in the stomach, partook of a full breakfast, consisting of coffee, beefsteaks, and fish. In about half an hour afterwards, he was taken suddenly ill with violent pain and vomiting. He took some salts and cream of tartar: but became worse, and died about three hours after the meal The verdict was, that the man died by the visitation of God, whereby the case was left in the same obscurity as before the inquiry. Rupture of the stomach is said sometimes to occur as a consequence of over- distension, combined with efforts at vomiting. Death is, of course, a speedy con- sequence of this accident. Hence no difficulty can arise in practice with regard to it, because a post-mortem examination would enable the practitioner at once to determine the cause of death. When called to examine a case of suspected narcotic poisoning, where the rv