Deafness practically illustrated : being an exposition of original views as to the nature, causes, and treatment of diseases of the ear / by James Yearsley.

  • James Yearsley
Date:
1854
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Deafness practically illustrated : being an exposition of original views as to the nature, causes, and treatment of diseases of the ear / by James Yearsley. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The Royal College of Surgeons of England. The original may be consulted at The Royal College of Surgeons of England.

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    introduced into the ear through a speculum, and the circular piece of membrane removed from the lower and anterior part of the membrane, this being the situation which offers the largest surface of free mem- brane. The chief points for observance in the operation are the selection of the proper spot, and great care that the spiral has good hold of the membrane before the cutting process is commenced. Before performing the operation, the action of the instrument may be beautifully illustrated by operating on a stout bladder or a piece of damp parchment, which resembles the structure of the membrana tympani suffi- ciently for this purpose. After the operation, the ear should be guarded for some days against cold and the influence of the atmo- sphere, by wearing a cap, or inserting a piece of cotton wool in the concha. Many cases in which the operation is at first highly successful are followed by deafness, after a short time, even when the orifice does not close. The cause of this is, I believe, to be found in disease of the cavitas tympani, from the entrance of cold air, by which the fenestral membranes become unfitted for the propagation of sound. For this reason the opera- tion is more likely to be successful if performed in summer than in winter, unless patients can defend themselves by confinement in an equable temperature for a short time after the operation. The wind should also be guarded against, whatever may be the season of the year, after the tympanum is thus suddenly opened, and the ear should be carefully protected f$pm cold until the internal surface of the drum and the cavitas tympani have become accustomed to the new stimulus. Whether it be so recorded I know not, but I have
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