The treatment of infantile paralysis / by Robert W. Lovett.

  • Lovett, Robert W. (Robert Williamson), 1859-1924.
Date:
[1916], ©1916
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: The treatment of infantile paralysis / by Robert W. Lovett. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    Harvard Medical School by his delicate electrical test for sen¬ sation, all showed a diminution of sensation over the affected limb. No more definite statement can be made at present be¬ yond the one that sensation is probably affected if one examines with a sufficiently delicate test. Disturbances oj circulation occur in the severer cases accom¬ panied by atrophy of bone and muscle and by retarded growth, the whole group being spoken of as trophic disturbances. During cold weather such limbs become cold and blue and sub¬ cutaneous areas of discolored tis¬ sue often occur which may break down and if they become infected cause indolent ulcers which repair slowly. Abortive Type/—The abortive type may next be taken up as second in importance. This type was originally described by Dr. C. S. Caverly1 of Rutland, Ver¬ mont, as follows: “It will be seen by these tables that six of these cases had no paralysis, as stated, but all of these had distinct rigidity of the spinal muscles, strabis¬ mus, or other symptoms referable to Fig.’ i. Trophic ulcer of the t r skm in a totally paralyzed leg. the nervous system, and are therefore Occurring in cold weather. included in this report.” Later this type was more fully described by Wickman.2 It consists of an acute febrile attack not generally to be differen¬ tiated at the outset from the attacks followed by paralysis. In general, abortive cases may be divided by their symptoms into the following types: (i) General infection, (2) symptoms of meningeal irritation, (3) cases with much pain like influenza, and (4) cases with marked digestive disturbance. The char- 1 uNew York Med. Rec.,” Dec. 1, 1894. aJour- A. M. A./’ Jan. 4, 1896. 2 Wickman: “Die Akute Poliomyelitis, Heine Medinsche Krankheit,” Berlin, 1911.