The leprous diseases of the eye / by O.B. Bull and G.A. Hanson.

  • Bull, O. B. (Ole Bornemann), 1842-1916.
Date:
1873
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: The leprous diseases of the eye / by O.B. Bull and G.A. Hanson. 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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    thus induced. We shall only remark that the blood-vessels are more numerous, and lie closer together than in the leprous obscuration; and that proportionally more corneal cells are found altered in form, which may perhaps be attributed to, or considered as connected with, the more acute course of the disease. It has not been possible to superinduce experimentally anything similar to the leprous spots on the Cornea. According to the above data, and assisted by experiment, we may thus conclude that the corneal cells contribute actively to the formation of new cells, as well in the spots as in the Pannus-like obscuration. On the other hand it must be admit- ted that the great accumulation of cells in the Pannus-like obscuration is undoubtedly attributable to the migration of white blood-globules from the newly formed vessels; because the mass of altered corneal cells does not stand in any proportion what- ever to the mass of new cells. A fact to which our attention should be directed is that, both in the leprous Pannus and in the Pannus superinduced in rabbits by artificial means above described, round cells are never found along the youngest out- shoots and fascicles of vessels projecting furthest into the Cor- nea, excepting quite isolatedly here and there. Now the occur- rence of the leprous spots still nearer to the centre of the Cornea indicates that they are to a certain extent independent of the immigration of the cells which accompanies the formation of the Pannus. A microscopic spot, as delineated in Fig.’ 3, gives the impression of having been produced by the division of a single corneal cell into small pieces, which have attained to further development before undergoing the regressive meta- morphosis.*) *) It might perhaps be objected that the corneal particle had fallen to pieces only in consequence of death; but this objection will scarcely hold good. In all the younger spots examined, all the pieces of protoplasma, large or small, have exhibited the usual appearanee of living protoplasma. To con- nect our subject with the vexed question of the functions of the cellular tissue in inflammation, would carry us too far; as the object is only to represent facts for Leprosy. If I should refer to any literary publications, I should prefer to name Prof. Beale’s works on cellular tissue and “germinative matter” (the microscope in medicine) which seem not to have been duly considered in the recent discussion on these subjects. I must also take occasion to defend my- self against the assumption of Hoffmann (Vischows Archiv LIV. P. 508 Anm.) that in my preparations made at Vienna I have had before me a “mixtum compositum” of fixed and migratory cells. I must deny that any such inference can be