The pathology of intra-uterine death being the Lumleian lectures delivered at the Royal College of Physicians of London, March 1887 / by William O. Priestley.

  • Priestley, W. O. (William Overend), 1831-1900.
Date:
1887
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: The pathology of intra-uterine death being the Lumleian lectures delivered at the Royal College of Physicians of London, March 1887 / by William O. Priestley. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by Royal College of Physicians, London. The original may be consulted at Royal College of Physicians, London.

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    the uterus to become the outermost of the foetal membranes, to the formation of the fully grown placenta, there is no pause or cessation in the active changes which characterise the progress of growth. The cells and fibres which build up the tissues day by day undergo progressive change, and the vessels equally undergo modification in size, form, character, and in their relation to surrounding parts. The vegetative process is, indeed, so active that if any derangement occurs, either from accident or disease, the morbid change thus initiated is, or may be, impressed with the same activity, and rapid degeneration takes place, or abnormal growths are produced with surprising quickness. It can scarcely be a matter of surprise, therefore, that pathological researches into these unstable and ever-changing structures should be beset with diffi- culties, and that equally conscientious and accurate observers hold different views concerning the nature of some of the pathological results hereafter to be described. The earlier the period of gestation, the greater apparently is the difficulty of pursuing inves- tigations. Then all the tissues are so fragile and delicate that if specimens are procurable their efficient injection is well-nigh impossible, and they are likely to be so contused and broken that their true condition is not easily determined. Notwith- standing all the difficulties, researches have been attempted by very competent observers at every period of pregnancy, and the accumulated results so recorded may to a certain extent be formulated, and some at least of the pathological conditions be thoroughly understood.