Eczema with an analysis of eight thousand cases of the disease / by L. Duncan Bulkley.

  • Bulkley, Lucius Duncan, 1845-1928.
Date:
1901
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Eczema with an analysis of eight thousand cases of the disease / by L. Duncan Bulkley. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the Harvey Cushing/John Hay Whitney Medical Library at Yale University, through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the Harvey Cushing/John Hay Whitney Medical Library at Yale University.

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    eczema, or 17 per cent.; of 1173 children, but 127, or 12 per cent.; of 1375 brothers and sisters, 256, or 19 per cent. ; a total of 675 among 4255 near relatives, or less than 16 per cent, of all. It is readily seen, therefore, that eczema is not dis- tinctly a hereditary affection. I have sought for evidence of heredity among large numbers of pa- tients in public practice, and in addition to the con- stant denial obtained in regard to the existence of other cases in the family, I have repeatedly remarked to those about me how very rare it was to see a mother and child both affected, and how constantly it was observed that other members of the family accompanying eczema patients were entirely free from the disease. It must also be remembered that other elements besides heredity should be taken into consideration when searching for evidence as to the inheritance of eczema. Members of families are apt to be under the same influence of diet, hygiene, etc., as well as exposed to the same atmospheric and other irritants, and this, as well as any other disease, may be developed in each individual, de novo, quite independent of any relations which they bear to each other. NATURE OF ECZEMA Some years ago eczema was universally regarded as of internal origin. Since the time of Hebra, how- ever, there has been a tendency to claim it as a local