Faecal vomiting and reversed peristalsis in functional nervous (cerebral) disease : a summary of cases and conclusions / by F. Parkes Weber.

  • Weber, Frederick Parkes, 1863-1962.
Date:
1904
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Licence: In copyright

Credit: Faecal vomiting and reversed peristalsis in functional nervous (cerebral) disease : a summary of cases and conclusions / by F. Parkes Weber. 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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    I will now go on to the papers by M. Sander 1 and G. Langmann,2 again making use of abstracts which I wrote at the time for a medical journal. Sander records the case of a hysterical man, aged 23, with neuropathic family history. In December, 1894, about two months after com- mencing his military service, he began to suffer from attacks of abdominal pain, meteorism, and unconsciousness, with epileptiform movements. The pulse, when observed in May, 1895, was found to vary in the course of twenty-four hours between 60 and 100. There was diarrhoea alternating with constipation. In .November, 1896, the patient was in the Frankfurt Hospital, with variable abdominal symptoms and occasional evening fever. He was supposed to have appendicitis, and laparotomy was performed. The vermi- form appendix was found slightly injected and removed. Soon after the operation there were again attacks of meteor- ism and pain, with evening fever to 10T6° F. Improvement followed in December, 1896, but there was an attack of eructation, salivation, grinding of the teeth, and twitckings of the limbs. In January, 1897, there was again meteorism, with abdominal pain (chiefly in the umbilical region) and occasional vomiting. Sometimes there was fever, and on one day itching of the whole body. There was generally constipation, and blood and mucus were noted in the motions. On account of a suspicion of intestinal obstruc- tion a second laparotomy was performed on January 14, 1897. On January 29 the patient jumped through the window and ran about barefoot in the snow, so that he had to be removed to the lunatic asylum. In the asylum, amongst other troubles, he had much vomiting, and in consequence lost strength, but suddenly, on February 19, 1897, he began to improve in every way, although a certain tendency to vomit persisted. Not long after leaving the asylum he was reported to have (apparently not seriously) attempted suicide. A second case, reported by Sander, is that of a hysterical woman, aged 24, whose father had been addicted to alcohol. '■ Dcut. Med. Wochenschrift, 1899, No. 36. ■ Festschrift A. Jacobi, New York, 1900.