The use of electricity in the removal of superfluous hair : and the treatment of various facial blemishes / by George Henry Fox.

Date:
1886
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: The use of electricity in the removal of superfluous hair : and the treatment of various facial blemishes / by George Henry Fox. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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

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    man who had an unusual number of these small pig- mentary naevi upon his arms and body. I remember this patient telling me that, although the spots never disappeared, they were much darker in summer than in winter, even upon the covered portions of the body. Such spots when not elevated above the surface of the skin occasion no annoyance whatever, except when they happen to occur upon a lady’s face. Treatment now becomes an important matter, and again electro- lysis comes in play. It is not necessary to insert the needle into the deeper portion of the skin, for you will remember that the pigmentary deposit is situated in the cells of the epidermis just above the papillary layer of the true skin. All that is necessary is to produce a small blister upon the surface of the black spot, and by touching it repeatedly with the point of the needle, we can accomplish this end as readily as by the appli- cation of a caustic, and with less likelihood of leaving a noticeable scar. For pigmentary naevi of large size, I will not recommend the electrolytic needle, as I have had no experience in its use in such cases. Fibroma Simplex.—Upon the cheek of our next patient, a woman of forty-five, you see a little excres-. cence of the size of a small pea. Such a growth is com- monly spoken of as a “wart” or a “mole. Frequently it is pigmented, and the seat of a few stiff hairs, and is called ucbvus verrucosus. The growth in this case is of firm consistence, with a smooth surface and slightly redder than the surrounding skin. It is simply a