The diseases of children : a short introduction to their study / by James Frederic Goodhart.

  • Goodhart, James Frederic, 1845-1916.
Date:
1891
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: The diseases of children : a short introduction to their study / by James Frederic Goodhart. 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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    t'ontanelle may thus appear to lie in a hollow be- tween four Ihllock.s, one on each parietal and on each frontal bone. But sometimes the inter-frontal suture is converted into a vertical ridge, from the exuberant bone-formation along it. This skull has been called the natiform skull, from the appearances produced by the bony elevations, and, as the bones are often soft, “ craniotabes ” maybe associated with this condi- tion. It is, however, still an open question whether this form of skull is due to syphilis or to rickets. The scaphoid skull is a narrow skull, iji which the frontal legion is boat-like and slopes away fi'om the median line, betokening the small bi-ain of an imbecile or idiot. The fontanelle by bulging may indicate exce.ss of blood or cerebro-spinal fluid within the cranium ; by its size it may indicate defective ossifica- tion, and so rickets; but of more inq)oi-tance, becaTise of almost invariable significance, is the dejiressed fon- tanelle of starvation and exhaustion : it indicates the immediate necessity of food oi' stimulants. As I'egards the face, it may be mentioned that shades of pallor are most suggestive—a dirty white {cafe au lait) stands for congenital .syphilis; a sallow white for splenic di.sease ; a palloi’ with a siilj-tint of blue {milk and waltr) for tuberculosis; a livid, leaden, or earthy tint for collap.se from abdominal disease. Tliere are certain markings iqion the face—Jadelot’s lines as they are called, fi'om the French physician who has described them veiy fvdly. Of these it must suffice to say that about the eyes or forehead they are usually indicative of cerebral di.sease. The nostrils are chiefly concerned in resjnratoiy disease, and lines dividing outward from the mouth are occasionally seen in abdominal disease : one from the angle of the mouth outwards on to the cheek in respiratory di.sease. Then there ai-e the various complexions which ai(i sup- posed by many to indicate ])articular diatheses or ten- <lencies to disease—the pretty, thin-skinned children of tubercular proclivities; the sallow, muddy appearance