Anomalies and curiosities of medicine : being an encyclopedic collection of rare and extraordinary cases, and of the most striking instances of abnormality in all branches of medicine and surgery derived from an exhaustive research of medical literature from its origin to the present day / abstracted, classified, annotated, and indexed by George M. Gould and Walter L. Pyle.

  • Gould, George M. (George Milbry), 1848-1922.
Date:
1901, ©1896
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Licence: In copyright

Credit: Anomalies and curiosities of medicine : being an encyclopedic collection of rare and extraordinary cases, and of the most striking instances of abnormality in all branches of medicine and surgery derived from an exhaustive research of medical literature from its origin to the present day / abstracted, classified, annotated, and indexed by George M. Gould and Walter L. Pyle. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    muscles were quiet except when called to action by the will, and then they moved to the opposite. Presentiment, or divination of approaching death, appearing to be a hypothetic allegation, has been established as a strong factor in the produc- tion of a fatal issue in many cases in which there was every hope for a recovery. In fact several physicians have mentioned with dread the peculiar obstinacy of such presentiment. Hippocrates, Roman us, Moller, Richter, Jordani, and other older writers speak of it. Montgomery a reports a remarkable case of a woman suffering from carcinoma of the uterus. He saw her on October 6, 1847, when she told him she had a strong presentiment of death on October 28th. She stated that she had been born on that day, her first husband had died on October 28th, and she had married her second husband on that day. On October 27th her pulse began to fail, she fell into a state of extreme pros- tration, and at noon on the 28th she died. In substantiation of the possi- bility of the influence of presentiment Montgomery cites another case in which he was called at an early hour to visit a lady, the mother of several children. He found her apparently much agitated and distressed, and in great nervous excitement over a dream she had had, in which she saw a handsome monument erected by some children to their mother. She had awakened and became dreadfully apprehensive, she could not tell as to what. The uneasiness and depression continued, her pulse continued to grow weak, and she died at twelve that night without a struggle. Andrews b has made several observations on this subject, and concludes that presentiment of death is a dangerous symptom, and one which should never be overlooked. One of his cases was in a man with a fractured leg in the Mercy Hospital at Pittsburg. The patient was in good health, but one day he became possessed of a cool, quiet, and perfectly clear impression that he was about to die. Struck with his conviction, Andrews examined his pulse and general condition minutely, and assured the patient there was not the slightest ground for apprehension. But he persisted, and was attacked by pneumonia three days later which brought him to the verge of the grave, although he ultimately recovered. In another instance a young man of ruddy complexion and apparent good health, after an operation for varicocele, had a very clear impression that he would die. Careful examination showed no reason for apprehension. After five or six days of encouragement and assurance, he appeared to be convinced that his reasoning was foolish, and he gave up the idea of death. About the ninth day the wound presented a healthy, rosy appearance, and as the patient was cheerful he was allowed to leave his bed. After a few hours the nurse heard the noise of labored breathing, and on investigation found the patient apparently in a dying condition. He was given stimulants and regained consciousness, but again relapsed, and died in a few moments. At the necropsy the heart was found healthy, but there were two or three spots of a 308, 1857, n. s., vol. iv., 18. b 526, 1872.