Cases of excision of a portion of the lower jaw for the cure of osteosarcoma affecting that bone : with some observations on the pathology of osteosarcomatous tumours / by Philip Crampton.

  • Crampton, Philip, 1777-1858.
Date:
[1827]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Cases of excision of a portion of the lower jaw for the cure of osteosarcoma affecting that bone : with some observations on the pathology of osteosarcomatous tumours / by Philip Crampton. 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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    distinctive character of each becomes clearly enough developed. The soft bleeding fungus, which makes its way through the integuments be- fore the tumour has acquired any very considerable size—the profuse and peculiarly foetid serous dis- charge, slightly tinged with the red particles of the blood,—^the tubercles of a purple colour on the surrounding skin, which adheres firmly to the subjacent tumour—the pain—and above all the altered health, sufficiently point out the malig- nant character of the disease, and put the sur- geon on his guard as to the prognostic he should make, or the operation he should advise. So long then as the tumour lies deep among the muscles, and is covered by healthy integument^ it is obvious that we have no means of acquiring any exact knowledge of its structure, and conse- quently can form but an imperfect idea of its nature ; we are led however to infer the benign character of the disease, when its progress is slow and painless, when the skin is sound and unadhe- rent to the tumour, and above all, when the con- stitution is unimpaired, and the countenance is healthy. But when the tumour is superficial, as when it springs from the jaw bone where it is covered only by the gum and by the lining mem- brane of the mouth, the character of the benign form of the disease is so clearly defined, that no surgeon who has once seen a tumour of this kind will be likely to mistake it for any other.