The diagnosis and treatment of auditory-nerve vertigo / by W.R. Gowers.

  • Gowers, W. R. (William Richard), 1845-1915.
Date:
1877
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: The diagnosis and treatment of auditory-nerve vertigo / by W.R. Gowers. 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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    definite history could be obtained. The day before his admission, while walking, he suddenly became giddy, as if he were turning round, stag- gered towards the right side, and fell, as he says, in trying to recover himself. A slight sense of movement on his part and in surrounding objects continued until his admission. He then complained much of a confusion of sounds, which seemed to be in his head, and of head- ache in the occipital region and behind the ears. His hearing at first seemed to be natural. A watch was heard a good and equal distance from each ear. A tuning-fork was heard at eight feet, and was well heard when sounding in contact with the head in various positions, and in each ear it was increased in loudness by closing the meatus. A ■watch was heard in contact with the head and on the right side; closing the meatus incareased its loudness. On the left side, however, closing the ear rendered the sound less loud; the watch had a double beat, and closure of the ear rendered one set of beats entirely inaudible. This result was obtained in every CKamination both by myself and Mr. T. K, Rogers. (The patient was a very intelligent man, and his answers seemed trustworthy.) A few days after his admission, he had another severe attack of giddiness, vidth great '' confusion of sounds in the left ear. His rest at night was much disturbed, and he turned about in his sleep until his head came to rest at the foot of the bed. Sometimes he lay curled round, with his head hanging over the edge of the bed. If he were awakened and put straight, on going to sleep again he soon returned to the former position. Five days later, he had another attack of vertigo, which continued in a slighter form for some hours, and some peculiar clonic spasm was no- ticed in the right arm and leg. He appeared able to control it when his attention was directed to it; but, when his attention was otherwise engaged, the spasmodic movement went on, the right hand being con- tinually jerked up and down, so that the hand kept striking the epigas- trium. At this time, he said he felt as if he were falling through the bed or swimming about the ward, so that an effort was necessary before he could realise that he was in bed. During the height of the attack, he complained of a continuous whirling or humming noise in both ears. A dose of chloral and bromide of potassium quieted him, and, on bro- mide of potassium and iron, he had no other severe attack while in the hospital. In this case, the change in the hearing was so slight, that hesitation might well be felt in assigning any significance to it, were it not that the previous deafness on that side, and the noises in the ears, which accom-