Notices of Books
1
978 small iridectomy just involving the pupillary margin of the iris was a good operation and gave excellent results. The section was most favourable for removing cortical matter without the use of force, and was well placed for early sub- sequent inspection, while the cicatrix was hardly noticeable afterwards and the iridectomy too small to be attended with any bad results as regards vision or appearances; nor was it extensive enough to cause pain during its performance, no dragging of the iris taking place, comparing favourably in this respect with the pain caused in excising the iris down to its root necessary in all the modifications of Graefe’s linear section, in which, consequently, the final stages of the operation were often attended with much embarrassment to the operator by the patients having lost their composure. When the conditions were not favourable he preferred the three-millimetre flap modification of of Graefe’s operation, in which case he often performed the iridectomy previously, as in cases where glaucoma was present or its tendency suspected, or the iris non-dilatable or vascular, or Bright’s disease present. He had found Forster’s method of maturing the lens a most valuable method of dealing with cases of very slowly maturing nuclear cataract, affecting both eyes equally, and a means of saving months of waiting and forced idleness to the patient. Notices of Books. Kystes: Tumeurs Perlées et Tumeurs Der1noïdes de l’Iris. Par E. MASSE. Paris. 1885.-The explanation of the formation of cysts in or on the iris has always been felt to be a difficult chapter in ophthalmology. The first case recorded appears to have been by Mackenzie in 1832. Dr. Guépin, Mr. Hulke, Rothmund, Wecker, Monoyer, and others followed with detailed reports of cases. The great frequency with which the formation of cysts of the iris was preceded by injuries to the eye was clearly established from these memoirs; and the. last-named two authors drew a distinc- tion between liquid and solid and pearly tumours of the iris. Bowman, with Mackenzie, thought that these tumours formed in consequence of the secretion of a fluid between the iris and the posterior layer of epithelium, so that the epithelial cells of the uvea formed their posterior wall. Rokitansky believed that they proceeded from the pro- liferation of the connective tissue in the fibrous stroma of the iris. Wecker thought that the mode of formation of these tumours was that in the cysts a fold of the iris was made by the injury, and that an anterior or posterior synechia resulted, forming a cavity enclosing a little fluid ; whilst in many instances of the pearly tumour a cilium became implanted on the iris. M. Masse admits three varieties of tumours, cysts, pearly tumours, and der- moid tumours, and has collected a large number of cases of each. He has made many experiments to determine the mode of origin of cysts of the iris. He transplanted por- tions of skin into the anterior chambers of the eye in rabbits, and found that they readily became attached to the iris; and whilst part underwent resorption, another part grew and formed the commencement of a pearly tumour, which, however, remained always of small size. Portions of cornea thus transplanted also grew, and formed translucent tumours. The experiments of M. Masse seem to establish in the most satisfactory manner that a large proportion of cysts of the iris, if not all, are the result of the trans- plantation of normal tissue by some accidental traumatism. In regard to treatment, he recommends waiting till the patient experiences some trouble in the affected eye. It should then be completely extirpated by incision through the cornea and iridectomy. M. Masse has added to the value of his paper by an excellent bibliography, and he gives two plates showing well-marked varieties of the disease. A Te.’ct-bool." of I)zo7qanic Chemistry. By Professor VICTOR VON RICHTER, University of Breslau. Authorised Translation by EDGAR F. SMITH, Professor of Chemistry in Wittenberg College, Springfield, Ohio. Second American from the Fourth German Edition. London: Kimpton. 1886.-There are many merits in Professor von Richtefs little text-book, and it is not wonderful that the English version has so soon reached a second edition. The author has brought the scientific record well up to date, and has rewritten many parts. Thus, we have a sufficient account of the liquid forms of the gases formerly called permanent, such as hydrogen and oxygen, and a clear statement of the periodic law, in which, however, we are sorry to notice that the name of Newlands, the real discoverer, is omitted. The section on Crystallography is one of the best in the book. Hospital Sisters and their Duties. By EvA C. E. LUCKEs. Matron to the London Hospital. London: J. & A. Churchill. 1886.-Miss Liiekes is already well known as the author of some excellent " Lectures to Nurses," and we were pre- pared to find her present work, which is addressed to hos- pital sisters, full of sound practical information and advice. Those who are most familiar with the working of hospitals under the modern system of nursing will best appreciate the great importance of a due knowledge of their special duties and relations to other officers of ward sisters. Miss Luckes deals with these matters in a clear and common- sense style, and her book cannot fail to be useful to those for whom it is specially intended. On every page we find evidence of Miss Luckes’ thorough acquaintance with all the details of the nursing department of hospital manage- ment. From the chapter on the Relationship of Sisters t& their Patients" we extract the following: "One of the most satisfactory conclusions that long experience of all sorts of patients brings to the majority of sisters is that human nature is worthy of greater respect and admiration than they had previously believed." Further on, in urging sisters to welcome with a kindly word all new patients, Miss Luckes writes: "It must be remembered that they (the patients) are not only strange but ill, and often in actual pain, so that they are not in a normal condition for going through the ordeal of being consigned into strange hands, and unless they are too ill to take any notice, which of course frequently happens, the way they are spoken to on their first arrival will make a wonderful difference to them." S In reference to the vexed question of patients’ friends we read as follows: "The familiar sight of what appears to us. a very unattractive, not to say repulsive figure, the harsh sound of a very gruff voice uttering words that to our eair are not very tender or even kindly, the heavy footfall of most ungainly boots, may be eagerly looked for and welcomed by the patient, and may do more to diminish the terrible sense of loneliness that is creeping over him than our gentlest and most sweetly expressed sympathy could do." The Liverpool Medico Chirurgical Journal. No. 10. London: H. K. Lewis.-This number contains an instruc- tive article on a case of Congenital Macrostoma and Deformity of the Ear, by Mr. Rushton Parker. The Signi- ficance of the Corpus Callosum, by Dr. J. Hamilton, hasalready been referred to. Sir Dyce Duckworth has written a clinical lecture on Paralysis Agitans, to which Dr. James Barr has appended a case of the same disease. Mr. Robert Jones has contributed an article on the Abuse of Rest; Dr. Emrys Jones, some notes on lodoform in the Treatment of Eye Disease; Mr. Lowndes, some notes of post-mortem exami- nations. A special new feature of the journal is the intro- duction of reports on recent practical advances in medicine and surgery: Antipyretics by Dr. Barr, and Antiseptics by Dr. W. Alexander. The journal is the organ for the Trans- actions of the Liverpool Medical Institution. Mr. Rushton Parker contributes a paper on Hernia, based upon seventy- four operations. In a paper by Dr. Richard Caton on the Pathology and Treatment of Chorea, we are sorry to find canine chorea and human chorea are not sufficiently differentiated in all varieties. The Pathology of Syphilis is discussed by Mr. A. Barron, and its treatment is the subject of a paper by Dr. James Wilson. Dr. Francis Imlach eonr- tributes a paper on Ovarian Abscess and Pyo-salpinx.
Transcript of Notices of Books
978
small iridectomy just involving the pupillary margin of theiris was a good operation and gave excellent results. Thesection was most favourable for removing cortical matterwithout the use of force, and was well placed for early sub-sequent inspection, while the cicatrix was hardly noticeableafterwards and the iridectomy too small to be attended withany bad results as regards vision or appearances; nor was itextensive enough to cause pain during its performance, nodragging of the iris taking place, comparing favourably inthis respect with the pain caused in excising the iris downto its root necessary in all the modifications of Graefe’slinear section, in which, consequently, the final stages of theoperation were often attended with much embarrassment tothe operator by the patients having lost their composure.When the conditions were not favourable he preferred thethree-millimetre flap modification of of Graefe’s operation,in which case he often performed the iridectomy previously,as in cases where glaucoma was present or its tendencysuspected, or the iris non-dilatable or vascular, or Bright’sdisease present. He had found Forster’s method of maturingthe lens a most valuable method of dealing with cases ofvery slowly maturing nuclear cataract, affecting both eyesequally, and a means of saving months of waiting and forcedidleness to the patient.
Notices of Books.Kystes: Tumeurs Perlées et Tumeurs Der1noïdes de l’Iris.
Par E. MASSE. Paris. 1885.-The explanation of theformation of cysts in or on the iris has always been feltto be a difficult chapter in ophthalmology. The first caserecorded appears to have been by Mackenzie in 1832. Dr.
Guépin, Mr. Hulke, Rothmund, Wecker, Monoyer, and othersfollowed with detailed reports of cases. The great frequencywith which the formation of cysts of the iris was precededby injuries to the eye was clearly established from thesememoirs; and the. last-named two authors drew a distinc-tion between liquid and solid and pearly tumours of theiris. Bowman, with Mackenzie, thought that these tumoursformed in consequence of the secretion of a fluid betweenthe iris and the posterior layer of epithelium, so thatthe epithelial cells of the uvea formed their posterior wall.Rokitansky believed that they proceeded from the pro-liferation of the connective tissue in the fibrous stroma ofthe iris. Wecker thought that the mode of formation ofthese tumours was that in the cysts a fold of the iris wasmade by the injury, and that an anterior or posteriorsynechia resulted, forming a cavity enclosing a little
fluid ; whilst in many instances of the pearly tumour acilium became implanted on the iris. M. Masse admitsthree varieties of tumours, cysts, pearly tumours, and der-moid tumours, and has collected a large number of cases ofeach. He has made many experiments to determine themode of origin of cysts of the iris. He transplanted por-tions of skin into the anterior chambers of the eye in
rabbits, and found that they readily became attached to theiris; and whilst part underwent resorption, another partgrew and formed the commencement of a pearly tumour,which, however, remained always of small size. Portionsof cornea thus transplanted also grew, and formed translucenttumours. The experiments of M. Masse seem to establishin the most satisfactory manner that a large proportionof cysts of the iris, if not all, are the result of the trans-plantation of normal tissue by some accidental traumatism.In regard to treatment, he recommends waiting till the
patient experiences some trouble in the affected eye. Itshould then be completely extirpated by incision throughthe cornea and iridectomy. M. Masse has added to the valueof his paper by an excellent bibliography, and he givestwo plates showing well-marked varieties of the disease.A Te.’ct-bool." of I)zo7qanic Chemistry. By Professor
VICTOR VON RICHTER, University of Breslau. AuthorisedTranslation by EDGAR F. SMITH, Professor of Chemistry inWittenberg College, Springfield, Ohio. Second Americanfrom the Fourth German Edition. London: Kimpton.
1886.-There are many merits in Professor von Richtefslittle text-book, and it is not wonderful that the Englishversion has so soon reached a second edition. The authorhas brought the scientific record well up to date, and hasrewritten many parts. Thus, we have a sufficient accountof the liquid forms of the gases formerly called permanent,such as hydrogen and oxygen, and a clear statement of theperiodic law, in which, however, we are sorry to notice thatthe name of Newlands, the real discoverer, is omitted. Thesection on Crystallography is one of the best in the book.Hospital Sisters and their Duties. By EvA C. E. LUCKEs.
Matron to the London Hospital. London: J. & A. Churchill.1886.-Miss Liiekes is already well known as the author ofsome excellent " Lectures to Nurses," and we were pre-pared to find her present work, which is addressed to hos-pital sisters, full of sound practical information and advice.Those who are most familiar with the working of hospitalsunder the modern system of nursing will best appreciatethe great importance of a due knowledge of their specialduties and relations to other officers of ward sisters. MissLuckes deals with these matters in a clear and common-sense style, and her book cannot fail to be useful to thosefor whom it is specially intended. On every page we findevidence of Miss Luckes’ thorough acquaintance with allthe details of the nursing department of hospital manage-ment. From the chapter on the Relationship of Sisters t&
their Patients" we extract the following: "One of themost satisfactory conclusions that long experience of allsorts of patients brings to the majority of sisters is thathuman nature is worthy of greater respect and admirationthan they had previously believed." Further on, in urgingsisters to welcome with a kindly word all new patients,Miss Luckes writes: "It must be remembered that they(the patients) are not only strange but ill, and often inactual pain, so that they are not in a normal condition forgoing through the ordeal of being consigned into strangehands, and unless they are too ill to take any notice, whichof course frequently happens, the way they are spoken to ontheir first arrival will make a wonderful difference to them." S
In reference to the vexed question of patients’ friends weread as follows: "The familiar sight of what appears to us.a very unattractive, not to say repulsive figure, the harshsound of a very gruff voice uttering words that to our eairare not very tender or even kindly, the heavy footfall ofmost ungainly boots, may be eagerly looked for andwelcomed by the patient, and may do more to diminish theterrible sense of loneliness that is creeping over him than ourgentlest and most sweetly expressed sympathy could do."
The Liverpool Medico Chirurgical Journal. No. 10.London: H. K. Lewis.-This number contains an instruc-tive article on a case of Congenital Macrostoma and
Deformity of the Ear, by Mr. Rushton Parker. The Signi-ficance of the Corpus Callosum, by Dr. J. Hamilton, hasalreadybeen referred to. Sir Dyce Duckworth has written a clinicallecture on Paralysis Agitans, to which Dr. James Barr hasappended a case of the same disease. Mr. Robert Jones hascontributed an article on the Abuse of Rest; Dr. EmrysJones, some notes on lodoform in the Treatment of EyeDisease; Mr. Lowndes, some notes of post-mortem exami-nations. A special new feature of the journal is the intro-duction of reports on recent practical advances in medicineand surgery: Antipyretics by Dr. Barr, and Antiseptics byDr. W. Alexander. The journal is the organ for the Trans-actions of the Liverpool Medical Institution. Mr. RushtonParker contributes a paper on Hernia, based upon seventy-four operations. In a paper by Dr. Richard Caton on thePathology and Treatment of Chorea, we are sorry to findcanine chorea and human chorea are not sufficientlydifferentiated in all varieties. The Pathology of Syphilis isdiscussed by Mr. A. Barron, and its treatment is the subjectof a paper by Dr. James Wilson. Dr. Francis Imlach eonr-tributes a paper on Ovarian Abscess and Pyo-salpinx.
