An analysis of one hundred and thirty-six cases of phthisis / by Arthur Leared.

  • Leared, Arthur, 1822-1879.
Date:
[1856]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: An analysis of one hundred and thirty-six cases of phthisis / by Arthur Leared. 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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    The transmission of phthisis from father to daughter, by nearly one-third more frequently than by father to son as above, is not in accordance with the Brompton Hospital report, which gives a per centage of 43‘5, and 59*4 respectively; while the transmission from mother to daughter in the proportion of nearly 2 to 1, is greater than that given in the same re- port, which is 56-5 to 40-6, respectively. The proportion of sons born of phthisical parents compared with daughters in the above table, 11 to 20, or nearly 2 to 1 is however closely in accordance with that given in the Brompton Hospitd report, deduced from 246 cases, viz., 36*3 per cent, for fe- males, and 18’2 per cent, for males. The investigation of the, transmission of phthisis from the grandparents of patients is necessarily more uncertain; but the above is the result of careful inquiries. It is to be observed, that cases in which the parents were not affected with the disease are alone referred to. >So far they tend to show that the transmission of phthisis by the maternal grandparents is more frequent in the case of granddaughters, and especially of grandmothers to granddaughters. Temperament.—This, including notes of the colour of the, hair and eyes of the patients, their habit of body in health, and their stature, I made the subject of careful investi- gation. I find, however, that the observations are too arbi- trary to lead to definite results, and I have therefore omitted them. Tallness of stature does not stand out in my observations as a predisposing cause of phthisis, nor does it appear to me that persons of any one temperament are more secure from the disease than those of another. Occupation.—It appears to me that observations upon the infiuence of occupation in the production of phthisis are; worthless, unless made on the largest scale, and then with proper allowance for local circumstances. It is obvious that in a large city, where two institutions are devoted to the same disease, but separated by some distance, each will be more especially attended by the class of patients resident in its vicinity ; and it is notorious that persons of special trades and occupations are, to a great extent, congregated in particular districts. Instead, therefore, of giving the aggregate residB under this head, I shall refer, under a succeeding one, to those individual instances in which; according to the belief rf the patients themselves, their occupations were the exciting causes of the disease.