Medico-legal report of a case of infanticide, with additional remarks on the foetal lungs / by Alfred S. Taylor.

  • Taylor, Alfred Swaine, 1806-1880.
Date:
1842
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Medico-legal report of a case of infanticide, with additional remarks on the foetal lungs / by Alfred S. Taylor. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by Royal College of Physicians, London. The original may be consulted at Royal College of Physicians, London.

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    This tabic is one of tliose which will recjuire correction when a larger number of facts has been brought together. It presents many anomalies, only to be explained on the supposition that the facts arc not sufficiently numerous. Thus, the maxima in the fe- male exceed those in the male at each of the periods, whilst the maximum in the female at nine months tails short of the maximum in the male by more than -300 grains. The minima, too, pre- sent similar anomalies. This arises partly from the circumstance that, in the several groups of facts, the age has a range of one month, and partly from the difficulty which exists in fixing with certainty the age of the foetus at the several periods of utero-ges- tation. In the instance of the female in the 6th month, the mi- nimum 149 is the weight of the lungs of a twin foetus, months old ; the number next above this is 262. In the female in the 7th month, the number next greater than 232 is 324, and in the male in the 8th month, the number next above 216 is 401. In the case of the maxima, the highest numbers are much greater than those next below them. Thus, in the 6th month, 455 is the number next below 710 in the male, and 340 that next less than 747 in the female. In the 7th month, 1081 is the maxi- mum for the male, and 864 the second number on the list; but in the female, the three greatest numbers are 1364, 1019, and 819. In the 8th month the maxima for the male and female respective- ly are 1318 and 1462, the next greatest numbers 1081 and 1235. The observations made on the males and females, taken to- gether, present a greater degree of uniformity. Their results, com- bined with those already obtained for the 9th month, are seen in the following table. Table III. 6th month. 7th month. 8th month. 9th month. Maximum, 747 1364 1462 1800 Minimum, 149 232 216 340 IVIean, 371 612 701 896 I now proceed to state the corresponding results of observation made on children who have respired. The following table presents the weight of the lungs after re- c spiration in mature children who lived one month or less; the lungs being, as before, stated or inferred to be healthy. The num- ber of observations is as follows : male 171 ; female 130; male and female 322. Maximum, Minimum, Mean, Table IV. After Respiration. Male. 2440 432 1121 Female. Male ami I't'D'aii- 1745 479 9S6 2440 432 1077