Pathological and surgical observations on diseases of the joints / by Sir Benjamin C. Brodie.

  • Brodie, Benjamin, Sir, 1783-1862.
Date:
1850
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Pathological and surgical observations on diseases of the joints / by Sir Benjamin C. Brodie. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by UCL Library Services. The original may be consulted at UCL (University College London)

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    St. George's Hospital on the 19th of December, 1821, on account of a painful swelling of one knee. Blood was taken from the part by cup- ping, and afterwards blisters were applied. The affection of the knee was much relieved under this treatment, but the joint remained rather larger than natural, and somewhat stiff. The disease in the liver continued to make progress, and the man died on the 11th of February, 1822. On examining the body after death, the synovial membrane of the knee was found slightly thick- ened, and of a gristly structure. The vessels on its inner surface were more loaded with blood than under ordinary circumstances. The car- tilage covering that portion of the articulating extremity of the femur which corresponds to the patella, in one spot of about three quarters of an inch in diameter, presented an irregular surface, as if it had been partially absorbed, but not to a sufficient extent to expose the surface of the bone below. The case which I am about to describe, did not occur under my own observation. The patient was under the care of Dr. Bence Jones, in St. George's Hospital, who has kindly communicated to me the following particulars: — CASE IV. January 24. 1850. — A stout healthy-looking servant-maid was admitted into St. George's