Practical manual of the diseases of the heart and great vessels ... / By F.A. Aran ... Translated from the French, by Wm. A. Harris, M.D.

  • Aran, F. A. (François Amilcar), 1817-1861.
Date:
1843
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Practical manual of the diseases of the heart and great vessels ... / By F.A. Aran ... Translated from the French, by Wm. A. Harris, M.D. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    20/312 (page 14)
    from the base of the heart, that is, on a level with the synchondro-sternal articulation of the second left rib. The lungs descend separately, for the extent of two inches, along the edges of the sternum; they cover the base of the heart slightly on the right side, but to a much greater extent on the left; from this place, they separate from each other; the left lung following the course of an oblique line, drawn from the internal end of the cartilage of the second rib to the anterior extremity of the last rib; the right lung following the track of an oblique line, drawn from the median and superior extremity of the sternum to the anterior extremity of the first false rib; and by this separation, they leave exposed a considerable portion of the right ventricle, and a much smaller portion of the inferior part of the left ventricle. We are far from attaching, to the estimate of the volume and the weight of the heart, all the importance which some persons give to them ; we are aware, that variable as they are, according to the subjects, they also vary in the same persons at different epochs of their life, and under very diver- sified influences ; but we also think, that all sci- ences gain in point of precision and certainty, by es- tablishing moderate limits, as standards, with which we can compare the alterations that are observed: we think, in conclusion, that the appreciation of the quantity must be left as little as possible to conjec- ture, because few persons judge rightly in regard to this point. We would have everything known, relative to the weight and volume of the heart ; but we refer what is further to be said of this point, to the article Hypertrophy, where other data will be found more in place.