A contribution to the surgery of the spinal cord.

  • Thorburn, William, Sir, 1861-1923.
Date:
1889
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: A contribution to the surgery of the spinal cord. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the Augustus C. Long Health Sciences Library at Columbia University and Columbia University Libraries/Information Services, through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the the Augustus C. Long Health Sciences Library at Columbia University and Columbia University.

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    could still be effected by voluntary effort. In the evening the temperature rose to 100.4°. November 2 i.—The wound was dressed, and vei-y little dis- charge found. Except at the lower end, where the drainage- tube projected, its surface was healed, and all sutures were now removed, the drainage-tube being left. The temperature con- tinued to rise, reaching 103.2° in the evening. Pain in the limbs was much less than before the operation. November 23.—The temperature still remained high. The arms were motionless and had fallen to the sides, the elbows being flexed. Contractions could be felt distinctly in the biceps only, and very slightly in the deltoids. From this time the man grew rapidly worse, becoming cyanotic, and finally comatose. The temperature rose to 105°, and he died at midday on November 25. In making the post-mortem examination, I removed only the spinal cord and a part of the spine. The condition of the latter will be best understood from the following engraving (fig. 5), taken from a photograph of a sagittal section. The cartilages between the second and third and the third and fourth cervi- cal vertebras were broken, aud there had evidently been severe over-flexion in this region, caus- ing some compression of the upper anterior edge of the body of the third cervical vertebra, but no fracture. The bones had then returned to their positions, leaving the spinal canal free from any permanent compres- sion. The spinal membranes were much congested through- out their whole extent. The cord itself was soft and diffluent opposite the fourth, fifth, and sixth cervical vertebra3. From these appearances it will be obvious tliat there had been over-flexion of the cervical region of the spine, and that although the greatest damage to the vertebral column was situated opposite Fig. 5.^Section of second to scvcntU cervical vertcbriK, the urches of the fifth and si.xth being removed.