On the use of massage and early passive movements in recent fractures and other common surgical injuries and the treatment of internal derangements of the knee-joint : three clinical lectures delivered at St. George's Hospital / by William H. Bennett ; reprinted, after revision, from the Lancet with 12 illustrations.

  • Bennett, William Henry, Sir, 1852-1921.
Date:
1900
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: On the use of massage and early passive movements in recent fractures and other common surgical injuries and the treatment of internal derangements of the knee-joint : three clinical lectures delivered at St. George's Hospital / by William H. Bennett ; reprinted, after revision, from the Lancet with 12 illustrations. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the Francis A. Countway Library of Medicine, through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the Francis A. Countway Library of Medicine, Harvard Medical School.

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    of these some tension of the joint arose, the effusion in each commencing at some time during the third day. The bulk of this pain seemed to be due to, or at all events to be greatly increased by, muscle spasm, or cramp both in the leg and thigh, which could only be relieved by gentle smooth massage during which the patient would often fall asleep. It is perhaps worthy of note that the cases in which these apparently unfavourable symptoms developed produced ultimately the most perfect results which I have had, the joints in all being finally perfectly normal in every sense of the word. This effusion coming on several days after the opening of the joint must, I assume, be due to inflammation and I am inclined to think that a certain amount of inflamma- tion provided, of course, that it subsides before harm is done, is advantageous, as it is not unlikely that the inflammatory process may tend to fix any loose parts in the operation area which in the absence of inflammation may by reason of their looseness give rise to recurrent symptoms. In this connection it is significant that of all my cases the one which made the most rapid and perfect progress, so far as absence of discomfort was concerned, was that in which recurrent symptoms followed upon the removal of the anterior two-thirds of the left internal semi- lunar cartilage. In conclusion, it is fair to allow that, having