On vesicular emphysema of the lungs in early childhood : its origin, causes, and pathological importance, &c. / by Graily Hewitt.

  • Hewitt, Graily, 1828-1893.
Date:
1858
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: On vesicular emphysema of the lungs in early childhood : its origin, causes, and pathological importance, &c. / by Graily Hewitt. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The Royal College of Surgeons of England. The original may be consulted at The Royal College of Surgeons of England.

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    That emphysema of the lungs most undoubtedly plays a very important part in most of the diseases of the respiratory organs in children, that it adds no little to the difficulties encountered by both patient and physician in combating and overcoming their exceedingly fatal tendency, and, that it has probably no small influence in hastening the fatal event in some diseases, in which its existence is hardly suspected,— these are circumstances to which I desire to call particular attention. In cases where recovery from these affections takes place, the lungs are often left permanently injured. The adult, tormented by chronic bronchitis and emphysema, is not rarely found, on enquiry, to have been the subject of respiratory anomalies of various kinds from an early period of life ; the disease of which he was supposed to have been cured when in the nurse’s arms has left behind it a malady which, slowly developing and increasing with advancing years, has by im- pairing, though perhaps slightly, the physical activity of the individual, exercised no slight influence on the whole tone of his life and character, and paved the way to other and serious organic diseases. I propose, in the first place, to discuss the question of the origin, causes, and pathological importance of emphysema of the lungs in early childhood; and in the second place, to offer a few practical remarks on the diagnosis of this lesion, and the treatment called for in cases where its existence is to be presumed. The human lung may he considered to be the most highly developed form of that kind of respiratory organ. The per- fection of the human lung as a respiratory organ is evinced in the minuteness of the cavities into which the air is received, and which thus afford the greatest possible amount of surface for the respiratory change between the blood and the external at- mosphere ; anything, therefore, which increases the size of the air vesicles, the hulk of the whole lung remaining the same, materially diminishes the amount of surface exposed to the air. A vesicle twice the natural size, is less effective than two vesicles which have not undergone any increase in their diameters, and hence, a particular lobule, although occupying the usual space in the thorax, will, if affected by emphysema.