Anomalies and Curiosities of Medicine [227]
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Myrtle relates the case of a man of seventy-seven, who, after some flying pains and fever, began to sweat profusely and continued to do so until he died from exhaustion at the end of three months from the onset of the sweating. Richardson records another case of the same kind. Crocker quotes the case of a tailor of sixty-five in whom hyperidrosis had existed for thirty-five years. It was usually confined to the hands and feet, but when worst affected the whole body. It was absent as long as he preserved the horizontal posture, but came on directly when he rose; it was always increased in the summer months. At the height of the attack the man lost appetite and spirit, had a pricking sensation, and sometimes minute red papules appeared all over the hand. He had tried almost every variety of treatment, but sulphur did the most good, as it had kept the disease under for twelve months. Latterly, even that failed.
Bachman reports the history of a case of hyperidrosis cured by hypnotism.
Unilateral and localized sweating accompanies some forms of nervous disturbance. Mickle has discussed unilateral sweating in the general paralysis of the insane. Ramskill reports a case of sweating on one side of the face in a patient who was subject to epileptic convulsions. Takacs describes a case of unilateral sweating with proportionate nervous prostration. Bartholow and Bryan report unilateral sweating of the head. Cason speaks of unilateral sweating of the head, face, and neck. Elliotson mentions sweat from the left half of the body and the left extremities only. Lewis reports a case of unilateral perspiration with an excess of temperature of 3.5 degrees F. in the axilla of the perspiring side. Mills, White, Dow, and Duncan also cite instances of unilateral perspiration. Boquis describes a case of unilateral perspiration of the skin of the head and face, and instances of complete unilateral perspiration have been frequently recorded by the older writers,--Tebure, Marcellus Donatus, Paullini, and Hartmann discussing it. Hyperidrosis confined to the hands and feet is quite common.
Instances of bloody sweat and "stigmata" have been known through the ages and are most interesting anomalies. In the olden times there were people who represented that in their own persons they realized at certain periods the agonies of Gethsemane, as portrayed in medieval art, e.g., by pictures of Christ wearing the crown of thorns in Pilate's judgment hall. Some of these instances were, perhaps, of the nature of compensatory hemorrhage, substituting the menses or periodic hemorrhoids, hemoptysis, epistaxis, etc., or possibly purpura. Extreme religious frenzy or deep emotions might have been the indirect cause of a number of these bleeding zealots. There are instances on record in which fear and other similar emotions have caused a sweating of blood, the expression "sweating blood" being not uncommon.
Among the older writers, Ballonius, Marcolini, and Riedlin mention bloody sweat. The Ephemerides speaks of it in front of the hypochondrium. Paullini observed a sailor of thirty, who, falling speechless and faint during a storm on the deck of his ship, sweated a red perspiration from his entire body and which stained his clothes. He also mentions bloody sweat following coitus. Aristotle speaks of bloody sweat, and Pellison describes a scar which periodically opened and sweated blood. There were many cases like this, the scars being usually in the location of Christ's wounds.
De Thou mentions an Italian officer who in 1552, during the war between Henry II of France and Emperor Charles V, was threatened with public execution; he became so agitated that he sweated blood from every portion of the body. A young Florentine about to be put to death by an order of Pope Sixtus V was so overcome with grief that he shed bloody tears and sweated blood. The Ephemerides contains many instances of bloody tears and sweat occasioned by extreme fear, more especially fear of death. Mezeray mentions that the detestable Charles IX of
Myrtle relates the case of a man of seventy-seven, who, after some flying pains and fever, began to sweat profusely and continued to do so until he died from exhaustion at the end of three months from the onset of the sweating. Richardson records another case of the same kind. Crocker quotes the case of a tailor of sixty-five in whom hyperidrosis had existed for thirty-five years. It was usually confined to the hands and feet, but when worst affected the whole body. It was absent as long as he preserved the horizontal posture, but came on directly when he rose; it was always increased in the summer months. At the height of the attack the man lost appetite and spirit, had a pricking sensation, and sometimes minute red papules appeared all over the hand. He had tried almost every variety of treatment, but sulphur did the most good, as it had kept the disease under for twelve months. Latterly, even that failed.
Bachman reports the history of a case of hyperidrosis cured by hypnotism.
Unilateral and localized sweating accompanies some forms of nervous disturbance. Mickle has discussed unilateral sweating in the general paralysis of the insane. Ramskill reports a case of sweating on one side of the face in a patient who was subject to epileptic convulsions. Takacs describes a case of unilateral sweating with proportionate nervous prostration. Bartholow and Bryan report unilateral sweating of the head. Cason speaks of unilateral sweating of the head, face, and neck. Elliotson mentions sweat from the left half of the body and the left extremities only. Lewis reports a case of unilateral perspiration with an excess of temperature of 3.5 degrees F. in the axilla of the perspiring side. Mills, White, Dow, and Duncan also cite instances of unilateral perspiration. Boquis describes a case of unilateral perspiration of the skin of the head and face, and instances of complete unilateral perspiration have been frequently recorded by the older writers,--Tebure, Marcellus Donatus, Paullini, and Hartmann discussing it. Hyperidrosis confined to the hands and feet is quite common.
Instances of bloody sweat and "stigmata" have been known through the ages and are most interesting anomalies. In the olden times there were people who represented that in their own persons they realized at certain periods the agonies of Gethsemane, as portrayed in medieval art, e.g., by pictures of Christ wearing the crown of thorns in Pilate's judgment hall. Some of these instances were, perhaps, of the nature of compensatory hemorrhage, substituting the menses or periodic hemorrhoids, hemoptysis, epistaxis, etc., or possibly purpura. Extreme religious frenzy or deep emotions might have been the indirect cause of a number of these bleeding zealots. There are instances on record in which fear and other similar emotions have caused a sweating of blood, the expression "sweating blood" being not uncommon.
Among the older writers, Ballonius, Marcolini, and Riedlin mention bloody sweat. The Ephemerides speaks of it in front of the hypochondrium. Paullini observed a sailor of thirty, who, falling speechless and faint during a storm on the deck of his ship, sweated a red perspiration from his entire body and which stained his clothes. He also mentions bloody sweat following coitus. Aristotle speaks of bloody sweat, and Pellison describes a scar which periodically opened and sweated blood. There were many cases like this, the scars being usually in the location of Christ's wounds.
De Thou mentions an Italian officer who in 1552, during the war between Henry II of France and Emperor Charles V, was threatened with public execution; he became so agitated that he sweated blood from every portion of the body. A young Florentine about to be put to death by an order of Pope Sixtus V was so overcome with grief that he shed bloody tears and sweated blood. The Ephemerides contains many instances of bloody tears and sweat occasioned by extreme fear, more especially fear of death. Mezeray mentions that the detestable Charles IX of