Anomalies and Curiosities of Medicine [524]
the sclerotic coats of the eyes, the nails, and the skin of the head remained in their natural state and preserved their natural color. The linen of the patient was stained blue. Chemical analysis seemed to throw no light on this case, and the patient improved on alkaline treatment. She vomited blood, which contained sufficient of the blue matter to stain the sides of the vessel. She also stated that in hemorrhage from the nose she had seen blue drops among the drops of blood. One cannot but suspect indigo as a factor in the causation of this anomalous coloration.
Artificial discolorations of the skin are generally produced by tattooing, by silver nitrate, mercury, bismuth, or some other metallic salt.
Melasma has been designated as an accidental and temporary blackish discoloration of the skin. There are several varieties: that called Addison's disease, that due to uterine disease, etc. In this affection the skin assumes a dark and even black hue.
Leukoderma is a pathologic process, the result of which is a deficiency in the normal pigmentation of the skin, and possibly its appendages. Its synonyms are leukopathia, vitiligo, achroma, leukasmus, and chloasma album. In India the disease is called sufaid-korh, meaning white leprosy. It has numerous colloquial appellations, such as chumba or phoolyree (Hindoo), buras (Urdu), cabbore (Singalese), kuttam (Taneil), dhabul (Bengal). It differs from albinism in being an acquired deficiency of pigment, not universal and not affecting the eye. Albinism is congenital, and the hair and eyes are affected as well as the skin.
The disease is of universal distribution, but is naturally more noticeable in the dark-skinned races. It is much more common in this country among the negroes than is generally supposed.
The "leopard-boy of Africa," so extensively advertised by dime museums over the country, was a well-defined case of leukoderma in a young mulatto, a fitting parallel for the case of ichthyosis styled the "alligator-boy."
Figure 293 represents a family of three children, all the subjects of leukoderma. Leukoderma is more common among females. It is rarely seen in children, being particularly a disease of middle age. Bissell reports a case in an Indian ninety years of age, subsequent to an attack of rheumatism thirty years previous. It is of varying duration, nearly every case giving a different length of time. It may be associated with most any disease, and is directly attributable to none. In a number of cases collected rheumatism has been a marked feature. It has been noticed following typhoid fever and pregnancy.
In white persons there are spots or blotches of pale, lustreless appearance either irregular or symmetric, scattered over the body. In the negro and other dark-skinned races a mottled appearance is seen. If the process goes to completion, the whole surface changes to white. The hair, though rarely affected, may present a mottled appearance. There seems to be no constitutional disturbances, no radical change in the skin, no pain--in fact, no disturbance worthy of note. The eye is not affected; but in a negro the sclerotic generally appears muddy.
It appears first in small spots, either on the lips, nose, eyelids, soles, palms, or forehead, and increases peripherally--the several spots fusing together. The skin is peculiarly thin and easily irritated. Exposure to the sun readily blisters it, and after the slightest abrasion it bleeds freely. Several cases have been reported in which the specific gravity of the urine was extremely high, due to an excess of urea. Wood calls attention to the wave-like course of leukoderma, receding on one side, increasing on the other. The fading is gradual, and the margins may be abrupt or diffuse. The mucous membranes are rosy. The functions of the swell-glands are unimpaired.
The theory of the absence of pigment causing a loss of the olfactory sense, spoken of by Wallace, is not borne out by several observations of Wood and others. Wilson says: "Leukasma is a neurosis, the result of weakened innervation of the
Artificial discolorations of the skin are generally produced by tattooing, by silver nitrate, mercury, bismuth, or some other metallic salt.
Melasma has been designated as an accidental and temporary blackish discoloration of the skin. There are several varieties: that called Addison's disease, that due to uterine disease, etc. In this affection the skin assumes a dark and even black hue.
Leukoderma is a pathologic process, the result of which is a deficiency in the normal pigmentation of the skin, and possibly its appendages. Its synonyms are leukopathia, vitiligo, achroma, leukasmus, and chloasma album. In India the disease is called sufaid-korh, meaning white leprosy. It has numerous colloquial appellations, such as chumba or phoolyree (Hindoo), buras (Urdu), cabbore (Singalese), kuttam (Taneil), dhabul (Bengal). It differs from albinism in being an acquired deficiency of pigment, not universal and not affecting the eye. Albinism is congenital, and the hair and eyes are affected as well as the skin.
The disease is of universal distribution, but is naturally more noticeable in the dark-skinned races. It is much more common in this country among the negroes than is generally supposed.
The "leopard-boy of Africa," so extensively advertised by dime museums over the country, was a well-defined case of leukoderma in a young mulatto, a fitting parallel for the case of ichthyosis styled the "alligator-boy."
Figure 293 represents a family of three children, all the subjects of leukoderma. Leukoderma is more common among females. It is rarely seen in children, being particularly a disease of middle age. Bissell reports a case in an Indian ninety years of age, subsequent to an attack of rheumatism thirty years previous. It is of varying duration, nearly every case giving a different length of time. It may be associated with most any disease, and is directly attributable to none. In a number of cases collected rheumatism has been a marked feature. It has been noticed following typhoid fever and pregnancy.
In white persons there are spots or blotches of pale, lustreless appearance either irregular or symmetric, scattered over the body. In the negro and other dark-skinned races a mottled appearance is seen. If the process goes to completion, the whole surface changes to white. The hair, though rarely affected, may present a mottled appearance. There seems to be no constitutional disturbances, no radical change in the skin, no pain--in fact, no disturbance worthy of note. The eye is not affected; but in a negro the sclerotic generally appears muddy.
It appears first in small spots, either on the lips, nose, eyelids, soles, palms, or forehead, and increases peripherally--the several spots fusing together. The skin is peculiarly thin and easily irritated. Exposure to the sun readily blisters it, and after the slightest abrasion it bleeds freely. Several cases have been reported in which the specific gravity of the urine was extremely high, due to an excess of urea. Wood calls attention to the wave-like course of leukoderma, receding on one side, increasing on the other. The fading is gradual, and the margins may be abrupt or diffuse. The mucous membranes are rosy. The functions of the swell-glands are unimpaired.
The theory of the absence of pigment causing a loss of the olfactory sense, spoken of by Wallace, is not borne out by several observations of Wood and others. Wilson says: "Leukasma is a neurosis, the result of weakened innervation of the