MedicalElectricity 11182181

M E D I C AL E L E C T R I C I T Y
PR A C T I C A L H A N D B OO K
STUDENT S AND PRA CT IT IONE RS
W . E .
§ T E A VE N SO N , M D . .
L AT E m ca n e s or r un n w cr m c u D E PA RT M N T E m 51 . B m m on o us ws
’
n o sp x ux .
A ND
H . LE WI S J ON E S , M A . .
, M D . .
“ B H B B R O F T HE R OY A L C O LLE G E OF P H S I C Y I A NS ; M E DI CA L O FF I CE R IN C HA R G E
O F T HE ELE C TR CA L D PA RT M N T I N S
I E E T . BA RT H L O OM EW S
’
HO S PI TA L
WI T H I L L US T KA T I ON S
PH I L AD E L P H I A
BL AKI S T ON , SON C
No . 10 12 WALNU T S T REE T
18 9 2
V
L
T HE materi als wh i ch had been collected for th i s book
by D r W E S t ea ven so n were handed t o m e by h i s
. . .
,
wi dow i n j uly last wi th the r equest t h at I should c om

,
l e t e i t for p ubl i cati on

p .
O u careful exami n ati on of t he man u scri pt i t was

found that but li ttl e of i t was su fii c ien tl y advanced fo r
the P rinter an d a large part of t h e rem ai n der consi sted
,
o f bri ef n ot es and fragments wh i ch

co u ld be of li ttle
use in new hands the result bei ng that much o f D r

, .
S t ea ven son s long and valuable experi ence in electri cal

’
t reat m e n t has unfortunately been lost The plan o f t h e .
book however was cl early sketch ed out an d h as been

, , ,
foll owed wi th but l i ttl e m odi fica t i on C hapt ers I I V . .

,
X .
, and parts o f V I I I XI V a nd X V are from D r .
, . .
,
.
S t eav en so n s pen
’
.
W ith regard t o C hapters I I and I I I whi ch deal . .

,
wi th theo reti cal ma tters i t was j udged t o be advisable

,
t o rewri te and bri ng them u p t o date and I tak e t h

,
i s ,
o pportun i ty o f ex pres sin g my warmest thanks t o M r .
H M E lder M A
. .
, fo r the great ass istan c e gi ven to
. .
,
m e in th i s part o f the book .
I t may be thought by some that the phys ical part o f

t h e subj ect m ight have been better stud ied in the non
m edi cal textbooks on E lectri c ity but i t was dec i ded ,
t o try to bri ng together into the volum e all th o se parts

of t he subj ect whi ch are essenti al to a rati onal grasp o f
the pri nci ples wh ich under li e the med ic al app li cat i ons
vi P RE FA C E .
of electri ci ty
. It i s t o be hoped that some o f those wh o
read the first few chapters o f th i s book m ay be i n duced
t o go further i nto the study o f electri c i ty and I have tri ed ,
t o i n di cate the textb ook s whi ch m ight wi th most ad

vantage be consulted . O n e th i ng 18 certa i n that w i th ,
out a thorough groundi n g i n the physi cal part o f the

subject no sat i sfactory adv ances can be made i n a fiel d
,
of therapeut i c s wh i ch i s at present a l m ost en t irely

neglected by m edi cal men A great deal o f the
.
quackery wh i ch surrounds and d i scredi ts med i cal elec

t ri c i t y i s due to the i nd ifference and conte m ptuous
,
att i tude of the medi cal professi on and we have only ,
our sel ves to bla m e i f the publ i c i nsi st on seeki ng else

where for treatment wh i ch i s refu sed to t hem by the i r
medi cal advi sers .
W i thout attempt in g t o enum era t e all the works on

E lectri c i ty an d M ed i cal E lec t ri ci ty of whi ch u se h as
,
been made i n prepari ng t h i s l i t t le book I take the ,
opportun i ty of acknowledgi ng my especi al obl i gat ions

t o the wr i t i ngs o f P rof S ylvanus Tho m pson D r O l i ver
.
, .
L odge P ro f E rb D 1 D e W att ev ill e and D r V i vi a n

, .
, .
, .
P oore .
H . LE W I S J O NE S .
U15” Wi mpok S tm t W
51 , .
C O NT E NT S .
C HA PT E R I .
H x sr o ai can .
Pac e
O ri gin of word E lectri cit y
th e D 1 G il bert of C ol ch ester . . .
E arly medi cal wri ters F irst appearan ce i n h ospi t al prec

.
t ioe F araday an d D u
. ch en ne Posi t ion of el ect rici t y i n .
medici n e I nfluen ce o f phy si cal co n dition s on h eal th

. .
l
El ectrica stat e of l i in g bodies v . M agnet i sm
C HA P TE R II .
E LE C T R lC lT Y AT R E ST , E n ac m o S u ri c s, -
'
ST A T I C A L
E ne cr m c xfl .
D ivi sion o f t he Subj ect . Fu n damen t al E x perimen t s. Hypo

t hem of Fl uids . E l ect ri cs an d Non -Bl ectrics . S imple
E l ec trica l M ach in e. E l ect ro sco pes . I n du
c t io n . C u
on d c
E l ec t mph oru E lectric Quan ti ty U n it of Quan t i ty

’
to n . a . . .
Lawo f I nverse S q uares . E lec tromoti ve Fox ce . Po t en ti al .
E qui pot en t i al S u
-
rfac es . Phy si cal A nal o gies . D efin i tio n
of Pot en tial . E l ec t ro me t em . D ist ri but i on o f t he C h arge .
E l ect ric D en sit y . A ct i on of Poin t s . C apaci t y

C apaci t y
.
of a S phere . C o n den sers . l

D ie ect ri c con st an t L eyden .
j ar. St rai n in t h e D iel ect ric . L i n es of I n du

ct ion an d
E qu
l po t en t ial S u
-
rfaces ' El m D i spl acemen t. Pract ical
N ote on C are 0! I n strument s
C HA P T E R III .
E L E CT R I C IT ? IN M O T I ON .
P AG E
Sim pl e Vol t aic

'
C on t act el ec t ro mot ive force . cel l or b att er y .
O erst ed ’
s ex peri m en t. M agn et i sm . N ort h see k in g an d
S outh see k in g pol es; S t ren gt h of pol e . Permeab il i t y .
M agn et ic m omen t . M agn et ic fiel d . L i n es of force . Field

of force abo ut a wire c an i
y gn a c urren t . U n it curren t .
G al van o m et ers . T a ngen t S in e gal van omet ers

an d G al .
v an o m et er co n st an t . A m m et ers an d vol t met ers R efl ect in g .
Ohm
’
gal v an om et er . E l ect ro mo t ive fo rce . R esist an ce . s
l aw . Pract ical un it s . E l ect ro l ysis . A n o de an d k at hode .
L aws of el ect rol ysis . E l ec tro -

ch em ic al e quival en t s . L egal
Ohm . S pecific resi st an ce. R esi st an ce o f an el ect rol yt e
M u
eas rem ent of resi st an ce.
‘
N et work of con d ct o rs.u

Sh unts . Wheat st o n e s ’
bridge . Po st o ffi ce bo x . A n
ran gem en t of bat t eries . I n t ern al resi st an ce. H eat in g

E l ectrom agn et ic i n du l aw ut ud
'
efl ect s L en z ’
. c t io n . s . M
i n duct i o n . S el f i n du
-
ct io n . Ruh m ko rfi
’
s co il . M agn et o
m ach in e . D yn amos . Pract ical n ot e
C HA P T E R IV .
ST A T I C A L E L E C T RI C I T Y . D E S C R I PT I O N OF A p paaar us .
H ist orical D escript ion of in st rumen t s R amsden s m achin e

. .
’
.
H ol t z m achin e Voss mach in e Wim shurst s mach in e

.
’
.
’
.
C arré s m ach in e Pro fessor L ewan dowski s mach in e

'
’
. .
C on du c t ors T he L eyden jar .M odes of appl icat io n . .
T h e dry elect ric bat h . E ff ects of a po sit ive ch arge.
T reat m en t by spar s T k . reat men t by shoc s. k T h e brush
disch arge . S t at ic I n duct ion t

L O NT E N T S . ix
C HA P T E R V .
Ham m as A ND A PPA RA T U S .
n o:
E ssen tial s of a good bat tery . E l ectro mot iv e force of cel l s .
C apaci t y o f cell s S mee

’
Polari zati o n D e polar izers
. . . s
batt ery Bi ch nom at e bat t ery D an ie ll s bat t ery G rave s

’ ’
. . .
an d Bu b att eries L eel anc hé ba tt er y C hl or ide o f

’
n se n s . .
s itver bat te r y . O x ide of co pper bat ter y . O t y bat t eri es .
Su
l ph at e m erc u ry bat t ery L at im er C lark s st an dard
’
of .
oel L S t ohrer s batt ery A cc u mulat ors T abl e of bat te ries

’
. . t
C hoi ce of a ba t tery . C are of a b at t er y . Use of el ect ric
l igh t in g u
c rren ts . T ran sform ers. M edi cal i n duct io n
c o il s. Pri mar y an d secon dary curren ts
C HA P TE R VI .
A A RA T U S
’
c c a sso av PPA .
C o nd uct in g wince C u
a ter y wires an d surgi cal l amps . B in di n g
screws E lect rodes C urren t col l ec t o m C o m mut ators
. . . .
R egu l at i on o f curren t R esi st an ce s Wire rheo stat . . .
W at er rheost at G al van om et ers T est i n g i nstrumen t s

. . .
V ol t amet ers . Wat er vo l tamet er . C o pper vo l t ame t er
C H A R T ER v 11 . .
a sx o n oc v.
G en eral con si derati o n s. D iffusio n of u

c rre n t in t he body .
T h e bo d y as a co n duct or . T he resist a n ce of t he bo dy .
ysi ol ogical u
'
Ph efl ec t s of el ec trical c rren ts. E lectri cal

p hen omen a o f n erve an d m u sc le . E lect ro t on u
s . Pfl ger 3u ’
law of con t rac ti on T h e l aw of . co n t rac t ion in t he h uman

ubj ect
s . U ni pol ar ex c i t at i o n . E l ect ri cal reac t ion s of
musc l e . T h e hear t . T reatm en t u

of s s pen ded an imat i o n .
S en sor y nerves . N erves o f speci al sen se. O t h er o rgans .
R efresh in g ac t i o n o f the o rren t . u T roph ic efl ect s.

'
E lec
t rical osm osi s . T hermal effect s. E l ec t rical ’
o rga ns
x C ONT E NT S .
C HA P T E R VI II .
D I AG NO S I S .
pac e
M et h o d of p roced re. u C o m pari so n of diseased an d so un d

sides. Use of t he gal v an o m et er. T h e mo t or poin t s .
R el at ion o f spin al n erv e ro o t s t o muscl es I m port an ce of

.
ex perim en t s. B il at eral affec t io n s. Pro f . E rb ’

s m et h od .
E l ect ro di agn o sis ch art s

- . M orbid ch an ges i n t h e el ect rical
react io n s uan t it at iv e
. Q ch an ges. T he reac t i o n of de
gen erat io n . C o urse of t he react i o n of degen erat io n .
Part ial react i o n of degen erat io n . C o n di t i on s l eadin g t o

react io n of degen erat i o n . Pro gn osi s i n react io n of de
gen erat i o n . A no m al ous reac t io n s . S en sor y n erves . N erv es
o f special sen se. T he a udit ory n erve
C HA P T E R IX .
G E N E RAL TH E R A PE U T I C S .
I n t ro duct ory . E ffect s of el ect ri ci t y . C ho ice of c urren t , gal

v an is m or faradism . S t ren gt h of c urren t . C h o ice of po l e.
M et h ods. G en eral faradi z at i o n . O t her faradi c m et h o ds .
G al van o faradiz at io n
-
. G al v an iz at ion o f t h e cervi c al s ympa
t h et ic . C en t ral gal v an i z at io n . S el f t reat m en t by pat ien t s
-
.
E l ect ric bel t s .
C H A PTE R X .
T m; E L E C T RI C BA T H .
T h e bat h . A ccesso ry apparat us . T h e gal v an ic bat h . T he

faradic bat h T h e gal v an o
. air o r -
faradic bat h Hot .
v a ou l t i b t h U i h ro n i c rh eumat o id art hri t is

p r e ec r c a s es n c . .
G on o rrh oeal rh e umat i sm . G out . L at eral scl ero si s. M e

t al li c po ison in g . T remo rs. T h e i n t ro duc t i on of medicin al
su
bst an ces i n t o t h e bod y . Ra yn aud s ’
disease . S ciat ica
an d lumbago . G en eral con cl usion s '
2 77
C O N T E NT S .
C HA PTE R XI .
D I S EA S E S O F T HE N ER VO U S S Y S T E M .
PA G E
C erebral disease an d h emi pl egia . E pil eps y . C ho rea . T rem ors.
Hyst eria . N eurast h en i a an d y

h po ch on dri asis . M i grai n e
an d h eadach e . I n som n i a . T in n it us auri um . E x oph
t h al mo s
C H A PTE R XI I .
T N E R VO U S S Y S T E M C on ti n ud)
HE ( e .
T he spi n al cord. T reat m en t of paral ysis . M y el it is . L o co

m ot o r at ax y . I n fan t i l e paral sis Pro gressive m u y scul ar .
a t ro ph y . D i pht h erit ic paral si s y

Paral ) sis aft er speci fic.
fevers . L ead pal s y
C H A PTE R XI I I .
T N ER VO U S S Y S T E M C on tin u
ed)
HE ( .
I nj uries oi n erv es. Pressure

pal s N e uri t i s F aci al y l
p y
a s
. . .
y sis
Paral o f o cul ar mu scl es N eural gia S ciat ica S pasm
. . . .
Wry n eck . Wri t er s ’

cram p. T et an y . A n aest h esi a . An
o emi a. O pt ic at m phy . N erv o us deafn ess . M uscul ar
at rophi es
C HA PTE R XI V .
OT HE R C O N D I T I O N S R E Q UI R I N G E LE C T RI C A L T R E A T M E NT .
J oi n t affect io n s. S prain s . M yal gi a . A sc it es. C o n st ipat i on .
G al ac t ago gue effect s. N oc t urn al en uresis . Weakn ess of
t he bl adder an d in con t in en ce . M o rbi d sex ual st at es.
D iseases wom en I n ch i l db irt h A men orrh oea C hro n ic

of . . .
met rit is an d su b in v ol ut io n U t erin e n eural gia A rrest o f

. .
gro wt h o f can c er s H e a li n g o f c h ro
. n ic ul cers G uin ea .
worm T est o f deat h

.
C ON T E N T S e
C HA P T E R XV .
E L E C T R O LY S I S .
PA G E
T he l aws of el ect rol ysis . S eco n dar y react ion s . A ct io n in t h e
i n t erpol ar re
g i o n . M i grat i o n o f t he io n s . Os m o si s .
A c t ion s in l iv i n g t i ssues U ses in . u

s rger
y . R em o val of
h ai rs . H aixy m o les . W art s . N aevus . Po rt wi n e m ark .
A ne ury sm . S t ri c t ure of uret h ra o f

t he , t he oeso ph agu s ,
o f t h e rect um , of t he Eust achi an t ube . S t en o sis of t he
c ervix ut eri . E l ect rol ysis i n fibro m -

yo m a . D 1. A po st ol i
’
s
m et h ods: E x t ra- ut eri n e foet at io n . C an c er
C H A PTE R XV I .
C A U T E RY A ND L I G H T I N G I N S T RU M E N T S .
T h e gal v an o -
ca ut exy . B at t eri es fo r u
ca t er y purpo ses . A cc u
mu l at o rs Wires an d l eads . L am ps . B at t eri es for l am ps .
R h eo st at s . T he c y st osco pe . T h e pan el ect ro sco pe . T he

use o f el ect ric l igh t main s . T h e el ect ro m agn et -
L I ST OF I L L US T R A T I O NS .
6 . Vo l t ai c circuit
7 . L in es of to n e m
( g
a n et i c ) ( C a n d i a nd Co .
8 . D iagram o f t an gen t g v an o meter

al
9 . D iagram of sin e gal va n omet er
10. T ypical ui t
circ
11. D i vided circu it

12 . D ivided ci rc u it
13. W h eat st one a bridge ( C an al ! and C o
'
.
14 . Wh ea t st o n e 8 bri dge ( C assel l an d

’
15. R esi stan ce box ( E l l io t t )

16 . A rran gem en t o f cell s in seri es
17 . A rran gem en t o f c el l s i n paral l el

18 . A rran gemen t o f c ell s i n pai rs
19 . A rran gemen t of c ells in t hrees
E lect ro magn et i n duct io n
2 1. R a msden a machi n e ( Ki ng . M
’
udkan an d Co .
)
22. H o l t z mac h i n e ( Whi t taker and C o.
2 3. Wi msh urst m ach in e (K i ng , M m dham an d Ca) .
2 4. C arré m achin e (C ox etn an d S on )

2 5. L ewan dowaki m ach in e ( K S cha )
’
s . u
L em n dowski s machin e in sect i o n (K S akai!)
’
26 . .
L ewan dowski s machi n e ( K S aba ” )

’
27 . .
28 . D i sch arger .
29 .
3 0 . I n sul at ed s upport s
1
3 . T he dry elect ri c bat h
3 2 . T reat men t by spar s k
3 . Spark t egu
l et or ( K S chal l) . .
34 . A ppl icat io n o f shoc s k

35 . Brush el ec trode
x iv OF I LLU S T R A T I O N S .
pm.
36 . T wo fl uid c ell ( C ox et er an d S on )
37 . B ich rom at e cell C
( ox et er a n d S on )
8 L ecl an ch é i vert o wn I n di am bber C o
3 . cel l ( S l .
39 . C h l oride o f sil v er cel l ( K S cha l l )

.
40 . L al an de an d C h apero n s c el l (E a n d F Span )
’
. .
4 1. H el l esen ’
s dry c el l ( S i emen s B ros a n d C o ) . .
S t ii hrer s bat t exy ( ay er a n d

’
42 . M M el tz er )
43 . A um ul at o r (E l ec tric P ower S torage C o )
cc .
44 . C om bin ed bat t exy ( C ox eter an d S on )

45 . C o m b in ed bat t ery ( K S chal l )
46 Pl an . of i n duct io n c o il
47 . I n duct io n co il
48 . I n duct io n c o il ( X S cha ll )
.
49 . D e Wat t evil l e s co il (K ’
S cha l l )
50 . B i n di n g screws ( C ox et er an d S on )
51 C . arbo n el ec t rodes ( M a w , 8 011 an d T hompson )
52 . H an dle for el ect o de r
53 . H an dle for el ect ro de , wit h in t errupt er

( C ox eter an d S on )
54 . M et al el ec t ro des ( S m i t h , E l der an d Co .
)
55 . L arge pl at e el ect ro de ( S m i t h , E l der a n d C o ) .
56 . Pad an d sh eat h el ect ro de ( C ox eter an d S on )
57 . S i n gl e co l l ec t o r
58 . D ubl e col l ect o r (K

o . S cha l l )
59 . C om mu t at o r
60 . R esist an ce co il s ( C a ssel l
) an d C o.
61 . W at er rh eo st at ( C o x et er a n d S on
)
62 . Graduat io n of gal v an o m et er
63 . Vert ical gal v an o m et er (K S cha l l ) .
H oriz on t al v an o m et er
( Guij )
'
64 .
gal A . a
65 . E del m an n ’
s gal v an o m et er ( K S c ha ll )
66 Vol t m et er ( E l ectric P ower S torage C o )
. .
67 Vo l t amet er
.
68. E l ect ro t o n i c urren t s c
L i n es o f curren t di ffusio n ( S mi th E l der

69 .
, an d Co
.
)
2 C h art s of reac t io n of degen erat io n ( S mi th ,
7 ,
0 7 ,
1 7 , 73 .
E l der an d Co f aci n g
p a e
g
.
74 . E rb ’
u
s c t an eo us el ect ro de ( S mi t h, E lder an d Co .
75 . D iv ided aural el ect ro de ( A rn ol d a n d S on

)
6 . B at h el ec t ro de s
7
77 . B ac k rest fo r el ect ri c bat h
LI ST OF I LLU S T R A T I O N S . XV
110 .
7 8 . H an dl e el ect rodes for el ect ric bat h (K S ch al l )

79 . B ar el ec t ro de fo r el ect ric bat h ( K S cha l l )
80 . R ect al bougi e el ec t ro de ( C ox eter an d S on )
8 1 Perin eal
.
-
el ec t ro de ( C ox et er an d S on )
82 . V agi n al el ect ro des ( C ox et er a n d S on )
83 . E pil at i o n el ect ro de ( C ox et er an d S on )
84 . E l ec t ro des for m ol es ( C ox eter an d S on )
8 5, 8 6 . E l ect ro l ysis o f n aevus
87 . E l ect ro de fo r na
ev us ( A rno l d an d S on )
88 . A t t ach m en t o f n eedl es ( C ox eter a n d S on )
89 . N eedl e h o l der cl am p ( C ox eter an d S on )
9 0 . Eust achi an c at h et er an d el ect rode ( C oz ei er an d S on )
9 1. A post o l i s u t eri n e el ec t ro de ( C ox et er a n d S o n )
’
92 . S t eaven so n s u
’
t eri n e el ect ro de ( C ox et er an d S on )
93 . F o rm s of gal van o - c a ut ery ( C ox et er a n d S on )

94 . S c h ec h ’
s ca ut exy h an dl e ( K S ch al l)
95 P o.rcel ai n burn e r C ox eter a n d S on )
(
9 6 A rran gem en t o f craseu
. é
r fo r gal van o -
u
ca t er y ( C ox et er
S on )
97 . E l ect ri c l am p l ar y n go scope (K S cha l l )
9 8 . E l ect ric l am p o ph t h al m o sco pe ( C ox eter a n d S on )
C y st oscope, M Fen wic k s pat t ern (K S cha l l )
’
99 . r.
100 . Part s ysto scope (K S chal l )

of t h e c
10 1. C y st o sco pe an d dum m y ( K S cha l l ) .
10 2 . A bdom i n al l am p ( K S ch a l l ) .
10 3. M r. Wo akes ’
t ran sfo rm er ( K S.cha ll
) .
10 4. E lect ro magn et
-
( C ox eter an d S on )
E RRA T UM .
O upage 2 8 2 , l in e 2 2, f or 40 m ill iam peres, rea d 25 m il l iam peres

.
M E D IC A L E L E C T R I C IT Y .
C H A PTE R I .
H I S T O RI C A L .
O ri gi n of the wo rd E l ect ric i t y . D 1

. G il bert of C o l ch est er . E arl y
m edi cal wri t ers . F i rst appearan c e i n h ospi t al prac t i c e Fax aday .
an d D uc h en n e . Po si t i o n o f el ec t ric it y
i n m edi c i n e Influ en c e .
of h snc al co n d i t i o ns on h eal t h E l ect rical st at e of l 1y

p y . . ng
bo di es M agn et i sm
. .
1 . O ri gi n wo rd el e c t ri c i t y The foun da
of th e .
t i ons of the modern sc i e n ce o f electri c i ty m ay be con

si dered to have been la i d by a m ed i cal m an D r G i lbert , .
o f C olchester P hys i c i an i n O rd i nary to Q ueen E l i zabeth

, .
In the year 1600 he publ i shed h i s treat i se D e Magm te .
A copy o f th i s work i s i n the l i brary o f the R oyal C ollege

o f P hysi c i a n s o f L o n do n and a repri nt i s now bei ng,
prepared under the di rect i on of the G i lbert C lub In i t .
he extended to a large n um ber of other substances the

a n c i ent observat i on that rubbed a m ber attracted l ight
bodi es It see m s also that we owe to h im the word
.
E lectri c i ty fo r he called all those substances E lectri cs

, ,
wh i ch when rubbed di splayed the sa m e attract i ve power

fo r l i ght bod i es as a m ber ( i x e po electru m ) does an d x r v,
,
soon a fterwards the word electri c i ty was i ntroduced to

i nd i cate th i s power cons i dered as a qua n t i ty capable o f
m ea sure m ent .
2 M E DIC A L E L E C T RI C I T Y .
2 . D r. G i l b ert of does C o l c h est e r . D r. G i lbert

not see m to have atte m pted to apply h i s knowledge o f
electri ci ty i n any way to m edi ci ne but he wi ll always ,
be re m e m bered as the pi on eer who m ade the first step

towards the sci en t i fic i nvest i gat ion of what i s perhaps
the m ost won der ful agent that m odern sci ence has
rendered obed ien t to the wi ll o f m an D ryden has
i m m ortal i sed h i m i n the followi ng l i nes
G il bert sh al l l iv e t i l l l o dest o n es cease t o draw

A nd Bri t i sh fl eet s t h e bo un dl ess o cean a we .
“
nother trad i t i on connected wi th electri ci ty wh i ch

A
may be worthy of m enti on fo r i t s i nterest to the m ed i cal
profess ion i s that a M r D avy who recen tly d i ed i n
, .
,
A ustral i a i s sa i d to have trans m i tted a m essage by

,
mea n s o f a wi re fro m o n e part o f S t B artholo m ew s .

’
H ospi tal to another at the t i m e W he n he was H o n se,
S urgeon there long be fore the t im e of the i nvent i on o f

,
the E lectri c Telegraph .
3 E a r.l y m e di c a l w r i t e r s It was m ore than a .
hu n dred years a fter G i lbert s t i m e that electric i ty was ’
first brought i n to use as a curat i ve agen t 7 al l abert .
i n Fra n ce and D e H a m i n G erm a n y were a m o n g the

, ,
first to e m ploy i t i n the early part o f the last ce n tury

,
.
I n th i s country i t c h i efl y re m a i ned i n the ha n ds o f n o n

profess ional m en but 7 01m Frake F S urgeon to ,
S t B artholo m ew 8 H osp i tal wrote on i t i n 170 2 1

.
,
.
L
I n 17 59 the fa m ous di vi n e the R ev ? ol m Wesl ey , .

,
collected m ost o f the recorded cases i n wh i ch electri ci ty

had bee n used and publ i shed the m i n a treat i se e n t i tled
,
T he D esidem tu m or E lectri ci ty made P l ai n an d Usefu

,
l By a
E pist l e t o D r . C h arl et o n .
F reke carv ed t he c h an del ier i n t h e S t eward s O ffice St

’
at .
B art hol om ew s H ospit al

’
.
1
115 1 0 1
110 11. 3
L over o
f M anki nd and C ommon S ense .
“
In th i s treati se
Wesl ey me n t io n s F rake .
4 . F i rst app earan c e In L o n do n H osp i t al s .
The first reco rds o f electri cal treat m en t at a L on don

hos pi tal see m to have been i n the year 176 7 when an ,
elect ri cal ap paratus was ordered for the M i ddlesex H o s

p i t a l f .A n d ten years later i n 1777 an el ectri cal , ,
m achi n e was purch ased fo r the use o f the pa t i ents i n

S t B a rth olome w s H osp i tal A ccord i ng to D r C hu rch s
’ ’
. . .
i n terestin g art i cle i n Vo l x x n o f th e S t B artholo m ew s

’
. . .
H ospi tal R eports on Ou r H osp i tal P harmaco c ia i t woul d

p ,
appear t hat i n 18 18 the electri cal m ach i n e whether

“ -
the origi na l one purchased i n 17 7 7 or not I know not ,
be in g out o f order was placed u n der the care o f the

,
apotheca ry who was d irected to employ M r B lun t o f

, .
,
C ornh i ll when i t needed repa i r

, W he t her M r B lun t . .
decli ned or was unable to repa ir the m achi ne does not

, ,
appear but i n the following year M v L atchford s report

, .
'
i s entered i n the m i nutes

“
That the electri cal mach i ne at present i n use was
qui te un fit to be repa i red It was proposed by h im to
.
m ake a new m ach ine upon t h e m odern pr i n c i ple wi th a ,
plate two feet i n di ameter an d all the apparatus and ,
ca se co m plete to the sat i s fact ion o f the med i cal o ffic ers ,
and afterwards to keep the whole in good and cons t ant

repai r fo r a sum not exceed ing £ 17 an d that the
mach ine be afterwards placed un der the care o f M r .
L atchford b u t not to be taken out o f the H ospi tal and

, ,
th at M v L atchford wi ll attend an d elect rify all the

.
p at i ents d enoted by the m ed i cal o ffi c ers to undergo the
T h is t reat i se was republish ed by M essrs. B ai llié re, T i ndal l 8: C ox ,
L on do n , 18 7 1 .
1 H ist ory o f M iddl esex

'
H o spit al , E rasm us W il so n , C hurch il l , 18 45,
p. 22 5.
4
, M E DIC A L E L E C T RI C I T Y .
operat ion upon the followi n g term s : i f the operat ions

wi th i n the H ospi tal do n o t exceed th i rty at 2 s each , .
,
and i f above that num ber 15 each R esolved that the ,

. .
above cond i t i ons are approved of an d that the sa m e be ,

”
carri ed i n to e ffect w i thout delay .
H o w lo n g Mr L atchford per for m ed those dut i es and

.
,
whether he had a successor I have been unable to fin d ,
out I n 18 38 he pet i t io n s for the seco n d t im e that he

.
should be pai d by salary i n stead o f the above terms .
N o answer to th i s pet i t i on occurs on the m i n utes an d ,
no further m en t i o n o f Mr L atchford i s found . .
I n N ovem ber 1843 M rs Woodcock s bequest o f £2 00 .

’
consols to the E lectri cal I n st i tut io n i n B un hill R o w was

m ade over by the executor o f her w i ll to the H osp i tal as ,
the i nst i tut i o n to wh i ch she had beque a thed th i s sum

had bee n d i ssolved dur i ng her l i fet im e W e see here t he .
dawn o f our present ad m i rably arra n ged E lectr i cal D e

a rt m en t wh i ch however took upwards o f s i xty years
p , , ,
to blosso m i n to i t s prese n t perfect io n .
E lectri c a l depart m e n ts have at d i ffere n t t i m es been

establ i shed i n connect io n W ith other L o n do n hosp itals .
O n e o f the oldest i s that o f G uy s H osp i tal L o n g l i sts

’
.
o f cases were publ i shed i n the G uy s H osp i tal R eports

’
by A ddison G olding B irch } an d S ir Wil l iam C al l gt i n

*
,
wh i ch the use o f fri ct io n al electri c i ty was followed by

m ost sat i sfactory results .
A m o n g the first ( i f not actually the first ) treat i se

publ i shed by an E n gl i sh m ed i cal m an upon the em
ploy m en t of electri c i ty i n m ed i c in e was wri tte n in L at i n ,
by D r R obert S teavenson § of N ewcastle o n Ty n e for

.
,
- -
,
Guy s H ospi t al
’
R eport s, 18 37 , n o . 2.
1 I bid .
,
vo l . v i .
, 18 4 1 .
1I bi d .
, 2 n d seri es , v o l . v iii .
, 18 52 - 53 .
D i ssert at io M e di c a I n augural i s , de E l e c t n c i t a t e et O perat i o n e

e jus in M o rbi s C uran di s , R o bert us S t ea ven son , A . M . B ri t a m m s ,
E dmburgi , M D C C L X XV I I I .
H I S T O RI C A L .
5
some years physi c i an to the i n firm ary i n t h at town and ,
great uncle to the present wri ter .
5. F m d a y a n d D u c h e n n e In 1 8.
3 1 F ar aday made
h i s d i scoveri es o f electromagnet i c i nduct i on an d began ,
th e pu bl i cat ion o f that splend id seri es o f researches

wh i ch more than anyth i ng else have led to our presen t
state o f knowledge o f the subjec t They have made the .
appl icat i o n s o f electr i ci t y a necessi ty o f our ci v il i sa

t ion . W e m ust not i ce F araday parti cul arly here ,
sin ce fro m his research es sprang the i nduct ion co i l

01 R 2 1 1
m coi
, l wh i ch i s used i n the product i on o f
t he so called F aradic or i nterru
-
pted currents so m uch
employed in m ed i ci ne .
The great apos tl e o f farad i sm was D uclm uc o f ,
Boulogne and to hi m we owe the enunci ati on o f t h e

,
truth that for curat i ve e ffects i t i s necessary that t h e

currents shoul d be locali sed that i s appl ied di rectly to
, ,
t he parts w h i ch i t i s wi shed to in fl u en c e D u cha mo also
showed th a t the muscl es could be m ore eas i ly exc i ted
at certai n po i nts o f the sur face whi ch he called poi nts ,
d docti on Thes e have s ince been proved by R R ama!:

'
. .
a n d Van 2 1 5mm to be the places nearest to wh i ch the

motor nerves en ter th e muscles and th ey are there fore ,
t he poi nts at whi ch the nerves can be m ost eas i ly
rea ch ed by the curr ent They are now call ed the

.
motor poi n ts ( C hap .
A bout 18 50 gr eat advances were made i n our know

ledge o f electro physi ology
-
D 11 B ois R ay mond and
.
Pfl figcr de m on s trated the electri c a l phen omen a o f li vi ng

n erve an d muscle and establ is hed the laws o f elec t ro
,
ton us and o f m us cular con t ract ions and the exi stence ,
of m uscle currents . R m ak d i scove red the catalyt i c

e ffec t s of the g a lvani c curre n t and i t s i n fl uen c e on
os mosi s . Ou r presen t mode o f appl i cati on of elec
as an
t ri c i t y aid to d i agn osi s has resulted from the
,
i n vest ig a t i o n s of B ren ner , E rb, Von Z1

111350 1, A l t hau
1 s,
Russel l R e
y n ol ds, D e Wattevil le ,
Hu
g hes B en net t , an d many
others of note .
6 . P o si t i o n o f el e c t ri c i t y The em i n m e di c i n e .
ploy m e n t o f electri c i ty i n m edi ci n e has passed through

m any v i c i ssi tudes be i n g at on e t i m e recog n i sed and em
,
ployed at the hosp i tals an d the n aga i n be in g n eglected

,
an d le ft fo r the most part i n the hands o f C harlata n s a n d
qu a cks A s each fresh i m portant d i scovery in electri cal

.
sci en ce has been re ached m en s m in ds have been turned ,

’
a n ew to the subject and i nterest in i t s therapeut i c proper

,
t i es h a s been st i m ulated The n a fter extravaga n t hopes

.
an d pro m i ses o f cure there have followed fa i lures and

,
di sappoi n t m ents wh i ch have thrown the employ m ent o f

,
th i s age n t i n to d i srepute to be ag ai n a fter a t i m e re

, , ,
v i v e d and brought i n to popular favour D uri n g the .
long per i od o f two hundred years i n wh i ch these altera

t io n s h a ve b een tak i n g pl a ce i n the opi n i on s held o f t h e
value o f electri cal treat m ent an d in the freque n cy o f i t s ,
e m ploy m e n t sc i en t i fic m en have bee n stead i ly pursu i n g

,
thei r i nvest igat io n s i n to i t s wonderful propert i es and

possibi l i t i es D i scovery on d i scovery has rewarded
.
thei r pat i en ce and we have now arri ved at an age whe n

,
the practi cal appl i cat ions o f electri c i ty are m ak i n g the

m ost rap i d stri des M ed i cal thought an d exper i m e n t are
.
m ov i n g i n the sa m e d i rect i o n an d a n other wave o f electro

,
therapeut i cs i s pass i n g over the professi o n D uri ng .
the last t en years electri c a l depart m ents have been re

o rga n i sed at several o f o u r hosp i tals a n d the powers o f ,
electr i c i ty have been m ore an d m ore called in to the ai d

o f the phys i ci an an d surgeo n i n the i r battle W i th d i sease .
A gen eral des i re has bee n evi n ced both by m e m bers o f

the profession and by the publ i c fo r a m ore thorough ,
115 10 1
1 1c 1. 7
knowledge o f the be n efit s to be deri ved from thi s agent

and o f the best m eans o f securi ng them .
A ll physi ci ans recogn i se the i n fl uen ce exerted upon

health and di sease by heat li ght and mot ion in the
, ,
form o f ex erci se but very l ittle attent ion has been pa i d

,
to the place wh ich elec t ri c i ty occupi es i n regulati ng the

acti on o f t he v i tal processe s N o doubt i t has an i h
.
flu e n c e upon the mai nt enance o f heal th and the pro
ducti on o f d i sea se We have now more accurate means

.
of measu r ing electri c i ty and a more per fect knowledge

,
of i t s ac t i o n
, and although much has sti ll to be learnt
under th is hea d we are altogether i n a far better
,
pos i ti on for employi ng i t s e ffects in the treat m ent of
We have o f late years begun to recogn i se the i n fl uen ce

o f phys i cal phenomena upon the cond i t ions o f health
and di sease We know that the hum i di ty o f a loca l ity

.
as affected by the subso i l drai nage has a grea t i n fl u , en ce
upon the prevalence o f phth i si s ; that t he barometri c

pressure in fl uen ces th e blood pressure ; tha t elec t ri cal
changes i n the atmosphere as on the approach o f a
,
th understorm strongly i n fl uen c e many persons possessed

,
o f deli cately st rung nerves ; that sound i n the form o f ,
m usic has a l so an in fl uen c e upon the syste m perhaps

, ,
through the vaso m otor n erves tho ugh how thi s e ffect
.
of mus i c i s produce d we do not at present understand .
W e are told that the vary i ng v i brat ions o f the eth er by

whi ch li ght o f d iffere n t colours i s produced are o f use i n the
treatment o f t he i nsane H o w t hese several i n fl uen ces
.
act we are not as yet able to expla in The d i ffe rence .
prod uced i n h ighl y sensi t i ve or nervous people by sudden

and m arked cha n ges i n the weath er espec i all y by the ,
sudden changes o f temperature t o whi ch o u r cli mate i s

8 ME D IC A L E L E C T RI C I T Y .
so l i able m ay be partly due to the elec t ri cal cha n ge s

,
set up thereby .
It i s a well kn own and recogn i sed fact that a few hot

days i n successi on so change the electri cal condi t i on of
the surface of the earth that a thunderstor m i s o ften
necessary to restore equ i l i bri um It i s i m possi ble for
.
hum an bei n gs to remai n at a posi t i on o f zero wi th

regard to electrical poten t i al when the poten t i al of
,
every object around i s varyi n g Induct i on alo n e would

.
produce electri cal separat i on It i s perhaps fortunate

.
for us that we l i ve i n a regi on where the at m osphere i s

so charged wi th mo i sture that the vary i n g electri cal
condi t i ons can be more easi ly equal i sed I f such sudden .
cha n ges of temperature took place i n cou n tri es wi th a

dry atmosphere the i n hab i tan ts m ight su ffer consi der
,
ably In those parts o f the earth where the ai r i s very

.
dry the recorded man ifestat i ons of electri cal phen o m ena
acc i den tally produced on l i vi n g bod ies are al m ost i n
credi ble to the i nhab i tants o f these i slands R ubbi ng .
the feet a few t i mes on the carpet wi ll enable an i n

habi ta n t o f some of the A m er i can S tates or o f the ,
h igher A lps to l i ght a gas jet w i th the spark wh i ch w i ll

,
pass whe n he presents hi s fin ger to the metal po in t o f a

gas burner ; and electri cal d i splays are produced by
combi n g the ha i r wh i ch a m o i st atmosphere seldom
,
allows us to percei ve in thi s cou n try .
There are reasons for bel i evi n g that the electri cal con
di t i o n s o f the atmosphere i n fl uen c e health Th i s m uch at .
least seem s to be certa i n that di fferences i n the electri cal

,
cond it i on o f the earth take place and are co n t i nually ,
tak ing place and that a h ighly se n s i t i ve org an i s m such

, ,
as the hu m an body must part i ci pate and take cogn i sance

,
o f these changes i t i s n o t then too much to suppose

that these changes have some i n fl uen c e upon health .
n 1sr o a 1c u .
9
All con di t ions o f t h e a t mosphere whi ch have been

not ic ed to i n fl uen c e heal t h prejudi c i a lly are sai d to be ,
accompan i ed by an i ncrease i n the amount o f the

n egati ve el ec tri fica t ion o f the at m osphere as i ndi cated ,
by an electro m eter Be fore a thunderstorm when

. ,
people o f a deli ca te n ervous t emperamen t as sert that

they feel in descri bable m ala i se and oppressi on the
‘
,
a t mosphere i n the neighbourhood of the earth i s nega

t i ve l y e lec t ri fied.
The predom i nance o f posi t i ve elec tri fic at io n o f the

at m ospher e in foggy weather has been ass igned as a
cause fo r t h e i mmun i ty then experi e n ced fro m a t tac ks
o f pure sp a s m od i c asth m a although the ord i nary dys
,
p n a za a c co mpany i n g bronch i ti s and emphyse m a is o f te n ,
increas ed at such ti mes .
W hen we co nsi der that every vi tal process i s most

proba bly accompa n i ed by the product i on o f free electri ci ty
i n our bod ies that the i nc i dence o f every ray o f l ight
,
upon the 1et in a o ur every act o f thought and cer

°
, ,
t ain l y our every muscular movement have been proved

to produce electri cal currents i t i s im probable that the ,
vary in g elec t ri cal condi ti on s o f t h e at m osphere can take

plac e wi thout in fl uen c in g our system .
8 E l e c t ri c a l st at e o f l i vi n g b odi e
. s — A lthough .
the earth and i nan imate objects upon i t are usually

negati vely elec t ri fied hum an be ings i n a state o f health
,
are almost i nvari ably found to be pos i t i ve D r P oon . .

e
i n hi s work on E lectri ci ty i n M ed i c ine and S urgery

sa ys : it is remarkable that hardly any two persons are
i n the same cond i t ion elect ri cally and nervous i rri table ,
pe ople a re sa i d to exhi b i t a m ore act i ve electr ical co n

di ti on th an persons o f a p hl egmat i c te m peram ent D r . .
Prof M K n d i k 0 11 A i m al E l ec t ric it y be f re t he B ri t ish

“ "
. c e r c n , o
A ssoc iat i o n for t he A dva n cem en t of Sc ien ce, S e ptem ber, 18 8 3 .

IO M E DIC A L E L E C T RI C I T Y .
G olding B ird i n h i s lectures be fore the R oyal C ollege of

P hys i c i ans i n 18 47 attr i buted th i s ex i stence o f free
, ,
electr ic i ty in the hum an body chi cfl y to evaporat i o n and

resp i rat ion and he su m s up h i s observat ions o n th i s
,
poi n t under the three followi ng heads That electri c i ty .
ex i sts i n the h um an body

1 In a state o f equi l ibri u m co m m o n to all for m s o f
.
,
ponderable m atter .
“
2 In a state o f tens ion capable o f act i ng o n the
.
electrometer gi vi ng to the whole body a generally

,
posi t i ve cond i t i on and ari sin g i n all probabi l i ty from

,
the d i sturba n ce o f the n or m al electri cal equi l ibri u m by

the process o f evaporat i o n and respi rat io n .
3 I n a
. state o f curre n t a dyna m i c co
, n d i t i on ar i s i n g ,
from the d i sturbance o f equi l i bri u m by the u n i on o f

carbon wi th oxygen i n the capi llary system and from ,
other chem i cal processes goi ng on i n the body ; such

currents although suspected to be eve rywhere exi st i ng
, ,
hav i ng been actually detected between the sk in and

m ucous m e m brane the stomach an d l i ver and the
, ,
”
in teri or and exter i or of m uscular structures .
9 M
. a g n et i sm I t see m s to be rather doubt ful
.
whether any physi ologi cal e ffect has ever been observ ed
to be due to the act i o n o f a magn et L ord C rawford .
then L i and C romw ell F V arl e w i th

( ord L ndsa
y) M r .
y ,
the help o f an enormous electro m agn et belo n g i n g to -

,
the former were unable to perce i ve an y se n sat io n even

,
on placi ng thei r heads between i t s poles B ut i n di s .
cussi ng these experi m ents i n an address del i vered at

“
the M i dland Inst i tute at B i rm i ngha m ) i n O ctober ,
188 S i r Wi l l i am T homson came to the co n clus i o n that

3 ,
i t i s just poss i ble that there may be a mag n et i c se n se ,
and i ndeed a co m m i ttee o f the S oc i ety fo r P sych i cal

N at ure, vo l . x x ix .
, p 3
.
4 8 .
H I S T O RI C A L . I I
R ese arc h fi
‘
who exam i ned a large number of persons by
plac i ng the i r heads near the poles o f an electro magnet -
,
found three wh o were sens i t i ve and were able to say

when the current was on or 0 5 O n e o f these person s
.
was exa m i ned later by P rof W F B arrett fi who found

. .
that whe n he was sufferi ng from neuralgi c pa i n i t h e ,
came i n t en si fied by the presence o f a power ful magnet .
It need hardly be here poi nted out that the pheno m e n a

o f so called
-
an i mal magnet i s m have absolutely noth i ng
to do wi th magnet i sm whatever .
”
Pro c S oc Psy h ic al R e earch
. . c
part ii i s , ,
Nat u
”
re, vo l . x x ix .
, p 4 76
. .
12 M ED IC A L E L E C T RI C I T Y .
C H A PTE R II .
E L E C T RI C I T Y AT R E ST LE C T RO
, E ST A T IC A L
E L E C T RI C I T Y .
D iv isio n Sub j ect Fun dam en t al E x peri m en t s Hypo t heses

°
0 1 the . .
of Fl m d s . E l ec t rics an d N o n E l ec t n c s S im pl e
-
. E l ec t ri c a l
M ac hi n e . E l ec t ro sc o pes . I n duc t io n . C on d uc t i o n . E l ec t ro
ph o rus E l ec t r
.i c ua n tit Q y . U n it of Qu an t it y . L a w o f I n v erse
S qu ares E lec t ro m o t iv e
.
-
Fo rc e . Po t en t i al E qu . i po t en t ia l -
S urfaces . Ph y si c al A n al o gies. D efi n i n o n o f Po t e n t 1a l E l ec .
t ro m et ers . D i st ri but io n of the C h arge . E l ec t ric D en si t y .
A c t 1o n of Po i n t s . C apac i t y . C apac i t y of a S ph ere . C on
de n sers . D 1e l ec t r c i c o n st an t . L e den y j ar . S t rai n in t he
D 1el e c t r1c . L in es of I n duc t io n an d E qui po t en t i al

-
Surfac e s .
E l ec t ric D ispl acem en t . Prac t ic al N o t e on C are o f I n st rum en t s .
10 . D i v i si o n ubj e c t It i s usual fo r m ed i cal

of th e s .
m en to speak o f electr i cal e ffects as i f they were due t o

no less than three d i st i n ct k i n ds o f E lectr i c i ty These .
we are accustomed to call F ri c t i o n al E lectri c i ty ,
the C o n t in uous C urrent an d the F aradi c or I n ter

ru
”
p t e d C urre n t Th i s d i v i s i o n however
. co n ve n i e n t i t ,
m ay be fo r purposes o f m ed i cal tre at m e n t has n o t even ,
con ve n i e n ce to reco m mend i t whe n the subject i s looked

at fro m a sc i en t i fic po i n t o f v i ew a n d i s certa i n ly m ost ,
i n correct The S c i ence o f E lectr i c i ty m ay best be

.
di vi ded i n to four bra n ches as suggested by D r Ol i ver .
L odge i n h i s i n terest i ng book M oder n Vi ews o f E lec

7 .
”
t ri c i t y a book wh i ch should be read w i th great care by
,
everyo n e who w i shes to have defin i t e an d correct n ot i ons

co n cer n i n g the sc i e n ce These four d i v i s i o n s are .
11 E lectri ci ty at R est or S tati c E l ectri ci é

.
y
— Th i s branch
, .
ST A T IC A L E L E C T RI C I T Y . I 3
coi nci des wi th that portion o f the sc i en ce generall y

t rea ted o f as Fri ct ional E lectri c i ty .
b E lectrici ty £11 L ocomotion or C u

. r ren t E katrici ty — Th i s , .
in cludes t h e cons iderat i on o f the co n t in o us current and
o f t h e faradi c or i n terrupted c urrent .
7
1. E lect ri city R otation or Magu
etism .
4 E lectricity
. a branch o f the
Vibrat ion or R adiat ion ,
subject treated of in general under the head ing o f L ight .
W e on ly n eed to co n si der at all fully the two first o f

the se branches and o f these more espec i ally the sec ond
,
.
The fourth branch we need not cons i der at all wh ile we ,
sha ll have to m a ke a few re m arks about m a gnet is m i n .
order to make cl ear the nature and prin c i ples o f certa i n

ele ctri cal m easuri ng i nstruments .
We wi ll as i s usual begi n by first cons i deri ng E lec

,
tri ci t y at R est .
11 F u E x per i m en t a
n d a m en t al
.
* I f a p i ece o f .
gl ass and a pi ece o f res in be taken th ey ne i ther attra ct

each other nor any l ight bodi es to wh i ch they may be
presented I f now they be rubbed together so lo n g as
.
,
they are not separated they s t ill d isplay no powers o f ,
attract i ng l ight bod ies but let them be sepa rated a n d ,
they are at once see n to be endowed w i th the power o f

att ractin g each other and each is capa ble o f attract ing ,
li ght bod ies They are sa i d to be elec tri fied I f a

. .
second pa i r o f pi eces o f res in and glass be taken rubbed ,
t oge t her and then separated i t may be seen ,
a That the two p ieces of gla ss repe l each other

. .
6 That ea ch p i ec e o f gl ass attracts each p i ece o f

.
res i n .
1 That the two p ieces o f res i n repel each other

. .
“
On t he M at h em at i c al T he o r y of E l ect ri c it y in E quil ibri um .
Sir W . T ho mso n
’
s a
p pers on
“
E l ec t ro S t at ic s an d M agn e t ism ,
”
p 43
. . M
”
ex i can : E l ect ric it y an d M agn et ism , vo l . i .
, p .
3 1 .
14 M ED IC A L E LE C T RI C I T Y .
The two pi eces o f glass are sa i d t o be oppos i tely

elec t ri fied to the two p i eces o f res i n an d we can observe
as a defin i t io n that s i m i larly elec t ri fied bod ies repel

each other opposi tely el ect ri fied bod i es attract each
,
other These el ec t ri fic at io n s are known as vi treou

. s or
posi tive an d resinou s or negative W e also observe that

.
s i n ce the rubbed glass an d resi n be fore be i ng separated

exh ibi ted n o powers o f attract ion or repulsi on on ex
ternal bodi es the amoun t o f elec t ri fic a t i o n produced on
the glass exactly neutral i ses the e ffect o f and therefore ,
i s equal and oppos i te to that produced on the res i n .
I t should here be not i ced that an el ec t ri fied body

exerts n o force on any n o n el ec t ri fied body but that
-
,
when i t appears to do so as i n the case i n wh i ch rubbed

glass or resi n was seen to attract l ight bodi es the el ec t ri
h ed ru bbed substance first acts on the n eutral bod i es
and electri cally exc i tes the m by i t s i n fl uen c e (sac
so that the attract ion shown i s not an act io n between an
el ec t ri fied body and neutral matter but between t wo ,
el ect ri fied bod i es .
12
. H y po t h e ses o f F l u i ds V ari ous hypotheses
.
have been put forward to account fo r th i s act i on all o f ,
wh i ch more or less fa i l to do so ; two o f these m ay how ,
ever be n ot i ced more espec i ally as i f caut iously used

, , ,
they supply a conven i ent m eans o f clearly expressin g

electri cal facts though i t m ust always be carefully
,
reme m bered that i n us i n g these modes o f express ion

we are m ak i n g no assu m pt i ons as to the truth or
the reverse o f the hypothes i s but merely us i ng a ,
”
conven ie n t a n alogy The first i s the
. two fl ui d “
theory o f Sy mmer I t i s assumed that all matter con

.
ta i ns an i n exhaust ible supply o f a so called electri cal -
flu i d wh i ch i s capable o f be i ng spl i t up by fri ct i on or

o therw i se i n to equal q uant i t i es o f two fl u i ds o f oppo si te
ST AT IC A L E LE C T RI C I T Y . 15
propert i es vi z the ao called v i treous ( posi ti ve) and

,
.
,
-
res i nous ( n egati ve ) el ectri ci ti es and bodi es that di splay ,
the propert ies th at we have sa i d are signs of el ec t rifica

t i on are sa i d to be charged wi th a certa in quanti ty o f
,
one or oth er o f th ese fl n i ds a certai n quant i ty o f pos i ,
fi ve or negat i ve el ectri ci ty Th i s hypothesi s gi ves us in

.
many cases a conven ien t meth od o f expressi ng the facts ,
provi ded always t h at i t be used as such an d i s not push ed

to t h e po int o f consi deri n g that the el ectri c fl ui ds are any
real ent i t i es or have any actual ex i stence It i s o b vi .
ou s t hat i t i s an es senti al part o f the hypothes i s that
both fl uids sh all always be produced in equal quant i t i es .
I n the one fl ui d theory whi ch was favour ed by

Fmnkl in bodi es that were posi t i vely el ec t ri fie d were
e
,
looked upon as conta i ni ng an ex c ess o f the electri c fl ui d ,
bodi es that were negati vely el ec t ri fied were looked upon

as sufferi ng from a defici en cy wh i le all bodi es in the ,
normal neutral state were looked upon as havi ng ne i ther

an excess nor a deficien cy It i s obvi ous that th i s hypo .
thesi s has the same ad vantages an d defects as the other .
I n the sequel we shall use i nd i scri mi nately the language

o f e i ther hypothesi s whenever i t i s conven i ent t o express
*
an y fact i n terms o f them .
I t is n eces sar y perh aps t o cal l at t en t io n m o re pl a in l y t o t h is

mat t er an d t o po i n t o ut t h at i t i s l egi t im at e fo r t h e pur po se s o f a rg u
men t m u se an h y po t h es is t h at is k n own t o be fal se , j ust so fa r as it
is in accordan ce wi t h t h e fac t s an d no furt h er, t h ere are ce rt ai n
pro bl e m s i n geo metrical o pt ic s t h at are c apa bl e o f ea sy an d co rre c t
so l ut io n if t he c o rpusc q t h eo r y of l i gh t i s ass umed for t he ti m e

bei ng . T he y are o f co urse capabl e of so l uti o n wi t ho ut mak i n g t h is
ass umpt io n , but n ot . n earl y so eas il y , an d y
it i s pe rfec t l l egi t i m at e t o
ass ume t h is a s fa r a s t h ese pro b l em s a re c o n cern e d, si n c e i t does n o t
co n fl ic t wi t h an y o f t h e fact s t ha t re q uire to be c o n si dered in t h ese
part i c ulat cases. I n li ke man ner it is le gi t i m at e t o speak o f t h e pos i

t i ve an d n egat iv e el ec t ric fluids fo r t h e sak e of t h e h elp s u c h a m ode
16 M E D IC A L E L E C T RI C I T Y .
A warn i ng of P rof C lerk M ax wel l s m ay be quoted

.
’
ap rop os o f th i s po i n t * H e says
. and here we may “
,
i n troduce o n ce fo r all the co m m on phrase the electric ,
fl u id ,
fo r the purpose o f warn i n g our readers aga i n st i t .
It i s one o f those phrases wh i ch hav in g been at one ,
t i m e used to denote an observed fact was i m m ed i ately ,
taken up by the publ i c to co n n ote a whole syste m o f

i m agi nary knowledge A s lo n g as we do not k n ow
.
whether posi t i ve electr i c i ty or negat i ve or both should , , ,
be called a substa n ce or the abse n ce o f a substa n ce ,
and as lo n g as we do n o t kn ow whether the veloc i ty o f

an electr i c curre n t i s to be m easured by hu n dreds o f
thousa n ds of m i les i n a second or by an hundredth ,
o f an i n ch i n a n hour or eve n whether the curre n t flows

,
fro m posi t i ve to n egat i ve or i n the reverse d i rect i o n we

,
”
m ust avo i d speak i n g o f the electri c flu i d .
13 . E l e c t ri c s a n d n o n el e c t ri c s A ll bod i es whe n
- .
rubbed w i th su i table precaut ion s are to use G il bert s ,

’
ter m electri cs or rather we should say that whe n ever

, , ,
a n y two bod i es are rubbed together electr i cal separat i o n
occurs o n e body beco m i n g posi t i vely an d the other

,
n egat i vely el ec t ri fied although i n m any cases i t i s di ffi

,
cult to observe th i s ow i n g to the escape o f the charge

by co n duct io n or otherw i se an d i n fact it i s possi ble ,
to arra n ge all substa n ces i n a l i st so that when a n y ,
pa i r o f the m i s rubbed together the body h igher in the ,
l i st i s pos i t i vely el ec t ri fied wh i le the other i s o f course

,
negat i vely el ec t ri fied to an equal ex tent .
o f ex essi o n iv es u i n st t i u bl m i m l ya n d c l earl y
pr g s a n
g o r p ro e s s p , so
we re m em b er t h at we u se t h e ex pre ss mn s a s m ere
lo n g as
f a a
go n de
a r l er wi t h o ut an y a ssum i h i f u h fl ui d an d
p p t o n a s t o t e e x st e n c e o s c s ,
so l o n g as su c h e x pressio n s are n o t i n c o n fl 1c t wi t h t h e fac t s we are
co n sideri n g .
E l em en t ar y T re at ise o n E l ect ric it y , p 8 . .

11 10 11 s n a c r a x c x rv
3 11 . . 1
7
Su c h a l i st i s as fol lows — C at s fu r pol i sh ed glass

'
, ,
fl an n el lea ther wood pa per s i lk shellac

, , Thus :
, , , .
G las s ru b bed wi th cat s fu r wi ll be negati vely or res i n

’
011s el ec t ri fied whi le the sa m e glass rubbed wi th si lk

,
wi ll be posi ti vely elec t ri fied .
14
. S i m pl e e ec ric a
l t l m ac h i n ei — A n y i n st ru .
ment by whi c h electri cal separa ti on i s produced m ay

be ca l l ed an electri ca l ma ch i ne For s imple ex peri .
m ents a glas s rod whi ch is rubbed wi th a pi ece o f si lk

,
on wh ich has been smeared so m e electri ca l amal gam “
is s u ch a m a ch i ne S ome more elaborate electri cal

.
ma c hin es wi l l be full y descri bed i n a future chapter .
15 E l ec t ro s oo pe n
.
— B efore go ing any further i t i s
.
n ecessary to consi der some means by wh ich we may

t e l l w h en a body i s el ec t ri fied Instruments for th i s .
purpose are call ed electroscopes or somet im es m ore ,
l oo sel y elec t ro m eters T he si mples t and best form o f

.
elec troscope is that kno wn as the gold leaf electroscope ,
whi ch is ma de o f two st ri ps o f gold lea f hung together

from a wi re When these are el ec t ri fied they repel each
.
ot her and so in di cate th e presence o f elect ri fica t io n .
G en erall y the el ectroscope i s supported in a closed glass

vessel contai n in g some strong sulphuri c ac i d to ensure
that i t sha ll be dry and i t is in metalli c connex ion w i th
,
a disc or plate on the outsi de o f the vessel to wh i ch the

char ges may be gi ven .
It i s ea sy wi t h th i s i nstrument t o di scern the sign

of th e ch arge on any el ec t ri fie d body fo r if a port ion ,
of the charge be t rans ferred to t h e elect r oscope and an
addi ti on al ch arge be added fro m a v it r eously el ec t ri fied

body c g from a gl ass rod t hat has been rubbed wi th
, . .
,
E l ect ri cal amal gam i s made o f t in , on e part , z i n c, t wo part s , an d
u
m my
t , six put s .
( y
T n da l l
’
s L esson s i n E le ct rici t y ,
"
p
.
C
18 M ED IC A L E L E C T RI C I T Y .
s i lk then i f the for m er charge was negat i ve the leaves

,
w i ll collapse but i f pos i t i ve they wi ll d i verge st i ll further

, .
The best way o f carryi n g out th i s test i s as follows :

A pproach the charged body to be tested to the electro
scope The leaves w i ll di verge Touch the plate o f
. .
the electroscope w i th the fin ger fo r an i nstant an d they

w i ll collapse but on re m ov i n g the body to be tested
, ,
they wi ll aga i n d i verge under the e ffects o f a charge

o f oppos i te s ign to that o f the body to be tested N ow .
bri n g up n ear the electroscope a rubbed glass rod i f ,
the leaves collapse the prese n t charge i s negat i ve and ,
that o f the origi nal charged body was there fore posi t i ve .
The reasons fo r th i s procedure wi ll be understood from

the next paragraph .
I n car ry i n g out th i s test we m ust be care ful not to

charge the electroscope too m uch or the leaves m ay be
torn by the v iolence o f the repuls ion .
I n du ct i o n fi Take a hollow m etal vessel i n

"
16 .
,
sulate i t by ha n gi n g i t up by si lk threads an d con n ect ,
i t w i th an electroscope I f the vessel be u

. n el ec t rified
a n d we i n troduce i n to i t an el ec t ri fied body tak i n g care ,
not to touch the si des o f the vessel so that n o charge

passes from the el ec t ri fied body to the vessel the ,
electroscope w i ll i nd i cate a charge and on be i n g tested ,
i t i s found to be a charge o f the sa m e s ig n as that

o n the charged body i n troduced i n to the vessel e g if , . .
,
the charged body i s a p i ece o f rubbed glass the electro ,
scope wi ll i n d i cate v i treous or pos i t i ve electri c i ty A ga i n .

,
prov i ded the charged body i s far enough i n si de the vessel

i t m ay be m oved about to an y part o f the i nter i or and ,
the charge as i n d i cated by the electroscope re m a in s

u n altered It m ay even be allowed to touch the i nsi de
.
F a ra da y E x p R esearc h es I n du
’
s .
“
On S t at ic E lec t rical ct ive
A c t io n .
”
M ax wel l s E l ec t ricit
’
y an d M agn et i sm ,
”
v ol . i .
, p 32 . .
5 11 11 e ns c r m c rrv.
11 10 1 . 19
oi the vessel and t h e electroscope w ill show no change .
I f now i t be removed wi thout hav i ng touched the i nteri or .
o f the v essel the leaves o f the elect roscope wi ll co l lapse

, ,
and the vessel wi l l be left wi thout charge if however , , ,
i t has been allowed to touch the ves sel the leaves w il l ,
rem a i n di vergent but the body wi ll be found to be com

,
p l e t e l y di scharged .
In the first ca se the vessel is sai d to be el ec t ri fied by

i nduc t i o n and fro m the second case we see that the
,
observed i nduced el ec tri fic at io n i s exactly equal to and ,
i s o f t h e same s ign as that o f the i nduc ing body H ad .
we mome n t a ri ly connected the vessel to earth so as to

di scharge the first induc ed e l ec t ri fic a ti o n a n d then ,
removed the c harged body wi thout touch i ng the vessel ,
the vessel would be found to be charged wi th the Oppo

s ite ki nd of el ectri c i ty to as great an extent as in the
first case . S i mi la r e ffects are produced when ever an
e lec t ri fied body is brought near an y other body and ,
thi s is what was referred to i n 11 when i t was stated

,
that the l i ght bod i es apparently a t tracted by an elec t ri

h ed glass 10d &c were first el ec t rified by i t s i n fl uen ce
,
.
, .
I n the la n guage o f the two fl ui d theory an electr ic

c ha rge i n an y body reacts on th e neutral flui d i n the
b odi es near i t , attracti ng towa rds i tse lf an equ al

quan ti ty o f the flui d o f oppos i te s ign and sett in g free
an equal quanti ty o f the flui d o f si m ilar s ign to i tsel f .
Th is i s generall y i llustrated d iagrammati call y by con

sideri n g the si de o f the body nearest t o the glass rod as
c ha rged wi t h electri c i ty and the opposi te s ide ch arged

wi th electri ci ty the attract i on thus overbalanc in g the
,
re p u ls ion
.
17
. O o n dn ct l on — L et any body for i nstance the
.
,
metal v essel before used be el ec t ri fied taki n g care that

, ,
i t is supported by s i lk stri ngs or otherwi se i nsulated .
c 2
L et i t be connected w i th another s i m i larly supported

n o n el ec t ri fied body by m eans o f a wi re fo r a n i nsta n t
- .
N o w let the second body be exa m i ned w i th the electro

scope ; i t wi ll be found to be el ec t ri fied i n the sa m e sense
as the first body but to a less degree the charge o f the
first body has been partly condu cted alo n g the w i re c o n
n ec t i o n a n d has been d i v i ded between the two bod i es .
I f co n n ect ion had been m ade wi th a glass rod a st i ck of ,
resi n or a s i lk thread n o trans fer o f charge would have

, ,
occurred The metal w i re i s therefore a co n ductor o f

.
electr i c i ty the glass rod &c are n o t they are i n sula

, ,
.
, ,
tors Th i s experi m ent expla i ns why i t was n ecessary

.
to support the charged bodies we have been deal in g

w i th by s i lk threads i t also expla i n s how i t was that
,
all the electri cs k n own to the a n c i en t electri ci a n s were

i n sulators or n o n con ductors o f electr i c i ty s i nce though
-
,
conductors can be readi ly exc i ted by rubb i ng w i th

proper substa n ces spec i al m ea n s m ust be take n to i n
,
sulate the m that the charge m ay n o t leak away be fore

the e l ec t ri fic at i o n can be observed .
S ubsta n ces vary very m uch i n the i r power o f con

duct i n g electri c i ty thus m etals are good con ductors
, ,
water i s a fa i rly good o n e the body wood an d cotton, ,
are poor co n ductors wh i le w ool si lk o i ls resi n s and

, , , ,
m ost k i n ds o f glass are good i n sulators sulphur i s an ,
al m ost perfect i n sulator a n d dry ai r i s the best i n sulator

know n to us .
18 . T he E l e c t o ph o
r ru s— The pri n c i ple o f electri c
i nduct i o n wi ll expla i n the act i o n o f the s i m plest form
o f electr i c i n duct i o n m ach i n e the electrophorus , It .
i s i m porta n t to u n dersta n d th i s i n st ru m e n t fully as i t

i s the prototype o f all the m oder n so called in fl u -
“
”
e n ce m ach in es . I n i t s s i m plest form the electrophorus
consi st s o f a c ake of res i n and a di sc of m etal mou n ted
,
ST A T IC A L
’
E L E C T RI C I T Y . 21
on an i nsulat i ng handle The resi n i s first exc i ted by

.
brush i n g i t wi th a cat ski n and the d i sc i s placed upon

i t by mea n s o f the i n sulat i ng handle The state o f .
a ffa i rs then i s as follows

The resi n bei ng negat i vely el ec t ri fied by the fr i ct i on
Ft o . 1. - T he
‘
cake o t t h e F10 . 2. —T h e co v er appl i ed
el ect ro pho r s. u t o t h e cake .
Ft o 3 . .
—
T h e co v er aft er Fro .
4 .
- T he cov er raise d
co n n ect io n for a m o m en t fro m t he cake, an d po si t i vely

to eart h . ch arged.
of the cat s ski n ( fig 1) acts i nduct i vely on the metal

’
.
plate across the th i n h l m o f ai r between the m ( fig .
In the language o f the t wo fl uid theory i t attracts to ,

22 ME DIC A L E L E C T RI C I T Y .
i tsel f bi n ds by i t s i n fl uen ce a pos i t i ve charge an d

an d
sets free a negat i ve charge on the upper surface o f plate .
I f the plate i s now co n n ected to earth by a touch w i th

the fin ger the free n egat i ve charge escapes ( fig
,
.
the pos i t i ve charge st i ll rema i n i n g face to face w i th t he

charge o f the res i n plate O ure m ov in g the m etal plate .
by the i n sulat i n g ha n dle i t s pos i t i ve charge i s freed

fro m the restra i n i n g i n fl uen c e o f the i nduc i n g n egat i ve
charge on the resi n and m a y be used to charge any
requi red holder o f electri c i ty ( fig Th i s process m ay .
be repeated ad 1nfin itum °

.
The usual form o f electrophorus has a m etal plate or

sol e under the res i n cake the object o f wh i ch i s to per,
m i t a charge to be i n duced i n i t that m ay react i n duc

t i v el y w i th the charge o f the res i n and so h i n der the
di ssi pat i on o f the latter by dust part i cles co n vect i on 810 , , .
There i s generally a pi n dr i ve n through fro m the sole to

the face o f the cake of res i n wh i ch d i spen ses wi th the ,
n ecess i ty o f touch i n g the m etal plate or carr i er w i th the
hu ger to re m ove the first i n duced n egat i ve charge .
'
I t i s not w i th i n the scope o f th i s book to e n ter more

fully i nto theoret i cal co n s i derat i o n s b ut the stude n t ,
may be re ferred fo r further i n for m at ion to such books as

Sy l van u s P T homp son s E le m e n tary L essons i n E lec
’ “
.
.
t ri c i t y and M agnet i s m a n d C l erk Max w ell s E le m e n t

’
ary Treat i se on E lectri ci ty and spec i ally as gi v i n g a , ,
full popular account o f the m ost m odern theor i es to the ,
work c i ted above M oder n V i ews o f E lectri c i ty by ,
D r L odge
. A very co m plete accou n t o f electr i c i n d uc
.
t ion and o f the electrophorus wi ll be fou n d i n P art I .

,
C hapter I I I o f the last m e n t io n ed book

.
, .
19 E l e c t ri c Q u
. an t i t y H i therto i n th i s chapter .
C o m pare t h is pro c ess wit h t he m et h o d of t est in g by t h e go l d l eaf

el ec t rosco pe, 15.
ST A T IC A L E LE C T R I C I T Y . 23
the consi dera t ion o f quant i ty o f elec t ri c i ty has been le ft

in the background and el ec t rifica t ion has bee n spoken
,
o f rather as a state or qual i ty super i nduced i n bod i es -
by certa i n processes I t is now necessary to arri ve at a

.
de fin i t e concep t i on o f th i s state as a measurable quanti ty ,
as bro ught about by t h e presence o f a real or hypo

thet ical so m e t h i ng wh i ch can be m eas ured an d whi ch i s
called electri ci ty a someth ing whi ch h as been refe rred
,
to fo r conven i en c e sa ke i n the language of the flui d

hypotheses as if i t were an actual flui d but wh ich i t , ,
must be borne i n m i nd i s n o t that whatever el se i t m ay

, ,
be . L et u s suppose t h e exi ste n ce o f a so m ethi ng whi ch
is measurable an d whi ch when prese n t in any body

endows i t wi th the propert i es jus t descri bed under the
name o f e lec t ri fica t io n and whi ch i s called E lectri ci ty
,
.
Th i s electri ci ty then i s o f two ki n ds one na m ed posi t i ve ,
o r vi treous and one negat i ve or resi nous

, I t has been .
seen al ready t hat pos i t i ve electri c i ty repels pos i t i ve and ,
t hat negat i ve repels negati ve whi le pos i t i ve el ectri ci ty

,
attrac t s negati ve and vi ce ven d Th i s has to be expressed .
i n term s o f so m e un i t to be chosen on c e fo r all

, .
20 . U t o
n i f — That quanti ty o f elec
t ri c i t y wh i ch when supposed collected at a po i nt w i ll
,
repel an eq ual qua nti ty o f s i m i l ar e lectri c i ty collected at

a po in t and placed at un i t di stance fro m t he first w i t h
, ,
un i t force shall be taken as the un i t qua n ti ty o f elec

t ri ci ty .
No w i n th i s de fin i t io n the un i t quant ity o f elect ri ci ty

i s made to depend on the un i ts o f length and o f force ,
an d t hi s latter i s defin ed w i th re ference to the un i ts o f
length mass and t i me H ence the un i t quanti ty o f

,
.
elect ri c i ty has been completely de fi ned i n terms o f the

un i ts o f length mass and t i me For sc ien t i fic purposes
,
.
M ax wel l s E l ect rici t y a d M agn et i sm vo l i

'
n p 44 , . .
, . .
24 . M ED CA I L E L E C T RI C I T Y .
the se are taken as one cent i m etre one gramme and ,
o n e seco n d respect i vely ) “
There i s o n e m atter that has not expl i c i tly been taken

i n to co n s i derat i o n i n thus defin i n g the un i t quant i ty o f
electri c i ty v iz the medi um i n wh i ch the act i on be
, .
,
tween the two charges takes place It i s assu m ed how .

,
ever that th i s i s a i r )
, .
t
N ow the attract i on or repuls i on be tween two quant i

t i es o f electri c i ty i s proport ional to each i s propor ,
t i o n al to the product o f the two qua n t i t i es It i s also .
i nversely proport i o n al to the square o f the d i stance

between the m always o f course suppos i n g that the two
,
quant i t i es are collected at two po i n ts hence i t may be ,
represented by an expression .
;
B
F K
W hen F sta n ds fo r the force o f attract ion or repuls i on ,
E E the two qua n t i t i es R the d i stance between the

'
, ,
poi nts at wh i ch they are placed an d K some constant ,
depend i ng on the permeab i l i ty o f the medi um between
s I n t he se q uel it will be fo un d t h at all t he un it q uan t it ies are o r
c an be ex pre sse d in t erm s of t he un i t s of l en gt h , m ass a n d t i m e , an d
fo r sc i en t ific ur
p p o se s k
t h ese are t a en as o n e c en t i m e t re , o n e gra m m e
an d o n e sec o n d respec t i v el y . T hu un i t of v el oci ty i s o n e

s t he c en t i
m et re per seco n d, t he u n it of a ccel era t zo n o n e u n i t o f v e l o c it y

, , so m e
t im es c al l e d a v el , per se co n d, a v el oc i t y of o ne ce n t im e t re per
se c o n d a dded per sec o n d . T he un i t of f o rce ,

i s t h at fo rc e wh ic h ,
wh en ac t i n g o n a m ass of on e gra m m e, gi v es it un it ac c el era t i o n ,
0 1 wh i c h wh en ac t i n g o n on e gra m m e fo r on e sec o n d gi v es i t a
v el o c i t y of o n e c e n t i m et re pe r se c o n d a n d 1s c all e d o n e y
d ne T he
.
el ect ro - st a t i c un i t of q ua n t i t y i s t h atq uan t it y wh ich wh en pl ac ed at

o n e c e n n m e t er fro m an eq u al a n d s1m 1l a1 q ua n t i t y repe l s i t wi t h a
fo rc e of on e d y n e. T his s yst em is c al l e d t h e ce n t nm et re -
gram me
sec o n d s st em y ( sh o rt en ed t o C . G . S . y
s st em ) of un i t s .
1M o re accurat el y a vac uum .

ST A T IC A L E L E C T RI C I T Y . 23
them el ectri c act ion B ut by our defin it io n when

to .
E a n d E are equal a n d F and R are made eq ual to

'
uni ty E and E are to be also un i ty there fore we so

,
'
choose our un i t o f electri cal quanti ty that K wh i ch i s

called the sf mfic i ndu cti ve cap aci ty or more correctly the
'
diel ect ric constan t o f the med i um that we are cons i der i ng ,
i s ta ken as uni ty .
The un i t quanti ty o f electri ci ty here defin ed i s called

the el ectro stat i c un i t and i s used i n di scuss i ons con
-
cern i ng electri ci ty at rest It and the other un i ts .
de ri ved from i t lend themselves to cal culati o n fro m

geo m etri cal data so that fo r example i f the s ize and ,
shape o f a conductor be kno wn i t i s onl y a quest ion o f

ma t h emati cs to calculate i t s electro stat ic capac i ty I n -
.
di sc ussi ng el ec t ri ci ty i n m ot ion we sha l l u se a d i ffere n t
syste m o f un its based on a d i fferent assumpt i on as to

the medi um concerned These u n i ts are called electro .
magnet i c uni ts and m any i nvesti gat ions have been

,
made w i th t he object o f fin di n g out the relat ions o f

the electro stat ic to the electro m agnet ic un i ts
- * -
.
2 1 L aw of I n v erse 8 q u
. am — The l a w re ferred .
t o i n the la st paragraph that the force between two

qua n ti ti es o f electri c it y o t her thi ngs be i n g equal i s , ,
i nver sely proport i o n al to the square o f the d i st ance

betwee n th em has been proved by d i rect experi m ent
,
by C ou l omb wi th hi s tors i on balance A descri pt i on o f .
t h i s i ns t rument a n d o f the expe ri mental proo f i s gi ven

i n a ll text books an d fo r i t the student m ay re fer to the
-
,
a bo v e m en ti oned E le m entary L essons i n E lectric i ty

-
“
an d M agneti sm by P rof S P T hompson A far m ore . . . .
O n e 1 t h e mo st st rik i n g ways i wh ich t h e c n ec t i n bet wee n

°
0 0 n on o
e l ect i ci t y a d l ight i sho w

r n i s t h at t h ese r la t io n i n ol e a cert ai
s n , e s v v n
v eloc i t y whi c h h a been sh own by m easu

s remen t t o co i c ide wi t h t he n
v elo ci t y o i li gh t
°
.
acc urate proo f o f the truth o f the law i s gi ven by the

famous C aven dish exper i ment wh i ch shows that there i s ,
no electr i c force i nsi de a c o n duc t orfi "
B y an i ngen i ous arrangement o f soap bubbles P rof .
C V B oy s has lately bee n able to prove the abse n ce o f

.
electri c force w i th i n a charged conductor and couse ,
que n tly the law o f i nverse squares wi th almost i n c on

c ei v abl e accuracy .
E l ec t ro m o t i v e f o r c e P o t en t i a l q W hatever
'
l “
22 .
,
produces or te n ds to produce a tra n s fer o f el ec t ri fic a

t i on i s called electromoti ve force Thus when two el ec t ri .
h ed co n ductors are co n n ected by a w i re a n d when ,
el ec t ri fic a t i o n i s tra n s ferred alo n g the w i re fro m o n e to
the other the ten den cy to th i s tra n sfer wh i ch ex i sted

, ,
be fore the in troduct i on o f the wi re an d wh i ch when the , ,
w ire i s i n troduced produces th i s trans fer i s called the

, , .
electro m ot i ve force fro m the one body to the other alo n g

the path marked out by the wi re .
To de h ne co m pletely the electro m ot i ve force fro m

o n e po i nt to a n other i t i s n ecessary i n general to spec i fy
,
a part i cular path fro m the o n e po i n t to the other along

wh i ch the electro m ot i ve force i s to be recko n ed I n m any .
cases e g i n electrolyt i c ther m o electri c and electro

, . .
, ,
-
m agn et i c pheno m e n a the electro m ot i ve force fro m ,
o n e po i n t to another m a be d i ff ere t alo g d i ff erent

y n n
paths ; i f we restr ict our atten t ion however as we , ,
m ust do i n th i s part o f our subject to the theory o f the ,
equ i l i bri um o f electri c i ty at rest we shall h n d that the ,
electro m ot i ve force fro m one po i n t to a n other i s the

s a m e for all paths drawn i n a i r fro m the one po i nt to
the other .
”
E l ect ric al R esearc h es o f t he H o n H en ry C a ven di sh ,
.
p
. 104 ,
et . seq .
, p.
4 17 .
1 Q uo t ed fro m M wel l E l em en t ar y y
'
“
ax s T reat ise on E lec t ri cit ,
p 5
. .
I
ST A T C A L E L E C T RI C I T Y . 27
The electromoti ve force from any poi nt al ong a path

d rawn in ai r to a certa in po int chose n as a poi nt o f
,
re ference i s ca lled the electric poten tial at that po int

, .
S ince electri cal pheno m ena depend only on d ifferences

o f poten t i al i t i s o f no conseque n ce what po i nt o f refer
,
ence we assu m e fo r the ze ro o f poten ti al pro vi ded that ,
we do not change i t duri ng the same seri es o f measure

men ts .
I n mathe m at i cal treat i ses th e poin t o f refere n ce i s

,
taken at an in fin i t e di stance fro m the el ec t ri fied sy stem

under co n si derat ion The advantage o f thi s i s that the
.
math e mat ical express ion fo r the potent ial due to a sm all
el ec t ri fied body i s thus reduced to i t s s i mples t form .
I n experi men tal work i t i s more conveni en t to

as s ume as a po int o f re ference some object i n m et a lli c
co nn ecti on wi th the ea rth such as any part o f the
,
sy st em o f met a l pi pes convey i ng the gas or water o f a

town .
I t is o ft en conve n i ent to assume that the walls h oor ,
an d ceil i ng o f the roo m i n wh i ch the experi ments are
carri ed on have conduct i ng power sufli c i en t to reduce

the whole outer surface of the room to the same
poten ti al Th i s poten t ial m ay then be taken fo r zero
. .
W h en an i n stru m ent is enclosed in a metall i c case the

potenti al o f th e case m ay be assu m ed to be zero .
I f the poten t ials at di fferent po i nts o f an un iform

c onductor are di fferent t here wi ll be an electri c current
from t he places o f h igh to the places of low pote n ti al .
A t present we are deal i ng wi th cases o f electri c equ i

l ibri um i n wh ich th ere are no currents H ence i n the .
cases wi th wh ich we h ave now to do the poten t i al at .
every poi nt of the conductor must be the same Th i s .
poten ti a l i s called the potenti al o f the co n ductor .
23 E q u
. i pot en t i al 8 11M m— The regi on o f space
“
in wh i ch the potent i al i s h igher than a certa i n value i s

d i v i d ed fro m the regi on i n whi ch i t i s lower than th i s
value by a sur face called an equ i potent i al or level
surface at every poi nt o f wh i ch the potent i al has the
,
g i ven value .
W e m ay con cei ve a seri es o f equi poten t i al sur faces

to be descri bed correspon di ng to a seri es o f potenti als
,
i n ari th m et i cal order The potent i al o f any poi nt wi ll

.
then be i nd i c ated by i t s pos i t io n i n the seri es o f equ i

potent i al sur faces .
N o t wo d i fferent equ i potent i al sur faces can cut one

another fo r no poi nt can have two di fferent potent i als .
24. P h y si c a l A n a l o gi e s The i dea o f electri cal

.
poten t i al m ay be i llustrated by com pari n g i t w i th pres

sure i n the theory o f fl ui ds an d te m perature i n the
theory o f heat I f two vessels contai n i n g fl ui ds are put
.
i n to co m m u n i cat i o n by mea n s o f a p i pe fl u i d w i ll fl o w ,
fro m the v essel i n wh i ch the pressure i s greater i nt o

that i n wh i ch i t i s less t i ll the pressure i s equal i sed .
Th i s however w i ll not necess ari ly be the case i f one

, ,
vessel i s h igher than the other fo r gravi ty has a ten ,
den c y to m ake the fl u i d pass fro m the h i gher to the

lo wer v essel S i m i larly whe n two el ec t ri fied bod i es are
.
put in to electri c co m mun i cat ion by m ea n s o f a w i re ,
el ec t ri fi c at i o n wi ll be tra n s ferred fro m the body o f

h igher pote n t i al to the body o f lower potent i al unless ,
there i s an electro m ot i ve force te n d in g to urge elec

-
t ri c i t y fro m o n e o f these bod i es to the other as i n the ,
case o f z i n c an d copper A g ai n i f two bod i es at d i ffer

.
en t te m peratures are placed i n ther m al co m m u n i cat i on
e i ther by actual contact or by r a d i a t i o n heat wi ll be ,
tra n s ferred fro m the body at the h igher te m perature to

the body at the lower te m perature t i ll the te m perature ,
o f the two bod i es be co m es e qual i sed The analogy .

5 1111 10 11 E
. L E C T RI C I T Y . 29
bet ween t emperature and potent i al must not be assumed

to extend t o all parts o f the phenomena o f heat and elec
t ri ci t y
. I ndeed th i s analogy breaks down altogether
when i t i s appl i ed to those cases i n whi ch heat i s
gen erated or destroyed W e must al so remem ber that
.
temperature corresponds to a real phys i cal state where ,
as poten ti al is a mere mathe m at ical quant i ty the value

o f wh i ch depends on the po i nt o f refer ence we may
choose To ra i se a body to a h igh temperature may

.
m elt or volati l ize i t to ra i se a body together wi th the

, ,
vessel whi ch surroun ds i t to a h igh electri cal potenti al

,
produ c es no phys ical efiect whatever on the body

'
H ence the only part o f the phenomena o f electri c i ty and

hea t wh i c h we m ay regard as analogous i s the cond i t ion
o f the transfer o f heat or o f electri c i ty accord i ng as the
tem pe rature or the poten t i al is h igher i n one body o r in

the other W i th respect to the other analogy — th at
.
between potenti al an d fl ui d pressure—we must t e

member that the only respect i n wh i ch electr ic i ty
resembles a fl ui d i s that i t i s capable o f fl o win g along
co n duct ors as a fl ui d flows i n a pi pe
In terms o f th i s an a logy the electri c i ty i s co m pared to
th e fl u i d wh i le the press u
, re o f the fl uid at an y po int
answers to the poten t i al o f the electri c i ty at a corres
pon d i ng poi nt the d i fference o f pressure between t wo
,
poi nts causes the flow o f flu i d from one to the other

wh ile si m i larly the electro m ot i ve force or di fl eren c e o f
'
poten ti al between two po i nts causes the fl o w o f elec

t ri ci t y from one to the other .
T h e co n cepti on o f electri c potenti al i s a very di ffi c ult

o n e and th i s i s not the proper place fo r a d i scuss i o n o f
,
i t in all i t s bea ri ngs ; enough has been sa i d i n the long

q uotati on fro m C l erk M ax wel l to gi ve so m e i dea o f the
meani ng o f the word but the student who wi shes to
,
obta i n a thorough i n sight i n to i t cannot do better than

read C lerk Max wel l s E le m enta ry Tre at i se on E lec
’
”
t ri c i t y gi vi ng speci al attent ion to C hapter I I I on
,
.
,
E lectri cal W ork and E n ergy

”
I n most o f what .
follows and espec i ally i n the part wh i ch re fers to elec

t ri c i t y i n m ot i o n the i dea o f electr i c pressure i n connec
t i o n wi th the word pote n t i al w i ll be the do m i nant o n e ,
but i t m ust always be re m e m bered that th i s i dea of

pressure i s based on the a n a logy o f t h e electr i c fl o w to a
fl ui d fl o w and th i s i s at best v ery i m per fect
,
.
2 5 D efi n i t i o n
. o f po t e n t i a l It m ust be not i ced .
here that the defin i t io n o f poten t i al just gi v e n i s a very

i m perfect o n e A co m plete defin it io n i s the follow i n g
.
The a m ount o f work done aga i n st the electr i cal forces

o f the syste m by an external agent i n carry i n g one un i t
, ,
o f pos i t i ve electr i c i ty from a place where the potent i al i s
zero to a gi ven po i n t i s called the electri c poten t i al at

, ,
that poi n t Th i s defin i t io n i ncludes that just gi ven and

.
i s co m plete W e shall have to recur to th i s subject i n

.
the n ext chapter .
It i s a co n sequen ce o f th i s defin i t io n that u n i t d iffer

en ce o f pote n t i al i s the d i ffere n ce o f poten t i al between
two po i n ts when on e u n i t o f work i s expen ded i n m ov
i n g u n i t qua n t i ty o f pos i t i ve electr i c i ty fro m the po i n t at
lower potent i al to that at the h i gher .
A lso i f E be the quant i ty o f pos i t i ve electri c i ty at any

poi n t the pote n t i al due to th i s at any other po i n t di s
,
E
tant R fro m i t i s
R
26 . E l ec t r o m et e r s
The o n ly th i n g that can be
.
observ ed i n con nect io n w i th electri c i ty at rest i s a

d i fferen ce o f pote n t i al It i s possible to m easure the
.
qua n t ity o f electr i c ity dri ve n through certa i n i n st ru

M ax wel l , E l emen t ar y E l ect ri c i t y , p.6 7 .
ST A T IC A L E L E C T RI C I T Y .
3 I
ments , just in the way th a t a quant i ty o f water dri ven

through a water meter can be m easured and some o f ,
these i nstrum e n ts w ill be d i sc ussed i n a future chapter ;

but fo r the present we ca n only apprec iate electri ca l
ch arge by observi ng a di ffere n c e o f pote n ti al and elec ,
~
t rosc o pes a n d electrometers are i nstrume n ts fo r show in g
or mea suri ng d ifferences o f poten t ial A quotati on from .
D r L odge s M odern V i ews m ay m ake th i s clearer

'
.
“
Imagi ne now that we li ve i m mersed i n an i n fin it e
ocean o f incompress ible and i nexpa n s ible al l permeat i ng -
perfect l iqu i d like fish l i v i n g in the sea ; how can we

,
become cogn izan t o f i ts exi sten c e ? N o t by i t s we ight ,
for we can rem ove i t from no port i on o f space to t ry

whether it has weight W e can we igh ai r truly but
.
, ,
that i s s i m ply because we can co m press i t and rarefy i t .
A n exh austi ng or condensi ng pump o f so m e ki nd was

needed befor e eve n ai r could be weighed or i t s pressure
esti m ated . Bu t i f ai r had been i ncompress i ble and
i nexpan si ble if i t had been a v ac u
,
uml ess perfect li qui d ,
pumps would ha ve been useless fo r th e purpose and we ,
should necessaril y be co m pletel y i gn orant o f the we ight

and pr essure o f the atmosphere H o w t hen should we .
become cogni zant o f i t s exi stence ? I n four ways

“
a . B y bei ng able to pu m p i t out o f one elasti c bag
i nto another ( not out o f one bucket i nto another ; i f you
li ved at the botto m o f the se a you wo uld never thi nk
about fil lin g o r em ptyi n g bucket s —th e i dea would h e
absurd ; but you could fill or empty elasti c bags) and ,
by not i ci ng th e stra i n phenomena exh i b i ted by the bag s

an d the i r tendency to b u rst when over ful l .
I) B y wi nds or currents ; by watchi ng the e ffect o f

.
movi ng masses o f the fl ui d as i t flows along pi pes or

t hrough spongy bodi es and by th e e ffects o f i ts i nert i a
,
and momentum .
o . By mak i ng vort i ces an d wh i rls in the flu i d and by

observ i ng the mutual act ion of these vort i ces thei r ,
attract i on s and repuls ions .
d B y sett i ng up undulat ions i n the m edi um

. by ,
the phenomena wh i ch i n ord i nary medi a exci te i n us

through our ears the sen sat i on called sound .
I n all these ways we have become acqua i n ted wi th

E lectr i c i ty and i n no others that I a m aware o f
,
They .
correspo n d to the four great d i v i si ons o f the subject

wh ich I m ade above ( see
The observat ions the n that we are able to make on
pote n t i al answer to observ i ng the stra i ns of the elast i c
,
bag o f D r L odge s analogy

.
’
.
S i n ce electro mot i ve force i s d ifference o f potent i al an

-
,
el ec t ri fied body tends to move from places o f h i gh t o
places o f low potent i al .
27. The gold lea f electroscope has been shortly de

scr ibed i n 15 The d i verge n ce of the leaves o f th i s
.
i n stru m ent m ay be taken as a n i nd i cat i on that the knob

or d i sc wh i ch was term ed by Fam day the electrode or
, ,
way by W hi ch electric i ty en ters the i n stru m en t i s at a ,
d ifferen t poten t i al to the walls o f the roo m or to that of ,
the m etal cage that surrounds so m e forms o f the i n st ru

m e n t but obv iously w i thout further observat i on i t does
,
n o t tell whether the pote n t i al i s h i gher or
m ore pos i t i ve or more n egat i ve and further tests must ,
be m ade to d iscover th i s N e i ther does i t g i ve us more

.
than the roughest i nd i c a t i on o f the a m oun t o f difference

o f pote n t i a l In cases where there i s a great d ifference
.
o f pote n t i al and a del i cate gold lea f electroscope i s l i ke l y

,
to be spoi lt rougher form s m ay be used e g D utch

, , . .
,
metal or even p i th bal l s suspe n ded by l inen threads may

be used i n stead of the m ore del i cate gold lea f .
I f i t i s requ ired to measure a d ifference of potent i al an

I
ST A T C A L E LE C T RI C I T Y .
33
11
1mm must be used There are many forms of
” .
these most o f whi c h are due t o the i nvent i ve gen i us of

,
S ir W T homson . D escri pti o n s o f the vari ous forms wi l l

.
be found in most text books such as for i nstance i n -

,
S P TM L essons i n E lectri c i t y and M agnet

“ ’
. . M :
”
ism or the arti cle E lectrometer i n the last edi t i on
" “
,
o f the E ncyclop aedi a B ri tann i ca

“
but best o f al l i n ,
S i r W T ho mson s pa pers o n E lect ro stat i cs and M ag

’
-
.
n eti sm ,
"
pp . 2 63 at scq.
28 . D i st ri b u
of C h arge ; D en ei t y
t i on — I t h as al .
ready been observed that the whole o f an electri c charge

resid es on the surface of a charged conductor and
thi s has been proved by d irect experiment i n many
ways We may n o w proceed t o di scover if the di strib u
.
tion over a conductor i s un i form o r not The ex peri .
ment i s eas ily t ri ed by testi ng difieren t parts o f a

'
c onductor wi th a small carri er a di sc o f co nduct i ng ,
materi al supported on an i nsulati ng handle called a ,
proof plane and i t is soon found that whi le t he di st ri

,
buti on over a sphere i s un i form as we should expect ,
from the sym met ry o f the figu re i t i s not so o n co n ,
du ct ors of other shapes but the greater t h e curvature o f

,
the surface the more electri ci ty i s taken up by the proo f

,
plane L e t us defin e t h e q uant i ty of electri ci ty per uni t

.
( s q uare cent i metre ) o f surface as the elec t ri c d ens i ty ,
then t he el ect ri c den si ty is the same at all po ints of a

S phere un i n fl uen ced by surround i ng objects but on ,
con ductors o f o t her shapes the dens i ty i s greater the
grea ter the curvature of the surface ti ll at a sharp edge ,
or a poi nt t h e densi ty becom es so great t hat a d i scharge
takes pla c e For thi s reason if a po i nt i s attached t o a

.
charged con du ctor a strea m of charged parti cles of ai r i s

repel l ed fr o m t he poi nt gi vi ng ri se to a wi nd setti ng
from th e poi nt an d rap i dly di schargi ng the conductor .
1
)
29 . A c t i on of po i n t s .
—W e must consi der thi s act i on
of poi n ts a l i ttle more fully as i t becomes o f great i m
,
portance i n electri cal mach i nes and somet i mes i n elec ,
t ri c al treatment I n the first place the presence o f a

.
po i nt on a charged conductor renders i t i mpossi ble to

keep a charge on the con ductor however well i t may be ,
i nsulated B ut the sa m e effect wi ll occur i f a poi nt be

.
presented to a charged conductor fo r the ch arge whi ch , ,
we wi ll suppose i s pos i t i ve o f the conductor act i ng in

,
duc t i v el y on the poi n t wi ll i nduce a negat i ve charge at

the poi n t the de n si ty o f wh i ch wi ll become so great
,
that i t wi ll be d i scharged to the ori gi nal conductor ,
neutral i si ng i t s pos i t i ve charge and leavi ng the con

ductor wh i ch bears the po i nt posi t i vely charged i f i t i s
i nsul ated It i s by th i s mea n s that the pri me con
.
du c t o rs o f most electr i cal mach i nes are charged fro m
the exci ted plate or other moveable part .
3 0. C a p a c i t y — The quant
. i ty o f electri c i ty that i s re
qui red to rai se the potent i al o f an y conductor from zero

to u n i ty all other con ductors i n the neighbo urhood bei ng
,
kept at zero potent i al i s called i t s C ap aci ty

,
.
H e n ce i f a charge E be gi ven to any conductor at

zero poten t i al an d i t s poten t i al i s thereby ra i sed t o V
, ,
i f C sta n d for the capaci ty
E
or E =C V .
V
H ence i f we know the capaci ty o f any conductor and ,
c an deter m i n e i t s potent i al by mea n s o f an electrometer ,
we are able to calculate the qua n t i ty of electri c i ty on i t .
3 1 C.a p a c i t y o f a sph e re — I t i s shown i n M ax.wel l s

’
E le m entary Treat i se that the capaci t i es o f certa i n

conductors may be calculated from the i r shapes mg ,
that the capaci ty o f a sphere i s numeri cally e qual to i t s

1110 11.
3 11 E LE C T RI C I T Y .
35
radi us an d that the capaci ty of a sphere of radi us a

,
surrounded by a con centri c sphere of rad i us 1 ) wh i ch i s
kept at zero potent i al is gi ven by the express ion

a b
b -
a.
Th at i s t o say a sphere whose ra di us i s 10 centi meters

concen t ri c wi th one whose rad i us is 11 centi meters will ,
ha ve a capaci ty i f the outer sphere i s kept at zero ,
poten ti al of ,
10 x 11
110 un i ts ,
11 10
wher eas such a sphere not surrounded by another sphere

but suspended apart from other conductors in space ,
would only h ave a ca pac i ty o f 10 uni ts .
I f the rad i us o f the outer sphere were reduced t o 10 } 4
cm the capac i ty o f the i nner one woul d become

.
,
10 x 10 }
2 10 un i ts ,
10 } 10
so that th e closer the spheres are the greater the capaci ty

o f the i nner o n e .
In general the nearer that uni nsulated conduct in g

bo di es are t o a conductor the greater the capac i ty o f
that conductor .
3 2 C o.n d en se rs * — A n apparatus cons

. i sti ng o f t wo
i nsulated conduct ors each presenti ng a large surface to ,
t h e other w i t h a s m all d i stance betwee n them i s called

, ,
a c ondenser because when on e conductor i s connected

,
to eart h a small electromoti ve force i s able t o charge the

,
o t her wi th a much larger quant i ty of electri c i ty than if i t
s t o od al on e i a i t s capaci ty i s increased by the prox imi ty

, . .
,
of the other conductor ( see

”
M ac l l s E l em en t ary T reatise o n E l ectri cit y C hap VI I I
’
. .
,
D 2
36 M E D IC A L 1 110 11 1.
313 0 11
The si mplest form o f condenser consi sts of t wo metal

l i c d i scs supported on i nsulat i n g stems and faci ng each
other the i nterven i ng n o n con ductor or dielectri c bei ng
,
-
ai r . I f now a di fferen t di electri c as fo r exa m ple a , ,
sheet o f glass be i n serted i n stead o f ai r the capac i ty of

, ,
the conden ser wi ll be fou n d to be d i ffere n t an d greater

than be fore thus the i n duct i o n across the d i electri c
, ,
depends on the nature o f the di electri c ( c f .
33 . D i e l e c t ri c c o n st a n t S i n ce a glass co
. n denser
has a h igher capac i ty tha n an ai r condenser glass ,
transm i ts i n duct io n better than ai r and we say that ,
glass has a h igher dielectri c constan t or specific i n ductive

cap aci ty than a i r . N ow i n 2 0 i n defin i n g our un i t ,
Fx o 1
5 . .
—L ey den j ar
qu ant i ty o f electri ci ty we assumed the d i electri c con

,
stant o f ai r to be un i ty W e now see that we m ight

.
have assumed that o f an y other sta n dard substance as

un i ty but i n doi ng so we should have obtai ned a di f
,
feren t un i t o f electr i cal qua n t i ty .
34 L ey.d e n j a r The electr

. i cal condenser most o ften
used i n experi m ents on stat i c electri c i ty i s that known
as the L eyde n jar ( fig .
The ordi n ary form o f th i s apparatus i s a gl ass jar

37
or bot tle coa ted i nsi de and out wi th metal fo il t o

,
wi thi n t wo or three i nch es of the t op T h rough the .
cor k o f the bottle a wi re passes term i nating abo ve i n a ,
knob and below in a cha in to m ake m etalli c contact

,
wi th the i nner coat ing T o charge the j ar the outer

.
coati ng i s co n nected to earth and so kept at zero ,
po tenti al whi le the i n n er coat ing i s conn ect ed wi th the

,
conductor o f an electri cal machi ne or charged by an

electrophorus The charge gi ven to the i nner coat ing
.
acts i nducti vely across the di electri c o f the jar whi ch i s ,
thus able to reta i n i t s charge It may be di scharged by

.
bri ngi ng a metalli c co n ductor w hich is i n con n ecti on

,
wi th the outer coati ng near to the knob o f th e jar A

, .
spark wi ll occur and the j ar i s di scharged .
35. S t r ai n i n t h e di e l e c t ri c — There i s. o n e ex
p eri m en t that may be per for m ed wi th a part i cular ki nd
o f L eyden jar that must be not i ced L et u s t ake
.
a jar in wh ich the coati ngs are removable connect the ,
outer coati ng t o earth and charge the j ar Then remove .
the i nner coati ng by an i nsulat ing han dle and also the
outer coat in g These m ay be tested by an elec t rometer
.
an d wi l l show but small s i gn o f charge they m ay be ,
completely di scharged an d put back i nto place wi th th e

sa m e precauti ons as be fore N ow on con necti ng the
.
coati ngs a spark wi ll pass just as if the coati ngs had

never been removed The mean i ng o f th i s i s that th e
.
electri cal effect resi des not i n t he charged bodi es but 111 7
t he diel ectri c bet w een t hem In fact we are taught by thi s

.
exper i ment to look on stat i c electri cal acti on as a state
of st ra i n i n t h e d i elec t ri c between conductors rather ,
than as a state of the conductors themselves F araday .
was the first to work o ut th i s i dea and he symbol ized ,
i t by d i agrams express i ng the state of the d i electri c

m edi um .
38 n sni c u
. E L E C T RI C I T Y .
36. L i n e . o f i n d uc t i o n — L
. e t us supp os e a charge
o f sa y t en u n i ts o f po si ti ve elec tri ci ty si t uated on a sphere
a n d un i formly di stri buted o n i t I t i s esse nti al t o the
.
ex i stence o f t hi s charge that on surroundi ng o bjects at

zero po tenti al there shall be a correspo ndi ng negati ve
charge o f ten un i ts L et now the surface o f the sphere
.
be di vi ded i nto ten equal parts an d ea ch wi ll contai n ,
one un i t of electri c i ty and let li nes be drawn 4 71 from

, ,
each part parallel to the di rec ti on in whi ch a part i cle

charged wi th pos i t i ve elec tri ci ty would be repel led .
Thes e l i nes are to be conti nued always parall el to the

d i rect i on of the elec tri c force at each poi nt ti ll they ter
m i nate i n the body at zero potent i al where the corre s
pondi ng negat i ve charge exi sts These l i nes are called .
l i nes of £ndu ct1on or so m et i mes less aptly f

°
(
“
l i nes o
and are perpendi cular to the equi potenti al surfaces re

ferred to i n 23 . The whole o f the space wi th whi ch
we are concerned the electri c field wi thi n the conductor
,
at zero po tent i al i s m apped out by these li nes o f i n

,
duct i on and equi potent i al surfaces and i f the origi nal ,
sphere be replaced by a conductor coi nci di ng i n posi ti on

wi th an y o f the equ i poten t i al surfaces the charge at any ,
port i on o f that surface i s gi ven by the number o f li nes o f

i nduct i on crossi ng i t d i vi ded by 4 11 .
D i agrams w i ll be found i n C l ark Max wel l s E lectri c i ty

’
and M agnet i sm o f the li n es o f i nducti on and equi

,
potent i al surfaces round poi n ts charged i n differe nt

ways .
( S ee also D r .L odge s
’
M odern V i ews and ,
Max wel l s E lementary E lectr i c i ty

’ ”
93 a
,t ,
37. E l ec t r i c di spl a c e m e n t — There . i s a way o f

looki ng at el ec t ri fic at i o n fro m th i s poi nt of vi ew o f l i nes
o f i nduct i on fo r a more co m plete expos i t i on o f wh i ch
,
we may re fer to the above me n t ioned M odern Vi ews

o f E lectr i c i ty ,
i n wh i ch the d i electri c i s consi dered as
39
stra ined by the di splacement o f electri c i ty all along a

l ine o f i nducti on and as i n vi rtue o f i t s di electri c pro
, ,
p er t i es
, elast i cally Oppos i n g th i s d i splace m ent .
3 8
. P r ac t i c a l n o t e . I n per form i ng exper i ments o n
st ati cal electri ci ty i t i s essent i al t o remember that dust

and damp are great enem i es t o success G lass h as a .
great power o f condensi ng a thi n fil m of moi s t ure o n i t s

surface and th i s hl m o f water has conducti ng power
,
su fi c ien t t o di scharge any charged conduct or H ence

.
i t i s necessary th at all the i nstruments should be ab so

l ut el y clean and dry and t o e ffect the latter the most
,
c onven i ent way i s t o w arm them . A nother method o f

m in i mi si ng th e hygrosc 0pic power o f gla ss i s to cover i t
wi th a shell ac varn i sh . I t i s wel l t o remember t oo that
there are certa in ki nds of lead glass that conduct pass
ably well and conseq uen tly wi ll n ot insulate ev en when
,
warm an d dry I n our cli mate we need never be sur

.
p ri sed at the f a i lure o f electro stat

-
i c exper i ments even ,
a ft er the mos t elaborate care has been expended on

them .
40 ME D IC A L E LE C T RI C I T Y .
C HA PTE R III .
E L E C T RI C I T Y IN M 0 1 10 N .
on t act el ect ro m ot iv e fo rce S i mpl e Vol t aic c el l bat t ery Oerst ed s

’
C . or .
ex peri m e n t . M agn et ism . N o rt h kin g see an d S outh seeki n g
po l es . S t ren gt h of po l e . Perm eabil i t y . M agn et ic m omen t .
M agn et ic field . L in es of force . Fi el d of fo rce abo ut a wi re

c arr yi n
g a c rren tu . U n it curren t . G al v an om et ers . T an gen t
an d S i n e gal van o m et ers G al v an o m et er . c o n st an t . A mm et ers

an d vo l t m et ers R efl ect in g gal v an o met er
. . E l ect ro mo t ive fo rce .
R esist an ce . O hm
’
s l aw . Prac t ical un it s . E l ec t ro l ysis . A n o de
an d k at h o de . L aws of el ec t ro l ysis . E l ect ro -

ch em ic al eq uiv a
l en t s . L egal O h m . S peci fic resi st an ce. R esi st an ce of an
el ec t ro l yt e . M eas rem en tu of resi st an ce . N et work of co n
duct o rs . Shunt s . Wh eat st o n e s ’

bridge . Po st o th ee bo x .
A rran gem en t o f batt eries . I n t ern al re si st an ce. H eat in g efiect s '
E l ect rom agn et ic i n duc t io n . L en z

’
s l aw . M ut ual i n duct io n .
S el f i n du Ruh m korfl s c o il agn et o - m achi n e. yn amo s

’
c t io n . . M D .
Pract ic al n o t e.
39 C o n.t a c t e l ec t ro m o t i v e f o r c e — I t was observed .
at the end of the last century by Volta that when di s ,
si m i lar m etals such as z in c and copper were brought

, ,
i nto co n tact i n ai r electr i cal separat i on took place and

, ,
a di fference of potent i al was set up between the metals ,
the z i nc bei ng pos i t i ve to the copper or at a h i gher ,
potent i al °
Un der these ci rcumstances thi s d i fference
.
o f potent i al does not efiac e i tsel f by d i scharg i ng across

'
the junct i on o f the two metals as a d ifference o f potent i al

between two parts of a homogeneous conductor would
do I f i t could do so there would be a cont i nual fl ow of
.
A differen t v ie w is t a ken by D r L odge, . see M o dern Views of

”
E l ectricit y , C h ap VI . .
E L E C T RI C I T Y IN M OT I O N .
4 1
current from zinc t o copper and th i s would result in the ,
heati ng o f the ci rcui t and an expendi ture of energy or

,
rather in a creat ion of energy whi ch i s itn po ssibl e ,

.
A gai n the elec t romo ti ve force set up at the j uncti on o f

,
the t wo metals could onl y di scharge i ts elf across the

juncti on by a fl ow in the opposi te di recti on to that in
whi ch i t tends to ca use a flow but that i s absurd B ut i f ,
.
the t wo pi eces of metal whi le i n contact are im mersed in

some li qui d that i s capable o f act ing chem i cally on one
of them e g , . di lute sulphuri c ac i d a co m plete c i rcui t i s
.
, ,
form ed and the di scha rge can take place through the
,
l iq ui d whi ch undergoes decomposi t ion thereby and the

, ,
diff er ence o f potenti al bei ng cont i nually renewed a con ,
t in u ou s di scharge takes place round the c i rcui t in the
f ollow i ng way
P osi ti ve electri c i ty p asses across t h e j uncti on of cop
p er and z i nc and then
, from the z i nc across t h e li qu i d
t o th e copper aga i n I f the connect i on o f copper to zi nc
.
b e by a wi re as i s usually the case we may use the

, ,
l anguage of the t wo fl ui d hypothesi s and look on t h e

j unct i on a s a sort o f pump dr i vi ng posi t i ve elec t r i ci ty
r ound the c ircui t so that i t passes from zi nc across the
,
l i q ui d or elec trolyte t o copper an d back to the zi nc

a ga i n along the metal l i c connect i on between i t and the
c opper thus maki ng a true c i rcu i t

, .
Thi s theory of a contact electromoti ve force i s not

a ltogether sat i s factory si nce i t fai ls t o explai n many
,
f acts that are observed m oreover the seat o f the supply

,
o f energy t o the ci rcui t i s cert ai nly not at the juncti on
o f t h e copper and z inc where i t shoul d be t o accord ,
wi th th e t heory I t must therefore be looked on as

.
m erely a workin g h ypoth es is of the same class as the

flu i d theory o f 12 unti l a sat i sfactory t heory i s pro
,
42 M E DIC A L s L s cr n rc rr r .
40 . V o l t ai c an arrangement i s called a
c el l . S uch
Volta i c cell and but for d i sturbances that wi ll b e more
,
fully consi dered i n C hap V i t would gi ve a cont i nuous

. .
,
current t i ll ei ther the z i nc or the exci t i ng l i qui d ( called

,
the electroly te) was exhausted The d i fference o f potenti al .
i n a cell or i t s el ectromotive force i s due t o the contact

electromot i ve force of the metals form i ng the poles of
the cell though i n certa i n cases th i s may be sli ghtly
,
Fm 6
. .
—
Si gl V
n e wi n g pol es an d
ol t ai c cel l sh o
di rect i on o f fl owi n si de an d o ut of cell .
m odi fied by the l i qui d used It i s possible t o i ncrease .
the electro m ot i ve force by jo i n i ng together a suffi c i en t

number of s i m ple Volta i c cells zi nc o f one to copper of ,
the next S uch a co m b i nat i on of cells i s called a battery

.
,
and the cells are sai d to be jo i ned series and the elec ,
t ro m ot i v e force o f the battery i s equal to the sum o f the

electromot i ve forces o f the cells wh i ch compose i t .
It i s customary i n so m e textbooks to speak o f the zi nc

plate of a battery as the pos i t i ve plate and the copper ,
o r other plate as negat i ve wh i le the term i nal attached

,
to the zi nc plate i s called the negat i ve pole and that ,
attached to the copper the pos i t i ve The ori gi n o f th i s .
very con fusi ng no m enclature i s no doubt the fact that i n

the battery the posi t i ve di rect i on o f fl o w of the current
E LE C T RI C I T Y IN M OT I O N .
43
i s from z inc t o copper and that z inc i s sa i d t o be electro

,
pos iti ve to copper Bu t in the co n necti ng wire the

.
posi t i ve di recti on of fl o w o f the c urrent is from co pper

to zi nc ( see fig and as th i s i s the porti on o f the
.
circui t that we are most concerned wi th the word ,
pos i ti ve wi ll be used to denote the posi ti ve pole o f the

batt ery and also the plate co n nected wi th i t when i t i s ,
necessary to specify th i s Thi s i s in con form i ty wi th

.
the usage o f electri cal engi neers wh o speak of the ,
peroxi de plates i n an accumulator as pos i t i ves .
4 1. O e rst e d s ex
’
pe r i m en t — L et a sma l l magnet
.
,
say a compass needle be suspended freely at rest , It .
will po int N orth and S outh now over i t let t here be ,
carri ed a wire jo i n ing the t wo term i nal s o f a cell or

battery in such a way that i t s course from copper t o
z inc alon g the wi re sh all be from S outh t o N orth ,
so that the current ( the posi t i ve di rect ion o f

fl o w) i s from S outh t o N orth then the N orth seeki ng ,
e n d o f the magnet wil l be defl ec t ed towards the Wes t .
Thi s observati on is due t o O ersted of C ope n hagen and ,
i t was formulated by hi m i nto a law for te l li ng the

di rec ti on of fl o w i n a ci rcui t t hu s z— I m agine a man
s wi mm i ng wi th the current i n the wi re from copper ,
t o zi nc and faci ng the nee dle the N orth seeki ng end o f ,
t he magnet wi ll always be defl ec t ed towar ds hi s le ft

h and whatever the pos i ti on o f the wi re wi t h regard t o
,
t he m agneti c needle .
42 . M a gn e t i s m — I t w i ll.be conven i ent at th i s po i nt

t o make a short di gressi on and di scuss the properti es o f
m agnets and the laws by w hi ch they are governed .
We wi ll assume a kn owledge o f the elementary facts o f

magnetis m whi ch are somewh at analogous t o those o f
,
electro stati cs v iz the e x i stence o f magneti c poles o f

-
, .
,
tw o ki nds whi ch occur o f eq u

,
al and opposi te strength
M E DIC A L E L E C T RI C I T Y .
in every magnet and that si m i lar poles repel each oth er

,
wh i le di ssi m i lar poles attract each other and we wi ll ,
consi der an i deal magnet say of th i n wi re such that it s , ,
poles are si tuated at i t s ends W e may just as i n th e .

,
case of stat i c electri ci ty consi der these poles as poi nts ,
charged wi th a hypothet i cal someth i ng wh i ch i s called

ma gnet i s m at th e same t i me bei ng careful to remember
,
that i n us in g th i s language we are merely represent i ng

facts i n terms o f a conven i ent metaphor ( see
43 . N o r t h see k i n g a n d S o u t h see ki n g p o l e s .
W hen a magnet i s suspended freely at the sur face of the

earth i t i s found that i t swi ngs so as to set i tsel f wi th
one pole poi n t i ng towards the N orth ( or at least ap
prox i m ately so ) and the other towards the S outh .
These poles are spoken of as the N orth seeking and S outh

seeki n
g poles respect i vely and the i r na m es are abbrev
, i ated
i nto N and S fo r conven i ence
. . M agnets are often .
pa i nted the N end red and the S end blue as sug

. .
,
gested by S ir W Tho m son * For purposes of defin i t ion

. .
,
one m agnet i c pole o n ly may be consi dered although in ,
pract i ce both wi ll always have to be taken i nto con

s i derat ion as i t i s not possi ble to deal wi th i n fin i t ely
,
long magn ets .
44 . S t r en gt h o f m a gn e t i c p o l e — D e
f A magnet i c . .
pole of such strength that i t w i ll repel an equal and

s i m i lar magn et i c pole placed at un i t di stance ( one centi
m etre) fro m i t wi th u n i t force ( one dyn e f) i s called un i t
T h ese po l es are t h erefo re so m et im es c al l ed red an d blue
respec t i v el I t i s o bv i o u
y . s t h at if t h e eart h b e l oo ked on as a
m agn et , t h e N o rt h po l e i s afi ect ed ( c h arged) wi t h S m agn et i sm , t he

’
S out h po l e wi t h N S o m et im es t h e N see i n g po l e o f a m agn et i c

. . k
n eedl e is bl ued, wh 1l e t h e S seek in g po l e is l eft b ri gh t
.
.
f D y ne t he C . G S u. n i t o f fo rce
. T h at fo rce wh i ch act in g
. on 1
gra mm e fo r o n e seco n d c h an ge s it s v el o c i t y by on e c en t i m et re per
seco n d.
45
magnet ic pole ( c f I n the language of an alogy

.
such a m agnet ic pole ma y be sa i d t o be charged wi th

un i t quan t i ty o f magneti sm .
T h e sam e co n side ati o ns apply here as in t h e ca se o f qu

r an ti t i es o f
elec t ri ci t y T he fo rce bet ween t wo magn et ic pol es i s pro por t io nal t o

.
t he p odur c t o f t h ei r st ren gt h s an d i n versel y pro po ti o al t o t h e

, r n
s q uare o f t heir di st an ces, hen ce i t may be represen t ed by an ex
pressi o n .
Wh ere F st an ds fo r t he fo rce ul sion or at t rac t io n m m fo r

of rep , ,
'
t he st ren gt h s o f po l e r t h e di st an ce bet ween t h em an d p i s som e

, ,
co n st an t depen di n g o n t h e perm e a bil it y o f t h e m ediu m be t ween th em

t o m agn et i c ac t i o n Bu t by o u r defi n i t io n wh en m m are e qu al an d
'
.
,
r an d F are m ade eq u al t o u n i t y m a n d m are also u n it y t h erefo re

'
, ,
we must so ch oo se o ur un it st ren gt h of pol e t h at p t h e m agn eti c ,
p erm e abil i t y of t he m ed i u
m t h at we are c o n si deri n
g v i2 air i s , .
, ,
‘
un it y .
T h is i s an im port an t mat t er un it upo n wh ich o ur

as it i s t h e
who l e syst em o f el ec t ro magn et ic un i t s ( cf 20 ) is based A s ex
-
. .
l ai d t h t h e l t t a t ic u i t ta t w i t h t h e a ss um t i t h t
p n e ere e ec ro s n s s r p o n a
-
the di el ec t ric con st an t of air sh all b e u n i t y so t h e el ect ro ma gn eti c

,
unit s are based o n t h e assu m pt io n t h at t h e m agn eti c perm eabil it y o f

air shall be u n it y O bvi o u
. sl y bo t h t h ese ass u m tvt i o n s are n o t n eces
sarily t ru e to ge t her an d it t h ey h ad h appen ed t o be so o u r el ec t ro
'
st ati c an d el ect ro m a n et ic u n it s w o ul d h ave coin ci ded i n magn i t u de

g -
bu
t t h ey do n ot .
45 M . agn et i c m o m en t .
—The product of the strength
of on e magneti c pole of a magnet i nto the d i stance b e
tween the poles of the magnet i s called t h e nmgnat ic
moment o f t hat magnet This is t h e measure o f t h e.
t en dency of t h e magnet t o turn about i t s ce ntre wh en
placed in a magneti c fiel d o f force ( see bel ow) of uni t

strength .
4 6 M. a g n e t i c fi e l d L i n e s o f f o rc e — The
. t e .
M o re c orrect l y a vac uum B ut t hese fact ors for air as co mpared

.
Wi th a vacu um difl er very sl i ghtl y from un it y

,
‘
.
46 M E D IC A L E LE C T R I C I T Y .
gi on of space about any magnet and throughout wh i ch

we consi der i t s act i on i s called i t s field B y a reference t o .
2 3 and 36 i n wh i ch the m ethod o f mapp i ng an elect ri c
fiel d by m eans o f l i nes o f force and equ i potent i al sur

faces was descri bed we see that we can map a m ag ,
net i c fiel d i n exactly the sa m e way W e can draw a .
seri es of equ i poten t i al surfaces round a magnet ( defin i n g

m agn et i c pote n t i al i n a s i m i lar way to our second an d
co m plete defin i t i on of electr i c potent i al i n 2 5) an d m ap
out the l i nes o f m agnet i c i nduct ion or l i nes o f force wi th
the sa m e convent i on and in the sa m e way as we di d the
l in es of electro stat i c i nduct ion cutt i ng the equi potent i al
-
,
Fx o .
7
—Li
, n ec o f force n ear t h e po l es o f a m agn et T he l i n es sh ou
. l d be produ
ced
to m eet , as t h ey are reall y co n t i n u

ous ci rcu its .
sur faces at right angles These wi ll then all start from

.
poi n ts or sur faces i n dued w i th N m agnet i s m and end in

poi n ts or sur faces i n dued wi th S magnet i sm and the i n
ten si ty o f a magn et i c fiel d at any poi n t w i ll be gi ven by
the nu m ber o f l i nes o f force whi ch cross per square cen
t i m et er o f sur face at ri ght angles to them at that po i nt .
T h e fo rce wi t h wh i c h un it magn et ic pol e is u rged i n t h e di rec t i o n
of t he l in es of m agn et ic i n du c t i o n o r t h e l in e s o f fo rc e at an
y p o i n t
is c al l ed t h e st ren gt h or i n t en sit y o f t h e fiel d at t h at po i n t If a .
s urface b e drawn t h ro ugh t h e po in t at righ t an gl es t o t h e l i n es o f fo rce

t h ere t h e n u
,
m b er o f l i n es o f fo rce per un it area o f t h at surface wh i ch
c ross i t i s a m easu
,
re o f t h e fo rc e eg a m agn et i c fiel d o f u
, . . n it
,
s t ren gt h wi l l h ave o n e l i n e o f fo rc e per sq u are cen t i m e t re an d a
m agn et ic po l e o f u n it st ren gt h pl aced i n su c h a fiel d wi l l be urged
al o n g t h e l in es o f fo rce wi t h a force o o e dy n e
f n “ .
S ee n ote 44 .
s L s cr s xc n r 101 10 1
1 1
11 1 .
47
It is easy t o map the field of force round any magnet

s in ce every magnet obvi ously tends t o set i tsel f parall el
to the l i nes o f force at the po int where i t i s I f then .
t he magnet whose fiel d i s to be mapped be la i d down on

a sheet o f wh i te paper and a small compass n eedle be
moved about in i t s vi c in i ty the d i recti on of the needle

at any po int wi ll gi ve the di rect i on o f the li nes o f fo rce
at that po i nt and t hese can be plott ed on the paper .
A ga i n soft i ron fil in gs i n a magneti c fiel d become

magnets themselves by i nduct i on and so set themselves
al ong the li nes o f force m appi ng th em o u t t o the eye in
a very beau ti f ul manner .
Thi s i s an experiment wh i ch ought to be tri ed by

every s t udent and i t wil l gi ve a clearer i dea of the li nes
o f magneti c i nducti on than any figu re The ex plana .
ti on of th e fact that i ron becomes strongly magnet i c

when placed in a m agnet ic fiel d i s due t o the fact that
the permeabi l i t y o f i ron i s very great hence the sa m e ,
i nd u cti on is able t o produce a larger number of li nes o f

force in i ron than i n air .
47 Pte l d of f o rc e ab o ut a wi re ca rry i n g a
urren t —To return to the el ectri c current
.
c . We can .
now draw a deduct i on from O ersted s experi ment v iz

’
.
, ,
that there must be a magnet i c fiel d of force about ev ery

wire t ha t i s carry i ng a current and s ince when we are
, ,
faci ng the magnet and swi m mi ng w i th the current the ,
N pole i s always defl ec t ed t o th e le ft whatever the pos i

ti on of th e magnet w i th regard t o the wi re i t follows ,
t hat the l i nes of force m u st pass round the wi re in

‘
C ircl es and i t i s easily shown that they do so by

,
scatteri ng i ron fili n s on a card through a hole i

g n ,
Whi ch a verti cal wi re carryi ng a current i s passed ;

When t h e card i s tapped the fili n gs i nstantly arrange
themselves so as t o map out the li nes of force as ci rcles
48 M s n rc u . a n s c r s rc rr v .
round the wi re ; also i f we look along t h e wi re from

copper to zi nc wi th the current the di recti on of t h e
, ,
l i nes the di rect i on in wh i ch a N pole wi ll move i s that

,
'
of the han ds o f a clock I f a wi re be bent i nt o the arc .
o f a c i rcle when a current passes through th i s are t here

,
wi ll be a fiel d o f force at the centre of t h e ci rcle due t o

the current at all poi nts of the arc I f t he arc were i n .
the plane of the paper and the current ran counter clock
wi se n i t the di rect i on of the l i nes o f force wou
* i
l d be
vert i cally up from the paper .
T he st ren gt h o f t h e fiel d of fo rce at t h e cen t re will depen d on t he
st ren gt h o f c urren t , t h e l en gt h o f t h e arc an d t h e l en gt h o f t h e radius
o f t h e c ircl e an d o n t h ese al o n e . T h e i n t en sit y o r st ren gt h o f t he
m agn et i c fiel d at t h e c en tre m ay be ex pressed as fo l l ows

°
r “
Wh ere I st an ds fo r t he in t en sit y of magn et ic fiel d 1 for t he m agn i

°
tude o f cu rren t I fo r t h e l en gt h o f t h e arc an d r fo r t h e radiu

, s wh i l e , ,
p i s t h e m agn et i c perm e a b i l i t y an d is t h erefo re un i t y see

( o r
t h i s m ay be ex p ressed u
th s 1
r 9
o m i t t i n g p si n ce p = 1. Where F i s t h e fo rce ex ert ed on a m agn et ic

po l e
( N o rt h see ki g)
n o f st ren gt h s pl ac ed at t h e c en t re.
48 . D efi n i t i o n of urr en t —C on seq ue n t l y if we m ak e t h e
un i t c
arc o f t h e c i rcl e t o h ave a radi u s of o n e u n i t ( o n e cen t i m et re

) and a
l en gt h of o n e u n i t we m ay defin e o u
, r u n it cu rren t as t h at c u rren t
wh ich m ak es a fiel d o f un it st ren gt h at t h e cen t re or wh at am oun t s , ,
t o t h e sam e t h i n g as t h at c u rren t wh ic h ac t i n g o n a m a n et ic
, g
u en gt h at t h e cen t re u rges i t wi t h u n it force o n e dyn e
p o l e o f n it st r
( ) .
B y t h is mean s t h e u n i t o f cu rren t i s defin ed i n t erm s o f t h e u n it
m agn et ic po l e A nd u
. n it q uan t it y o f el ect ric i t y m ay be defin ed as
t he qu an t it y wh ic h passes an y giv en po in t in a c ircu it in wh ich u n it
cu rren t i s fl o wi n g i n u n it t i me .
49 G a l v
. a n o m et ers .
—Th i s defin i t i on of un i t c urren t
T h at i s, in a di rect i on oppo sit e t o t h at of t h e han ds of a cl o ck .
s t s c r arc n v 11 1.
1 110 1 10 1 49
en a b les na make
to an i nstrument for measurin g the
any c ircui t . S uch an in s t rument is cal led a
as i s freq uently the case i t i s used
,
pres ence of a current i t m ay be
stri pped of all n on essenti als the

-
,
o f a coi l o f on e or more turns of
oth er sh ape s The needle bei ng

.
i tsel f parallel t o the magneti c fiel d

at the place where the galvano
n d the coi ls o f the i nstrument are
eedl e and th erefor e to the mag
at the pl ace H en ce the fiel d due t o a current

.
in the co i ls wi ll be at ri ght an gles t o the

field wi th whi ch i t i s t o be compa red
t o r ead the defl ec t i on s o f the magnet when
5 i n use one o f several devi ces may
,
s i mplest where very accurate readi ng

,
i s not essenti al i s t o attach to the m agnet a very light

,
l o ng poi nt er whi ch pas ses over a scale S o m eti mes the

.
s cale i s engraved o n a pi ece o f mi rror and the posi ti on o f
t h e po int er on the sca le can be det erm i ned wi th great

“
a ccu racy wh en the eye i s so placed that the po inter hi des

i t s own i mage in the mi rror The po in ter is genera lly
.
a tt ached at right angl es t o the m agnet so that i t s move
m ents can be observed wi thout h i ndrance fro m the co i ls .
T he po i nt er is oft en made o f straw or alumi n i um or paper .
The sen si ti ven ess o f a gal vanometer may be de

c reased by usi ng a shunt t o ca rry 0 6 pa rt of the current ,
01 by so placi ng permanent magnets as t o make a strong
field of fo rce at the p l ace where the needle i s suspend ed

B
DIC A L L E C T RI C I T Y
‘ ’
50 M E E .
It may be i ncreased by arrangi ng permanent

magnets i n the neighbourhood so as to partly balance
the earth s ma gnet i c force at the place where the gal
’
v an o m et er i s or by us i n g the so called astu tzc comb i na

'
-
,
t ion o f magn ets Th i s consi sts of two needles r i gi dly

.
con nected and so magn et i sed that t hei r poles are turned
i n oppos i te d i rect i ons Th i s co m bi nat i on i s hung wi th
.
o n e needle i ns i de the co i ls and the other outs i de The .
e arth s fi el d fa i ls to exert any d i rect i ve act i on o n the

’
co m b in at i on as i t s act ion on one i s counter balanced by

,
-
i t s act i on on the other ; but the e ffect of the fi el d o f

force o f the co i ls acts i n o n e d i rect i on on the poles of
the needle wi th i n the m and bei n g i tsel f reversed out, ,
si de the co i ls has an i n fl u,
en ce i n the same d i rect i on o n
the reversed m agn et there an d thus tends to turn the ,
whole co m bi n at i on i n one d i rect ion .
For the types o f galvano m eter used i n medi ci ne sec § 13 1 .
50 . T an g en t an d ci n e g al v an o m et er l .
—I t is eviden t fro m wh at
was said i n 47 t h at si n c e t h e act io n of a c urren t in a c irc ul ar arc
on a m agn et ic po l e pl aced at t h e c en t re o f t h e circl e i s pro po rt io n al

to t h e l en gt h o f arc , t h e i n v erse sq uare o f t h e radi us, t h e st ren t h o i
g
t h e curren t , an d t h e st ren gt h o f t h e m agn et ic po l e,
'
11 s
r“
W h ere F st an ds fo r t h e force I fo r t h e l en gt h urren t ,

°
, o f arc , 1 fo r t h e c
3 for t h e st ren gt h of po l e an d r fo r t h e rad i us o f t h e ci rcl e, if we co m

p l et e t h e c i rcl e 1b ec o m es
2 c r -
( wh ere cv st an ds for t h e rat i o of t he
c i rc u m feren c e t o t h e diamet er o f a c i rc l e 3 1 4 159 o r ro ugh l y
an d t h e ex pression for a si n gl e c irc l e o f wire becom es
z r i s
Ifwe use a n umb er u

o f s ch c i rc l es ( )n an d r st an ds for t h e mean
radius we get
1
F= 2 n f i — o
E L E C T RI C I T Y IN M OT IO N .
51
Nowwe can n o t o bt ain a sin gle m agn et i c pol e, an d if we cou ld th e

measurem en t of a force i s a v ery di ffi cu l t m at t er t o carry o ut wi t h
acc ura c y , so t h at t h e pract ical met h od of usi ng t h ese prin cipl es is to
balan ce t h e field of force due u

t o t h e c rren t at t h e c en tre o f a gal
van o met er co il again st a fiel d o btain ed in so me o t her way
°
ot fo rce .
F req u
en t l y t he eart h s fiel d o f fo rce bu so met i m es
’
is t h e on e ch o sen , t
a st ro n ger fiel d is m ade by t h e u se of a perm an en t m agn et at o
t ach ed t o o r pl aced n ear t he apparat u

s . L et n a co nsi der t h e act i o n 01
a fiel d o f fo rce o n a m agn et s uspen ded at its cen t re 0 ( fig . L et t h e
Pro 8
. .
—D iagram of fiel ds of force an d magn et in t an gen t gal vano meter .
t wo fiel ds o f fo rce be represe n t ed i n m agn i t ude an d direc t i o n by “I l l

'
O E, 0 C . L e t m be t h e magn et ic mo me n t of t he m agn et , t he
produ ct o f t h e st ren gt h o f
po l es i n t o I t h e l en t h o f t he m agn e t
g .
T hen t a in g m o men t s abo u

k t t h e c en t re o f t he m agn et, if I be th e
an gl e of de fl ec ti on pro du c ed by t h e su p er im p osed fie l d due t o t h e
u magn itude 0 C
c r ren t o f say K)
K I C OS I S = H l $i n I S ( )
I V
where H represen t s t h e m agn it ude of t h e fiel d 0 E , but I: m an d
disappears from t h e eq uat io n s, t h erefo re
K H ta n 1 .
a uc t
Now fro m u defin it io n
o r o f st ren gt h of hel d K =
=
e quation I I I ( Si nce K .
. F) .
H en ce fin all y
t an 1 .
(V I .
)
2 n
8 0 that if we kn ow the st ren gt h o f t h e fiel d of fo rce when t h ere i s n o

8 2
curren t t he n umber o f t urn s an d t h e mean radius of t he gal van om et er

,
c o il s we can by eq u at io n V I con vert readin gs of t h e an gu l ar defl ect ion

o f t h e gal van omet er n eedl e i n t o cu rren t .
Fo r in st an ce su w u i u i i l
°
ppo s e e h av e a c rren t 1 c rc l at n
g n a g a
v an o met er of o n e t urn o f wire o f 10 c en t imet res radi u s pl ac ed i n t h e
m agn et ic fiel d in E n gl an d t h e defl ect i on of t h e n eedl e is

'
eart h s an d
°
4 5 t h en
H
X 10 x tan
2 1:
N ow t an 45 °
1 an d in E n gl an d H is about 1 8 un it s .
H en ce 1 °
6?
n earl y= 2 8 7 absol ut e C GS un it s o f curren t = 2 8 7 amperes ( see
' °
. . .
Fx o 9 . .
—D i g
a ram o f fiel ds of force an d m agn et i n sin e gal van omet er
.
T h ere i s an ot h er arran gem en t o f gal van o met er in wh ich t h e coil s

t h em sel ves t ut a vert ical ax is ( fig
urn abo I n t h is k in d o f gal van o
.
m et er t h e co il s an d scal e are t u rn ed un t i l t h e n eedl e a ai n po i n t s t o

°
g
z ero wh en t h e c u rren t i s run n in g an d t h e an l e read is t h at t h rou h
g , g
wh ich t he co ils h av e been t urn ed E q uat ion V t hen beco mes.
K H si n I
as is easil y seen , an d VI reads
T h e former k in d of gal van o m et er i s c all ed a tangen t gal v anom et er,

53
an d is t he l east t ro uble to use , but i n t he l at t er 01 gal vanomet er

t he an gular readi n gs are rat h er great er an d in so m e cases t his co m
fo r t h e great er t ro u use
—
p sat es
en bl e i n .
5 1. G al van om et er co n st an h —The fact or

H r
whic h con verts t he galvanometer readi ngs i n t o curre nt

i s cal led t h e galvanometer const ant and is usua ll y ,
wri tt en as one symbol G I t i s generally determi ned

, .
for an y gi v en galv anom eter once fo r all by dri vi ng a

curr en t through th e gal vanometer and a voltameter
F m m t h e quanti ty of deco mposi ti on in the
vol tamet er the average curren t can he arri ved at wi th
g rea t a c curacy and t
, he galvanometer co nst a nt can be
determi ned by a compari son of thi s wi th t h e galvano ~
m eter readi ng I t is not usual t o calcul ate t h e galvano

.
meter cons t ant from the coi l i tself as the mean radi us i s
n o t easi ly arri ved at .
5 2
. A mm et er. an d v o l t m et en — I t i s po ssi ble .
t o attach a speci ally cali brated scal e t o a gal v an ometer

so th at the readi ngs shal l be di rect ly i nto curren t A .
g alvanometer that h as been cali brat ed in this way is

cal led an A mmeter ( ampe re meter) S uch g alvano .
~
met ers are mad e for medi cal men t o read mi lli ampe res
o r t hou sandths of an ampere and often gi ve
fai rly accurate resul ts especi al ly as i t wi l l be seen from
,
equa ti ons V I an d V I I I
. that the rea di ngs do n ot depend
.
,
on the magn eti c moment o f the m agnet o f th e gal vano
me t er ; t he cali brati on however should always be , ,
che cked from ti me t o ti me by t he user A galvano .
m eter of hi gh resi stan ce t h at is t o say on e of s uch ,
resi stan ce that the resi stance o f a battery i s negli gea ble
by co m pari son wi th i t may be used t o compare the

,
54. M E DIC A L E L E C T RI C I T Y .
electromot i ve forces of batteri es , it i s then called a V olt
53
. R efl ec t i n g ga l v an o m et e r . speci al forms
S ome
o f ammeters and volt m eters wi ll be descri bed i n a
future chapter we may however here just ment i on the
, , ,
re l ecti n
f g g a l vano me t ar Th
. i s i s more gener ally used as a
galvanoscope and i s very sensi t i ve
,
It i s so called
.
because the moti ons o f the magn et are made v i si ble by

a beam o f l ight wh i ch i s refl ect ed on to a scale from a
s m all m i rror attached to the magn et B y the laws o f .
refl ec t i o n o f l i ght the an u lar d fl t i f the fl c t ed

, g e ec o n o re e
beam o f light i s twi ce that o f the m i rror The apparent .
angular mot i on o f the magnet i s there fore doubled and ,
the mot i on o f the spot o f l i ght on the scale can be

i n creased by removi ng the scale to a great d i stance from
the m i rror .
54. U n i t o f el e c t r o m o t i v e f o rc e — N ow a cu r rent
.
i s set up i n a ci rcu i t by electromot i ve force (sac def 22

) .
that i s to say the curren t i n any part o f a c i rcu i t i s due

to the difference o f poten t i al between the ends o f that
port i on o f the ci rcui t Thi s can be measured by means
.
o f an electrometer . B ut fro m the defin i t i on o f potent i al

in 2 5 we see that the d i fferen ce o f potent i al betwee n
an y two po i nts A and B i s m easured by the work done
i n bri n gi ng up un i t qua n t i ty of electri ci ty from B to A

aga i n st the electri cal forces of the system under c on
si derat i on hence the work gi ven out when un i t quant i ty
,
o f electr i c i ty runs down from A to B under the electri cal
forces o f the system i s equal to the d i fference o f poten

t i al between A and B H e n ce i f we wri te E for th i s
.
,
di fferen ce o f potenti al betwee n A and B the ,
electromot i ve force fro m A to B we get an expressi on ,
E9 W .
W here q stands for the nu m ber of uni ts of electri ci ty

s n ac r a rc rr y 1 110 1 10 11.
11 55
run down under elec t romot i ve force E and W for the ,
work done B ut q C t where C i s the curren t an d t

.
the t i me duri ng wh i ch we consi der i t as runn i ng

'
Hence we may wri te E C t

, W So that we m ay .
de ne o u
h r un i t o f electromoti ve force thus — I n an y
part o f a ci rcui t carryi ng uni t current uni t work i s done ,
i n uni t ti me when t h e el ectromoti ve force between the

ends o f tha t part o f the ci rcui t i s un i t electromoti ve force .
55 R e.fi nt a n ee — I t i s soo
. n found i n work i ng w i th
currents that wi th different amoun ts o f wi re in t h e
ci rcu it different currents are produced by the sa me
,
electro m ot i ve force There i s another factor that deter

.
mi nes the strength o f current bes ides th e electro m oti ve

force and t hi s factor i s ca l led the resist ance of t h e ci rcui t
, .
( N .B S i mple
. c i rcu i ts and steady cu r re n ts on l y are here
consi dered wi th vari able currents i t wil l be found that
,
there are yet other factors that a ffect the matt er) .
5 6 . l a w — The law . show i ng the re l a t i on

between el ectromoti ve force resi stance and current was ,
en unci ated by D r G S O h m and i s known as O hm s

. . .
’
l a w I t i s as follows z— l
. st ren gt h o
f t h e curren t any
W t or part of a ci rem varies directly as the electromoti ve

and in versely as the resi st ance o t he circu
f orce t hat 0111
3111 ? f i t .
T hi s may be expressed i n sy m l o l s thus

I s
R
W here C the current E for t h e electro m ot i ve
stands for ,
fo rc e and R fo r the resi stan c e

, A s be for e i n the case
.
,
o f oth er uni ts the uni t o f resi stance i s taken as the

,
resi st a nce whi ch wi th an electromoti ve force o f un i t
v al ue al lows uni t curren t t o pass

‘
.
T he u n i t of c apac i t y i s defin ed i n t h e same m an n er as i t was in
el ect rost at i cs, t h o ugh it i s of c o rse a difieren t magn it u

u de . T h i s is
scarcel y req uired in medic al work .
W e have now defin ed

the most i mpo rt a n t of t h e
electro magnet i c un i ts A s i n the cas e of t h e electro
-
.
stat i c un i ts these are all ult i mately defin ed in t erms of

,
the un i ts o f ma ss len gth and t i me an d as in all , ,
electri cal and other sci en t ific calculat i on s t hese are

taken to be on e gramme on e cent i metre an d on e ,
second respect i vely the system o f un i t s h ere defin ed ,
i s k n own as the absolute or cent i metre gramme secon d - -
system It i s found however that for pr act i cal

.
, ,
calculat i on and use these un i ts are not o f a co nven i ent

s i ze c g the un i ts o f electromot i ve force an d of resi st
,
. .
,
ance are i nconven i ently small and t h at of curren t i s ,
i nconven i ently large A system of u n i t s h as t h ere for e

.
been deri ved fro m these as follows

57 P r a c
. t i c a l un i t s E l ect rom ot i vc
f or cc — T h e pr
.a c .
t i cal un i t consi st s of one hun dred m i ll i on absol ut e un i t s

( 10
8
and i s called the Vol t It i s a l i ttl e le ss t h an t h e .
electromot i ve force of one D an i ell s cell ’

.
S eein g t h at el ec t ri c i an s h av e t o deal wit h q uan t it ies re q uirin g

in so m e cases ver
y l arge n umbers , an d in o t h er cases v er y sm al l
n um bers t o ex press t h em , a s st em o f y i n dex n ot at io n is ado pt ed in

o rder to o bv iat e t he use of lo n g ro ws of c yph ers . In t h is
y
s st em t he sign ific an t figu res on l y of a put q uan t it y
dow n t he are ,
c y ph ers at t he en d, o r ( i h t h e c ase o f a l o n g dec im al at t h e be in

) g
bei n g in dicat ed by an
n in g, i n dex writ t en abo ve A cco rdi n gl y we .
m ay writ e a t h o usan d ( 10 x 10 x 10 ) as 10 , an d t h e q u
3 an t i t y
m ay be wri en 4 2 x 10
t t 3
T h e B rit ish N at io n al D eb t o f
.
m ay be writ t en £ 77 X 10 7
. Fract io n al q uan t it ies wil l h av e n ega
t ive i n dices when writ t en as ex po n en t s. T hus 1h

1 to 10 10
— 2 an d so t he dec i m al °
wil l be writ t en
0 00 2 8
28 x 10
— 5
, bei n g 28 x
'
oo oo r. T he co n v en ie n ce o f t h i s m et h o d wil l
be seen by an ex am pl e or t wo o n el ect ric it y . T he el ec t ro st at ic
c apac it y o f t he eart h is t im es t h at o f a sph ere o f o n e
c en t im et re radius 63 x 10 7
( el ect ro st at i c ) un it s . T h e m agn et ic
m o m en t of t he eart h is, ac c o rdi n g t o G au ss , n o l ess t han
t im es t h at of a m agn et of u
n it
57
R esistah cs .
—O
thousand m i l li on absolute uni t s
ne
i s cal led the Ohm The P ari s C ongress o f E lectri ci ans

.
in 1884 defin ed an uni t of resi st ance t o be cal led a

legal 01 11
11 I t is represented by the resi stance of a
.
col u m n o f pure mercury at 0 C o n e sq uare m i lli m e t re

°
.
,
in se cti on and 10 6 centi metres long i t is less than t he

, ,
t rue oh m by about 3 per c ent .
6 m m —T he curren t whi ch i s gi ven by an elec t ro

.
moti ve force of o n e volt act i ng through a resi stance o f

on e oh m one ten t h o f an absolute uni t) is
-
call ed o n e A mp?” ( t his was formerly kno wn as on e

Weber) .
Q u an t ity
— O ne am pe re. fo r o n e sec ond carr i es o ne
C ou l omb o f l
absolut e uni ts past any “
10 ,
po in t in the ci rcui t A no t her uni t o f q uanti ty much .
used by en gi neers i s the quanti ty o f elec t ri ci ty whi ch

woul d be ca rri ed by one am pere in an hour Thi s is .
cal led an aW s lww I t is eq ual t o 3600 coulombs -

. .
C pa ty ( see
a c i — That ca pa ci ty whi ch would re
q ui re on e co ulomb t o charge i t t o o n e volt on e ,
on e t housand m il li onth
-
of the absol u
-
te uni t of
ca pa ci t y is cal led on e F arad
, .
E ven these uni t s are i nconveni ently great or sm all at

ti mes so cen ain prefix es are used t o the n ames t o
,
denote multi ple s or sub multi ples of these q uanti ti es -

.
Th us a wgolm i s on e mil li on
, ohms a 11112112 11011 i s ,
st ren gt h an d o n e cen ti m etre i n l en gt h , it s ma gn et i c mo men t i s

85 x 10 “ u
n it s . T he resi stan c e m i s abou
of sel en iu t 4o , ooo , ooo, ooo
01 4 x 10 10
t hn es as grea t as t h at o f co pper : t h at o f air is abo ut
10 “ or t i mes as grea t . T he
velo ci t y of l igh t is abo ut
3o ,o o o , ooo , ooo cen ti m et res per seco n d , or
3 x as a final ex am pl e w e m ay stat e t h at t h e n u mber o f ato m s
i n t heu n i ve rse as far as t h e n earest 6 1
, 101! star , can be sho wn to he
cert ain l y fiew er t h an P T M m L esson s in
’
7 x ( S . .
p s
E le ctric i t y and
on e -
m i ll i o n th
( ) 10
4
of a volt a m,
i ll i mi crofarad
onth on e -
( 10
4
) o f a f arad a m i ll
,
i am én
p i s o n e thousandth o f an -
amp e re ; th i s last i s the u n i t o f curren t used i n med i c i n e .
5 8 .E l ec t r o l y si s I n
4 0. i t was po i n ted out that
duri n g the passage of an electri c curren t through a bat
t ery the l i qui d or as we then called i t the electrolyte wa s
, ,
decomposed an d th i s deco m posi t i on i s essen t i al to the

,
passage o f the curren t E xa m i n i n g i n to the decomposi

.
t i on m ore closely i t m ay be looked on as i f i t took place as

,
follows — O w i n g to the d i ffere n ce o f potent i al set up b e

tween the plates say o f z i n c and copper the zi nc plate
, ,
bei ng posi t i ve attracts to i tsel f the electron egat i ve po rt i on

or i on o f the electrolyte I n the case o f sulphuri c aci d
.
( H , S O 4)
th i s i s the group o f ato m s 8 0 4
A t the sam e .
t i m e the copper plate bei n g at the lower poten t i al and ,
therefore n egat i vely charged wi th regard to the zi nc ,
attracts the electropos i t i ve i on i a the hydrogen and , . .

, ,
the state o f a ffai rs may be thus represen ted ,
Zn S O4 H z S O4 H , S O4 H , S O4 H , C u
a cha i n o f m olecules polari zed under the i n fl uen c e

o f the con tact d iffere n ce o f pote n t i al between copper
an d z i n c B ut the i on S O 4 i s capable o f comb i n i ng wi th

.
the z i n c an d so n eutral i si n g i t s pos i t i ve charge and the ,
i on H i s set free on the 0 0 pper thus n eutral i s i ng the

, ,
correspon di ng neg a t i ve charge there Immedi ately o f .
course the sa m e act i on recurs owi n g to the cont i nuously

act i ng con tact electromot i ve force between copper and
In th i s way a con t i n uous curren t i s kept up ,
I t i s fair h ere t o c al l at t en t i o n t o t he fac t t h at t h i s ex pl an at io n
h as been , an d is st ro n gl y disput ed, espec i al l y by D r . L o dge , wh o
gi ves an al t ern at i v e t h e pl ac e referred t o

on e in abo v e . S o m e l at el y
u b l ish e d re searc h es by D r W eet en , o n t h e ac t i o n o f aci ds o n z in c ,
p .
seem t o st ren gt h en t h e po si t io n t a en u b
p y t h e o b k j ect ors ( S ee n ot e
.
in N at ure fo r J uly l 6t h , 18 9 1, p .
59
and a con ti nual double process ion o f the mol ecules of

the el ectrolyte or i ons occurs i n the li qui d part o f the
c ircui t the elec t ropos it i ve io n pass i ng always towards
,
the copper or posi t i ve pole o f the battery and the electro

negati ve i on towards the z i nc so t hat we may regard
,
the copper plate as recei vi ng posi ti ve electri c i ty co n

t in u all y from the electrolyte and pass ing i t on t o the
,
c i rcui t The hydrogen gi ven off at the copper plate

.
does n ot escape i nstantaneously and un less m eans are,
taken fo r removi ng i t i t wi ll set up a back or rev erse

,
electromoti ve force whi ch wi ll greatly reduce the effic ien t

electromot i ve force o f the battery The battery i s then
.
sa i d to be pol ari zed M any m ethods chem i cal and me

.
,
ch an i ca l h ave been suggested fo r overcom i ng thi s d i th

,
cul ty some of wh ich wi ll be descri bed in C hapter V

, .
I f the wi res leadi n g fro m the term i na l s o f a battery

are not joined but are led i nto anoth er el ectrolyte an ,
acti on correspond ing to th at wh ich takes place i n the

ba ttery wi l l occur There wi ll be a tendency to de
.
~
compose the electrolyte and if there i s suffic ien t electro

,
m ot i ve force in the c i rcui t to overcome the reverse

electromoti ve force of t h e electrolyte electro dec om po ,
-
s i t i ouor electroly sis wi ll take place Takin g t h e case o f

.
water ( in pract ice the water i s slightly ac idified wi th

sulphuri c ac i d to i ncrea se i t s conduc t i vi ty ) the changes
are as follows
59
. A n o d e an d k a t h o d e —S uppose
. that the poles
o f the ba tt ery are connected to two plati num plates i n
t h e wat er .Th ese pl ates are called the el ectrodes .
That connect ed wi th the copper pole i s the one by

wh i ch the current ( consi dered as a fl ow o f po si ti ve
el ectri ci ty ) enters the electrolyte and i s cal led t h e A node ,
tha t connected wi t h the z i nc is called the Kat hode 11m , ,
the po l e by whi ch the current leaves the soluti on I n .

60 ma m c u . E LE C T RI C I T Y .
the begi nni ng the anode i s posi t i ve the kathode n egat i v e , .
The i ons i n the case of water are hydrogen an d o xygen

and the former i s electroposi t i ve an d therefore appears
at the kathode o r n egat i ve pole and i s called the Ind ian ,
wh i le the oxygen appears at the anode an d i s called t h e

an i on The arran gement of the molecul es m ay b e t e
.
presented thus
T o z in c po l e , Kat h o de H 9 0 H 9 0 H 9 0 A n ode, t o co pper po l e.
If the electromot i ve force o f the batt ery i s n ot sum

ci en t to overcome the back electromot i ve force due t o
the chem i cal affi n i t y o f the oxygen and h y drogen for
each other matters wi ll rest l ike thi s t h e electrolyt i c
, ,
*
cell i s polarized the current i s stopped an d n o appre
, ,
c i ab l e decompos i t i on or electrolys i s wi ll take pl a ce b u t ,
i f the electromot i ve force i s su ffi ci en t i a ab o ut 2 volt s , . .

,
or more decomposi t i on wi ll proceed hydrogen b ei ng

, ,
g i ven o ff at the kathode and oxygen at the anode , .
60 .L aw s o f l
e ec t ro y si s
l — The laws o f electro ly si s .
were d i scovered by F araday ; 1they are as follows

a. T he amou nt o
f chemi cal act ion i s equ al at al l p arts o a
f
circu it E g
. I f a c i rcu i t i s made conta i n i ng sev eral
. .
electrolyt i c cells or vol tametarsi as they are often called

, ,
the amount of decom pos i t i on w i ll be the same i n each .
I f they are water voltameters the same amount of h y

drogen wi ll be gi ven off i n each i f the electro lyte i s ,
copper sulphate solut i on the same amount of copper wi ll
I t is e as y to sh o w t h at t h ere is an act ual reverse el ect ro m o t ive

fo rce i n t h e el ec t ro l y t i c ce l l , by su dden l y cut t in g o ut t he bat t ery an d
c o m pl et in g t h e c irc uit in whi ch t h e el ec t ro l y t ic cel l is i n c l uded

t h ro ugh a ga l v an o m et er, wh ich wil l t h en i n dicat e a sm al l u
c rren t
in t h e o ppo sit e direct io n .
”
1 E x perimen t al R esearch es, S eries V . an d VI I .
1F o r an acco un t of Vol t am et ers, see 133 t o 135.

s t s c r a xc rrv m M OT IO N . 61
be deposi t ed in each The same appl i es in the case o f .
the kat i ons I f some of the voltameters conta i n wa t er

.
and others conta in sulphate o f copper solut ion the ,
quanti t ies of hydrogen and copper respecti vely wi ll be

m
p p o rt i o n al t o the i r che m i cal equ i v alents .
b T he amomd of tmy ion hl m ated i n any gi ven time is pro

.
'
cu nd to t he chemical
M on a ! t o t he strength o
f t he rren t a ,
equ
i va ent of the
l i on — Thi s may be expressed th us
.
W C a wt .
Where W stands for the the i o n l iberated C wei ght o f ,
fo r the current 10 the che mi cal equ i valent o f the i o n

, ,
t the t i me for whi ch the current runs and cc i s a

co nstant .
61 meet ro-eh emi eal eq ui v al en t s —S ince th e

. .
eq ui v a len t w fo r hydrogen i s un i ty we see that a i s the

weight of hydr ogen l i berated by o n e ampe re runn in g for
on e se cond by on e coulomb of elect ri c i ty and th i s
, ,
is ca lled the electro chemi cal eq ui valent o f hydrogen -

.
For any ot her i o n the product a w i a the const ant ,

. .
,
multi pli ed by the chem i cal equ i valent o f the ion i s called
th e el ectro ch em i cal eq ui valent o f that i on
-
The .
elect ro che mi cal eq ui valent o f si lver was

-
determ in ed
wi th the most elaborate care by L ord R ayle igh and
”
M rs S i dgwi ck i n the C avendi sh L aboratory at C am
.
bri dge and was found t o be 0 0 11179 4 } grammes per

coulo mb Le” the q uan ti ty o f si lver wh i ch one a m p e re
,
wo uld deposi t in an hour i s 4 0 246 grammes N ow the -

.
chem i cal equi valent o f si lver i s the same as i t s atomi c

weight and was determi n ed by S tas t o be
”
R oy Soc . . Phil T ran s,
. 18 8 4 , vol
p 4 11 . . .
f T he n umber ‘
00 1118 is t hat reco m men ded t o be adopt ed in t he
t eport of t he com mitt ee on electrical st an dards to the Board of
T rade. dat ed Ju
ly s3t d, 189 1.
H en ce the electro chem i cal e qui valent

-
of hydrogen
wi ll be per coulomb
0 0 1117 9 4
°
57 x
10 7
-
938
6 2 T h e l egal o h m
.
— S i nce i n modern t i mes the
.
electri c current has become an art i cle of com m erce i t

has become i mporta n t to defin e standards o f electri c
qua n t i t i es accurately by law an d the legal un i t of re ,
si st an c e or l egal ohm was defin ed at the P ari s C o n gress

, ,
as the resi stance o f a column of mercury o f a certai n

len gth and th i ckness v i z 10 60 m i lli metres in length
,
.
,
a n d o n e square m i ll i metre i n sect i on Th i s d i ffers pro .
bably by less than one th i rd per cent from the true i

-
.
value o f the ohm v i z ro absolute un i ts and all t e

,
.
,
"
,
si st a n c es are expressed i n terms of i t S tandard t e .
si st an c e co i ls are made w i th wh i ch to compare unknown
resi stances just as there are weights and yard measures

wi th wh i ch to compare u n kn own weights and lengths .
63 S pe c i fi c resi st a n c e
. The electri cal resi stance .
o f a n y mater i al i s a property pecul i ar to that materi al
just as i t s hardness or colour or densi ty is M ost metals .
are good conductors but they vary greatly among them

selves in thei r electri cal conducti vi ty S i lver i s the .
best conductor o f electri c i ty and copper com es near to i t .
P l a t i num has about 6 t i m es and G erman s i lver about ,
14 t i mes the res i st an ce o f s i lver Tables showi ng the .
relat i ve conduct i v i ty o f m etals and other bod i es are

g i ven i n text books such as S P T hompson s L essons
-
”
. .
’
.
Tables o f resi sta n ce are also made wi th the specific

resistances of the m ateri als tabulated S uch tables w i ll .
be found i n E verett s Un i ts and Physi cal C onstant s

’
or i n S L u p ton s N um eri cal Tables

’
. .
I n all these the spec i fic resi stances are gi v en in t er ms

E LE C T RI C I T Y IN M OT I O N . 63
of the B A uni t o f resi stance whi ch i s 98 9 3 o f the

. .
,
'
leg a l o hm and 9 8 655 o f the true o h m or 10 C G S

9
,
. . .
un i ts The speci fic res istance o f m ercury i s 9 4 0 73 x

.
“
10 t rue oh m s .
The spec i fic res i stance of a material i s defin ed as the

res i stance of one cub ic cent imetre o f the substance con
si dered .
If the s pec ifi c res i stance o f a substance is known the ,
resi stance of any wire or rod o f that substa n ce can be

calcul a t ed .
Fo r ex am pl e , t h e spec i fic resi st an ce o f a c ert ai n sa m pl e of co pper
i s 164 2 abso l ute un its 1642 x 10 - 9 o h ms ) ; it i s req u

i red t o cal c u
l a t e t he resist an ce o f o n e m il e of wi re o f N o . 18 o f t hi s
c opper. O ne m il e m ay be t ake n as x 10 8
cm . T h e di
am e te r o f a wire of No 18 S W S . . . . is '
0 48 in ch 1 2 19 c m . , an d t h e
sec t ion al area is *

0 117 sq . cm . H en ce th e resistan ce in o h ms will be
16 0 9
1 64 2
1
x x 10 : 2 2 3 o h ms abo ut .
1 17
I n general the resi stance o f meta ls i ncreases wi th

tem perature That o f carbon however decreases con
.
, ,
sid era b ly A n i ncandesce n t la m p has accord i ng to

.
,
M r J E H G ordon nea rly twi ce the resi stance cold

. . . .
,
t hat i t possesses when hot .
64 R esi st an c e o
. f a n e l ec t r o l y t e —! ust i n the .
sa me way as the res i stan ce o f a met al or other sol i d
conductor is con si dered we m ay speak o f the resi stance ,
o f a li qui d or electrolyte There i s m ore di ffi cul t y in .
mea suri ng thi s in practi ce i n consequence o f the reverse

ele c t romot i ve force o f polarisati on but i f alternate cur ,
ren ts be used the spec ific resist ance o f an electrolyte

m a y be found uncompli cated by polari sat i on e ffects
,
.
T h e fact t hat electrolysi s i s takin g place i n an elec t ro

l yte does not prevent the cons iderati on of i t s res istan ce
i n t he same way as that of a non elec t rol yte The -
.
S WG — St an dard Wire G au .
ge . . .
speci fic res i stance o f water i s h igh and the purer t he ,
water the h i gher i t becomes ; i t woul d appea r accordi ng ,
to the latest experi men ts that absolutely pure water i f i t

could be obta i n ed would be a perfect n on conductor -
.
65 M easu rem en t o f resi st a n c e O hm s law may

’
. .
be appl i ed to measure the resi stance of any gi ven con

ductor or rather to comp are the resi stances o f t wo con
,
duc t o rs .
7 10
1 . 10 —T ypi cal ci rc ui t .
S uppose that the constant o f the galvanometer 5 )1
i s k n own that the curren t passi ng through a gal

, ,
v an o m et er can be r ead o ff fro m the defl ec t i o n o f t h e
needle an d i t i s r equi red to fin d the value o f the resi st

,
tan ce R Joi n up the resi stance R wi th the galvano

.
meter and battery as i n the figure then si nce by O h m s ,

’
law
E
an d E R0C e
Re
if C ,
the value o f the cur rent i s known and also E the
el ectro m ot i ve forc e o f the battery R 0 the resi stance of , ,
the whole c i rcui t i s k n own from the equat i on B ut

, .
th i s i s m ade up o f R the resi stance to be measured an d ,
r the res i sta n ce o f the batte ry and g that o f the galvano,
meter S ubtr acti ng R

. R r, g E g S uppose a
0 . . .
s L s c r a xc rn '
m mor o . 65
D an i ell s battery o f electromot i ve force

’
vol ts and t e
si s t an c e 8 o h ms and a galv nometer whose res i stance i
5 , a s
66 3 ohms are used and the readi ng o f the g alvanometer

°
i s 00 6 ampe re ( si x mi l l i ampe res ) we get

°
10 8 R 8 66 6
( 5 3) 0 0
R 180 66 8 8 113 12 ohms .
I n practi ce however we can never rely on know ing

, ,
th e electro m oti ve force or resi stance of the battery wi th

su fii c i en t accuracy fo r t h i s so the method m u , st be so
m odi fied as to eli m i nate these * M ethods o f do i ng th i s
.
are descri bed in P ract i cal P hysi cs by Glazebrook and

S haw i n the, Textbooks o f S ci ence seri es o r i n ,
P ract i ca l P hys ics Vol I I by B alfou r S tew

”
. art and Gee
.
, .
B y obvi ous m odi fic ati on s thi s method may be used

fo r the determi nat i on and compar i son o f the res i stances
o f b atter i es or galvanom eters or for the determi nat i on o f ,
the electromoti ve force o f a battery

—
.
66 N et wo rk o f co n du c t orl O hm s law may be

’
. .
appl i ed to any port ion o f a ci rcui t and hen ce by i t s ,
help i t i s poss ible to determi ne h ow a cur rent spli ts

i tsel f up in a network o f conductors .
Fl o . 11. -
Di vided ci rc
=
u
it .
C ons i der such a c i rcui t as in the figure L e t C be .
t h e cu rrent in the pa rt of t h e ci rcui t outs i de B D i t i s ,
req ui red to fin d what porti on i s carri ed by each wi re

T h e met h od is often sefu
u l for fin din g roughl y th e resi st an ce of a
from B to D L et the res i stances of the wi res be R I

.
R , an d let E be the electromoti ve force between E and

,
D ,and x y the currents i n the branches R , R , t hen

, ,
applyi ng O hm s law to each ’
E E
x but x y C , the whole current ,
hen ce = C an d E = C
x = c ,
an d y = C
+ Rg
R 1
R 1+ R5
E g , let R I
. .
9 ohms , Rthe e ffect i ve
, 1 ohm , t hen
resi stance between E and D i s 9
15 9 ohms 1
16
o f .
the current passes the resi sta n ce R 1 and 196 through t h e ,
resi stance R , Th i s i s the m ethod used to shunt a

.
galv an o m eter so that a certa i n fract ion only o f the

curren t shall pass through i t For i nstance a galva n o .
,
m eter whose resi stance i s 66 ohms wi ll have a shunt ,
whose res stance i s 7 33

i oh m s i f i i
t s re q u i red t o
'
be 10
1
as sensi t i ve .
T h e l aws which regul at e t h e div i sio n o f a curren t in bran ched

c ircu it s were fo rm u l at ed by Ki rc h o fl T h ey can be dedu ced m at h e
'
m at i cal ly fro m O h m s l aw an d are as fo l l ows

’
a I n an y bran ch i n g n et wo rk o f wi res t h e algebraic su

. m of t he
cu rren t s i n a l l t h e wires t h at m eet i n a po i n t i s z ero .
b W h en t h ere are sev eral el ect rom o t iv e fo rces act i n g at differen t

.
p o i n t s o f a c i rc u i t t h e t o t
, al e l ec t ro m o t iv e fo rc e ro un d t h e c i r cu i t is
eq u al t o t h e su m o f t h e resist an ces o f i t s separat e part s m u l t ipl ied
each i n t o t h e st ren gt h o f t he c u rren t t h at fl ows t h ro u h it
g .
W h e at st on e s b ri d ge S econd method o f com

67 .
’
.
pari n g resi stances ( fig There i s a cont i nuous fall.
or slope o f potent i al alon g both paths from B t o D c g i f , . .

,
we exam i n e the electromot i ve force between C and D we ,

s wc r m c x w W 1
40 1o
1 . 67
sh al l fin d that i t bears the same proporti on t o the

electromoti ve force fro m B to D that the res i stance a
does to the whole res i st ance from B to D vi a C v i z a c , .
, .
I f now we choose a po int A in B A D so that the resi st ,
ance x from A t o D i s to the whole resi stance from B
—D i i d d i uit
Fm . 12. v e c rc .
to D via A in the same proport i on as c i s t o a c ,
the potenti al at C and A wil l be the sam e ; and i f we

join C A by a wire through a galvanometer there ,
Fm . 1
3 —Wh
.
’
eat s to n e s B ri dge .
be no current through the galvanometer S uch an .
al l an em en t i s know n
’ ‘
g as a W heatstone s br i dge or '
balance and i s di agram m at i ca l ly represe n ted as i n the

figu re fi I f a b c x are the resi stances o f the vari
( g
.
ou s branche s as drawn when there i s n o current in t h e

,
F 2
68 1e
1 0 51. E LE C T RI C I T Y .
galvanometer we have the rel ati on a : b c x and i f

, ,
any three o f the res istances are known t h e fourth can ,
be calculated from thi s proport ion Thi s is the most .
gen erall y use ful and con ven ien t method o f determi n i ng
a resi stance and a set o f resi stance coi ls i s sold by
,
in strument makers i n the most conveni en t fo rm fo r th i s
P10 . 1
4 —Wh
.
'
eats t on e s B ridge . wm u
remen t o f rd st an ce.
purpo se . Thi s is known as a post o fii ce box

-
. A
d i agra m of it is shewn i n fig 1 and a drawi ng of it
.
4,
Fm 15.
—R
esi s tance box .
in fig 15. . The resi stance t o be tested is joi ned to

t h e b i nd i ng scre ws at C and D the batt ery , is joi ned to
s t scr mcn v m 1101 10 11
. 69
the screws at B and D and the galvan om eter t o those

,
at A and C B y taki n g out the proper pl u

. gs in the arms ,
BA , BC t hese m ay be m ade eq ual in re s i st ance in

, ,
whi ch case to get a balance the resi st ance plugs that

, ,
are taken out i n the arm A D wi ll gi ve the res i stance ,
o f the co i l to be tested O r B A may be made 10 o r

.
100 ti m es B C i n whi ch case the readi ngs 0 11 A D

,
di vi ded by 10 or 100 as the case m ay be wi ll be equal ,
t o that in the coil to be tested so that by thi s arti fic e

’
i t i s possi ble though not us ing any resi stance co i l o f

,
less th an one ohm to hn d the resi stance o f t h e wire to

,
b e tested correct to r ho o f an o h m For further deta ils .
a s t o t he u se o f thi s i nstrument the vari ous forms i t ,
takes the precau ti ons in workin g wi th i t and for a

, ,
descri pt ion o f the co i ls and the way they are wound and
adjusted reference mus t be made to the above m en
,
t i on ed books or to Km pc s H andbook of E lect ri c al

’
“
,
”
Testi ng o r an y
, modern text book o f electri c i ty -
.
M ethods a lso wil l be found descri bed o f adj u sti ng the

W heatstone s bri dge arrangemen t to hn d the i nternal
'
res istance o f the battery o r the resi s t ance o f the ,
gal v ano m eter .
68 c u
. rren t sh eet s C u i
rren t d en s t y
.
— When a .
curren t i s led i nto a l arge conductor the li n es o f fl o w

spread o ut through the con ductor in a m anner some
what si mi lar t o the spreadi ng o f th e magneti c lin es o f
fo rce . The y all of co urse pas s from the anode to the
kathode but th ey spread out i nto shee ts i n doi ng so The
, .
c urrent whi ch passes across uni t o f sect ional area taken ,
a t right angles to the li nes o f fl o w at any po i nt may be ,
c all ed th e density o f t h e current at that po i nt In the .
c ase o f a current i n a wi re conductor we consi der th e
whole current si nce the whole secti onal area of the wi re

i s taken i nto account bu t wi th currents fl o wi n g in l arge
,
7 0 M E DIC A L E L E C T RI C I T Y .
and heterogeneous conductors l i ke the human body or ,
even i n electrolytes where the densi ty o f the current

may vary from poi nt to poi nt i t i s necessary i n order to ,
est i mate the effect at any poi nt to take i nto consi dera ,
t i on the densi ty at that poi nt rather than the whole

current For the physi ologi cal e ffects are largely de
.
pe n dent on the de n si ty that i s the rat i o o f current to,
sect i onal area just as i n a wi re the heat i ng e ffect i s

, , ,
other th i ngs be i ng equal proport i onal to the square of ,
th i s rat i o For exa m ple i n a w i re o f vari able d i ameter

.
,
the heat i ng e ffect w i ll be far greater i n the th i nner parts

o f the wi re where the densi ty o f the current may be
,
sa i d to be greater though the actual current i n all parts

,
i s the sa m e In a conductor such as the human body

.
,
some of the l i n es o f fl o w o f the current wi ll leave any

muscle or n erve qu i te near the electrode by wh i ch they
e n ter an d w i ll pass to the other electrode through the
,
other t i ssues Th i s gi ves ri se at t i mes t o a seri es o f

.
v i rtual electrodes alon g the course o f a nerve wh i ch

m ay be o f so m e i mporta n ce ( S ee C hap . .
69 . I n t e rn a l resi st a n c e o f b at t eri es . A rr a n ge
m en t of —I n arra n gi n g a battery to gi ve
b at t eri es .
the best efiec t i n an y g i ve n case regard must be had to

i t s i n tern al resi sta n ce I t i s i m poss ible to gi ve an y exact
.
figu res as to the i n ternal res i stance o f var i ous batter i es ,
but a rough i nd i cat i on w i ll be found i n C hap V That . .
o f a D a n i ell s cell should not much exceed one ohm

’
a S awdust D an i ell a D an i ell s cell packed wi th ’
sawdust to prevent spi ll i n g o f the l i qu i d a ve ry con ,
v en i en t form o f battery fo r test i n g purposes may have

)
t en or more ohms a L ec l an c h é cell may have a t e
,
s i st e n ce o f from o n e to fi v e ohms S ome i dea o f the

res i sta n ce of an y part i cular cell may be obta i ned by
such a measure m ent as that i n 65 A nyh o w i t i s .
E L E C T RI C I T Y IN M OT ION .
7 1
of the utmost i mportance t o ha v e some knowledge o f

the res i stance of the battery i n order to know whether
for any purpose i t i s best to arrange the ce l ls that
are to ha n d i n s eri es ( fig 16) or i n parallel ( fig
. .
Fm . 16. —S i x ce l ls arran ged in seri es .
F 10 . 17 . —S i x cel l s arran ged i n paral l el .
T he gen eral gui di n g pri nc i ple i s an y as fo llows — For

gi ven number o f cells the maxi mum current i s obta i ned
when the batteri es are so arranged that the i nternal
and external res istances are equal Thus if a cautery .
,
of low res i stance i s to be heated i t i s use less to use ,
a nu m ber o f batteri es o f h igh i nternal resi stan ce in

seri es S uppose the res i stance o f a cautery i s 1 ohm
.
°
and the batt eri es t o hand are ten b i chromate cells of

volts each and one o hm i ntern al res istan ce each and ,
suppose that the cautery req uires five amp e res to heat
it
. I f the cells are coupled up i n seri es the el ectro
moti ve force wil l be si xteen volts but the i ntern al ,
res i stance of the ten cells i s ten ohms an d the to t al

resi stance i s ohms and thi s w i ll gi ve a current
,
of a m pe res but if they are coupled i n parallel

, ,
th e ba ttery res i stance w i ll be reduced to 1 ohm and the °
to t al r es i stance wil l be but 2 o hm i n the whole c i rcui t

°
.
True the el ectromot i ve force wi ll be onl y 16 volts but ,
by O hm s l aw 56) the current i n thi s case w i ll be ei ght

’
ampe res In the former case the cautery would not be

.
heat ed in the latter we should have enough current

,
7 2 M E DIC A L E LE C T RI C I T Y .
and to spare Vi ce ven d i t i s fut i le to arrange batteri es

.
,
i n parallel when a current has to be passed through a

hi gh resi stance such as the hum an b ody a resi stance
, ,
o f at least 10 00 ohms co m pared w i th wh i ch the i nternal

,
res i sta n ce o f si xty L ec l an c h é cells i n seri es i s small .
Tak i n g the electromot i ve force and i nte rnal res i stance

o f the cells as be fore i t w i ll be use ful t o gi ve i llustra
,
t i on s o f the results o f coupl i n g up si x cells i n d ifferent

ways I f i n seri es ( fig 16) the electromoti ve force i s
. .
9 6 volts a,n d the i n ternal res i stance i s si x ohms henc e ,
the m ax i m um current that could be obtai ned would not

much exceed 1 5 amp e res In a seri es o f three each o f
°
.
,
two set i n parallel ( fig the total i nternal resi stance

.
Fx o . 18 . —S i x cell s arran ged in a seri es o f t h ree pai rs .
wi ll be 1 5 oh m s and the electro m ot i ve force

°
,
volts ,
and i t would be possi ble to take a current o f over three

a m p e res fro m i t In a seri es o f two sets of three each
.
i n parallel ( fig 19 ) we should get an i n ternal res i stanc e

.
Fx o . 19 . —S ix cel l s arran ged in a seri e s o f t wo t ripl es .
of oh m s an d an electromot i ve force o f
66 volts
°
, ,
wh i ch could gi ve over 4 5 a m p e res F i nally w i th all i n

°
.
,
parallel ( fig 17 ) there i s an i nternal resi stance o f 166

.
°
oh m s an d an electro m ot i ve force o f volts so g i vi n g ,
a m ax i m u m curren t of n early ten a m p e res The abov e .
calculat i ons all suppose the battery to be short c i rcu i ted ,
an d there fore do i n g no exter n al use ful work they al so

s t s cr mc n ’
v 11
: 110 110 1
1. 73
lea ve o ut all cons i derat i on of polari sa ti on From

the accom panyi ng table i n whi ch the curren t obta i ned
fro m each arrangement of the cells for an external t e
si st an ce o f 2 1 2 and
°
ohms i tabulated i t w i ll
5 100
, 0 , s , , ,
be seen that i n ea c h colum n the largest current is obtai ned

when th e external res i stan ce i s most nearly equal to the
i nternal resi stance o f the battery ; whi le in the case of
t h e large res i st ance o f 1000 oh m s t h e i nternal res i stance
o f ea ch comb i nat i on i s negli geable the current be ing ,
a l most exactly proport i onal to the elec t romot ive force .
E x t ern al re si st an ce in oh ms .
3 3 1000.
o h ms v o l t s. 00 9 5 am p.
1 6 1s
§z
' ° °
.
z
°
8 P 9 7 4
°
00 48
37 T O r e 37 oo 3z
°
00 16
°
3 1
°
7 0 . B eat i n g W k was po in t ed o ut in 5 54 t h at t h ere i s a

re l at i o n bet ween t h e el ec t rom o t iv e fo rce in a ci rc u
it an d t h e c urren t
an d t h e work do n e i n t h e c i rc uit wh ic h was ex presse d by t h e fo l l o w
i n g re l at io n E C t — W Where E st an ds fo r . t h e el ectro mo t i ve
fo rce , C for t he c u
rren t , t for t h e t i me co n sidered an d W for t he wo rk
do n e . L et u
s no w writ e P for po wer o r rat e of do in g wo rk i n t his
eq uat io n , t h en provided t is smal l en o ugh P t W an d t he eq uat ion

be co mes E C P. If E an d C are measu
red i n ab sol ut e el ec t ro
m agn et ic un i t s P will be measured i n ergs per sec o n d .
T h e E rg i s t h e ab so l ute C un i t . GS. . of wo rk , t he wo rk don e by

o n e d n e ac t i ng t h ro u
y gh o ne cen t i me tre . T he at trac t io n o f gravi t y is
ab o ut 9 8 1 d yn es on ever y gram m e, c o n se q uen t l y , to raise on e
gra mme o n e cen t i met re agai n st gravi t y re q uires an ex pe n di t u

re of
9 8 1 up .
t it w
Bu e measu
re E an d C in vo l t s an d amperes. W wi ll be given
74 us m c ar . E L E C T RI C I T Y .
in a un it which is eq ual to 10 7
ergs per seco n d an d is cal l ed
wa tt .
On e wat t fo r o n e seco n d will do 10 7 absol ut e un it s , ergs, of
wo rk an d t h is am o un t is c al l ed o n e j ul e o . A wat t is n o t n ecessari l y
an el ec t ri cal q uan t it y but i s a rat e o f do in g work l ike a
,
h o rse po wer .
T he rat e of wo rkin g , v iz .
, t h e pro duct o f el ect romo t i ve fo rc e i n t o c ur
ren t , i n can descen t l am p i s gen erall ex pressed i n wat t s
in an A y .
goo d l am p sh o ul d req uire ab o ut fo u r wa t t s per c an dl e power .
By O h m s l aw t h e abo v e eq u at i o n m ay be ex pressed i n se veral di f

’
feren t ways . T hus subst it ut i n g t h e v al ue of C from t he eq uat ion C

B“
we get P o r agai n we m ay s ubst it ut e u
t h e val e o f E fro m t h e
R
sam e e q uat io n an d so get C 2 R P . We h av e t h erefo re t h ese t hree
ex p essio n s
r for t he rat e o f ex pen di t ure o f en ergy by a c u rren t i n a
co n d uct o r . In an y si m pl e wire co n d uct or t his work appe ars a s h eat .
We are c o n se q uen t ly abl e t o c al cul at e t h e rat e at wh i ch h eat i s
gen erat ed in t h e co n d c t o r an d u if we k n ow i t s speci fic h eat an d t h e

rat e at wh ich i t l oses h eat at it s surfac e we can c al c ul at e t h e t em
rat u re aft er t h e c urren t h a s pa ssed fo r an y giv en t i me
p e .
C o n si der a c o n du c t or o f resi st an c e R c arryi n g a c urren t C we , ,
h av e 0 2 R t W ; wh ere t i s t h e t i m e B ut W J H where H st an ds .
for t h e h eat devel o ped m easu red i n c al o ri es an d J i s t h e m ech an i c al

, ,
eq u i v al en t o f h eat wh ich m ay be ex pressed i n ergs if we are u si n g
abso l u te C G S u n it s or in j o u
. . . l es if we are u, si n g prac t i c al un it s ,
( v o l t s a n d a m p er es ,
H en ce C R t = J H N ow l et m be t h e mass o f t h e con duc t or

2
.
an d 3 it s speci fic h eat t h en
H s m I
wh ere 4 st an ds fo r t h e rise in t e m perat ure i n degrees cen t igrade.
Su b st i t ut in g
C 2 R t
C Q
R t = J s m l or I
J s m
T o ur ideas l et us c o n sider t h e ex am pl e giv en in 5 69
fix o We .
h ad a pl at in um wi re c au t ery o f resi st an ce 1 o h m l et u s su i t t
°
pp o se o ,
h av e a di am et er o f 2 5 mm an d a l en gt h o f c m ; su ch a wire
°
. .
,
will h av e a resist an ce o f abo ut 1 o h m an d a m ass o f 0 56 gram m es ° °

.
T h e speci fic h eat o f pl at in um i s 0 35 T h e m ech an i cal e q ui val en t o f °

.
h eat i s 4 z x 10 ergs b u
7 t o n e j ou l e is 10 ergs
7 H en ce J i n j o ules
°
.
E L E C T RI C I T Y IN M OT I ON .
75
is I f t is o n e secon d we get t h e fol l o wi n g eq u

a t ion for th e ri se
of t em perat u
re per seco n d, o m i tt i n
g t h e l o ss fro m radiat i o n .
C “
x °
1 4s
'
x °
0 56 x I .
If no wC is 5 am pere s
25 X 1
°
X 10 ‘
303
°
C per seco n d .
x °
0 35 x 0 56 x x
T he wire t hen sh o ul d begi n to gl o w i n abo u t 2 or 3 sec o n ds an d if
t h ere were no l oss by radiat io n i t sh ou l d m el t i n si x o r se ven seco n ds .
H owe v er, h ad we C o upled t he cell s in series in st ead o f i n parall el t h e

cu rren t w ou ld h ave been bu t am pé res an d t h e rise in t em pera
tu re per secon d ex c l u sive o f l o ss w ou l d h ave bee n b u t 30 C °
N o te o n y oule s equi va l en t —Pro ba bl y o n e o f t h e most rem arkabl e

.
,
’
.
adv an ces t hat sc i en ce h as m ade i n t h e n i n et een t h ce n t u ry is t he
p r o o f t h at h ea t an d en er gy a re c o n vert i bl e W e o we t hi s a d di
. t i o n t o
ou r kn o wl edge t o t h e l abo u rs o f m an y great sci en t i fic m en fro m
B e nj am i n T ho mso n C o u nt R u
, mfo rd do wn b ut t o J a m es Presco t t
, ,
J o ul e bel o n gs t h e credi t of hav in g det ermin ed by an ex haust ive an d

beaut i ful seri es o f ex peri men t s c arri ed ou t wit h t h e u
, t m o st c are t h e ,
nu meri c al rel a t i o n t h at ex ist s bet wee n h ea t an d en ergy H e sh o wed .
t ha t if foo t po u n ds o f w o rk as don e at M an chest er w ere co m
p l e t e l y co n v e r t ed i n t o h ea t i t w ou l d su
, ffice t o raise t he t emperat u re
of o n e po u n d o f wat er b d F a h h i t T hi u m b
y o n e e gree re n e s n e r c on .
v e rt ed i n t o C G S u. . n it s an d degrees cen t igrade giv es

.
x 10 ergs7
as t h e q u an t i t y o f wo rk t h at m u st be do n e t o rai se t h e t em erat u f
p re o
o n e gram m e o f wat er by o n e degree c e n t i grad e T he q u an t i t y o f .
h eat req u i red t o do t h i s i s defi n ed as the u n i t o f h eat an d i s cal l ed
o ne gra mme degree or o n e ca lo ri e or o n e then » . H en ce mi ll io n

un it s of wo rk are e q ui v al en t t o on e cal orie .
7 1. E l e c t ro -m agn et i c i n d uc t i on .
—L et us cons ider
a co i l o f wi re the e n ds o f wh ich are connected through a
g alv anometer I f a magnet be m ade to approach such
.
a coil th e galvanometer wi ll i ndi cate a current so long

a s the magnet i s approach i ng A s soon as the magnet .
s to ps approa ch i ng the current also ceases , I t now the .
m agnet be removed the galvano m eter wi ll in di cate a

current in the opposi te d irect i on I f the co i l i s made to .
a pproa ch and rec ede from a magnet i c pole the same

e ffects w i ll be produced In 46 i t was shown h o w a

.
m agn et i c fiel d m i ght be mapped si m i larly t o the electri c

fiel d descr ibed i n 6 A l i ttle co n s i der a t i on o f the
3 .
last experi ment wi ll show that the approach o f the

magnet to a coi l means the i ncrease of the number o f
m agnet i c l i n es o f force whi ch pass through the co i l and ,
that when the magnet i s moved away the number o f

l i nes o f force through the coi l or i n other words t h e ,
stre n gth o f fiel d i n the i nteri or o f the coi l d i m i n i shes .
Th i s efiec t o f a vary i n g magnet i c fiel d on a coi l o f wi r e

placed i n i t i s known as el ectrom agneti c i nduction I t was .
d i scovered an d i n vest igated by F araday and the ac

coun t o f h i s experi m ents i s conta i ned i n h i s E x peri
”
mental R esearches .
7.2 L aw s o f e l e c t r o m a gn e t i
- c i n d u c t i o n L e n z s .
’
l aw . B e fore proceed i ng to d i scuss these e ffects fu rther

i t may be well to speci fy an d clear up our i deas as t o
d irect i on o f currents and fiel ds of force L et us con .
s i der a coi l o f wi re i n the plane of the paper wi th a

current c i rculat i ng i n i t counter clockwi se i n the di rec -
Ft o . 20 . —E l ect ro m agn et i c i n duct i o n .
t i on o f the arrow ( F ig The m agnet i c fiel d o f force

.
at the ce n tre o f the c i rcle due to th i s current wi ll be a t

right a n gles to the paper an d by our convent i on as t o
s i gns s i n c e accord i n g to O ersted s law
, 4 )
1 a north ’
seek i n g p o le wi ll be pushed upwards from the paper t h e ,
m ag n et i c l i n es o f force are d i rected upwards from the

paper The ci rcle o f wi re acts l i ke a magnet i c di sc
.
,
the upper s i de of wh i ch i s N and the lower 8 I ndeed .

77
if such a ci rcui t be su spended freely i t wi ll set i tsel f in

the eart h s magneti c fiel d so that the upper s ide faces
’
towards the N orth N ow suppose there i s no current

.
in t h e w i re and i t i s placed in a magneti c fiel d s i mi l ar

to that created by t he current t hat we have descri bed ,
then as th e fiel d i ncreases the current i nduced i n the wi re

wo ul d be i n the oppos it e sense t o the current that
creates such a field vi z i n the present case i t woul d be
, .
,
clockw i se and as the fiel d decreases i t would be in t h e

,
same sense vi z counter clockwi se Thi s may be for

,
.
,
-
.
mu l a t ed once fo r all by sayi ng that the i nduced curren t

is such that the fiel d i t would set up tends to n eu
t ral iz e the change i n field that i s caus i n g i t L enz s '
( .
O bvi ouslymore co ils than one may be arranged to be

acted on together and the same rule holds good so t hat ,
i f we i ncrea se a magneti c fi el d wh i ch i s such that i t i s

posi ti ve from below upwards the i nduced current wi ll ,
fl ow clockwi se and the refore downwards t hrough a

ri ght h anded heli x and vi ce vm a I t i s cl ear that si nce
‘
the i nduced current depends on th e vari a ti on o f the

magn eti c fiel d in wh ich the co il i s placed and on th i s ,
alone i t matters nothi ng wheth er the fiel d i s ca used t o

,
vary by movi ng a magnet o r by m akin g and unmakin g a

m agnet by any means or by varyi ng a current in anoth er
nei ghbouri ng ci rcui t I t wi ll be eas ily seen that when a
.
cl oc k wi se curr ent i s made i n an i nduc i ng c i rcui t ( called

-
T h ese fact s en abl e us to un derst an d t h e rapid dam pin g of th e

o sc il l at ion s o f a m agn et or a gal van o m et er n eedl e e n cl o sed in a m ass
o f cond uc t i n g m et al, for as t he N po l e of t he magn et a ppro ac h es
eac h fres h part of t h e met al edd c u rren t s are i n duc ed i n it o f su

y ch a
na t ure t h a t t h e h el d t he set up t e y
n ds t o re el t h e m a n e t an d as i t
p g
rec edes t he reverse occ rs u . H en c e t he swin g of t he m agn et is
k
c he c ed at bo t h t imes an d it is rapidly bro u gh t t o rest .
a p rimary ci rcuit) the current i n the c i rcui t that i s bei ng

,
acted on ( called the secon dary circui t) i s c ounter clock wi se -

,
but that when the curren t i n the pri m ary i s broken that ,
i n the seco n dary i s clock wi se t e when the current in -

, . .
,
the pri m ary i s made the i nduced current i n the secondary

i s i n the oppos i te d i rect i on but when i t i s broken the ,
i n duced curre n t i s i n the same d i rect i on .
73 I.n d u c e d e l e c t r o m o t i v e f o r c e I n o rder to .
-
arri ve at the m agn i tude o f the i nduced current we must

con si der that by O h m s law th i s depends on t wo quan
’
t i t i es the electromot i ve force i n the c i rcui t and the

,
resi stance o f the wi re Th i s latter i s constant si nce i t

.
depe n ds only on the w i re The electromot i ve force

.
alon e vari es I ts di rect io n we have sufii ci en t ly con

.
si dered i t s magn i tude i s deter m i ned by the follow i ng

,
law — The total i nduced electro m ot i ve force i n any

closed ci rcui t i s proport i onal to the rate of change o f the
nu m ber o f l i n es o f force through the space enclosed by
the c ircu i t the l in es o f force be i ng measured accord
i n g to the conve n t i on m ade i n d i scussi n g elec trostat i c
l i nes o f i n duct i on
I f we are concerned w i th the i nduct i on between t wo
c i rcu i ts the n umber o f l in es of force or i n other words
, , ,
the stre n gth o f the m agn et i c fi el d produced by a current

i n a c i rcu i t i s proport i o n al to the current i n that c i rcu i t .
H e n ce i n th i s case the law m ay run t he i ndu ced el ect ro
moti ve force i n any cl osed secondary ci rcu i t i s prop ortion al t o

t he m te of change of cu u ”
rren t i n t hep ri mar i i t
y c rc .
74 . C oo mei en t of m ut ual i n duet l o n .

—L et us writ e E . fo r t h e
L et N b e t h e n umber o f l i n es fo rce passi n g t h ro u

of
gh a ci rc ui t ,
t h en in t h e n o t at io n of t he diff eren t ial c al culus t h e l aw beco m es

dN
E =M wh ere M is so m e c o n st an t depen di n g on t he geo m et ry of
E L E C T RI C I T Y 140 1 10 1
4. 79
el ect romot ive fiosce in t he seco n dar y circ uit . an d le t C , stan d fo r th e

curren t i n t h e pri ma ry . L et n a i n di ca t e t h e rat e o f c han ge o f an y
quan ti t y by writ i n g it s ym bo l wi t h
s a do t o v er it , t hus C , will st an d
for t he rat e o f ch an ge o f C m an d o ur l a wwil l be ex pressed in y mbol s
s
t hu
s
Where M is a co n st an t quan ti t y depen din g on t he geo me t ri cal

rel at io ns o f t h e t wo c irc uits . M is c al l ed t he C oe fli cien t f
o M ut ua l
I ndu
ctio n an d de pen ds on the pro d ct u of t he n umber o f turn s in the
t wo circ uit s an d on t h ei r po s i t i o n wi t h regard to eac h ot h er. it is
great est for t wo gi ven c ircu i t s wh en t h e seco n dar is y sopl ace d as t o
com pl et el y
e n c lose t h e primar M , t h e coeffi c ien t y . of m u tual ih
du
c t ion , wi ll of co u
rse be in creased by an y mea ns t hat i n creases t h e
number of l i n es of force t h ro ugh th e pri m ar c irc ui t for an y gi v y
en
curren t .
S i nce t he magnet i c permeab il i ty o f so ft i ron i s very

great compared wi th that of ai r an obvi ous method o f
, ,
i ncrea si ng the number o f li nes o f force i s t o place a so ft

i ron co re through t h e pri mary Th is howev er has the .
, ,
drawback that owi n g to the sluggi shness w i th w hi ch

t h e i ron become s magnet i sed the secondary current i s
so mewhat retarded beh i nd the pri mary .
75 S
. e l f i n duc t i o n —S i nce a cu rrent pass
. i ng in a
ci rcui t sets up a ma gnet i c fie ld o f force in the i nteri or o f
that c i rcui t we shoul d expect to fin d i nd icat i ons o f the
i nduc i ng act ion o f thi s fiel d o f force on the c i rcui t i tsel f .
I n fact we do see such i ndi ca ti ons i n the appearance

o f a spark whenever a ci rcu i t co n ta i n i ng an electro
m agnet or a large hel i x i s broken Thi s acti on o f an .
i n crea si ng or decreas i ng curren t on i t s o wn ci rcu i t i s

fr equ en tly spoken o f as t h e ex tra current but more co r ,
re c t ly a s an acti on o f self i ndu ct ion .
T h ere is n o essen t ial difle ren ce bet ween t he

'
act io n o f a variabl e
curren t o n i t s own circui t an d o n an o t h er so t hat t h e sel f i n duct i o n ,
fo ll ows t h e sam e laws as m u tual i n duc t ion an d we may w ri t e
n — Le z
W h ere E ’
i s t h e el ec t ro m o t iv e fo rce i n t h e c irc uit due to sel f in
duct i o n an d L is t h e c o effic ien t o f sel f in duc t io n , a c o n st an t bel o n gin g
t o t h e c irc uit , wh il e C as before st an ds fo r t he rat e o f c h an ge o f t h e
c urren t . T he n e at iv e si n
g g is affix ed b ecause wh en t he curren t is
i n creasi n g t h e i n duced el ec t ro m o t iv e fo rce t en ds t o red uce it an d
vi ce ven d . O hm
’
s l aw t h en beco m es fo r a v ari abl e c rren t u
E C R Le .
T he co effic i en t s o f m ut ual i n du
a n d self ct io n depen d o n t h e n umber
of t urn s i n t h e prim ar y c i rc ui t co n sidered, t h e m ay t h erefo re b e y
writ t en wit h t hi s n um ber
ex pl ici t l y ex pressed t h u s i n st ead o f M , or
L we m ay writ e uM o r n L wh en n i s t h e n u
' '
m ber o f t u rn s an d , M '
an d L are t h e t ru nu m u
'
e c o effici en t s div i ded b t h e b er o f t rn s
y .
T h e eq uat i o n fo r t h e el ec t ro m o t iv e fo rce m ay t h en b e wri t t en
dC d
E =C R n L '
or E, = nM '
dt dt
W e m ay divi de t h en i n each c ase by t h e resi st an c e o f t h e c ircuit s

c o n si dered, a n d if t h e wh ol e c urren t t h at passes is re quired we m ay
,
i n t egrat e wit h regard t o t h e t ime .
n L '
C nM C,
'
T hus, Q =
f 0
C dt
R
an d Q.
R
when st an ds for t h e
wh ol e t im e o f v ari at i o n of the c urren t , an d t h erefore Q i s t h e t o t al

n um ber o f un i t s o f el ect ric it y t h at h av e passed m easured i n c o ul om b s
if t h e c u rren t i s ex pres sed in am peres T h e fac t o r 110 i s h ere t h e .
i m po rt an t o n e an d is t h e pro du
,
c t o f t h e st eady c u rren t i n t o t h e
nu m ber o f t u rn s an d m ay b e ex pressed by o n e n u
,
m b er wh i ch we
c al l t h e am pere t u rn s o f t h e c irc uit o r pri m ary c i rcu it co n sidered .
N ow fro m t h ese eq u at io n s we see t h at sin ce ui s a n u m ber t h e rat i o s ,
L /R an d M /R are o f t h e di m en si o n s of a t i m e , an d i n fac t , t h e rat i o
L IR is c al l ed t h e t im e co n st an t fo r an y c irc uit , an d on it the t im e
re q uired t o y cur en t i n a c ircut depe ds

get up a st ead r i n .
The sel f i n duct io n curren t i n a wi re h as o ft en b e en

co m pared to the i n ert i a o f a fiy wheel or o f a current o f -
water i n a p i pe such as i s ut i l i zed i n the case o f the

hydraul i c ra m an d the a n alogy i s a very useful o n e a n d
,
g i ves a very clear not ion o f it s e ff ects .
M ethods o f co m par i ng c o effi c i en t s of mutual i nduct i on

and c o effici en t s of sel f i nduct i o n W i th each other or c o
s t ec r axc n v m M OT I O N . 81
effici en ts of
sel f i nducti on wi th those of mutua l i nduc
ti on wi ll be found in M ax wel l s E lectri ci t y and M ag
“ ’
n et i sm , Vo l I I C hap X V I I or i n B alfou
. .
, r S tew
. art .
,
”
and Gee s Pract i cal Physi cs Vol I I L essons lxx iii
’
. .
, , .
t o lx xv .
7 6
. I n d uc ti o n c o il W e are n o w i n a
. pos
-
i t i on t o
exam i ne the Inducti on C oi l or R uh mko rfi coi l as i t

'
“
i s often called Th i s i s the i nstrument whi ch i s gener

.
a ll y used at present fo r produc ing the so called Farad i c -
curren ts a F a radic current be in g essent i ally a curren t

o f h igh electromot i ve force more or less rap i dly i nter
ru t ed and made aga i n * S uch a current m i ght be

p .
produced by a suffici en t nu m ber of batteri es and a

mech an i cal i nterrupter but i t i s much more eas il y pro
,
du c ed by su ch an appli ance as i s na m ed above .
R educed to i t s s i mplest terms the R u h m ko rfi co i l con

'
s i sts o f a short pri mary co il o f few turns o f th ick wi re ,
wound on an i ron co re ( to i ncrease the number of l i nes

of force through i t ) wi th a long secondary co i l o f very
m any t urns o f well i nsulated th i n wi re wound ro und

-
,
i t a n d an arrangement fo r automati ca l ly makin g and

breaki ng the ci rcui t I n small co ils thi s usually con
.
s ists o f a spr ing wi th an armature opposi te the end o f

the i ron core o f the co i l whi ch presses aga i nst a plati n um
button and so completes the c i rc ui t ; when the current
pa sses the armature i s at once att racted by the now
m agneti c core away from the button and the ci rcui t i s
broken onl y for the spring whi ch i s now freed from the
,
a ttracti on o f the core to fl y back and re m ake the

pri mary ci rcui t C onsequently wi th every make o f the
.
c urren t i n the pri mary c i rcui t there i s an electromot i ve

T here is real l y an al t ern a te c rren t u in ever y sec o n dar y ci rc uit
bu will be Ruh mko rfl is m i n im ise
'
t as seen a c o il so arran ged as t o
u
t he c rren t at m ake an d t o l eave t h at at brea k t he impo rt an t on e .
C
force i n the secondary ci rcui t i n the opposi te sense t o

the current i n the pri m ary and wi th every break an
electromot i ve force in the same sense as i n the pri mary .
The pri mary c i rcui t however has cons i derable sel f i nduc
t ion o f i t s own and the e ffect o f th i s i s to m ake the ri se
o f current i n the pr i mary c i rcu i t more gradual than t h e
fall hence the electromot i ve force i n the secondary i s

,
greater at the break than at the make Thi s di fference .
i s much i ncreased by connect i ng a condenser 3 )

2 w i th
the ends o f the pri mary co i l The e ffect o f th i s i s t wo
.
fold i n the first place i t makes the break o f the c i rcu i t

,
more sudden by reduci n g the spark of sel f i nduct i on

curren t that leaps across the gap i n the pri mary at break
an d seco n dly i t becomes charged by th i s extra cur
re n t i n such a sense that at m ake aga i n the charge o f
the co n denser tends to st i ll further retard the ri se o f the
pri m ary current Thus the currents at make i n the
.
secondary ci rcui t bei ng on ly caused by a low electro

m ot i ve force are small and negl i geable * wh i le those at
,
break are produced wi th a h igh enough electromot i ve

for c e to spark through a co n s i derable ai r gap .
It should be not i ced also that these are i n the same

se n se as the current i n the pri mary .
The i ron core i s usually m ade of a bundle o f soft i ron

w ires i n sulated fro m each other to avoi d loss o f power
by the i n duct i on of eddy currents i n the core .
I n co i ls for medi cal use i t i s usual to arrange some

mean s o f varyi ng the co efli ci en t o f mutual i n duct io n o f
-
the c i rcui ts so that the electromot i ve force i n the secon

dary m ay be vari ed wi thout alteri ng the current in the
pri mary There are several ways of doi ng th i s S ome
. .
t i m es the whole pri m ary i s m ade t o sl ide i n and out of

T h t o t al q u
e an t it y o f elect ic it y i s ho w
r , e e t h e sam e at b o t h
v r,
m ak e a d break
n .
E LEC T RI C I T Y m n on o tx . 83
t he seco ndary or vi ce ven d or somet i mes the core alone

,
i s made to m ove i n th i s way A n s t he r method i s to

.
have a metal t ube to sli de over the core an d so shi eld

the secondary fro m th e i n fl uen ce o f the pri mary * For .
a more full account of th e i nduc t ion coil see 119 , ,
C hap V . .
77 M
. a gn e t o m a c h i n e — A fe w years ago
. a d iffe r
ent form o f so called F s radi c machi ne was common l y
~
u sed . Th i s was what would be now called a small

magneto m ach i ne wi thout a co m m utator .
The us ual form cons i sted o f a horse shoe m agnet wi th -
t wo soft iron rods wound wi th co i ls o f fin e wi re m ounted

on a sp indle to turn in front o f the poles o f the magnet so
that the ends of t he rods should be presented alternately
t o ea ch pole o f t h e m agnet as the sp i ndle was made to
revolve The co ils were connected i n series and the
.
free ends we re attached to m etalli c r i ngs on the

spi ndle so that the i nduced currents could be led o ff
t hrough springs or brushes rubb ing on the ri ngs The .
sp i ndle c a rryi ng the co i ls was made t o revolve at a h igh

speed by m ean s o f a handl e and some sort o f geari ng .
Th en as the i ron rods approached the poles o f the

magnet an electromoti ve fo rce in one di rect i on would
b e i n duced i n the co i ls and as they reced ed from the
m agnet an electromoti ve force i n the opposi te direct ion

would be i nduced the currents led off to the electrodes
,
woul d there fore be alternati ng and the electromoti ve

force would depend o n the speed o f rotati on o f t h e
sp in dle There was generally a mov eable soft iron
.
a rmature attached t o the magnet by shift in g the pos i ,
T he expl an at i o n o f t he reaso n t h at a met al pl at e placed n ear t h e

pri mar y an d n o t n ec essari l y between i t an d t h e secon dary sh iel ds t h e
seco n dar y was gi ven by Sir W . T hom so n in a F rida y ev en in g l ec

t ut e at t he R oy al I n st i t ut io n.
t ion o f wh i ch the number of li nes of force free t o go

through the co i ls and consequently the elect romot i ve
force in the co i ls fo r a gi ven speed could be vari ed .
The above descri bed mach i ne may be looked upon as

a very pri m i t i ve and badly designed form o f dyn am o ,
but s i nce the magnet i c fiel d i n wh i ch the armature t e

volves i s gi ven by a permanent magnet i t i s more
usually called a magneto mach i ne and the term dynam o
i s appl i ed only to those m ach i nes i n wh i ch the m agnet i c
fi el d i s made by an electro magnet -
It would take up
.
too m uch space an d be out o f place to gi ve an account

o f any o f the numberless forms o f dyna m o here We .
must there fore be content to refer the student t o such

works as S P T hompson s D yna m o E lect ri c M a
. .
’
”
ch i nery i n wh i ch a full account w i ll be found o f all the
ch i e f types o f dynamo that are n o w i n use .
7.8 P r a c t i c a l n o t e —I n.conclud i ng th i s sho rt ac
co unt o f the electri c current we would remi nd the reader

that there are few th i ngs so di ffi cul t to follow in all
the i r vagari es as the con n ex i ons o f electr i cal apparatus .
P robably at first he w i ll fin d the greatest di ffic u lty in

mak i n g the s i m plest p iece o f apparat us work B ut he .
n eed not there fore ju m p to the con clus i on that the

battery or galva n o m eter or i n stru m en t that he i s us i n g
i s out o f order an d that the in strume n t maker need be
,
sent fo r to put i t right The connex i ons shoul d first be

.
exa m i ned an d i n all probab i l i ty the fault wi ll be found

there . It i s a very good th i ng to draw a di agram m at i c
pla n o f these and so check the m o ff and make certa i n
that all wi res are c o n n ected up i n the i ntended way I t .
i s o f course u n derstood that the val u es o f the var i ous

electrom ot i ve fo rces a n d res i stances i n the ci rcu i t have
bee n so arranged as to g i ve the requ i red e ffect ( 5
I f th i n gs wi ll not go r i ght then the re si sta n ce s an d
,
5
electromot i ve forces of the batteri es should be taken an d

i t w i ll be qu i te t i me en ough to apply to the i n strumen t
maker when someth i ng has been foun d t o be wron g
wi th these A l i ttle i ntell igen ce i n the appl i cat ion o f
.
theory wi ll often sav e much cost and troubl e in pract ic e .

86 M E DIC A L E LE C T RI C I T Y .
C HA PTE R IV .
ST A T IC A L E L E C T RI C I T Y . D E SC RI PT I O N 0? A P PA RA T U S .
H i st o ical escript i on i n st rum en t s R am sden m ach i n e

’
r . D of . s .
H olt z m ach i n e . V o ss ’
m ach i n e . W im shurst ’
s m ach i n e .
m ach in e Pro fessor L ewan dowski m ach i n e C

’
C arre s . s . or
.
duc t o rs . T h e L e den y jar . M o des o f appl ic at i o n T h e dry

.
el ec t ric bat h i i ch arge T reat m en t by

'
. E fl ect s of a po s t ve .
S par s k . T reat men t by sh o c ks . T he brush disc h arge . S t at i c

I n duc t io n .
79 . H i st o ri c al .
— I n the early appl i cat i on s o f el ect ri
c i ty to m ed i ci ne the stat i cal apparatus was the only

for m used because i t was the o n ly one know n For many .
years a fter the di scoveri es o f Galvam and Vol ta stat i cal

'
electri ci ty st i ll re m a i ned i n exclusi ve possess i on o f the

fiel d o f electro therapeut i cs -
The nu m ber o f accessori es .
requi red the expense and cumberso m eness o f the

,
mach in es and the unpleasant shocks employed as the

,
ch i e f mode o f i t s ad m i n i strat ion have prevented i t s fre

quent use i n the treat m e n t o f d i sease but n o electr i cal
depart m ent o f a hosp i tal would be complete unless i t
were prov i ded wi th an apparatus fo r the treatmen t of
pat i en ts by stat i cal electri c i ty .
A s has been ment i oned i n a former chapter 7 al la ,
beet i n France ( 1748 ) was one o f the first t o apply

stat i cal electri ci ty to medi ci ne H e was followed i n .
1749 by the A bbé N ol l et I n 1745 D e H aen i n G ermany

.
,
publ i shed a number o f cases o f spasmod i c paralyt i c ,
and other nervous a ffect ions cured by electri ci ty .

ST A T IC A L s t e cr m c rrv a 87
In 1758 B enj ami n Fran kl in relates that i n couse

,
quance o f the cures reported t o have been made i n I taly

and G ermany a number o f paralyti cs were brought to
,
hi m for treatment from d ifferent parts o f P e n nsylvani a

and the neighbouri ng provi nces .
I n 1759 j ohn Wesley the great d i vi ne collected and

, , ,
"
publ i shed i n a book called The D es i deratum the ,
deta ils o f a vast nu m ber o f cases treated by el ectri c i ty .
A mong them he m enti ons that electri ci ty accelerates the

passage o f calcul i through t h e ureters H e also rel ieved .
t ert i an and quartan fev ers and hyster i a ,

.
I n 17 7 3 and 17 7 8 M asdu t publ i shed t wo w orks on

y
stati ca l elec t ri c i ty
.
I n 17 77 C avallo publ i shed in L ondon a co m plete

treat i se on electr ic i ty i n theory and practi ce wi th ori ,
g i n al experi m ents .
I n the next year there appeared the thesi s E lec tri

c i tate et by D r R obert S teavmson o f .
N ewcastle whi ch has been already alluded t o

, .
I n 17 8 3 Wil kinson also wrote upon the subject .
T hen came the long l ists o f ca ses in the G uy s H ospi tal '
R eports treated by fn c t i o n a l electri ci t y by A ddison

'
G oldi ng B i rd ( 184 1 and 18 47) and by S ir Will iam

Gu l l ( 18 52 and later by D r R add tf e i n the N at ional
.
E pil ept i c H ospi tal .
D r A rthms o f Pari s has revi ved

’
M ore recen tly .
the treatm ent by stat ical elec t ri c i t y and has publi shed a
book on i t s use i n nervous and rheumati c a ffecti ons .
Thi s appli cati on o f electri c ity has been greatly u sed by

Professor C har cot and h i s pupi l D r Vtgou rou at the
'
x .
S al pé t ri ere ; and recently i n th i s country attenti on has

been pd d to the subject by D r T ibbi ts and by D r
'
. .
0 R epri n t ed by M essrs .
y . and A . C hu
rchi l l in 188 4.
88 us n t c u s uacn u
c x rv
.
'
.
80 D escri pt i on o f l n st r u
. m en t c The firs t form .
—
o f electri cal mach i ne was a large sul phur bal l whi ch
was exci ted by o n e hand as i t was revolv ed by the other .
I t was made by Otto von Gu erick e o f M agdeburg in 16 7 2 .
S ubseq u ently resi n was used and then a glas s cyl i nder .
i nstea d o f the sulphur ball In 1740 Wisekl er exc i ted

.
the g l ass by means o f horse ha i r c ushi ons covered wi th

-
sil k i ns tead o f the hands .
8 1 R am sden s m a c
.
’
hi n e *— In 1760 R amsden
.
,
subst i tut ed a ci rcular glass plate for th e cyl i nder ,
and hi s apparatus i s sti l l in co mmon use I n the .
R amsd en machi ne elec t ri cal separati on i s produced

by the fri cti on o f the glass d i sc between t wo sets of
Fl o . 21 .
—R am sde n s
’
m achi n e .
amalgamated rubbers The glass plate i s fix ed o n an

.
axle and made to revolve by means of a han dle and the ,
rubbers adjusted by screws are made t o press l i ghtly

aga i nst i t The glass i s found to be posit i vely el ec t ri
.
h ed an d the rubbers negat i vely The rubbers however.

, ,
S ee n o te 5 14.
sn r x c u . s wc r mc xfl . 89
are kept at zero poten tial by an earth con n ect ion usu ,
ally a metal c ha i n Part i ally enc i rcli ng the glass disc

.
are two brass rods on e o n e i ther si de provi ded w i th a

seri es o f sharp po i nts o n the surfaces oppos i te the glass .
These brass rods are connect ed wi th two large met alli c

cyli nders wh ich are ca lled the p ri me condu ctors T he .
pri me conductors are supported on rods o f glass covered

wi th shellac varni sh and are uni ted by a smaller brass
,
rod . I n the lan guage o f the two fl ui d hypoth es is ,
wh en the mach ine is at work the posit i ve electri ci ty on

the glass di sc decomposes by i nducti on the neu t ral
el ectri ci ty of the pri me conductor The i nduced nega
.
tive el ectri ci t y i s di scharged by t he sharp po ints o r

co m bs o n t o t he glass di sc and so neutr ali zes i t s pos i ti ve
,
charge lea vin g the pri me conductor posi ti vely charged

, .
I f the hu ger be now approached t o the pri me conductor ,
a spark pas ses to i t and the conductor i s d ischarg ed t o ,
be aga i n charged as the mach i ne i s worked .
82 I n fl u
. en c e m ac h i n es — I n most modern ma
.
ch ines in duct ion i s more di rectly ut ili zed and on thi s

a ccount they are o ften known as i n fl u en ce or inducti on
m a chi n es I n 1865 H ol t: o f B erl in invented a machin e

.
,
W h i ch when charged from an elect roph orus would con

,
t i n n e t o produce electri cal separati on by i nduct i on .
T h i s form o f mach i ne proved t o be much more powerful

t h an the best fri cti onal mac hi nes A bout the same .
t i me a s i mi lar mach ine t o that o f H al t: wa s i nvented by

T p
oeler .
8 3 H ol t z
. m ac h i n e —
.The bes t known form the of
H oltz mach ine ( fig 2 2 ) consi sts o f t wo glass plates

.
,
A B on e havi ng a d i ameter larger by t wo i nches than

,
t he other The larger plate i s fix ed but the smaller o n e

.
is made t o rotate very rapi dl y by means o f a cord an d

pu lley i t s ax l e pass ing through a hole in the centre of
,
90 ME DIC A L E LE C T RI C I T Y .
the larger plate The plates are qui te close together

.
but do not touch In the fix ed plate are two wi ndows

. ,
a b d i ame t ri call y Oppos i te t o each other

, , .
of paper cal led fiel d plates are glued on t o the fix ed
plate on e above the win dow

,
onthe le ft si de and on e
below the wi ndow on the ri ght . The y are on the surface
9 1
of the plate away from the revolv ing one A tongue from .
each o f these pi eces o f paper protrudes through each ,
aperture and nearly touches the revolvi ng plate The .
plate i s rotated i n an opposi te di recti on to that in wh i ch

the tongues po i nt N ear the outsi de o f the revolvi ng
.
plate are two brass combs g i supported by two brass

, , ,
rods wi th knobs f form i ng the pri m e conductor T wo

, ,
.
sm all er brass rods wi th ebon i te handles and two small

, ,
brass balls act as electrodes and sl ide t hrough the

knobs at the i r other ends These smal ler balls can be
.
approxi mated and wi thdrawn from each other by means

of the handles and i n that way the length o f spark can
be regulated The rod t V i s called the neutral i s i ng rod

.
an d i s sa i d to make the m ach i ne less li kely to reverse .
B efore starti n g t h e mach i ne one o f the fiel d plates m u st

b e cha rged from an electrophorus The moveable plate .
i s then rotated rap i dly and a seri es o f sparks w i ll pass

b etween the electrodes The electromoti ve force of a
.
H ol t z m achi ne i s sa i d to be nearly equal to volts

a n d the res i stance equal to m egohms when t h e
m ov eable plate i s rotated 12 0 ti mes a m i nute and equal ,
t o 64 6 m egohms when the rotat i ons are 450 a m i nute .
8 4 S ubsequently a sel f exci t i ng mac hi n e was i nvented

.
-
,
k no wn as the V O S 5 m ach i ne I t i s sti ll the favouri te

.
i n G erm any al t hough i n E ngland W im sh u rst s mach i ne

’
1 5 prefe rred . It i s somewhat s i m i lar to the H oltz and

i t i s sai d to act wel l i n all weathers Thi s i s not qu i t e.
c orrect fo r the E ngl i sh cl i mate but st i ll i t i s less easi ly

,
a ffected by the weather than are the fri ct i onal o r com
b i n ed fri c ti onal an d i nduct ion mach i nes The d i scharge .
f rom even the small est V oss has been compared to that
o btai ned from a powerful i nducti on co il and battery .
T he la bo ur requi red fo r revol vi ng the plate i s l ight but ,
like man y o f these i nduct ion mach i nes i t has the o h

9 2 ms m c u . E L E C T RI C I T Y .
j
ec t i o n th at the poles are apt t o rev erse when t h e
el ectrodes of the m ach i ne are separated beyond sparki ng
d i stance .
8 5 T h e W i m sh u
.
rst m ac h i n e The W i mshurst .
sel f exc i ti ng mach i ne i s an i mprovement on the V O S S i n

-
that i t i s more readi ly exci ted and w i ll work i n almost,
any weat her I t i s also clai med fo r i t th at i t s polari ty

.
w i ll not reverse even when the pole s are separ ated b e

yond sparki ng di st an cefi It consi st s o f t wo ci rcular
"
glass di scs ( or any even n umber up t o twelve) ,
mount ed upon a fix ed hori zontal spi ndle in such a way

that they rotate in opposi te d i rect i on s at a di stance
apart of not more than one ei ghth o f an i n ch -
E ach .
d i sc i s attached t o the end of a hollow bo ss o f w ood or ,
o f ebon i te upon wh i ch i s turn ed a small pulley

, Th i s .
i s dr i ven by a cord o r belt from a larger pu l ley of wh i ch ,
there are two attached to a spi ndle below the mach i ne ,
and wh i ch i s rotated by a wi nch ha n dle the difieren c e

'
i n t h e d i rect i on of rotat i on be i ng obta i ned by crossi ng

one o f the belts .
B oth d i scs are well varn i shed and attached t o the ,
outer surface o f each there are rad i al sector sha ped -
plates o f t i n fo i l d i sposed around the d i scs at equal

-
angular d i stances .
The two sectors s ituated o n the same d i ameter o f

each di sc are tw i ce i n each revolut ion momentari ly
placed i n metall i c connect ion w i th o n e another by a
pa ir of fin e w ire brushes attached to the end s of a curved
rod supported at the m i ddle of i t s length by o n e o f the
,
project i n g ends o f the fix ed spi ndl e upon wh i ch the

di scs rotate the sector shaped plates just graz in g the
,
-
t ips of the brushes as they pass them .
The pos it i on o f the two pa i rs o f brushes w i th respect

E l ect rical I n fl u
”
G ray en c e M ach i n es, 159 .
ST A T IC A L s t s cr m c xr v .
93
to the fix ed collect ing combs and t o on e another is vari

able as each pai r i s capable o f be i ng rotated on the
,
spi ndle through a certai n angle and there i s as i n the ,
case o f the co l lecti ng commutator brushes o f a dynamo ,
one po s i ti on o f max i mum effic ien cy Thi s posi t i on i n

.
the m ac hi ne appears to be when the brushes touch the

di scs o n d i ameters s i tuated about 45 from th e collecti ng
°
com bs and 9 0 from one another

,
°
.
The fix ed conductors cons i st o f two forks furn i shed

wi th collec ti ng combs d irected towards one another an d ,
tow ards the two d iscs wh ich rotate between them the ,
pos i ti on o i the two forks wh ic h are supported on ebon

,
i te p i llars or in the latest pattern o n L eyden jars

, ,
being along the horizontal d i ameter of the d i sc To .
these coll ect ing combs are a t tached the ter mi nal elec
trodes whose d i stances apart can be vari ed .
The presence o f these collect i ng com bs appears t o

p lay no part i n the ac t i on o f the apparatus except to
convey t h e elec tr i c charge to what may be termed the
external c i rcu i t fo r the i nduct i ve act ion o f t h e m ach ine

,
is q u i te as rapi d and as power fu l when both collectors

are re m oved and nothi ng i s left but the two rotat ing
d iscs an d thei r r espect i ve contact or neutrali si ng

b rushes the whole apparatus bri stl i ng wi th electri ci t y
,
a n d i f vi ewed i n th e dark presents a most beauti ful
a ppearance be in g li terally bathed wi th lumi nous brush

,
W i th a mach in e havi ng plates di ameter and 17 in .
o f the newest desi gn fi i f

( g 3) 2 hav ng
. two o r our L eyden
j a rs as shown i n the dra wing there i s produced under
,
O rdi nary atmo spheri c cond i ti on s a power ful spark di s
C h arge betwee n the electr od es even when they are ,
separated b
y a d i sta n ce o f 4 or 5 i nches and these ,
disch arges t ake place i n regular succes si on at every

94 . MED CAL I E L E C T R LC I T Y .
t wo and a half turns o f the handle The machi ne is.
very effic ien t and perfectly self exc i t ing provi ded there
-
,
are sufi cien t sectors generally req ui ri ng n ei ther fri cti on

,
n or any outs i de el ec t ri fic a t i on to start i t and th i s ,
i s on e o f the most remarkable features of the a p

paratus for under ordi nary condi ti ons the machi ne
,
works at i t s full power a fter the second or thi rd revo

l ut io n o f the handle . I t has been suggested that th is
Fl o . 23. —Wi m h u
s rst machi ne .
charge is obtai ned from the fri cti on o f the air

i n i t i al ,
and that chi efl y between the plates but nothin g ,
i s kn own about i t Whether .

,
c h arge be deri ved from ai r fri ct ion

i s a po int o f very great theoret i c al i nt erest especi all y ,
in the rem arkable experi ment referred t o in whi ch both ,
conductors are removed and most bri ll ia nt el ec tri cal

e ffects are produced when the appara t us co si m pl y
”
95
of two di scs rotati ng i n opposi te d i recti on s wi th n o ,
fix ed conductors except t h e li ght conduct i ng brush es °

.
W hen the gl ass plates are very large they are apt to
spl i t Th i s i s a very seri ous m atter as they are cos t ly
.
, ,
so a m o di fic a t io n o f the W i mshurst mach i ne h as been

made wi t h eboni te plates wh ich are sa i d t o be far
superi or to glass i n all respects gi ve a much more ,
powerful current o f electri c i ty and are not li able to

breaka ge duri ng transi t or use and can be sa fely dri ven
at a very hi gh speed There i s however a grave o b
.
, ,
jec t i o n to the use of ebon i te as i t gradually det eri orates

on the surface and loses i t s i nsulati ng propert i es .
86 O arré s m ac h i n e — A n apparatus now co m

.
’
.
mon l y used fo r med i cal purpose s i s C a rr é s machi ne

’
, ,
whi ch i s a comb i nat i on o f a fri ct ional and an inducti o n

mach i ne . It i s very good and works well i n the wi nter
bu t is m uch more di ffi c u l t t o exc i te than a V oss or
Wi mshurst machi ne C arré s machi ne consi sts essen ti
.
’
all y o f a revol ving eboni te d isc and a glas s di sc fri ct ion

all y ex c i ted wh i ch act s as a fie l d plate and suppl i es the
i n it i al charge wh i ch i s mult i pl i ed by the revolvi ng

e bon i te di sc . R e ferri ng to the figu re i t i s seen that
when the handl e i s t urned i t rotates th e glass d i sc

wh i ch i s mounted on the same axle between th e rubbers
t hi s bei ng posi ti vel y exc i ted acts i nduct i vel y across
t he eboni te di sc on the coll ect i ng comb E whi ch di s
c harges negati ve electri c i ty on t o the ebon i te d i sc and
a t the same ti me i t and the conducti ng arm in con

,
n ec t i o n wi th i t become posi ti vely charged I n the .
m eanti me t h e ebon i te di sc whi ch i s caused t o rotate at
T he abo ve is an abri dged descri pt io n o f t h e mac hin e h ich ap w

peared i n E n gi n eerin g, ”
J uy
an ar , 188 3. u
A f ll acco n t o f in d c u u
tion machin es will be foun d in a l it tl e boo k by M r
.
J . G ra y , en t it l ed,
E lec t rical I n fluence M ach in es .

"
96 M E DIC A L s w or m c x n .
a h igh speed carri es i t s negat ive charge roun d t o the

coll ectin g co m b F whi ch i s connected t o the pri me con
ductor Th i s then becomes negat i vel y cha rged an d by
.
th e acti on o f th e po i nts o n the combs E F the n egati v e ,
charge on the di sc i s neutral i zed T hi s act i on i s c on

.
t in uous and a fter a few t urns o f the handle sparks can
F 10 .
—
21 C
'
arré s machi n e
.
be drawn or L eyde n jars charged from the pri me con

ductor The acti on of th e mach ine i s helpe d by plac ing
.
a glass plate close i n front o f the ebon i te d i sc between

the combs E and F P robably thi s merel y prevents the
di ss i pa ti on o f the negat i ve charge as i t i s carri ed ro und
from E t o F The rubbers must of cour se be co nnected
t o earth .
8 1A 11cA L s n ac n x c x rv. 97
Before use eve ry part o f the mac hi ne sh o uld be t ho

roug hly dry and warm I f the mach i ne does not work
.
well the plates should be rubbed wi th a dry s ilk hand

kerchi ef and the cushi ons warmed before the fire C are .
should be taken that there are no sharp po i nts or angles

near the machi ne to d i scharge the pri me conductor
(c. f The atmosphere sh ould be dry and i n thi s
country i t i s best t o place the machin e near a fire or

stove .
The machi nes work best in dry fros ty weather The .
qual i t i es ascri bed to electri cal mach i nes by co n t i nental

wri ters are o ften n ot found to be possessed by them
when worked in th i s country The a tm o s ph e 1e i n E n g
.
land i s usual ly so charged wi th moi s t ure th a t the con

diti on s under wh i ch these mach i nes are worked here
are so ent irely different that they have t o be t ri ed
before any opi ni on can be formed as to the i r me rits .
8 7 L ewan d owski s m ac h i n e —R ecently an in fl u

.
’
.
ence m achi ne has been brought out by P ro fessor

L ewandowski o f V i enna on the sa me pri nc i ple as
,
C l arke s well kn own electri c gas li gh ter The act ion

’
.
takes place ins ide a closed cyl inder o f ebon i te an d i s

therefore not so easi ly a ffected by the weather but the ,
su pports o f the conduct ors are o f course as subject to

atmospheri c in fl uen c es as those o f oth er machi nes .
Should th i s mach in e m a i nta i n i t s character fo r not re

versi ng eas ily i t is l ikel y t o become very use ful and to
,
be frequently employed on account of i ts certa i nty as a

gen erator A s howe v er i t i s made of vulcan i te i t i s
.
, ,
liable to deteri orati on from surface decom posi t ion of the

materi al .
The two ver ti ca l i ron supports a a1 and b b, ( fig 2 5) .
are screwed t o a wooden frame R a R a and jo i ned t o

,
gether at the t o p by the vulcan i te rod ab These two .
1
1
9 8 me m o“ . s t s c1 ax c 11v.
uprights support three axl es ef W, and W, whi ch are

parallel t o each other The a xle ef i s fix ed and made of
.
FI G .
—m
as L n dowslti l mach i n e
'
.
steel . Upon th i s axle are two tubes o f

wh ich are attached the drum l ike cyli nders -
T T 1, t he
ST AT IC A L e w c 1 m c 11v .
99
en ds o f the tubes const itute the two pull eys r 7 ( hgs , .
25 and The drum li ke cyl ind ers are in the centre

-
,
on e wi th i n t h e other T and T 1 The pulley r, i s con

, .
nect ed wi t h the i nternal drum and the pulley r wi th the
external one i n such a manner that they rotate i n oppo
si te ways .
Fxo . 26
.
—L awm d o wski s m ach i n e
'
. S ect i on t h ro ugh t h e ebo n i t e cyl i n ders
.
The two lower axles W1 W each carry a large pulley ,,
R and R These pulleys are res pect i vely un i ted by

,.
me ans o f endless straps to the superi or pull eys r 7 1 .
The axle W i s provi ded Wi th a handl e K and a tooth ed

,
wheel w hi ch rotates W, When turned th e two dru m s .
revol ve i n oppos i te di rect io n s on account o f the act ion
o f the too t hed wheel The fra m e R a R a, also carr i es

.
t wo upri ghts the lower parts o f wh i ch are m ade o f glass

and t he upper o f m etal ; these ter m i nate i n metall ic
knobs m n I n the mi ddle of these supports are two
.
other knobs S k S h, each wi th a collecti ng comb in close

proxi m i ty to the external drum and on oppos ite si des o f ,
it. The fix ed steel a xle ef carri es a vert i ca l metal rod

in si de th e i nner drum Throu gh th e knobs m n the con
.
du ct o rs A , A , can be moved t o and fro i n a hori zon tal
1 2
1
I OO M E DIC A L E L E C T RI C I T Y .
di recti on T o exci te the machi ne i t i s necessa ry when

.
the knobs of the conductors A , A are i n conta ct t o turn , ,
the handle K and at the same t ime to touch t h e extern al

drum wi th an electri cally exci ted body m i dway between
the t wo coll ecti ng combs S h S k, .
Ft o . 9 7
.
—L w e wsln
an do s machi n e i n use
.
F ig . shows the spi ndle ef and the drums enlarged

26 .
F ig 2 7 represents the mach i ne i n use

. The cap K i s .
provi ded wi th po i nts There are se veral ot her acces

.
so t i es on the table i ncludi ng t wo L eyden jars The .
pat ient s chai r i s placed on a platform 7 i n sulated by

’
ST A T IC AL E L E C T RI C I T Y . 10 !
four porcel a i n feet F F The i nsulated cords l, 1, co n

n ec t the collect i ng combs S h S h, wi th the pla t form
7
and wi th the electrodes .
88 . C o n du ct o rs — . T h e means o f connec ti ng the

p at i ent to th e electr i ca l mach i ne i s o f some i m portance
espec i al l y in th i s country where the air i s usual ly so
charged wi th mo i st ure whi ch rea dily condenses o n the
i nsul ator .It has been found that a metal li c chai n offers
so man y i rregulari ti es and poi nts th at i t tends to th e
di ss i pati on o f the charge ; and fl ex i b le i nsulated cords
com pose d of metall i c threads twi sted round a cott on
core as used wi th galvan ic and faradi c apparatus al so
,
bri stl e wi th po in t s . The cha i n i s a very use ful c on

ductor fo r conn ecti ng the rubbers to earth and i s usu
a ll y used for t hat purpose but the charge w hi ch we
,
w i sh t o co mm uni cate to the pati ent can be bes t con

v e yed by a smoo t h metalli c tube havi ng a hook at o n e
en d t o connec t i t wi th a loop o n the pri me conductor ,
a n d t urned i nto a handle at the other end fo r the pat ient
to gr as p I t i s also found best to let th e pa ti ent take

.
h old o f the handle and not to let i t si mply rest on t he

n s n la t ed couch or stool as i s o ften done .
8 9 T h e L ey den j ar
. T he L ey den j ar ( 6g 5 p 36)
. .
, .
was di scovered in 17 49 It consi sts o f a glass j ar wi th

.
rather m ore t h an the lower hal f covered both i nsi de and

ou t by ti n fo il -
It i s closed w i th a stopper pi erced by
.
a brass rod whi ch ends in a kn ob two or three i nches
a b ove the top o f the j ar and on the i nsi de there i s a
c ha in attac h ed wh i ch m akes metall i c connect i on w i th
t h e i nner l i n i ng o f t i n foi l-
The jar i s charged by con
.
n e c ti n g the i nner c o at i ng wi th the pri me conductor o f
t h e m ac hi ne and t h e outer coa ti ng to ea rth or i n the , ,
c ase of an in fl u en ce machin e to t he other electrode

, .
T h e i nn er co ati ng i s th u s rai sed to the potent i al o f the

pri m e conductor wh i le the outer i s at zero potent i al .
In consequence o f the large capac i ty of the j ar 3 0
and 32 ) a consi derable charge i s requi red t o e ff ect th i s .
To di scharge the jar i t i s necessary t o bri ng by a c o n

ductor the external coat i ng i nto m etall i c prox i m i ty wi th
the i nternal one v i z wi thi n sparki ng di stance A
, .
,
.
bright fl ash i s seen and a sl ight report heard as the jar

i s d i scharged. The i n stru m ent used to d i scharge a
L eyden j ar i s called a di scharger ( fig 2 8 ) and cons i st s o f .
Fm . 28 —D isch arger .
two curved p ieces o f stout brass wi re h i n ged together ,
each sect ion be i n g provi ded w i th a glass handle B y .
th i s m eans a L eyde n j ar can be d i scharged e i ther di rectly

or through a pat ie n t wi thout the operator recei vi ng a
shock .
There are other i nstru m ents used for ad m i n i steri ng

stat i cal electri c i ty that are called E x ettors They are .
—E it
Fx o 29 . x c o r.
o f d i fferent shapes and s izes accord i n g to the e ffect i t i s
w ished to produce The m ost sim ple and frequently

.
used i s a small brass rod end i n g i n a brass ball ( fig 2 9 )

1110 11. s t s c 1 a 1c 111
3 11 . 10 3
and havi ng a gl ass han dle O n the brass just be fore i t s

.
'
j unc t i on wi th t he h an dl e i s a ri ng or loop to wh ich i s

attached a brass cha i n or met al l ic i nsul ated cord The .
brass cha in ca n be allo wed to touch the ground or ca n

b e attached t o on e of the conductors of the st at i cal
mach ine accordi ng t o c irc umsta nces I t i s also n eces .
sary t o have a ri ng or crook ( fig 30 ) wi th an i ns ulated .
Ft o 30
.
—I ns ulat ed suppo rt s .
handle or a gl ass rod by wh ich the m etall ic cha i n can

, ,
be kept from co m i ng t oo close t o t h e operator .
9 0. M o d es o f a pp li c at i on The methods
. o f app l i
cati on o f stat i cal electri ci ty are the same now as they
were when D r S teavemon of N ewc astl e o uTyne wrote
.
- -
on M ed i cal E lectri c i ty i n 177 8 and are fu l ly descr ibed

in h i s book referred to above .
9 1. T h e d ry b at h — The e pati en t may be treated by

i nsul a t i on or the so called dry electri c bath
,
-
Th i s i s .
ca rri ed out by placi ng the pat i ent who may be fully ,
dressed on an insulated couch o r cha ir and connect ing

,
h im e i ther by meta l l i c rod o r cha i n to the conductor

of a fr ict i on al mach i ne The m ach i ne i s then set i n
.
moti on and the pati ent i s charged e ither wi th posi t i ve

or negati ve el ectric i ty accordi ng to h i s cond i t ion and
requi re m en ts . E qu ili bri um i s then a l lowed slowly to
t e est abl i sh i tsel f thro u
-
gh the atmosphere A s soon as .
the m ach ine is set in mot ion the pat ient feel s i n a ,
c urious nerv ous cond i ti on diffic ul t to d esc ri be H is .
hai r feels incli ned t o stand on end and on hi s face

I 04. M E D IC A L E LE C T RI C I T Y .
he feels a sligh t sen sati on as if ligh tly t ouch ed by

gossamer P erspi rat i on i s i nduce d an d all th e n a t u
. r al
secreti ons of t h e bod y are en couraged an d in creased .
The dry electri c bat h i s gi ven for varyin g lengths of

tim e . I n t h e practi ce of di fferen t physi ci an s i t h as
ranged from 10 m i nutes t o three or four h ours When .
cont i nued for t h e more len gthened period s th e pat i ent
FI G .
3 1.
—D ry E l ect ri c B at h .
has to be recharged from t i me t o t i me by a few addi

t i o n al turns o f the mach i ne It i s probable that from
.
half an hour to an hour i s the best t im e t o keep the pa

t ient under the i n fl uen ce of the charge The dry elec .
tr i c bath shoul d be repe ated da i ly fo r the first week or

ten days then every other day or occasi onally as the
,
cond i t ion of the pat i ent requ i res A t the S alpet ri ere .
i n P ar i s where th i s treatment i s much i n vogue in su

, lat ,
i n g couches are used large enough to hold many pat i ents

at once . They are charged from h uge W i mshurst
m ach in es dri ven by gas engi nes S ee D r M acl u
. re s .
’
”
l i ttle book S tat i cal E lectr ic i ty i n M edi c i ne .
9 2
. E ff ec t s o f t h e po si t i v e c h a rge — The p osi ti ve .
ST A T IC A L E L E C T RI C I T Y . 10 5
c harge been found useful in general debi li tated co n

h as
di t i o n s of the system such as ol d age deb i li ty duri ng
, ,
c on vales cence from acute i llnesses after c o n fin em e n t or ,
e x cess i ve l ac t ati on general prostra t i on fro m anxi ety and

,
o ve r work -
many mental states accompan ied by a de
,
p r essed cond i ti on o f the system such as so m e form s o

,f
h ysteria melancholia and nerv ous i nsomni a ; we have
, ,
a l so met wi th en couragi ng results i n the tr eat m ent o f
spa sm odi c ast h ma The opposi te cond i t i on namel y a

.
,
n egati ve charge has o n several occasio ns been kn own t o

,
i nduce an attack of the di sease * The negat i ve charge .
p roduces a cond i ti on o f the body as o f utter p r ostrat i on ,
si m il ar to that produced by blood lett in g and s im ilar to -

,
t hose condi ti ons that accompan y great prostrat ion from

s evere i llness o r oth er cause when the norm al i rri tab il i t y
o f the nerves h as deteri orated and the natural nerve ,
c urrents are di mi ni sh ed and the nerves are in a condi

t i on o f decreased exci tab ili ty M any of the good results.
f orm erly deri ved from the u se of stat i cal electr i c i ty were
p robably m i sunderstood and did not depend upon the

s hocks gi ven to t h e pat i ent but to the preli m i nary charg
i n g fo r as a m atter of fact the pat ients were generally

,
c harged posi ti vely si nce R amsden s machi ne th en most

'
, ,
f requentl y used wo uld only produce a posi ti ve ch arge

,
when used in the ordi nary way .
93 T re a. t m e n t b y sp a rk l A s econd method of .
-
usi ng stati cal electri ci ty is by sparks S parks are .
t aken from a pati en t in t wo ways called respect i vel y

the direct and the i ndirect I n the d irect method the
.
pati ent i s pl ac ed upon an i nsulated chai r o r bench and

con n ect ed wi th one electrode of the machi ne the ex ,
ci tor i s connect ed wi th the other fig The sp i nal

( .
Vida E lect ric ity an d its M an n er o f Wo ki n g i n t h e T reat men t r
of 7
1 a nd A C hu
rchi l l , L on do n , 188 4 ,
"
D isea se , . .
p 38. .
10 6 ME DIC A L E L E C T RI C I T Y .
column or part to be treated i s la i d bare and when the ,
pat i ent i s charged an exc itor ( fig 2 9) i s brought near

, .
to the pat ient and a spark i s i mmedi ately seen t o pass

between the two S everal contri vances are sold by i n
.
Fx o 32
. .
—T reat m en t by sparks .
stru m ent m akers fig 33) for regulat i ng the length

.
o f sp a rk taken . Bu t these are unnecessary when an

i n fl uen c e mach i ne i s used as the max i mu m length o f
,
Fm .
33
—S pa1k regu
. l at or .
spark can be exactly controlled by the space betwee n

the d i schargi ng electrodes of the mach i ne fo r these are ,
always capable of be i ng separated or approx i mated t o

regulate the spark i ng di stance I n th i s way i t i s ofte n
.
poss i ble to draw fro m the pat i ent a spar k of t wo thre e o r ,

fo ur i nches long D i fferences in the nature of the s park

.
can be produced by varyi ng t h e shape and s ize of the

exc i tors .
A po i nted exci tor for obvi ous reasons ( c i

, 2 9 gi ves a
) .
sm a ller spark or even o n ly a brush and the suddenness ,
an d vi o l en ce of the spark can also be i ncreased by an
i ncr ea se in the si ze o f the brass balls used For the ih .
direct spark one conductor o f the machi ne i s connected

,
wi th the ground and the pat i ent on the i nsulated sup

,
p ort i s connected w i th the other conduct or The w i re .
fro m the exci tor ( o r electrode ) i s then also allowed t o

touch th e ground or i s connected wi th a gas or water
p i pe in the room B y th is means less v igorous and i rri
.
t at i ng sparks are taken from o r passed t o the pati ent .
I t may be as we ll at th i s po int t o call atten t ion to the

nature of the L eyden j ar d i sch arge W e are apt to con .
s i d e r the di scharge as ta ki ng place from one spec i fied
p o in t o f a c i rcui t to another but th i s i s qu, i te i ncorrect .
T he real state of a ffairs i s one o f osc i llatory current

S parki ng a c ross the air gap i n the c i rc u i t so that the ,
s pa rk cannot be sa i d t o pass onl y from one po int t o
a nother . There are always several osc i llat ions i n a

s park di sch arge the peri od of these i s determi n ed by
,
t h e nature o f th e ci rcui t and depends c h iefl y on t wo

,
t hi ngs na m ely the capaci ty o f the j ar and the ti me

, ,
co nst ant o f t he c ircui t through whi ch the di scharge

takes place an i ncrea se in e i t her of these wi ll cause an
,
i ncrea se i n the t i me o f the osc i llat i ons To have some .
i dea o f the rate o f the osc il lati ons we may re m ember ,
t hat as h as been lately demonstrated by H ertz electri c

, ,
ra diat ion is propagated wi th the veloc i ty o f light ,
na mely about 3 x 10 centi metres per second

1
0
I t woul d .
be eas y to arrange a jar and c ircui t from whi ch would

be emi tt ed waves of on e metre i n len gth the number of ,
I 08 M E D IC A L E LE C T RI C I T Y .
oscil lati on s per second in such a case woul d be 3 x 10

“
say three hundred m i lli ons an alm ost in c o nce i v ab ly

,
great rapi di ty of osci llati on .
C ompari ng great thi ngs wi th small we may dr aw an

analogy between thi s an d the faradi c di sch arge whi ch
may be looked upon as a slow oscill atory di sc h arge ,
p robably n o t o ften exceed i ng t wo h u

n dred an d fift y
osci llat ions per second These di scharges produce

.
som ewhat si mil ar phy si ologi cal e ffects b ut t h e latter ,
are t h e more pai n ful perhaps because of the greater

magn i tude o f the osci llatory currents i nvolved .
94 . T re a t m e n t b y sh o c kl S hocks are .ad m

-
i n i s
t ered by means of the L eyden j ar Thi s i s charged .
from the pri me conductor of an electri cal m achi ne i n

m ot i on — negat i vely when the C arr é machi ne i s used .
A d i scharger i s la i d i n contact wi t h the external coat i ng

and then m ade to touch that part of the pat i ent th rough
wh i ch i t i s wi shed that the shock shoul d pa ss and ,
the knob o f the j ar i n connect i on wi th the i ntern al

,
coat i ng i s approached to the pat i ent on the oppos i te

,
si de of the trunk or l i mb ; when wi th i n a vary i ng

d i sta n ce of the ski n —hal f an i nch or less accordi ng
—
to the potent al of the charge a s park i s seen t o pass
i
and the j ar i s di scharged A n unpleasant shock i s .
gi ven and a sl ightly ra i sed s pot w i th congested areola

, ,
s i m i lar to a fl ea bi te is left for a short t i me

,
A more .
manageable way of di schargi n g the L eyden j ar i s to c o n

n ec t i t w i th an i nsulated br a ss exc i tor ( fig 34) by .
me an s of a fl ex ibl e m etall i c cord enc i rcl i ng the external

coat i ng o f the j ar above where i t i s held by the han d fo r
the purpose of chargi ng The knob of the exci tor m ay
.
be made to touch the pat i ent at the part i t i s wi shed t o

treat and the j ar when charged brought near t o the
pat i ent I m m ed i ately the knob i s near enough for the
.
sp ark t o pass the j ar will be di scharged

, The trea t .
m ent by shocks i s only su ited fo r local appli cati ons

—
.
95. T h e b r u sh dl sc h a rg e The elec t r i c w i nd .

,
b reeze c urrent brush or so uffl e are all terms gi ven t o

, , ,
t h at meth od of adm i n i steri ng stati c el ectri c i ty first pro
p o s ed by D r
. S teav enw n in 177 8 The follo w i ng i s the .
d e scri p t i on that he gi ves translated from hi s L at i n ,
t h esi s “ I was th i nking over the property of
P ro 34 - A ppli cat i on
. . of sh ocks .
sharpened conductors that is th e ir power of sudden ly ,
drawi ng the electr ic flu i d wh i ch has become accum u

lated out of bod ies s ilently and wi thout a spark a fourth ,
me t hod of applyi ng i t wh i ch pro m i ses to be adv an t a ,
geons occurred to m y m ind an d wh ich to di st in gui sh

, , ,
i t from the others I woul d call the p encil met hod

, It i s .
very we ll known that po inted i ns t ruments stron gly at

trac t the fl uid when on ce exc i ted if th erefore to an i n
su l a t ed human body unduly c harged wi th elect ri c fl uid
, ,
a poi nted co nductor be applie d ; the superabundant flui d

B y t h e R ev . F . R . S tea m ron , lat e C las sical Sc h olar of Em
ma n uel C ol l ege, C am bri dge .
110 M ED CAI L E L E C T RI C I T Y .
wi ll be drawn out wi thout a shock an d at the sa m e t i me ,
wi thout caus i ng pa i n fro m thi s part i n the for m o f a ,
lum i n ous penc i l ; whereby the volume and spee d of the

flui d as i t passes through whatev er part we desi re m ay
be greatly i ncreased and if we enlarge the S pace
,
through wh i ch the fl ui d makes i t s escape i t wi l l only be

”
necessary t o i ncrease the number of poi nts Th i s .
method has been adopted under on e or o ther of the

names prev i ously gi ven by most of those who have made
use of stat i cal electri ci ty fo r curat i ve purpo ses The .
electri c wi nd or breeze can be produced by bri ngi ng a
Pro .
35
—B
. r ush el ect rode .
poi nted exci tor near to an i nsulated pat i ent wh o has

been charged wi th electri c i ty The sharpened exci tor
.
m ay be made o f brass or wood W hen the compara .
l
t iv e y blu n t wooden po i nt i s used the breeze i s n o t so
strong as wi th the sharper brass one A crackl i ng .
,
h i ssi ng sound is produced and i n the dark a lum i nous

brush o f l ight i s percept i ble The pat i ent feels a pleas
.
ant sensat ion as of a cool draught of wi nd play i ng upon

the part under treatment W hen the more vi gorous
.
so u ffl e i s requ i red ,
an electrode i s used hav i ng nu m er ,
ous po i n ts fix ed upon a m etall i c d i sc ( fig 35) and pro .
v i de d w i th an i nsulated handle The breeze . or so n m e

is used fo r the rel i e f o f pa i n i n neuralg ,
i a the l i ghtn i ng ,
pa in s of locomotor ataxy and other pa i n ful a ffect i ons

,
.
It i s sa i d to have a marked sedat i ve effect

—
.
9 6. S t a t i c i n d u c t i o n D .r M eC l u
r e m ent . i on s an
addi t i onal use to wh ich stat i c electri c i ty can be appl i ed ,
I
ST A T C A L E L E C T RI C I T Y . Il 1
whi ch has recently been di scovered and by wh ich mus

c ula t reacti ons can be tested as wi th the faradi c mach i n e ,
a n d wi th less pa i n .H e descri bes the method as fo l

l ows A small L eyden j ar i s attached by mean s o f a
h ook to each con ductor of the stat i c mach i ne To the .
outer coat in gs o f these j ars are attach ed a pai r of

ord i nary conduct ing cords wi th moi stened electrodes .
The poles of the mach i ne are now separated very

sli ghtl y gi vi ng a short spark ; durin g the passage
,
of each spark an i nducti on current i s sent down t h e
cords and rece i ved by the pat ient wh o need not be i n ,
su l at ed ; nerve and muscle m ay thus be acted on i n

exactly the same way as i n the appl i cat ion of faradi sm .
The strength of the current i s determ i ned by the s ize o f

the j ars and the a m ou n t o f separati on of the poles o f
,
the machi ne . I n the machi ne of C arré the poles must

al most touch and the jars must be very sm all —o i the
capac i ty of about 4 or 6 ounces I bel ieve we have i n

.
the stat i c i nduced current a means of produc i ng m us

cu l ar contracti ons when the strongest bearable appli ca
tion o f faradi sm
Thi s quotat io n from D r M cC l ure suggests a very i n
.
teresti n g method of exam i n i ng the muscl es and one less

pai nf ul than the usual method of applyi ng the farad ic
current . F ro m the last part of g9 3 i t wil l be seen that
the t wo methods are anal ogous s i nce the arrange m ent
,
Su ggested by D r M cC lure produces osci llatory currents

.
simil ar to those consi dered there Those who have had .
much experi en ce of the d i stress produced i n young

chi ldren by the electri ca l exa m i nati on of thei r muscles
in the usual way wi ll gladly welcome any plan less ter
rif i n t the pat i ents than farad i c curr nts are
y g o e .
e u S tati c E l ec trici t y i n M edi cin e ” b H M ccl u

re M D L o n don ,
, y . .
,
H R m haw, 1889
. .
I I 2 M ED CA I L E LE C T RI C I T Y .
C H A PTE R V .
B ur s a ries A ND A PPA RA T U S .
E ssen t ial s of a g d
o o bat t ery . E l ec t ro mo t iv e fo rce of cel l s . C apa
c it y of cel l s . Pol ari z at io n . D epol ari z ers. S m ee s bat t ery

’
.
B i ch ro m at e bat t er y D an iel l bat t ery G rov e s an d Bu

’ ’ ’
. s . n sen s
b at t eries . L ec l an ch é bat t ery y . C hl oride of si l ver bat t er .
O ide o f c0 pper batt ery

x D ry bat t eri es Su l ph at e o f m ercu
. ry .
bat t ery L at i mer C l ark s st an dard c el l S t 6hrer s bat t ery

’ ’
. . .
A ccu mu l at o rs T abl e o f bat t eries

. C hoice o f a bat t ery C are . .
o f a bat t ery Use o f el ect ri c l igh t in g cu

. rren t s T ran sform ers . .
M dical i n du
e ct io n co il s Pri mary an d seco n dary c u . rren t s .
97 E. s se n t i al s o f a g oo d b at t e ry — N umerous .
m o di fic at i o n s of Vol ta s origi nal cell have been fro m t i me

’
to t i m e proposed wi th the object of i m provi ng i t i n one

way or another There are three objec t s to be a i m ed at
.
i n str i vi n g to e ffect such an i mprovement first the , ,
electro m ot i ve force of the cell should be as h igh as pos

s ible secondly the qua n t i ty of current or the densi ty o f
, , ,
curre n t per square cent i metre o f act i ve surface of the

plates must be great and th i rdly the cel l m ust be con , ,
sta n t ,
i t m ust be capable o f g i v i n g a large current
wi thout an y fall of electromot i ve force due to polari za
t ion ( see There are also other matters t o be
atte n ded to e g there should be no act ion i n a cell
, . .
,
when the c i rcu i t i s broken but th i s belongs rather t o ,
the m a n age m ent o f batter ies than to our present subject .
9 8 E l e
. c t r o m o t i v e f o r c e o f c e l l s The l i m i t o f .
electro m ot i ve force that can be obta i ned from a si ngle

cell i s soon reached si nce as shown i n 39 i t depen ds , , ,
GA L VA N I C s am al a s . 113
a l mo st enti rely on the contact elect romot i ve force b e

tween di ss imi lar substances ( metals or meta l lo i ds) W e .
must no t e here that in a cell where the poles are say z inc
and plati num the contact electrom oti ve force i s real ly
,
th at between z inc and plati num although the zi nc an d ,
plat i num do not touch ea ch other throughout the c ircu it .
We m ay however look on i t as m ade up of th e c ontact

, ,
electro m oti ve force between the z inc plate and the c op

per connecti ng wire plus that between the copper con
,
n ect i n g wi re and the plat i num plate Full tables are .
found i n electri cal text books o f metals arranged i n

-
ord er the most el ectroposit i ve at the head o f the table

, ,
the most electronegati ve at the foot A n abbrevi ati on o f .
such a table is the follow ing

"
E l eetroposi ti ve .
Sodi um .
M agn es i um .
Z in c .
I ron .
L ead .
C o nper .
S il ver .
M erc r uy .
Pl at i n um.
C arbo n .
E lect ron ega t i ve .
Thi s order i s gi ven for the elements in contact i n

presence o f di lute aci d ; under other c ircum stances the
o rder i s l i able t o alter at ion and t h i s fact i s a seri ous
,
difi c u l t y i n t h e way of the contact theory of electro

mot i ve force wh i ch h as been t aken as a worki ng
h y pothesi s for ou r purposes We may re fer the reader
.
aga in t o D r 0 L odge s M odern Views C hap V I

’ "
. . . .
,
I t foll ows t h at the battery wi th the greatest electro

”
M i l ler s C hemist ry
’
.
I 14. M E DIC A L E L E C T RI C I T Y .
mot i ve force would be that the poles of whi ch consi sted

,
o f the two mater i als at the extreme ends of the table ,
and most of the i mprovemen ts i n batteri es made wi th

the object of i ncreasi ng the electromot i ve force have been
by subst itut ing metals further down the table for the
copper pole of Vol ta s cell Thus i n S mee s cell we
’
.
’
fin d a plat in i zed si lver plate i s used for the pos i t i ve pole ,
i n G rave s battery a plat i num plate whi le i n B u

’ ’
nsen s ,
carbon i s used Unt i l therefore i t becomes pract i c

.
, ,
able t o use magnesi um or sodi um i nstead of z i nc we ,
can hardly expect to obta in pri mary batteri es of hi gher

electromot i ve force than those i n wh i ch z i nc and carb on
poles are used . These batteri es when worki ng t o the
best advantage have an electromot i ve force of some
thi ng under two volts That of a B unsen s cell i s from
.
’
to 19 volts .
A s w i ll be seen i n the descr i pt ion of storage batteri es

a posi t i ve plate o f perox i de of lead a ffords a means of
ge tt in g a high electromot i ve force and the combi nat i on ,
o f i t w i th a z i nc negat i ve plate has been fo u nd to yield

very sat i sfactory results ; on e form of such a com b i n a
t io n has lately been i ntroduced under the name o f the
L i thcmode battery an d i t i s sa i d to have an electromot i ve
,
force o f 2 5 volts °
.
99 .C a p a c i t y o f c el l s U nder the second

. head
there i s not much to be don e i n i mprovi ng batteri es ; the
i nternal res i stance should of course be kept as l ow as
possible by maki n g the plates approach as near on e
another as may b e so that the current shall h a ve t o pass
,
across the least possi ble th i ckness of electrolyte The

plates of the battery should be large and should be kept
clea n and the z in c must be pure and homogeneous or at
, ,
least well amalgamated wi th mercury t o prevent local

curre n ts from d ifferences of hardness and puri ty for ,
GA LV A N I C BA T T E RI E S . 115
t hese g ive r ise to electro m ot i ve forces between parts o f

the z i nc and cause local act ion and wasti ng I n one .
modern type o f cell the z i ncs are made o f an amalgam

of zi nc and mercury fused together and cast i nto the
requi red shape Thi s i s sai d to work well

. .
100 . P o l ari z at i o n —There i s much more scope fo r

.
improvement in batter ies as regards the thi rd po i nt and ,
much attent ion and i ngenu i ty have been concentrated

upon sec ur in g constancy o f current an d absence o f
polarizat ion i n batteri es Thi s i s eas ily seen to be
.
an im portant matter fo r nearly all batteri es undergo

,
a rapi d fall o f electro m ot i ve force when any large cur

re n t i s taken fro m the m Thus for exa m ple a form o f
.
, ,
cell recentl y put upon the market had an electromoti ve

force o f 1 50 8 volts on open c ircui t but after be i ng short
°
circui ted through a wire of low resi stance for fift een
minutes the elec t ro m ot ive force had fallen to 433 volts °
.
Polari zat ion o f a ce l l i s m ostly caused by alterat ions i n

the s urfaces o f the plates o f the cell and c hiefl y by the ,
con de nsat ion o f hydrogen on the inacti ve pl ate wh ich

sets up a rev erse electro m ot i ve force and so reduces t h e ,
ava ilable electromot i ve force o f the cell at the sa m e t ime ,
reduc ing the ava ilable area o f the plates and thereby ,
increasi ng the i nternal res i stance of the ce ll ° .
I t is eas y t o de mo n st rat e t he rev erse el ect ro mo t ive forc e, d e t o u

polari z at io n by m ean s o f a wat er met er ( 5
vo l ta T o do so l et
the c u rre n t t h ro ugh such a v o l t am et er he udden ly swit ched
s o ff,
an d t he
po l es o f t h e vo l t am et er c o n n ec t ed t o a
gal v an o met er ; fo r a
few seco n ds urren t wi l l be in dicat ed by t h e gal van om et er in suc h

a c
a direct io n as t o sh ew t hat t h e po l e o f t h e vo l tam et er fro m w h ich t h e

hydroge n was given o fl n o w act s as a z in c pl ate t e in t he Oppo sit e
'
, . .
,
direct ion t o t he c urren t t h at was bei n g dri ven t hro u g h i t be fo re T h e .
word po la ri zat io n is freq uen tl y used i n a l oose way so as t o i n

clude ot her cau ses which t en d t o w eake n th e c u rren t t h at a cel l can
give ,a s fo r ex am pl e t h e e
, x h aust io n of t h e ex c i t i n g l iq u i d t he fo rm s ,
1 2
To prevent polari zat i on it i s necessary t o take so m e

measures that wi ll check or prevent t h e accum ulat ion
o f hydrogen on the pos i t i ve pole .
10 1 D epo l ari ze s
. r — T he constancy o f batt eri es de
.
pends on the effi c acy of the depolari zer used D ep o .
l ari z i n g methods can be conven i ently gro uped under

t h ree heads ( )
4 .M echan i cal meth o d s ( )
b L i qu i d .
depolari zers (e) S ol i d depolarizers

. .
I n S mee s battery the sur face of t h e si lver plate i s

’
roughe n ed by be in g plat i n i zed t e covered wi th fi n el y , . .

,
d i vi ded plat i num the effect of wh ich i s that the bubbles

,
o f hydrogen are able to form and escape m o re eas i ly .
I n Wal ker s m o dific at ion of th i s battery ( see

’
1 12 ,
S t o hrer s battery) the rough surface of the carbon plate

’
used plays the same part but i t probably acts ,
chem i cally also by causi ng ox i dat ion of the hydrogen

i n the same way that the carbon of charco al fi l t ers
causes the ox i dat ion o f the organ i c matter of i mp ure
water A nother mechan i cal method of h i nderi ng polar i
.
z at i o n i s to keep the exci t i n g fl u i d well st i rred by forc i ng

ai r through i t or otherwi se N one of these m ethods
.
however are so effic ac io us as the use o f chem i cal means ,
that i s to say the use of so m e ox i d i z i ng agent i n the cell

whereby the hydroge n i s consu m ed i nstead of bei ng ,
depos ited on the posi t i ve plate The si mplest method .
of do i n g th i s i s to add to the exc i t i n g l i qu i d some
powerful age n t that wi ll oxi d i ze the hydrogen as fast as

i t i s l i berated Th i s i s the plan followed in the b i chro
.
“
10 3 i nvented by P o
m ate battery ) gg e n d or
f A nother .
l i qu i d depolarizer that i s m uch used i s strong n i tri c

u
t io n o f l o cal c rren t s o wi n g t o n on -
h omogen i ty or bad am al gam a t i on
o f t h e z in c , o r t h e i n crease o f i n t ern al resi st an c e from ch an es in
g
t h e ex c i t in g l i quid but , st ri c t l y speaki n g t h e t erm sh o l d u be l im it ed
u
t o t h e ch an ges at t h e s rfaces of t h e pl at es of t h e cel l .
o st v w xc s an s a rs s . 117
acid but as th i s attacks z inc vi olently i t i s necessary

,
to separate i t from the z i nc plate by the use of a semi

permeable porous part i ti on or porous pot and the battery ,
then becom es a t wo fl uid batt ery In fig 36 the ar . .

,
rangement of a t wo flui d battery i s shown ; V is th e

porous pot conta i n ing one li qui d and one plate the ,
other li q ui d and the other plate standin g outsi de i t .
Fl o .
36.
—T wo fl u
i d cell
There are se veral valuable sol id depo larize rs in use,

t he one best fl o wn bei ng peroxi de o f mangan ese whi ch
,
is used i n t he L ec l an c h é cel l and i n sev eral o f the

,
dry cel ls
. O x i de o f copper i s also used Fused .
C hl ori de o f si lver i s the depolari zer i n a favouri te battery

for m ed i cal p u rposes known as the chlori de of si lver
,
cell and the valuable quali t i es o f peroxi de o f lead have

,
had much atten ti on drawn to th em o f late through the ,
study of i t s acti on in storage cells .
10 2 S m ee B b at t ery —Th i s battery is of i nterest

.
’
. ,
as represen ti ng the s im plest advance o n the copper z inc

couple of Vol t a ; i t was i nvented i n 1840 In i t s usual .
form i t i s made of t wo flat plates of zi nc separated from ,

one another above by a block of woo d wh i ch su pport s a

plat i n ized s i lver plate between the zi n es To the z i nc .
plates there i s attached a large clamp an d b i nd i ng

screw wh i ch serves to hold the element together another
, ,
bi ndi ng screw i s attached to the si lver plate and th i s i s ,
the posi t ive pole of the battery The exci t i n g l i qu i d i s .
d i lute sulphuri c aci d 1 to 10 I n sp i te of the roughened .
surface of the si lver plate the battery soon polari zes ,
an d i t s ava i lable electro m ot i ve force i s not much more
than 5 volt .
10 3 .B i c h ro m at e b at t ery — Th i s i s a favouri te for m .
o f cell where large curren ts are requ i red occasi onally Its .
constancy however i s by no means perfect

, , I ts plates .
are o f zi nc and carbon and the ex ci t in g li qui d consi sts o f

,
a solut i on of potassi u m bi chromate and sulphuri c aci d .
The sulphur i c ac i d i n the first i n stance sets free chro m i c

aci d leav i ng potassi u m sulphate i n solut i on
,
The .
chro m i c aci d bei ng a very powerful ox i dizi ng agen t ,
ox i d izes the hydroge n produced by the act i o n of the

battery on the carbon plate an d i s i tself reduced t o ,
chro m ous ox i de ; th i s co m bi n es wi th a further qua n t i t y

of sulphur i c ac i d to for m chromous sulphate wh i ch ,
rem ai n s i n solut i on g i vi n g the l i qui d a dark gree n

,
colour .I f such a battery i s allowed to stand a fter

m uch use crystals o f potash chrome alum w i ll be de
posi ted wh ich are very hard and di fficul t to d i ssolve
, .
S od i um b i chromate has bee n strongly recom m ended

i n stead of the potass i u m salt as the sod i um chro m e ,
alu m i s very m uch more soluble ; the sod i u m salt a lso

conta i ns we ight for we ight m ore chrom i c ac i d tha n the
, ,
potassi um salt A sui table form ula if sodi um b i chro

.
,
i
m ate be used s the follow i n g ,
— D i ssolve 2 0 0 gra m m es
o f the salt i n 1 l i tre o f water and add 150 o f str o n g
sulphuri c ac i d ; whe n the battery begi ns t o show si gns

GA LVA N I C BA T T E RI E S . 119
‘
of be ing ex hausted an addi t ional 2 5 t o 50 c c of ac i d per . .
litre may be added The chem ical re act ions occ urri ng
.
wi th th i s cel l may be thus represent ed

M , G1, O 7
°
2 C rO
3
H, 0 ,
then 20 0
, 3 H 0 , ,
and C r 0, , 3( S O ,) 3 H 0 , .
The zi ncs o f th i s battery must always be removed

from solut i on i m m ed i ately a fter use and i n fact shoul d ,
F 10 .
37 .
—Bi c h ro mat e bat t ery .
. ) ewell w ashed and frequently t e amalga m ated if the -

,
b attery i s to gi ve the best e fiec t The reason for t hi s

'
will be easi ly seen when i t i s po i nted out that D r .
Weem i has lately observ ed that pure z inc i s one hundred

a n d sev en t y fiv e t i mes more soluble i n ac i d conta i n i ng a
~
l i ttle chromi c ac i d than i n pure d ilute ac id O n e form .
o f b i chrom a te battery i s well kn own to m ed i cal men
under the n ame of S tohrer s battery but i t i s hardly to

’
be m as i t requi res much attent ion an d

I 20 M E DIC A L E L E C T RI C I T Y .
cleani ng and i s by no means econ o m i cal in use i t wil l

, ,
be more fully descri bed i n 112 The o ut ward form of .
the bi chromate batte ry vari es very much A very .
fam i l i ar shape i s that of a wi de mouthed an d long

necked bottle ( fig . The plates are suspended from
a vul c an i te l i d carryi ng bin di ng screws and the zi nc ,
plate can be drawn up out of the li qui d i nt o the neck of

the bottle when the battery i s not in use .
10.
4 D a n i e l l s
’
b a t t e ry The oldest
. and most c on
sta n t form of two fl ui d battery i s that known as

D a n i ell s cell 5 0 constant i s th i s cell that i t has been
’
.
proposed and frequently used as a standard of electro

mot i ve force For rough purposes we may take the
.
electro m ot i ve force of a D ani ell s cell at o n e volt A ’

.
D an i ell s cell consi sts o f a copper plate placed i n a solu

’
t i on o f sulphate o f copper wh i ch i s kept saturated by

,
leavi ng a few crystals of copper sulphate on a shel f near

the top o f the l i qui d ; separated by a porous part i t i on
i s a z i n c plate i n solut i on o f sulphate o f z i nc sl i ghtly
a c i di fied wi th sulphur i c ac i d Frequently the copper
.
plate i s m ade also to serve as the conta i n ing vessel .
The porous part i t ion wh i le i t prevents the m i x i n g o f

the two solut ions o ff ers but l i ttle resi stance t o the
,
electrolyt i c passage o f the curren t The react i ons then .
are as follows — Z i n c i s d i ssolved at the z i nc plate and

hydrogen would be set free at the di vi si on between the
two l i qui ds but for the presence o f the copper sulphate
solut i o n wh i ch be in g i tsel f an electrolyte i s deco m posed
i nto sulphur i c ac i d wh i ch passes i nwards fro m the
,
porous part i t ion and copper wh i ch i s deposi ted at the

,
pos i t i ve pole . S i nce th i s latter i s already o f c o pper

there i s n o tendency to polari zat ion here at all and any ,
fall i ng o ff i n the electro m ot i ve force o f the cell i s due to

bad amalgamat i on or some other fault at the z i nc plate .
GA LV A N I C BA T T E RI E S . 12 I
D an i ell s ba tteri es are freq uently arranged as gravi ta

’
”
ti on batteri es the porous di vi s i on be ing abol i shed and
,
the li ghter liqui d di lute ac i d wi th the zi nc plate be ing

above the heavi er sulphate o f c 0 pper solut ion S ir W . .
T homson fill s them wi th sawdust thus avoi d i ng any ,
danger from upsetti ng the battery The drawback t o .
th e u se o f a D an i e l l s battery i s t hat n o matter h ow

'
perfect the porous part i ti on m ay be some o f the copper

salt wi ll difl use sooner or later through to the z inc and
co pper wi ll be deposi ted on i ts surface gi vi ng ri se t o ,
local acti on and was te .
10 5. G rov es an d B u
’
n se n s b att eri es — These
’
.
have fo r thei r depo lari zer strong n i tri c ac i d I n th e .
former the pos i ti ve pole i s a plat i num plate i n the ,
latter a plate or rod o f h ard gas carbon I n both bat .
tari es th e pos i ti ve pole i s conta ined i n a poro us po t

filled wi th strong n i tr i c ac i d and th i s i s surrounded by
the zi nc plate conta i ned i n a vessel fil l ed wi th d i lute sul
phuri o aci d ( fig . The acti on o f the battery may be

l ooked upon thus A t the porous part i ti on the electro
-
1y 8 is i s taken up from the di l ute sulphuri c aci d by the

n i t ri c aci d and the hy drogen that would be g i ven o ff at
t h e plati num o r carbon pole i s oxi d i zed by th e n i t ri c

a c i d t o water the ac i d bei n g reduced and deco m posed
,
W i th producti on o f ni t ri c oxi de Thi s i s partly di s .
S o lv ed i n the rest of t h e n i tri c aci d gi vin g i t a green
C o l our and part escapes i nto the ai r where i t comb i nes
W i th oxygen t o form the co rrosi ve red fu m es o f the

h i g her oxi des of ni trogen These fumes and the general
.
“ t l cl ean li n ess and corrosi veness o f ni tri c aci d fo rm the

*
g r eatest obj ecti on to the use o f thi s battery I f i t can .
It wi ll be fo un d t hat aft er a li t t l e use t h e pl at i n um pl at es u

sed i n
G roves batt ery have beco m e very britt l e

'
T h ey . c an be rest o red to
“l ei: former soft st at e by h eat in g t h em red hot i n a Bun sen flame .
be set up i n a draught cupboard or o ut o f

good ba t tery for l ight ing or cautery heat i ng
10 6 . T he L ec l a n c h é b a tt ery .
—T
v ersall y used fo r medi cal work is the L eelane
the exc i ti ng li qui d in whi ch i s a sat urated
ammoni um chlori de ( sal ammon i ac) fig 38 . .
t i ve pole i s a zinc ro d and t he pos i t i ve pole a car
Fro 38
. .
—L eclan c hé cel l .
or ro d. Th i s i s surroun ded by the dapol a

ganese d iox i de wh ich i s able slowly
,
drogen evolved by the act ion o f the cell In .
forms o f L ecl an ch é cel l the carbon pole w

ti ghtly i n a porous pot wi th fragments o f c
granular manganese d ioxi de The .
o f cell has no porous pot and t h ,
i s reduced but the carbon has

,
pressure o f abo ut 300

formed o f 40 parts
GA L V A NI C BA T T E RI E S . 12 3
shell ac and 3 o f potass ium bi sul phate Thi s form i s .
cal led the agglo m erate type .The add i ti on of a li ttle

chlorate o f potash t o the exci ti ng soluti on has been
recommen ded in the proporti on o f one part chlorate to
three o f sal ammoni ac . It i s possi ble that th i s add i
tio n m ay help t o make the depolariz i ng act i on m ore
complete .
The che m i stry o f the ce l l cannot be expressed i n any

simple m anner . When the c i rcui t is open there sho uld
be absolutely no act ion between the soluti on and the zinc
a l acti on and t h i s m akes the cel l a very econom i cal
( loc )
one but when the c i rcui t i s closed the zi nc i s d i ssolved
, ,
form i ng a double chlori de of ammon i um and z inc and ,
an oxy chlori de of z inc wh i le ammoni a and hydr ogen are

evolved at the carbon pole .I f only a sm all current i s
taken from such a cell the man ganese diox ide does i t s
work and the cell is fai rly constant but if m uch current
,
is used the oxi d i z i ng act i on o f the m a n ganese d i ox i de i s

unable t o keep pace wi th the evolut ion o f hydrogen and
the ce ll i s rapidly polarized though i t recovers co m
,
pl et el y i f l eft fo r some hours o n open ci rcui t The.
el ectromoti ve force o f a L ec l an c h é cell i s about

v o lt s . The advan tages o f the battery are that i t po s
S e sses great power o f recovery has n o apprec ia ble local
,
a ct i on and may consequently be left fo r months at a
t i me wi thout attenti on and has a fa irly hi gh el ectro

,
m oti ve force . A ga i nst these we must set i t s h igh i n

t ernal resi s t ance and t he fact that i t s electro m ot i ve
force runs down very rap i dl y when i t is called on to
produce a current of any magn i tude .
None o f the cell s i n whi ch dil ute ac i d i s used for the

ex ci ti ng l iq u i d can be left to them selves in the way that
L ecl an ch é batteri es can for in all of them the local acti on
would soon des t roy the z i nc i f i t were not removed from
12 4. M E DIC A L E LE C T RI C I T Y .
the aci d as soon as the battery h as been used an d o n t hat ,
account alone they are not very sui tabl e for m ed i cal pur
po ses si nce t h ey requi re too much attent i on ; m ean s have
,
been devi sed for faci l i tat i ng the rem o va l o f t h e plates

from t h e ac i d when the battery has been don e wi t h but ,
there sti ll rem a i ns t h e di fficul t y of deal i ng wi th t h e

l i qu i ds espec i ally durin g the transport o f t h e battery
,
fro m one place to another M ed i cal batteri es must

.
allow o f be i ng ca rri ed to pat i ents houses when n ec es ’
sary an d the ord i nary open cells wi th aci d l i qu i d s i n

,
them are m ost awkward ; the l i qu i d i s easi ly up set and

corrodes whatever i t touches consequently med i cal men ,
are ready to make consi derable sacri fic es in other

di rect i ons for the sake o f a closed cell in wh ich t h e ,
trouble o f attend i ng to the z i n es can be got ri d of an d ,
i n wh i ch there i s n o ri sk of upsett i ng ac i ds A cco rd .
i n gl y except fo r very spec i al purposes the L ec l a n c h é

, ,
cell i s a l m ost un i versally e m ployed fo r i n i t t h e z i n c ,
can be left always i n pos i t i on wi thout waste from loca l

act ion an d the cell can be closed in wi th pi tch or
,
cem ent to preven t an y escape o f the exc i t i ng fl ui ds

,
fro m w i th i n ; these conven i ences are purchased at the

cost o f a h igh i n ternal res i st a n ce and o f a tenden cy t o
polari zat io n but for m ost m edi c a l work these o bjec
,
t i ons are n o t very seri ous because the huge resi stanc e
,
o f the hu m a n body reduces by co m par i son the i nterna l
res i st a nce o f the battery to an almost negl igeabl e

qua n t i ty an d because the a m ount o f current requ i red
,
i n m ost cases i s o n ly a few thousa n dths of an amp e r e .
( 5 to 50 m ill i arn pé re s
) E ve n when the
. portab i l i ty o f t h e
battery i s n o t i m portant the L ec l a n ch é element i s st i ll

preferred fo r o n ce i nstalled i n a cellar or a cupboard
, ,
i t c an be le ft alone w i thout attent i on fo r months o r eve n

years and by the use of large cells i nstead of sm al l
,
GA L VA N I C BA T T E RI E S . 12 5
ones the i nternal resi s t ance can be so mewhat reduced

, ,
wh i le the capaci ty o f the cell for do ing work can be

i ncreased . The L ec l an ch é cell then i s the one most
commonl y used for med i cal purposes and i t s m anage ,
men t mode o f acti on de fects and good qu ali ti es sho uld

, ,
all be t horo ughly master ed once fo r all by t h ose wh o

i ntend t o work at the subject o f med i cal el ectri ci ty .
N umberl ess m odi fic ati on s of th i s cell have been put

upon the market at di fferent ti mes but these have ,
differed fro m the ori gi n al type ma inly in such deta i ls o f

constructi on as shape o f cel l omi ssi on o f p o rous po t
, ,
an d shape o f plates We sh all further consi der on e o f

.
t h e m o di fica ti on s in treat i ng o f dry batteri es

To preserve L ecl an ch é ce lls in good order they must
recei ve a li t tle a t ten tion from ti me to ti me about once
i n six months o r so The larger s izes i n glass j ars can
.
be ea si ly i nspected and the condi ti on of the zi n es and

,
the level o f the li qui d ascerta i ned .
I f the zi ncs are bla c kened they sho u ld be scraped

and amalgamated and the li qui d can be renewed by
,
addi ng wa t er t o replace what has been lost by evapora

ti on The cell s must not be fill ed to more than t wo
.
th irds o f thei r capa ci ty I f the a m ount of work don e

.
by t h e batt ery h as been large t h e old solut ion had

bett er be wi th drawn by means o f a syrin ge or a syphon ,
an d fresh soluti on put i nto i t s place The proporti on o f

.
si x oun c es o f sal a m m on i ac to a pi nt of water m akes a
soluti on o f proper s t rengt h The upper inch o f th e glass

.
cells ought t o be brush ed over wi th vaselin e o r hot

a a fii wax to p event reep in f the salts Th i i the
p r n r c g o s s .
fiorm at i o n o f crusts o f the sal ammon i ac around the t o p

of the c e ll i t i s h arm ful because they may connect t o
,
gether t wo nei ghbouri ng cells so closi ng a ci rcui t and

, ,
wast i ng the batt ery .

12 6 ME DIC A L E LE C T RI C I T Y .
W hen large crystals form at t h e bottom of

i n m asses
the cell and round the zi ncs i t i s t i me to take down the
battery and set i t up a fresh These crystals are a.
double chlori de o f z i nc and am m on i um and are i n ,
soluble i n water but they can be d i ssolved i n d i lute

,
hydrochlori c aci d and th i s i s the si mplest way o f get

,
t in g ri d o f them W hen they have formed i n the outer

.
vessel they have probably form ed i n the po rous po t as

,
well an d the i r presence there i s not desi rable because

,
they i ncrease the i nternal resi stance of the cell and ,
block up the i nterst i ces of the carbon and manganese

di ox i de W hen the battery i s bei ng renewed the l i qui d
.
i nsi de the porous pot should be poured o ff through t h e

s m all holes at the top and d i lute hydrochlori c aci d ( 1
,
to 2 0 ) poured i n and left fo r twenty four hours an d a ft e r -

,
that the porous pot m ust be soaked for another day o r

two i n water Th i s proceedi ng wi ll much i mprove t h e
.
battery I f there i s reason to th i nk that the cells are

.
worn out they m ay be recharged wi th manganese di

ox i de an d broke n carbon or better st i ll they can be t e
,
placed by new o n es The m anagement of the sm a ll

.
L ec l an c h é cells used i n portable batter i es i s much m o re

di ffi c ul t because i t i s i m poss i ble to see thei r cond i t i on
,
o n e can do l i ttle beyond e m pty i n g out the l i qui d wi th a
fin e syr i n ge a n d putt i n g i n fresh sal ammon i ac solut i o n

i n the sa m e way fro m t i m e to t i me and to do even so ,
m uch as th i s i s a t i resome operat i on because o f the ,
tangle o f wi re connect io n s wh i ch l i es over the t 0 ps o f

the cells i n a portable battery .
10 7 .C h l o ri d e o f si l v er c el l — The chlori de o f .
s i lver battery was i nven ted i n 18 68 by Warren de l a R ae

and H u go M fi ll er and m o di,fi ed and i mproved by
S hrivan ofi i n 18 8 3 It possesses qual i t i es whi ch make i t
'
very sui table for med i cal work but i t i s a som ewh at e x
c anvam c RI E S
‘
BA T T E . 12 7
pensi ve cell to buy The poles o f the c el l are zi nc and

.
silver and conseq uently i t s mean el ectromot i ve force i s

about on e volt The s i lver pos i t i ve pole consi sts o f a
.
wi re o f si lver round whi ch i s ca st a thi ck coat ing of

si lver chlori de t hi s is enclosed in a cy li nder of parch
,
ment pa per that t here should be no ri sk of short ci r

cu it i n g from contacts i ns i de the ce ll The plates can
.
therefore be brought very near to each o t her and th e in

t ernal resi stance o f the c ell m i n i mi sed The exc i t ing .
li qui d used by D e l a R u e was a strong soluti on o f sal
a m m oni ac si mi lar to that

used in the L ec l an c h é bat
t ery S krivanofl used for the
.
exc i t ing l i qui d a soluti on of

caus ti c po tash contai ni ng
se venty fiv e parts causti c
-
po tash to an hundred o f
water th is i ncreased the
,
electromot ive force to about

volts and generall y im
proved the acti on o f the
battery M r . S chal l of
.
W igmore S treet h as taken

co n s iderable pai ns to i m
prove th i s form of batt e ry ,
and hi s cells are certai nly

ve ry neat and conveni ent ;
P
i e. 39
.
—C hl i d
or eu
e oum llce the chi ef drawback to thei r
.
use is the high first cost of the chlori de of si lver but i t i s ,
c la i n w d that t h e reduced metalli c s i lver wh i ch i s forme d

i n the cell s i s not wasted and that i t can be recon verted
i n to chlori de and us ed over and ov er a ga i n so th at the
wo rkin g cos t of th e cell s ought n o t t o be very great .
T h e in tern al rem st an ce of a chl o ri de of s i lver ce ll i s l ow

12 8 ME DIC A L s t e c1 a1c 11v .
a fter the a c ti on i s once well started and i t i s n ot ea si ly ,
pola ri zed so i t i s possi ble t o take a large curren t from

these c ells if requi red ( fig .
I t i s stated that a cell of S h im m y form wei gh ing o n e

hundred grammes wi th an electromo t i ve force of about
1 5 volts wil l gi ve a current o f one am p e re fo r on e hour
°
.
I f th i s i s true t h e chlori de o f si l ve r ce ll must a part h orn

i t s cost be one o f the best o f al l pri m ary ba tt eries I f it .
were attempted t o take such a current h orn a L ec lan c h é

cell even o f large s ize i t would polari ze almost at o nce .
B e si des i t s i nternal resi stance would probably be t o o

,
h igh fo r i t to be po ssi ble t o take such a c urren t from i t .
P10 4o
. .
-
L
al an de an d C haperon
‘
s ox ide o f co m r a ll .
108 . O x i de
of b att ety — A chea p and em
co pper .
c ient form of battery i n wh ich the depolariz in g acti on of

cupri c oxi de i s made use oi h as been i n t ro du ced by ,
M M L alande and C haperon

. . The most ty pi c al fem .
GA LVA N I C B A T T E RI E S . 12 9
of th i s cell con s ists of a cast i ron v essel shaped l ike a

short truncated co ne th i s makes the posi ti ve pole o f the
,
battery an d conta i ns at the bottom a layer of ox i de o f

,
copper and holds the exc i t i ng l iqu id a soluti on o f ,
ca ust i c soda The vessel i s prov i ded w i th a l id o f i nsu

.
lat i ng materi al or an i n di arub ber stopper carryi ng the

zi nc and must be hermet ically sealed t o protect the
, ,
caust ic soda soluti on whi ch would otherwi se absorb

carbon di oxi de from the air ( fig .
10 9 . D ry b at t eri es —0 f late there have been

.
several so called dry batteri es put forward and these are

-
i n many ways exceedi ngly conv en ient These are .
sea led cells usually o f the L ec l an ch é type They wi ll .
work i n any posi ti on and req uire n o spec ial attent ion
whatever at the same ti me i t must be remembered th at
,
all sealed forms of cel l have a capaci ty for work stri ctly
l im i ted by the origi nal charge of ch em icals and cannot ,
be restored to acti on when run down by the add it ion of

fresh e xc i t i ng l i qui d The oldest form i s called G asmer s ’
.
dry cell I n th i s the z i nc plate i s shaped l ike a cani ster

.
and forms t h e c o ntai n i ng vessel of the cell i t is li ned ,
k e t t ed wi th a layer o f ox i de of z i nc and i nsi de th i s i s

(j a c
)
the carbon and manganese d ioxi de The whole i s mi xed .
w i th sa l ammon iac an d other salts and packed m oi st .
C ell s o f s im i lar type can be obta i ned from the E lectri c

P ower S torage C ompany from the E lectri c S upply ,
C ompany and from Messrs S iemens B ros

, .
The dry battery lately brought out by M essrs S ta nt on ,
B ros and C o under the name of “

H ell esen s patent dry ’
~
. .
”
cell seems to work very sat isfactori ly ( fig L ike the .
other dry cell s i t appears t o be a m odified L ec l an ch é bat

t er y as the poles consi st of am alga m ated z i nc and carbon
a nd the ex ci ti n g salt i s sal ammoni ac whi le the depo ,
l a ri ser i s m anganese di ox i de A ce l l measuri ng three

.
K
in ches by three i nches by si x an d a half i n ches we ighed

about th ree pounds and a quarter had an elec tromoti ve ,
force o f volts and a resi s t ance o f about o 7 ohms °

.
The electromoti ve force scar c ely changed wit h tem pera

ture A fter be i ng sh ort c ircui ted thr ough an external
.
resi stance of three ohms for thi rty si x ho urs the i nternal-
res istance had ri sen to 17 oh m s °

A ft er on e hour of
.
such short c i rcui ti ng the electromot i ve force had fal len

to 1 volt and after 24 hours to 34 volt but after 2 4 °
Fl o 4 1
. .
—H ell esen s
'
pa te n t dry cell .
hours rest i t had recovered to volts Th i s c o n .

,
si derin the sever i t y f the treat m ent i a most a ti sf a

g o s s c,
tory result M r S helford B M W ”has made so m e tes ts

. .
of these cel ls and has fou nd t hem capable o f gi vi ng a

current fo r a few seconds o f over twelve ampe res He .
was able to l ight a s m all la m p o f two an d a ha lf ca ndle

power wi th si x o f them i n seri es and found that t h e
current fell o ff in two m i nutes by about 7 pa cen t ;
when si x large b ichromate cells were use d the cur
ren t decrea sed i n th e same ti me by more th an 2 0 per
cent From th i s i t appears that wh i le such cells wo uld
.
GA LV A N I C BA T T E RI E S . 13 1
be perfectly competent to do the work th at the medical

man ord i n ari ly requi res of a L ec l an c h é sever al of ,
them m i ght at a push be successfully used t o heat a

cautery or l ight a glow la m p .
Mr C ox eter i s at present prepari ng a new form of dry

.
cell on the pri nc i ple o f D an iell s battery replac in g the

’
flui d by a jel ly conta i n ing the depolar iz in g co m pounds .
T h e el ectromot i ve force i s a l i ttle less than a volt but

no tes t s of suffic ie n t l ength have yet been made as to
i t s durab il i ty
. Fro m some prel i m i nary tests i t would
appear to possess good qual i ti es .
110 .T h e su h
lp a t e o f m e rc ury b at t e ry — A bat .
t ery that has bee n l argely used fo r me di cal pur poses ,
espec i ally i n the po rtable farad ic co i ls sold by M G aifl e

'
o f P ari s c o ns i sts o f plates o f z i nc and carbon i n solut ion

,
o f sulphate o f mercury . In some ways th i s i s a con

ve n ien t form o f battery but i t i s hardly to be rec o m
m ended as i t i s very d irty .In the form m en ti on ed

above two cel ls are generally suppl ied There are trays .
o f gas carb on on wh ich i s placed a small quant i ty o f the
com merci al sulphate of m ercury probably consi st i ng of

,
a m i x ture of mercuri c and mercurous salts and a l i ttle ,
water ; the z inc plates are then la i d on th i s an d are kept

fro m contact wi th the carbon by three vulcani te studs .
The elec t romo ti ve force i s about volts There are .
se veral forms o f th i s battery one has been m uch adver

,
t i sed under the name of the S c h an sc h i efi battery

'
1 11 L a t i m er C l ark s st an dar d c el l
.
’
W ith the .
sul phate of mercury battery th i s cell wh ich has been

, ,
th o roughly i nvest igated by L ord R ay leigh as a standard

o f electromoti ve force must be ment i oned
, I t cons i sts .
o f a short glass tube through the bottom o f w hi ch a
pl a ti num wi re i s sealed a li ttle pure red i stil led m erc u

, ry
is poured i n and on th i s there i s a paste o f protosulphate
K 2
of m ercury th i s i s a saturated s olut i on o f pure

. O ver
sulphate of zi nc i n wh i ch i s suspended a rod of pure
z i n c The electro m ot i ve force of such a cell i s
.
volts at 15 C and i t falls about 00 1 volt fo r every i n

°
.
°
crease of 1 C S uch cells must never be short c i rcu i ted

°
.
an d are only used fo r com par i son of electromot i ve

forces . A form of th i s cell put up for test i ng purposes
wi th a thermometer i s sold by i nstrument makers .
1 12 S t oh rer s b at t ery wh i ch i s largely sold t o med i

’
.
,
cal m en i s a co m pact though clumsy form of b i chrom ate

,
battery The ele m en ts z i nc and carbon are arranged

.
, ,
i n a double row on a wooden bar so that a double ro w ,
of glass or earthenware cells conta i n i ng the exc i t i ng
flui d can be ra i sed up to them i n such a m anner that

the correct pa i rs of plates di p i nto each c ell ( see fig .
The battery may be made up t o conta i n 2 0 30 40 , , ,
or even 60 c ells these form a d ouble row in a strong

,
oak box and a beam of wood wi th a deep channel cu t

,
i n i t extends from end to end of the bo x i n the m i ddl e

l i ne ; the pai rs o f plates are all suspended fro m th i s
bea m by stout brass rods wh i ch convey the cu rren t ,
from the cells to the travell i ng collector E ach ro w o f .
cells has i t s plates coupled up i n seri es by bras s c on

n ex i o n s and i s not co n n ected w i th the other ro w e xce t
, p
at o n e end W here the z i nc o f the end c ell i n o n e ro w i s
con n ected by a W i re wi th the carbon of the co rrespond i n g
cell of the other row Thus the cells i n the t wo rows
.
face i n oppos i te d i rect i ons and the plates form an u , n
broken alternate seri es fro m end to end o f t h e battery .
C ells can be taken up i nto c i rcu i t by twos start i ng ,
fro m the end of the box where the cross connex i on ,
occurs and the bea m carri es numbers 2 4 6 & c by

, , , , , .
,
wh i ch the collector c an be set to i nclude the i nd i cated

n u m ber o f cells 8 0 whe n the collector i s set at si x
.
,
GA LVA N I C B A T T E RI E S . 133
there are six cell s in seri es i n c ircui t three be ing taken

,
from each o f the rows o f cel ls and the number o f ce lls

,
i n ci rcu i t can be altered by steps o f t wo at a t im e so ,
th at any even number from two upwards can be in

, ,
cl uded .
T h e coll ector wh ich sli des i n the groove o f the bea m

carri es two flat brass springs whi ch m ake connect i on
w i t h the brass rods from wh i ch the pa i rs o f plates hang .
F a—E
10 .
'
t b h ret s ba t t ery .
From the spri ngs the curren t i s led through a com

m utator 12 6
) to a pai r o f b i nd i ng screws and from ,
t h es e the w i res m ay be led to the place where the

c urrent i s requ i red I t may be not iced that S t ohrer s
'
b a t t ery was ori gi nally desi gn ed fo r use w i th d i lute aci d

o n l y as in Wal ker s m odi fic at i on o f S mee s cel l but the
’ '
, ,
I 34 M E DIC A L E L E C T RI C I T Y .
add i t io n o f the chrom i c ac i d depolari zer obvi ously i m

proves i t s act io n .
The battery i s not portable owi n g to the quant i ty o f

corros i ve l i qui d i n the cells and i t i s very troublesome ,
an d di ffic u l t to keep i t clean and i t s z i nc plates am alga

,
m ated It i s there fore not to be reco m mended

. .
113 A ccu
. m ul at ors o r sec o n d ary b at t eri e s .
M a n y d ifferen t for m s o f cautery batteri es are sold by

i n stru m e n t m akers These are usually arrange m ents
.
o f the b i chro m ate cell so set up as to d i m i n i sh i t s

,
i n tern al resi stance S o m e have s i ngle plates o f large

.
s i ze a n d others have i n each cell many plates o f z i nc

,
a n d carbon arra n ged alternately i n cl o se prox i m i ty t o
each other The trouble and expense o f chargi ng the m

.
and the corrosi ve n ature o f the exci t i ng fl ui d are gr a ve

object io n s to the i r use and i t i s no longer necessary fo r
,
the surgeo n to be depen dent on them fo r thei r place i s ,
well fill ed by storage cel ls or accumulators whi ch can be ,
e a s i ly bought or h i red at an y rate i n o ur large tow n s

, .
A so called secon dary battery i n real i ty only d iffers fr o m

-
a pr i m ary b a ttery o f a n o f the types that we have bee

y n
descr ib i n g i n th a t whe n i t i s run down and exhausted

,
i t m ay be re n ewed by dr i v i n g an electri c current i n t o i t

a n d thus sett i n g up an electrolysi s that bri n gs the
che m i cals used back to thei r for m er state W h i le i n the ,
p ri mary batteries i t i s n ecessary to re n ew the W hole o f the

che m i cals It i s there fore a m i sn o m er to speak o f the
.
”
storage o f electri c i ty There i s no m ore actual
.
stor age o f electri c i ty i n o n e o f these batteri es than i n a

pr i m ary battery E i ther m ay be looked upon as a st o re
.
o f e n ergy a n d i n both the e n ergy stored i s energy o f

,
che m i cal act io n S econ d a ry batter i es are generally o f

.
o n e o f two types i n both o f wh i ch the plates are o f lead

, .
The older cell o f the P l an té an d Fam e type had porous '

lead plates placed i n di lute s ulphuri c ac i d as th e elec

,
”
t ro l yt e these c ells then req ui re
, for m i ng t hat i s th ey , ,
are connected up i n seri es and a current passed through

them for a certa in ti me and they are then allowed to
,
d i scharge themse lves through a res istance they are ,
then charged in the opposite d irecti on and al lowed to
Pro 43
. .
-
A ecumul at o r i n gla ss vessel , sh o wi n g arran gemen t of pl at es .
d i sch arge aga i n and th i s process i s repeated severa 1

,
t i mes
. The object o f th is form ing process i s to i n “
crease the ir capaci ty These c ells are costly a n d hea vy

.
an d t he plates be come very rotten but they possess t h e ,
a dvantage tha t they may be fu lly d i sch arged wi thout

d a mage wh il e i t wi ll be seen that the o t her type o f cell
,
i s s er iously impa i red if allowed t o fully d i scha rge i tself .

136 me m o“ . s n ac n u
c rrv .
The other type of cell i s that u sually suppl i ed by the

large electri c l ight i ng compani es and i t i s often kn own
as the E P 8 ( E lectri cal P ower S torage) cell ; the
. . .
plates are perforated gri d s of lead or i n the latest cell s , , ,
an alloy o f lead wh i ch i s stronger than the p ure metal .
The h oles wh i ch are fill ed wi th a composi ti on are

, ,
sl i ghtly tapered from the m i ddle o f the thi ckness o f t h e

gri d and thi s undercutti ng prevents the paste fro m
,
fall i ng out so eas i ly as i t would otherw i se do T he .
gri ds wh i ch are i ntended to be po s i t i ve plate s have i n

the latest forms rather larger holes than those wh i ch
are to be negat i ve and i t has been proposed to mak e
,
them ent i rely o f perox i de of lead doi ng aw ay wi th the ,
lead gri d altogether The holes i n the posi t i ve plate s

.
are fil led wi th a paste made o f red lead or puce coloured

ox i de ( perox i de) o f lead and d i lute sulph uri c aci d wh i ch ,
sets fa i rly hard i n them Those i n the negat i ve plate

.
are fil led w i th a paste o f l i tharge and s ulphuri c ac i d .
The plates form ed i nto sect i ons o f posi t i ve a n d

,
negat i ve plates arranged alternately are placed i n the ,
cells and these are fil l ed up wi th di lute sulphuri c ac i d

,
o f sp gr 1 170 and they are ready fo r the first process

. .
”
o f chargi ng Thi s i s called form i ng the cells a nd “
.
,
consi sts i n chargi ng them fo r a very long peri od say ,
about th i rty hours The sp gr o f the aci d ri ses i n th i s

. . .
t i m e to about and when the chargi ng i s co m plete

the l i qui d has a m i lky appearance owi ng to the bubble s
o f electrolyt i c gas gi ven o ff fro m the plates fro m the
decom pos i t i on o f the water i n the electrolyte I f the .
posi t i ve plates have been pasted w i th perox i de o f lead

the cells wi ll n o t requ i re so long a form i ng W he n a .
cell has just been charged i t w i ll be found to have a n

electromot i ve force of nearly 2 5 v olts but th i s qui ckly °
fall s to a bout volts e v en i f the cell i s le ft o n open

,
GA LVA N I C BA T T E RI E S . 137
ci rcui t and after a short di scharge the cell only gi ves

, ,
about 2 volts When the cell s are di schargi ng the

.
electromoti ve force i s ma in ta i ned til l about 75 per cent .
of the amp e re hours that the cell w i ll gi ve has been
done an d t hen the electromot i ve force begi ns t o fall

,
agai n H owever as the batteri es must never be di s

.
,
charged beyond thi s poi nt th i s i s n o drawback t o thei r

use but rather an advantage as by the use o f a volt
, ,
meter 13 1) such as i s suppl ied fo r the p u rpose by the

E P S company and o t hers i t i s always poss i ble t o
. . .
,
test each cell o f the battery and di scover when i t t e

qui res rechargi ng I t may be taken as a general rule
.
that as soon as the electromot ive force o f a cell falls

be lo w 2 volts o r 19 at the lowest t hat cell shoul d at
once be recharged I t woul d be out o f place here to
.
e nter i nto the reasons fo r th i s Su ffi c e i t t o say tha t i f

.
i t i s n o t atten ded t o h i gher s u lphates o f lead are li able

t o form i n the cel l wh i ch i ncrease i t s i ntern al res i stance
an d decrease i t s storage capaci ty and the gr i ds are
l i able to buc kle and lose thei r paste .
I t i s n o t easy to gi ve much i dea o f the storage capa

c i ty o f the se c ell s but a wel l des igned on e should be
,
ca pable of gi v ing about 5 t o 7 amp e re hours per pound

o f lead .
T h e i nternal resi stance o f a storage cell i s almost

i n fin i t es i m a l when i t i s i n good order and may generally ,
b e n eglected i n calculati ons concern i ng them unless a

very large number are coupled up in seri es si nce the ,
c urrent that m ay be taken o u t o f the ce l l i s l i mi ted by

o t her consi derat i ons I t is found that the dens i ty o f
.
cu rrent 68 ) i n a storage cell should not exceed o65 °
a m pe re per sq cm o f pos i t i ve plate

. . I f th i s l im i t i s
.
ex ceeded t h e paste i s l i able t o leave the plates

, I t is .
,
h o wever suffic ien t fo r all practi cal purposes for the

, ,
largest si ze o f E P S cell can gi ve a cu rrent o f 60

. . .
a m p e res I t i s not necessary to go thoroughly i nto all

.
the troubles that m ay ari se i f accu m ulators are m i sused ,
i t i s su ffi c i en t merely t o gi ve a warn i ng as t o the m ode s

o f treat m ent that w i ll certa i nly damage the cells F i rst .
and foremost amo n g them i s the pract i ce of fl ash i n g the

cells to see i f they are i n worki ng order v i z taki ng a ,
.
,
spark fro m them by clampi n g a th i ck wi re to say the ,
negat i ve pole and touch i n g the posi t i ve pole wi th the

,
other en d o f the Wi re Th i s treat m ent loosens the past e

.
and te n ds to set up deleteri ous sulphat i ng i n the cell s .
They should always be tested wi th a proper volt m eter o r

wi th a glow la m p o f the ri ght si ze N ext when a large .
,
curren t i s to be take n fro m the cells e g on e approach , . .

,
i n g the m ax i m u m per m i ss i ble current the cells shoul d ,
n o t be sudde n ly tur n ed on but eased down through

a res i sta n ce That i s to say i f a large ca utery i s to be
.
,
heated a resi sta n ce should be i n cluded i n the c i rc ui t

,
wh i ch c an be decreased t i ll the requi red current i s o b

t ai n e d .The cells m ust n ever be allowed to fully di s
charge the m selves they should be tested from t i m e t o
,
t i m e and as soo n as the electrom ot i ve force of a cell

,
s i n ks to 19 volts that cell m ust be d i sco n n ected a n d

recharged Further i n form at io n wi ll be fou n d i n S i r
.
D S al omon s book M a n age m e n t o f A ccu m ulators

’
. .
,
1 14 . The i n ternal resi sta n ce o f a cell though a m o st ,
i m porta n t factor i n calculat i o n s co n cern i ng the best ar

ra n ge m e n t o f batter i es fo r an y part i cular purpose i s so ,
i n defin i t e a qua n t i ty a n d vari es so m uch wi th the s i ze

, ,
n ature and pla n

,
o f co n struct i on o f the cell that i t i s ,
i m poss i ble to say anyth i n g very defin i t e about i t m uch ,
less to tabulate i t fo r the d iffere n t forms o f batteri es .
A n i n ter n al res i sta n ce wh i ch at all nearly approaches an

oh m m akes a battery useless fo r cautery heat i ng o r
GA LV A N I C B A T T E RI E S . 139
electri c l ight A S mee s battery in wh i ch the plates are

.
'
one c ent i m etre apart and ten by five cent imetres i n area
T A BL E 0? B ar r s m ss .
Nu n . Ex c rran r.
‘
D uo uunu a .
Z inc D il ute s u
l phuri c N o ne Pla t i n iz ed
ac i d. 1- 8 s i l v er
- 8 C h ro m i c ac id C a rbo n
1- 20 l A ci d su l ph at e
o f me n o ry
Z in c s ul ph at e M erc u ro u s M er c ury
su lpha t e
5 . D an i e ll Z i n c su l ph at e o r C o pe r s ul C o pper
di l ut e su l ph uri c p at e i n
aci d, 1 12 po ro u s po t
-
D ilu t e su l ph uri c S t ro n g
aci d n i t ri c ac i d
S odi u m o r po o x ide I ro n o r co rpe r

°
7
t ass i um hydrat e
40 per ce n t .
A m mo n i u m S i lv er eh Io S i l v er
ch loride sat u r ride
at ed so l uti o n
S kri v an o tl Sodi u m or no
'
10 .
t ass i um h ydrat e
7 5 per cen t .
1 1. L eclan ché A mmo n i u m M an n ese C arbo n

ch l o ri de a t u h di n ai wi t h
e
at ed sol u t i on or wi t h out
0 m }. pa t
I
I tn c suph at e 8up ul t C P1
s
n c 0p sr
A m mo n i u m M an ganese C ar on
chl o ri de di o x i de
D ilut i ui psuri c L Sm
'
e e ad e i ti c
wo uld have a res istance of about o5 ohm as calculated °
fr o m the spec i fic res i stance o f the ac i d used but o wi ng ,
to real ri se o f i ntern al res i stance and fall o f electro

In cel ls s t h e z i n c i s n o t al w
marked t h u ays amal ga mat ed .
1 0
mot i ve force due t o polari zat i on the apparent i nter

i al resi stance when i n use i s much greater The .
resi stance of the bi chromate cell depend s upon i t s

si ze and make generally speaki ng in the types
,
manu factured for cautery heat i ng and for l i ght i ng i t i s

made as low as possi ble and i s very small The resi s .
tance of D an i ell s cell depends on i t s si ze an d the th i ck

’
ness of the porous pot used and vari es from about 3 t o

3 o hms A. quart G rove cell has a res i stance o f about
15 o h m L alande and C haperon s battery i s m ade i n
°
’
.
several di fferent shapes i n the most typi cal form t h e ,
i nternal resi stance may be brought as l o w as o 3 o h m °

.
A lthough i n i t i ally the resi stance o f a chlori de o f si lver

battery i s very h igh owi ng to the bad conduct i vi ty o f
the si lver salt as soon as a s m all qu a nt i ty of thi s h a s
,
been reduced to metal the resi sta n ce falls an d may b e

very low i ndeed That of a L ecl an ch é cell vari es fro m
.
about 5 i n the largest si zes to two three or fiv e oh m s , ,
i n the smallest ones The i nternal res i stance o f

.
G e ssner s dry cell i s sa i d to vary very i rregularly i n

’
use that of the H el l esen battery i s gi ven by the m aker s

,
as from o 5 to 7 ohm accordi n g to s ize The secondary

° °
.
batteri es all have a very low i n ternal resi stance i n deed ,
accord ing to the number and si ze o f the plates Th us .
i t w i ll be seen that i t i s adv i sable for every owner o f a

battery to determ i ne i t s i n ternal resi stance for h i msel f .
115 .O n t h e c h o i c e o f a b a t t ery — M ed i cal m e n .
are frequently aski ng fo r adv i ce as to the cho i ce o f a

battery They would l i ke to have one wh i ch wo uld
.
a n swer all the purposes fo r wh i ch i t could poss i bly b e

requ i red wh i ch would be portable and cheap and would
, ,
n o t requ i re constant or frequent attent i on A t present .
i t i s not poss ible to co m b i ne all these propert i es i n o n e

battery It i s probable that two separate o ut fit s at
.
GA LVA N I C BA T T E RI E S . I 4 1
least wi ll be requ i red an d i f many pati ents are to be

,
treated perhaps more Where possi ble i t is far more

.
co nven i ent to bri ng the pat i ent t o the battery than t o

ca rry about a po rtable battery to the pat ien ts but ,
F 10 .
44
.
— C o n t er s co mbi n ed
'
ba t t ery .
wh ere th i s is not poss ible portab il ity must be made the

,
first obj ect. S mall and portable batteri es are sold by

the vari ous i nst rument makers consi st ing o f from 30 to
GA LV A N I C s an s m es. 143
60 cells arranged i n a case and fit t ed w i th commutator ,
c urrent coll ector faradi c co i l and galvanometer

, These .
a re qui te sui table fo r test in g the react i ons o f nerve an d
m uscle fo r galvan i sat i on or the electrolysi s o f small

, ,
nz e vi. The cells used are most commonly o f the

L ec l a n c h é type o r may be o f the type of so called
,
”
dry cell s that are now on the market O w ing to
.
t h e i r sma l l s ize they have necessari ly a h igh i n ternal

resi st ance an d i f any cons i derable c urrent i s requ ired to
be taken from them the plates qui ckly prove u n equal to
,
th e task an d becom e polari zed or even permanently

dam aged thereby For those uses to wh i ch they are
.
p t ed
, the i r h i gh i nternal res i stan ce does not
s i nce i t i s small i n co m pari son wi th the
the human body w hi ch amounts to fro m
to three thousand ohms but the i r ten ,
and the i r sm all capac i ty i s fa r more

m pe l s the i r frequent renewal M r . .
have both gi ven m uch att e n t ion

a n d the i r catalogues m a be
y
g to purchase anyth i ng o f the
i agn o si s and farad i c currents only are
fewer cells are needed and there are many con
portable forms i n the market S everal par
.
compact ones are sold by M Gasfi? o f P ari s .
are mostl y fit t ed wi th the so m ewh a

o f mercury element .
o f n e vi i s an operati on whi ch taxes
cel ls to the utmost req ui ring as i t

,
to 2 00 m il l i amp e res and if a ,
much used for thi s operat i on ,
wi ll be come necessary and ,
pen si ve tha n a large on e .
small portable
cells unless the c i rcu m stances of the case m ak e i t

diffic u l t to use large ones .
W hen portabi l i ty i s not a sine qud non the di fli c ult i es

o f the cho i ce are greatly lessened for s i xty large cells ,
su i tably arranged 69 ) w i ll gi ve enough current for

all purposes . The H ell esen type of dry cell s eems to
be a very pro m i s ing one s i nce i t s i nternal res i stance i s
,
low and i t s tendency to polar ize i s s m all ; i t may even

at a p i nch be possi ble to heat a cautery wi th a suffici en t
nu m ber o f these arranged i n parallel and wi th fiv e or
si x arranged i n seri es so as to g i ve su fi c i en t electro
mot i ve force a s m all la m p for a cystoscope o r other
,
i nstru m ent c an certa i nly be l ighted A s a rule for a fi x ed

.
i nstallat i o n for galvan i c and farad i c work si xty large

L ec l an c h é cells are fi t t ed u p and these are,conven i ent as
they requ i re l i ttle atte n t i on and remai n i n good order for
long periods They wi ll also furn i sh suffic i en t current for
.
electrolys i s of n aev i &c but hardly for an electri c bath

, .
, .
For th i s latter a b i chrom ate battery of D r S t oh rer s .

’
type i s ge n erally used but i t would appear that the

H ell esen battery i s as sui table for the work and far
m ore co n ve n ie n t . A battery for deal i ng wi th low ex
t er n al resi sta n ces such as cauteries an d lamps m ust be
o f a n e n t i r ely d i ffere n t type B i chro m ate batteri es have
.
b ee n an d st i ll are largely used for these purposes i n sp ite

o f th ei r m a n y d i sadva n tages Bu t they are always
.
so troubleso m e an d wasteful a n d the V i ole n tly caust ic

l iqu i d that they co n ta i n m akes the m so i n co n ven ie n t to
carry that they ca n n ot be reco m m e n ded The qual i t ies .
r equ i red so far as the electr i cal part o f the work i s con
,
cern ed are low i n ternal resi sta n ce an d absence o f polar

,
i z at i o n wh i le a h i gh electro m ot i ve force i s not meces

,
sary O f course absen ce o f polar izat ion may be taken

.
to i m ply the ab i l i ty to supply a large curren t E xcept .

GA LVA N I C sA n e am s . 145
fo r the i r we ight there can be no better battery than a

few cel ls o f the secondary type but unfortunatel y the ,
q uant i ty o f lead th at they conta i n makes them exceed

i n gl y hea vy . These cells have an intri nsi call y hi gh
el ectro m oti ve force and are not difficul t to m an age if
,
the precaut i o n s i ndi cated in § 113 are attended to A .
batt ery o f fo ur or si x small storage cells in a case can

be closed so that no ac i d can S plash out and wi t h a ,
swi tch board so arra nged that t hey ca n be connected in

parallel or seri es as req ui red wi th an open wi re resis t
,
ance fo r regulat ion and an am m eter ca n be made in to

, ,
a compact and conven i ent i f so m ewh a t hea vy in stru

ment W i th such a battery a rranged wi th the ce lls in
.
parallel al most any low res i stance cautery coul d be

heated an d arranged i n seri es there would be suffi ci en t
, ,
elect ro m oti ve force to l ight any ordi nary surgi cal lamp .
I t i s poss i ble that some o f the so called dry cells o f a -
larger s ize that are now be i ng brought out may be

capa ble o f do i ng the work requi red but at present ao ,
cu mu l a t o rs seem t o be the most conven i ent form of

battery the surgeon can use fo r low resistance work ,
though they are o f course useless fo r h igh resi stance

work as so large a number would be req u i red .
116 G a e o
. t f b at t eri el — I t would see m to be a d
.
vi sable before lea vi ng the subject o f the batt ery to say a

l itt le as to the care o f a battery I n the m ost m odern
.
types such as the chlor i de o f s il ver H el lese n s ,

’
G assn er s and other closed ce lls no attent ion need be

'
gi ven so long as the electro m ot ive force rema i ns at i t s

normal value except that the cells m ust n o t be left
,
sh o rt c i rcu ited and should be kept clean wh ile care ,
must be t aken never to draw from them a larger current

tha n they are i n tended to gi ve Of course when the
.
elect romot i ve force shows any cons iderable s igns of

146 111
30 101
11 E . L E C T RI C I T Y .
fall i ng o ff i t i s t i me
have the cells renewed
to E nough .
has probably been sa i d i n 113 as to the care o f storage

cells L ecl an ch é batteri es also requi re but l i ttle a tten
.
t ion beyond occasi onally fil l in g them up to the proper

,
level wi th water to make up for loss by evaporat i on .
S hould the exc i t i ng l i qui d show a tendency to creep up

the s i des of the cells th i s sho uld be stopped The usual .
method i s t o coat the upper part of the cel ls wi th

p ara ffi n wax f o r a depth o f an i nch o r so i ns i de and out .
The batteri es that really need attent ion are those i n

wh i ch the exc i t i ng l i qui d i s d i lute aci d so that what i s ,
here sa i d on the subject w i ll apply t o the followi ng

types S m ee s G rove s B un sen s D an i ell s and b i chro
,
’
,
’
,
’
,
’
mate cells an d also to a certa i n extent t o sulphate o f

mercury batteri es The first and most i m portant poi nt
.
to be con si dered i n all these cases i s that all contacts

shall be br ight and clea n so that there i s good metall i c
connect ion wherever i t i s wa n ted and too m uch trouble ,
cannot be expended o n th i s A n old fil e and a p i ece

.
o f coarse emery cloth well appl i ed wi ll do wonders
here . Then the z i n cs m ust be well a m alga m ated .
They should be scraped an d brushed to show a m oder

ately cle an surface an d wetted wi th di lute aci d and ,
the n m ercury to wh i ch a l i ttle solut ion of n i trate o f

mercury or a few drops of n i tr i c ac i d have been added
should be well rubbed i n w i th a pi ece of st i ck ; a p i ece o f
firewoo d so m ewhat rotte n a n d shredded by the act i on o f
the ac i d does very well The surface o f the z i nc whe n
.
properly a m alga m ated appears to be wetted by the

mercury at every poi n t I f th i s i s properly carri ed out
.
there wi ll be l i ttle loss from local act i on i n the battery .
I n fil l i n g B un sen s and G rove s batteri es care should be

’ ’
taken that the n itri c ac i d does not sp i ll i nto the com

p art m e n t s fo r the z i nc and i ft e
, r use the l°
i qu i ds may be
GA LV A N I C BA T T E RI E S . 14 7
stored separatel y for future use unt il e xhausted These .
ba t teri es should always be d i smounted whe n don e wi th

and care full y cleaned be fore stori ng away ; a l itt le
trouble spent here wi l l save a great dea l when the bat
t ery i s requi red aga in .B i chro m ate cells want constant
atten ti o n
. It i s not easy to tel l when the exci t ing
li qui d i s exhausted and as i t i s very opaque i t i s also
di ffi c ul t to tel l i f there are m a ny crystals formed i n i t .
I f sodi um b i c hromate be u sed i nstead o f the potass ium

salt the tenden cy to crystallize i s much reduced s ince
the sodi um chro m e alum is far more so luble than the
correspondi n g potassi um salt I n any case the carbon
.
plates should be occasi onally soaked i n warm water and

somet imes brushed wi th a hard o r wi re b rush On n o .
account should the z i ncs be left i n the chrom ic soluti on

when not i n use as i t at t acks even pure z i nc w i th some
S ulphate of mercury batteri es are somewhat messy

to use and should alwa ys be well cleaned It i s well to.
remember t oo that mercury contam i nated wi th ac id

salts of mercury amalgama t es most metals more ea si ly
than pure mercury It i s perhaps hardly n ecessary to
.
observe th at all gold orn aments or co i ns m ust be care

ful ly kept from contact wi th mercury .
The utmo st v igil ance must be perpetua lly exerci sed

to guard aga i nst acc i d e ntal or inten ti onal short c ircui t
in g of any battery . N o battery wi ll stand short c irc u it
i n g fo r m any mi nutes and the batteries m ost u sed i n
,
med i cal pract i ce are parti cularly sensi ti ve to i t the ir l ife ,
i s shortened and exce ss ive polari zat ion takes place fro m
whi ch in all probab ili ty they never completely recover .
S hort c ircui ti ng may eas ily occur if bare electrodes are

careles sly th rown down after use .
When a battery h as been di smounted and put to

1
gether aga i n espec i ally if i t has m any comple x conn e x

,
i ons there i s a da n ger that the pos i t i ve po le may have

been acc i de n tally con n ected to the b i ndi n g screw marked
n egat i ve an d vi ce versé Th i s i s somet i m es the case
.
even when the repa irs have bee n do n e by an i nstru m e n t

m aker Th i s i s an i m portant po i nt because con fus i on
.
o f the poles may lead to ser i ous m i stakes and even t o
i njury to the pat i e n t A l l r i sk c an be done away w i th

.
by the use of som e m ethod o f test i ng the po lari ty of the

electrodes P ole testers are made by electri cal i n st ru
.
m ent m akers an d a neat for m i s sold by M essrs Wood .
hou se an d R aw son It i s very easy however t o i m prov i se

.
, ,
such a th in g A piece o f wet l i t m us pape r on a sheet o f

.
glass w i ll show by cha n ges i n colour at the electro des

,
wh ich i s the posit i ve an d wh ich the n egat i ve pole The .
ends o f the c i rcu it m ust be rested on the paper for a fe w

m i n utes electrolys i s w i ll take place and the l i t m us w i ll
,
be reddened by the ac i d l iberated at the anode or po s i

t i ve pole a n d wi ll turn blue at the kathode o r negat i ve
,
pole M a n y other reage n ts have bee n proposed a solu

.
,
t i o n o f phe n ol phth a le i n i n d i lute alcohol conta i ned i n a

-
vessel i n to wh ich the poles c an be d i pped answers very

,
well gi vi n g a purple red colour at the kathode or n ega

,
t i ve pole .
1 17 .Use o f e l ec t ri c l i gh t i n g c urren t s —I t i s .
hardly l ikely that the dy n a m o w i ll be m uch used at

prese n t by m ed ical m en as a ge n erator o f the electr i c
curren t n o accou n t there fore n eed be gi ve n o f i t here
, ,
we n eed on ly re fer the stude n t to works o n the subject

o f wh i ch a few w ere i n d i cated i n 77 B u t the d i st ri .
bu t i o n o f curre n t fo r l i ght i n g purposes i s beco m i ng m ore

an d m ore u n i vers a l da i ly an d i t i s probable that i n, the
course o f the n ext few ye a rs there w i l l be few large
town s i n wh ich i t w i ll be i m pract i cable fo r m ed i cal m en
to have current brought into the ir houses from the town

ma i ns Wheth er the system be that of the d irect or
.
alternate current i t wi ll be possi ble to obtai n power by

mea n s o f elec t ri c motors from th i s so urce an d no doubt
th is source of power wi ll be largely used in surgery as it
alr ea dy is i n dent i stry It wi ll al so be poss ible though
.
,
per h aps dangero us to make use o f these currents di

,
rec t l y or i ndi rectly i n or din ary m ed ical work It is .
usual for the current to be so d istri buted that t here i s a

difference o f poten t i al o f about 100 volts ma in ta in ed
bet wee n the ma ins no matter what curre n t in modera
,
t i o n is taken out I n the c ase o f di rect current di stri

.
but ion no doubt the best met h od of uti l iz in g t h e curren t

so su ppli ed i s to charge accum ulat ors wi th i t arranged
in seri es and these can be rearranged accord i ng to the
,
pri nc i pl es set out in C hapt er I I I to sui t the work in .
ha nd B ut when alternate current i s suppli ed th i s i s

.
not feas ible N e i ther woul d i t be pract ic a ble in m any

.
ca ses to use t he curre n t d irect i n sert in g sufii ci en t resis

,
t an ce to keep i t dow n to a m anageable s ize si nce by t h i s ,
m eans m uch en ergy would be wast ed For exa m ple if .

,
i t were requ i red to heat a cautery o f res i stance 1 oh m °
and taki n g 2 5 a m p e res i t wo uld be necessary to i nse rt

i n the c i rcui t a resi sta n ce equi vale n t to oh m s a n d
th e energy used in heat in g t h e cautery woul d be but
one fort ieth of that spen t i n uselessly heat in g the rest of
-
the ci rcui t R ecourse is therefore had to transform s

. .
118 T ra m f o rm ers
. The act ion o f a transfo rm er
.
wi ll be under stood by a refere nce to 76 in wh ich that ,
of t h e i nducti on co i l i s descri bed In t hat paragraph i t

.
was explai n ed how the passage of an i nterrupted current

o f moderate elec tromot i ve force i n the pri m ary o f the
coi l caused an alternat ing current of high el ec tromot i ve

force in the secon dary co i l .
By t h e prin c i pl e o f t h e co n serv at io n o f en erg we see t h at , m ak y

i n g n o al lo wan c e fo r l o ss fro m h eat i n g o r fau lt desi gn o f t h e y
co i l , t h e en erg ye x
pe n ded i n t h e pri m ar i s eq u y
al t o t h e en erg y fur
h i sh ed in t h e sec o n dar y . h en c e i n prac t ic e i t is fo un d t h at t h e el ec
t ri cal wo rk of t h e seco n dar y c o il is so me wh at l ess t h an t h at ex
p ded
en i n t h e pri m ar y . N ow t h e wo rk t h at a c urren t c an do i s
ex pressed by
W E C t ( 54
see an d
H en ce we sh o uld ex pec t t h e p o du
r c t E .C ., i . e
.
, el ect ro m o t iv e fo rce
in t o curre n t in t h e seco n dary t o b e sl i gh t l y l ess t h an t h e pro duct E pC p
fo r t h e prim ar , o r, n o t co n siderin g l o ss, at best eq u
y al t o i t We .
t h erefo re see t h at i f E . i s great er t h an E p, C , m ust b e c o rrespo n di n gl y

l ess t h an C p
.
N ow i f the current had bee n dri ven i nto the long

seco n dary co i l wh i ch would then be the pri m ary a s i m i ,
lar i nduct ion would take place and the same relat i on o f , ,
work hold i ng good the i n duced electromot i ve force i n the

,
former pr i m ary co i l n o w act i ng as the secondary would

,
be far less tha n the i n duci n g electrom ot i ve force but the ,
current would be proport ionately greater W hat i s lost .
i n electro m ot i ve force i s ga i n ed i n curre n t Thus it i s .
possi ble by the i n tervent io n o f an i n stru m e n t m ade o n

the pla n o f a n i n duct i on co i l used the other way about
to tra n sfor m a s m all alter n at i n g curre n t at o n e hu n dred
volts i n to a large c urr en t a l so alt er n at i n g at say t en , , ,
volts . S uch a n i n stru m e n t i s c a ll e d a tr a n s for m er .
The a n a logy o f a large m a ss m ov in g w ith a s m all

veloc ity an d a s m all m a s s m ov i n g with a great veloc ity
, ,
m a y help to m ake th i s clearer The i m pact o f e ither .
syste m m ight be m ade to be the sa m e j ust i n the way ,
th at the e n ergy of a sm all curre n t at h igh electro m ot i ve

force m a y be the sa m e as the e n ergy o f a large curre n t
at l o w electrom ot i ve force .
I t i s n o t probable th a t at prese n t tra n sfor m ers w i ll be

m uch used i n m ed i c i n e I n surg i cal pract i ce however
.
, ,
t h ey are just n ow c o m i n g in to use fo r l ight i n g surg ical

GA L VA N I C B A T T E RI E S . 151
lamps and for the hea ti ng o f cauteri es

, In di stri ct s .
wh ich are suppli ed wi th alterna t i ng currents fo r electri c

li ght ing purposes small spec ially des igned transformers
p om i se to be very use ful
r ° P robably however the
.
, ,
above short account of them i s suffic ien t .
119 M edi c al i n d u
. cti o n co i l —
W e pass naturally .
from the con s iderat ion o f trans formers to that o f in

farad i c treat m ent S uffic ien t was sa i d .
obsolete form o f so called med ical -
battery wh ich would now be called a magn eto mach i ne -

.
Vari ous forms o f thi s mach i ne are figu r e d i n the in st ru
ment makers catalogues but they are hardl y o f use

’
to d ay unless occas ionally for a long cont i nued course

-
,
of farad i s m ,when the pa ti ent h i mself m ight h n d i t

more conven ient t o use t h an a battery and co il .
In g 7 6 a short account o f the I n duc tio n or R uh m kor fl

'
coil was gi ven wi th a sl ight sketch o f the theory o f i t s

action The coil s used for med ical purposes o n ly d i ffer
.
in one essent ial from the co ils descri bed there v iz they ,
.
,
are n o t as a rule fi t te d wi th a conden ser I n other .
e nature and act io n o f the med ical co i ls are

the same as there descri bed They merely .
d iffer among themselves i n the m ethod used for i h

creasi ng or decreas ing the elec tro m ot i ve force in the
secondary . Th is resolves i tself i nto vary i ng the
coeffi c i e n t of m utual i nduct ion betwee n the pr i mary a n d
seco ndary The figures g i ven show one or two o f the

.
methods i n use .
F ig 46 i s a pla n o f the di spos i t ion o f the wi res i n an

.
in duct i on co il and fig 47 shows an actual coi l

,
. The .
letteri ng is the same i n both o f the figu res O n e pole .
o f t h e batt ery i s co n nected by the w ire shewn to the ,
bindi ng screw A The curre n t then passes by the ad

.
L an cet , vo l . i 189 1,
"
.
, p
. 2 9 2.
152 ME DIC A L E LE C T R I C I T Y .
jus tin g screw B the vi br ator H a n d

, , th e upport K
s
t o the horse shoe magnet D A ft e r . t his
F ro .
46
.
—A rran ¢e men t 01v i m in an in du
ct i o n co i l .
F 10 .
47.
—I dut i
n c on co il .
t he c ircu i t branches , on e wire pass i ng to the

GA LVA N I C BA T T E R E S . I
in g t o the seco nd b ind ing screw at P the other t o a ,
bindi ng screw wh ich i s i n co n nex i on wi th the other pole

of th e battery . The two b indi ng screws at P are thus
i n co n ne x i on wi th the two ends o f the prim ary coil and
by means of el ectrodes attached to them the pat ient may
be treated wi th the extra current o f th i s coil pri mmy ,
cu rrent The secondary co il F is wound on a

se parate hollow bobbi n and has i t s term i nals at S .
Th i s bobbi n is made to sl i de l i ke a sledge on gu id es so

that it ca n be made to part i ally or completel y surround
the pri m ary co i l . A t G a handle i s seen attached t o the
iron c ore wh i ch can sli de in and out o f the pri m a ry co il ,
and so further regulate the i nduc ed electromot i ve force

set up in both the pri mary and seconda ry by varyi ng ,
t heir co eifi c i e n ts o f sel f and mutua l i nduct ion .
A n other and somewhat neater form of sledge co i l i s

shewn i n fig 4 8
. . The general pl an of construct ion is
Fm 48
. .
—i n duc t io n co i l .
the me as in the last figure with the ad dit ion of di

sa
vided scales by wh ich the relati ve posi t i o n s o f prim ary ,
seeon dary and core can be recorded and results ver i

,
hed . I t must be borne in m i nd that the readi n gs of the

scale are not at all in proporti on to the electromoti ve
force o f the current i nduced i n the co ils they merely ,
m ake i t ea sy t o reproduce a gi ven co ndi t ion at wi ll .
T o obvia te the nece ssi ty fo r wi thdrawi ng the core ,

154 . ME DIC A L E LE C T RI C I T Y .
many co ils are fit t ed w ith a brass tube wh ich sl i des be

twee n the core and the pr imary coi l Th i s h as the .
e flec t o f sh i eldi ng the core from the current i n

'
the
prim ary coi l consequen tly t h e gradual wi thdrawal o f
,
the tube produces an i ncrea se in the number o f l i nes of

force in the core and so i ncrea se s the i nduct i on efiec t s
'
in both co il s .
Fro .
49
—D
. e W at t evi ll e s pri ma ry
'
coi l wi th i n t errupt e r
.
In good coi ls there sh ould be a method o f adj usti n g

the period of vi brat ion o f the hammer and wi th i t the
rapid i ty o f alternat ion of t h e i nduced current D r de . .
W att evi l le has devi sed a co il cons ist in g of a pri m ary

only wi th a very i nge n i ous m ethod of regula ti ng the
,
speed of th e contact breaker ; t h i s is she wn i n fig 49 . .

It wil l be seen to consi st of an i nverted V o f sti fi wi re

'
attached to the ends o f the contact breaker and havi ng ,
on on e arm a sm all s li d in g we ight wh i ch can be clamped

by a th um bscrew at any pos iti on thus al teri ng the ,
bala n ce o f the hammer and c hangi ng i t s rate o f vi bra

ti on in a manner si m i lar to that used i n a metrono m e .
Th i s co i l has also a key by wh ich the length and n um

ber of turns o f the wire i n use can be altered t o s ui t
the c i rcum sta n ces o f th e case .
12 0 P ri m ary an d sec on d a ry c u
. rren t s The phy .
sio logic al e ffect o f the faradi c or i nduced current i s
essent ially d ifferent t o that produced by the cont i nuous

c urrent .
I t wi ll be worth wh i le to devote a few l in es to a con

s iderat ion of t h e reasons for these d i fferences S imply .
stated fa radi c currents m ay be looked upon as i nter

,
mi tt ent currents of short durat ion and of h igh electro

moti ve force I n the ca se of the i nduced c urrent in the
.
pri m ary as i n that o f the secondary th e currents are

, ,
not m erely rapi dly i nterrupted but alternat ing in d i rce

tion al t hough the physi ological e ffect of the alternati ng
,
com pone n ts m ay be very d ifferent from one another ,
and th i s d ifference i s not that due to the d i ffere n ce i n

d irec ti on o f the currents but i s rather due to the more ,
abrupt ri se o f current at break tha n at m ake so that ,
the shock obta i ned fro m the co il i s greater at brea k

than at m ake " .
t
Studen t s o fi en un de rs t an din g why an i n duc

fin d a di ffic ul t y in
t io n c o i l sh o ul d gi ve a great er st i m ulus at b reak t h an i t do es at
m ake wh il e wi t h a si mpl e co n ti n u
, ou s cu rren t i n t errupt ed by h an d ,
t he effect s at mak e are great er t h an t h o se at brea k . Fro m t he abo ve
it wil l be c l ear th at t he di ffere n ces are due in t h e c ase o f t h e i n duc
t io n co i l to t he m ode o f ac t i o n o f t he apparat us wh il e , i n t he case
o f t he uo us c urren t t h e differen ce
co n t i n i s rat h er due to th e ww o
t ies o f t h e n erv e st im ul at ed .
156 M E DIC A L E L E C T RI C IT Y .
The gen eral im press ion wh ich prevai l s that the c ur

rent of the primary coil i s less pa inful than that o f the
secondary is fo unded upon the vaguest i deas as t o the
,
acti on o f the two coil s A s coil s are us uall y made o f

.
co m parat i vely few turns i n th e pri m ary and o f many

turns in the secondary the c o e ffi ci en t of sel f i nduct i on
,
-
o f the pri mary i s ge n era l ly m uch less than that of

mutual in duct i on between the pri mary and secondary .
H ence fo r a g i ven i nduc in g current in the pri m ary t h e ,
physi ologi cal e ffect o f the induced prim ary c urrent or

extra current i s less than that of th e seco n dary current .
Thus i t m ay happe n that in an y gi ven co il the e ffect o f

the secondary current m ay be t oo i ntense fo r t h e p ur o
pose requi red and i t m ay be more convenie n t t o use the

,
current o f the pri m ary coi l .
Bu t li ttle atte n t i on has been p ai d t o the difl er en c es

'
between the physi ologi cal acti ons o f the pri m ary i n
du ced current an d o f the current of th e secondary co i l
, .
D uchenne made a fe w experi ments and obser vat i ons ,
and si n ce h is day not m uch has been added H e co m .
pared the two currents by graduat i ng the ir st re n gths

unt i l both produced the same degree of muscular c o n
tract io n and the n observin g the sensory e fl ec t he
'
, , ,
determ i n ed t h a t that was greater in t h e case o f the

seco n dary co il H e also found that the secondary cur
.
re n t read i ly threw i n to contract ion other m uscles be

si des those to wh ich the electrode was appl i ed wh i le the ,
e ffects of the pri m ary curren t were m ore loca li sed to the
part i n contact wi th the electr ode and th i s great di ffusi on
,
o f the e ffect of the secondary current led h im t o say
that i t had a greater power o f pe n etrat i on than th e

pri mary . H e also m ade other experi ments t o p rove
that th i s effect of the secondary was some t h i ng pecul i ar ,
a n d not merely a result o f i t s h igh tensi on but as a "
,
GA L VA N I C 111
3111 1 2 1
1 15 . 157
m att er of fact h i s
experi men ts m erely showed that the
current i nduced i n a lon g secon dary coi l i s able to force
i t s way through a bad co n ductor ; th i s i s just what
would be expected from i t s h igh electrom ot i ve force .
It may be ment i oned i nci de n tally that very m any of

the medi cal coi ls sold are not stron g enough i n them
selves or are so badly contr i ved as to be qui te u
,
n fit fo r
t h e wear and tear o f regular use It i s of great i mport

.
a nce to have a well made coi l an d the cheap for m s as

,
well as the very l ight and portable ones are li ttle better
t ha n toys .
158 111
10 10 11 E . L E C T RI C I T Y .
C HA P TE R VI .
A C CE SSO RY A PPA RA T U S .
C u
o n d c t in g wires . C u
a t er y wires an d u
s rgi cal l amps . B in din g
sc re ws . E l ect ro des . C urren t c o l l ect o rs. C o mm ut at o rs . Re
gul a t i o n of c urren t . R esi st an ces . Wire rheo st at . W at er

rh eo st at . G al v an o m et ers . T est i n g i n st rumen t s . Vo l t am et ers .
W at er v ol t amet er . C 0 pper v o l t am e t er.
12 1 . C on du
wi res The conductors or lead s
ct i n g .
by wh i ch the current i s co n veyed from the battery or

other generator to the place where i t i s t o be used are
generally of copper w i re or fl ex ibl e stranded copper
cord C opper i s used because i t i s the best conductor
.
a m on g metals with the except ion of si lver wh ich in deed ,
i s not very much better an d i s out of the quest i on o n

accou n t of i t s cost A n y sort of copper w i re bare o r
.
,
covered m ay be used to con vey the current but i t i s best

,
to use i n sul a ted w ire an d so avo i d any ri sk of short c ir

cu i t i n g fro m the w i res co m i n g i n to acc i de n tal contact .
W i re pla i n or stra n ded m ay be bought i nsulated e i ther

, ,
w ith cotton or si lk or i n d i a rubber and for cases where ,
the curre n t has to be co n veyed some l i ttle d i sta n ce ( 1 t o

10 yards) i t m a y be co n ve n i e n t to use double conductors
m ade of two i n sulated w i res tw i sted together It i s .
so m et i m es conve n i e n t to keep wi res coi led up i n a

sp i ral for m these c an be pulled out at the conven i e n ce
,
o f the operator an d h a ve a n eater appearance than n u
coi led wi re .
I n t h is c ase i t is well to m ark t he en ds, so t hat t h ere m ay be

no di ffic ul t y in rec o gn i s in g the po sit iv e an d n e at iv e
g wires . A po l e
t est er 116 ) will pro ve use ful fo r t h i s purpo se .
GA LV A N I C A P PA RA T U S . 159
I n the majori ty of c ases the si ze of th e wire used i s

i mm ater i al as the conducti vi ty of copper i s so h igh th at
a very th in w i re w i ll carry a current far larger than i s
requi red fo r p urposes o f m edi cal galvani sm wi thout any
si gn o f heati ng and the resi sta nce o f such wi re i s in
,
fin i t es im al com pared wi th the res i sta n ce o f th e body .
E ven when sm a l l lam ps are to be li ghted unless very

fin e wi re i s used the s ize i s un i mport a nt Bu t fo r the
.
large currents that are necessa ry to heat cauteri es the ,
matter takes a very di fferent aspect We have seen a

.
th i n copper wire i mproperly used for connecti n g an

,
accum ulator wi th a cautery grow so hot as to m elt o ff

,
the gutta percha i nsul a t i on throughout i t s whole len gth

-
,
whi le t h e resi s t a n c e of the c ircui t was so i ncreased by

the use o f t hi s unsui table lead that the cautery was not
heated although had a proper lead been used the bat
, ,
t ery power woul d have been su ffic i en t .
Th i s i s an ex t re m e case and only l ikely to occur wi th

large cautery b urn ers whi ch need a very large current
to hea t them but i t a ffords an useful example of the
,
need o f attendi ng to the conduct i ng wires F 10 111 the .
follow i ng short table the best si ze of wire to be use d

for t h e co nnexi on s o f a cautery req u i ri ng any n umber o f
am per es up to 60 can be found .
I f t h i s table be fo l lowed i t wil l be found that th e lea d

in g wi res wil l never r i se i n temperature by m ore than
about 15 C and the loss wil l be in fin i t esi m al The table
°
.
is ca lculated on the assumpt i on t hat the copper wi re to

be used has a conduc t i vi ty of 9 5 per cent o f that o f pure .
copper . S ometi mes i t i s des ir ed t hat a w ire conveyi ng

a current should co nduct badl y then such metals as ,
steel plat in um or G erman s i lver and th i n w i res are

,
used We sh al l consi der th i s po int aga in i n speak ing of

.
resi st ance coi l s .

160 111
10 10 11 E . LE C T RI C I T Y .
C ua as n r 11
1 8 111110 11110 D uus r s a 11
1 R e srsr an c n 11: L o ss m war t s
A n s e a s s. wras c av e s M I L L H I E I R BS
‘ ‘
. on us 1 112 1 1
9 21 111 . P e a 111 12 .
11 1
12 2 . C aut ery wi res an d i n c a n d esc en t l a m p s .
C autery wi res are al m ost always of plat i num ; steel i s ,
however so m et im es used and answers very well

,
The .
resi stance o f steel i s rather h igher than plat i num es ,
p e c i a ll y at a red heat consequently les s current ,

i s r e
qui red to heat a steel cautery wi re than one of plat i num

of the some s i ze .
P reeee has determ i ned the current needed t o heat to

i ‘
‘
redness wi res o f o n e m i ll i m etre i n th ickness and has ,
found th a t pl at i n u m requ i res 40 amp e res and i ron 2 4, ,
thus gi v in g i ron a co n s i derable advantage from the

poi nt o f v i ew of curre n t expe n ded P lat i nu m however .
, ,
has the ad v a n tage that i t i s not ox i d izable c o n se ,
que n tly i s n o t a ffected by bei ng repeatedly heated and ,
i t i s m ore fl e x i b l e than steel wh i le i t i s suffic i en t l y st iff ,
and has a h igher fusi n g po i n t .
The res i st an ce o f the cautery bur n ers i n co m mo n use

may v ary betwee n o 2 5 and 0 4 o h m but i t i s i m possi ble
° °
to k n ow the resi sta n ce o f an y gi ven burn er w i thout test

i n g i t exper i m e n tally The current requ i red fo r such
.
cauter ies as these vari es w i th the th i ckness o f w i re use d

i n the m i t m ay be from 10 to 2 5 amp e res so m e ver
, ,
°
Proc R oy S O C
, . .
, VO l . x x x vi. , 6
p 4 4
. .
GA LV A N I C 49 941
1111 1
13 . 16 1
l arge ones fo r spec ial purposes have been made tha t

take as much as 40 or 50 am pe res .
S urgi cal incandesc ent lamps have a short c arbon hl a

ment wh ich glo ws wi th the p assage o f the current when
that reaches from i to 1 ampe re : they are very smal l
and even to yi el d the small amount of l ight fo r whi ch
they are i ntended they m ust be heated far beyond what
would be cons idered ri ght w ith lamps fo r ord inary l ight
in g purposes ; th i s i s a severe tax upon the fil am en t
an d renders thei r l ife very short A good c ommerc i al .
lamp i s expected t o last fo r at least a thousand hours

and req uires the expendi ture o f about four watts per
candl e power They are m ade t o carry from 2 5 to 8
.
°
amp e re but surg ical lamps may cons ume rather m ore cur
ren t on e ampe re or even more
,
The larger lam ps have .
a lon ger fil am en t roughly i n proporti on t o the ir c andle

,
power ; the extra length of filam en t from i ts hi gh t esi s

tance requi res a grea t er elect romoti ve force to dri ve t h e
same current t h rough i t so t hat a 32 candle power lamp
,
though i t c arri es the same current in am péres as a 16

candle power lamp requi res twic e the electromoti ve
force or as i t is usually expressed consum es twi ce the
n umber o f watts It wi ll be remembered ( 5 70) that
.
watt i s the term use d by el ectri cal engi neers fo r the

energy expended by a current of on e ampe re between
two po in ts whose potenti al differs by on e volt * .
When a lam p i s pushed to gi ve more li ght than that

for wh i ch i t was des i gned i t s product ion of l ight for the
,
ti me i s at a more econom i cal rate that i s to say fewe r , ,
watts per candle powe r are used up H ence a sur .
0 A o ex am pl e m ay h el p to il l ust rat e t h i s, fo r in st an ce , a certa i n
lamp o f 16 can dl e po wer q uired

re 7 1 am pere an d vol t s, t he
rate o f ex pen di t ure o f en ergy i n wat t s was t h erefo re x 7 1 z :
7 t
°
3 wa t t s, t h at is , wat t s per can dle .

gi c al lamp as usually treated gi ves a candle power

rather greater than that reckoned for the watts ex
pended They m ay be well l i ghted i f only requi red fo r
.
a short peri od by three or four bi chrom ate cells o r even

by si x large L ec l an c h é cells i n seri es th i s arrangement
*
,
o f cells wi ll gi ve respect i vely about 6 and 8 volts an ,
electromot i ve force suffic i en t fo r a sm all la m p ; the

smallest la m ps used i n the cystoscope or laryngoscope
, ,
only requ i re about four volts and the larger ones fiv e o r ,
si x volts to gi ve a proper l i ght .
12 3 B i n d i n g ”
. c rew — The current i s taken fro m
.
the battery term i n als or poles These u sually ha ve .
bi ndi ng screws by m ea n s o f wh i ch the leadi ng wi res

are attached B i nd i ng screws are also used to connect
.
the conduct i ng wi res to the i nstrume n t to wh i ch the

curren t i s to be led It I S o f the h ighest i mportance
.
that at all the po in ts where con n ex i on has to be m ade

i t should be thoroughly a n d well done A ll b i n d i ng .
screws m ust be kept scrupulously clean and the larger ,
beari n g surface they have the better ; the en ds o f all

w i res m ust also be freshly scraped when con n ex i on i s
to be m ade so that there m ay be true m etalli c con tact
,
at every poi n t of the c i rcui t A th i n fil m o f d i rt or .
metall i c ox i de at a con n ex i on i n terposes an i ncred i bly

h igh resi stance i n to the c i rcu i t F s ulty con n ex i o n s .
are one of the com m on est causes wh i ch throw electr i cal

apparatus appare n tly out o f gear an d although i t i s not ,
hard to detect the fault by careful exa m i nat i o n

yet o n ly too often m uch di ffic ul t y i s found and i n c o n ,
s eque n ce the b a tte ry i s con de m ned or the serv i ces of ,
the i n stru m e n t m aker are called i n I t need not be .
sa i d that th i s i s the wron g way o f do ing th i n gs for ,
everyo n e us in g a b attery should make h i mself fam i l i ar

A spec i al fo rm of L ec l a n c h é c el l fo r t hi s purpo se i s m ade b
y t h e
I n di a R ubber C o .
, S il v ert o wn , E ssex .
GA LV A N I C A P PA RA T U S . 163
wi th the proper management o f it i n order to avo i d the ,
expense and annoyance o f perpetually putt i ng i t i nto

the hands o f an i nstru m e n t m aker .
The m ost perfect metalli c con n ex ion i s made by

so lderi ng the w i res to the term i nals o f the batteri es o r
instruments to be used but th i s i s i mpract i cable i n

,
most cases si nce i t makes it very troubleso me t o di s

,
mount the battery and in general more th an one set o f

,
instruments has to be worked from one battery As a .
matter of fact wi th mod erate care no di ffic ul t y need

occur from faulty contacts in bi nd i ng screws Un fo r .
tu n a t el y many i ns t ru m ent makers put spec i al term i nals
on to the wi res they send out wh ich are sui table fo r

th aw
,
i ng connex ion wi th thei r own batteri es and i n

n en t s
, but wi ll not fit those of any other maker .
F ro 50
. .
—Bi n di n g scre ws .
These are seldom o f any advan tage and should be ,
di sca rded for a pla in endi ng to the wire is the best

,
.
It is advi sable for the sake of neatness to use but one

, ,
form of b ind ing screw and that wh i ch i s represented i n

,
the figure is si mple and conven i ent There are o f .
course man y other form s i n constant use and a few ,
mi nutes may be well spent i n i nspecti ng an electri cal

instrument m aker s stock The best way to connect a
'
.
wi re wi th a b indi ng screw of the type i n the figure i s

, ,
to bend the well cleaned wi re round the sh an k of the

screw and then screw the nut down t ightly upon i t .
12 4 E l e c t ro d e s
. The term inals by wh ich the cur
.
rent i s appli ed t o the place where it i s to be used are

11 2
16
called E lectrodes The word electrode i s also used t o

.
descri be the term i nals by wh i ch the current leaves the

battery or enters any i nstru m ent The speci al term i nals .
used i n galvan i sm and faradi sm are also called rheo

ph or e s a
, term wh i ch has also been appl i ed to the
conduct i ng wi res and here we may once for all protest
,
aga i nst the use of too m any unnecessary terms S uch .
words as rheoph ores fo r electrodes or conduct i ng wi res ,
rheostats or rheochords fo r resi stances or resi stance

coi ls rheotropes fo r co m mutators and rheotomes fo r
, ,
Pro .
51. C arb o n di sc el ect rodes .
contact breakers are as a rule not wanted and t h e

, , , ,
words i n co m m on use a m ong electri c i ans are enough

for all med i cal purposes The variety i n nature an d
.
shape of the electrodes used i n med i cal pract i ce i s i m

m e n se ; i t i s necessary however to descr ibe som e o f
, ,
FI G 52 . .
—H an dl e fo r el ect rode .
them The old fash i o n ed brass handles and wet sponge s

.
are n o w al m ost wholly aba n doned except perhaps fo r ,
the purpose of rousi ng people from a state o f po i son i ng

by alcohol or Opi u m an d the favouri te form o f electrode
,
a t present i s a convex d i sc o f gas carbon or o f n i ckel
plated m etal screwed in to an i n sulat i ng ( wooden) handle

and covered over W i th wash leather or amadou -
.
GA LV A N I C A PPA RA T U S . 165
The handles are of more or less el aborate des ign ,
so me bein g fit t ed wi th keys for closi ng the current o r for

open ing i t or even for t e
,
versi ng i t one o r t wo of
,
these handles are figured

here and m any m ore wi ll
,
be found in the in strument

m akers ca talogues
’
.
The greatest care must

be exerc i sed to prevent ri sk
o f co m m uni c ati ng contagion
through t he m ed i um of the
electrodes on th is account
,
metal i s better than carbon

the amadou or fl an n el or , ,
wash leather cov ers should

he of ten renewed and as ,
fa r as poss i ble a separate

se t should be kept fo r ea c h
pat ient .In fact i t is ad

vi sable in many cases to
use an exte m po re coveri ng
of absorbent cot ton or to
have loose wool l en covers
l ike glove h ugers wh ich can
be qui ckly sli pped on an d
05 the electrodes and to ,
3 th em i n carbol ic solu
n or to bo i l them occa
si on al l y .
Several are requ ired .
E vb h as suggested
—H
1
Fm 53 an dl e fo r el ect rode w i th
t h e adept io n of electrodes . .
key for melt i ng an d breaki ng c i rcu it .
of st an d ard si zes because

’
166 M E DIC A L s t s c 1 a 1c 11v .
the dens ity o f the current and th e effecti ve resi st ance

of the s urface at the po int o f en try depends upon
the size of the electrode that i s to say the area from
, ,
wh i ch the c urrent passes to the pat i ent For di fieren t

'
effects one may des i re at one t i me a current di ffused
over a large surface o f entry and at another a current

,
concentrat ed at a small sur face I n the operat ion fo r

.
the re m ov al o f supe rfl uo us ha irs by electrolysi s the i n ,
F 10 .
54
.
—Sm all m et a l el ec t rodes.
d iffere nt elec trode i s large and the loca l efl ec t s on tha t

part o f the ski n wh ich i t touches are i mpercepti ble but ,
the act i ve el ectrode i s a fin e plati n um nee dle and the ,
densi ty o f the curren t at i t s po int i s such that stron g

local e ffects are produced where i t touch es the s ki n
even when the current i s only three m illi arn peres B y .
G ALV AN I C A PP A R A T US . 16 7
usi ng standard sizes one c an more rea d il y convey

t oo
to others a correct i dea of the current dens i ty used in
—
Fm 55 L argc
. . met al el ec t ro des .
any parti cular case . E rb :

’
stan dard sizes are the follow
N t me. Di am et e r o f di sc .
2 5 sq cm . W in
‘
. sq. .
No rm al
si z es do n ot cover al l the vari at ions wh ich are

x 7 0 ME D I CAL ELEC T R I C I TY .
than when i t first passes through a layer of moi st badly

conduct i ng materi al .
The i n d ifferent electrode may be sli pped be tween the

cloth i ng and the sk i n the pressure o f the clothes wi ll
,
then suffic e t o keep i t in place or i f the pat i ent i s lyi ng

,
down the electrode may be put underneath the shoulders

or the buttocks or it m ay be held aga i nst the sk i n by
,
the pat i ent hi msel f or by an attendant In e i ther case.
t he Operator i s able t o g i ve hi s whole attent i on t o the

other or act i ve electrode C are must be taken t o see
.
that the contact of the i nd i fferent electrode w i th the

ski n i s well ma i nta i ned and that n o dry clothi ng li es
,
betwee n somet i m es especi ally wi th ch i ldren i t may be

, , ,
fastened on by a few turns of a bandage o r by a so ft ,
garter or belt o f some ki n d The precaut ion should be

.
taken o f seei ng that the proper s i de of the sheath and

the proper face of the electrode are together fo r the ,
waterproof si de w i ll not conduct .
L ately a new form of i n di fieren t electrode has been

'
brought out under the n a m e o f the adhesi ve elec“
trode ; i t consi sts o f a fl at p i ece of composi t i on con ,
tai n i n g gelat i ne and oxi de o f z i nc when i t s surface i s

,
m oi ste n ed w i th warm water and then appl i ed to the

sk i n i t adheres fa i rly well ; on the back of the com
posi t ion i s a layer o f t i n sel waterproofed over and a
, ,
tag o f the sa m e materi al makes connect i on wi th the

battery wi re by mea n s o f a spri ng cl i p They are very .
cleanly and good and c an be had o f an y conven i ent

,
s i ze .
12 5 C u ren t c o l l ec t o rl
. r — M ed i cal batteri es for
.
galva n i c treatment are made up o f a large nu m ber of

cells ( 2 0 or 60 arra n ged i n seri es ) but the number of
, ,
cells to be used for d iffere n t cases vari es very much .
O uth i s account a qu i ck and s i m ple plan of alter i ng the

G A L VA N I C A PPARAT US . 17 I
n umber o f t he cells i ncluded i n the ci rcu i t is requi red so

tha t the current m ay be readi ly i ncreased o r di m i ni shed
to s ui t the needs o f each case by s wi tching cells in o r
out o f circui t The plan is as follows
.
I n the d ia gra m fig 57 si x cells are shown numbered

, .
,
I t o V L they are jo i ned i n seri es an d h o m thei r co n

.
, ,
n e x i o n s w i r es are led o fi to seven correspondi ng studs
num bered 0 to 6 It ma y be seen t h at a moveable

.
metal li c arm spri ng i ng o n to stud No 1 wi ll throw one .
oeil i nto c ircuit between the bi n d in g screws marked

and and s i m i larly when the arm i s placed on any other
stud i t bri ngs i nto the c i rcui t the number of cells shown
by the figu re marked aga i nst the s t ud .
E m 57
. .
—Pl an o f si n gle co m m co ll ect or.
Th i s is in bri ef the pri nc i ple o f the current collector ,
as appli ed to m e dical batteri es the stud marked 0 be ing ,
con n ected wi th o n e pole say the posi ti ve po le o f cell ,
No 1 and lead ing to a bi ndi ng screw marked

.
,
stud N o 1 be in g attach ed t o the n egat i ve pole o f the

.
same cell an d when the moveable arm touches stud

N o 1 the c urrent passes along i t and from th ere goes t o
.
,
the other b indi ng screw o f the battery m arked as sho wn

in the figu re C ell N o I on ly i s th en in cluded in the
. . .
17 2 ME DIC A L E LE C T R I C I T Y .
ci rcu i t ; i f the po i nter be transfe rred t o another s t ud ,
numbered let o s say 6 then si x cells are i n c i rcui t an d

,
are be i ng used .
A more compli cated current collector has been de

vi sed by means o f wh i ch the current may be taken
,
from any cel l or any group o f ce l ls comm enci ng at an y

po int the ad vanta ge i s that the cells ca n be used
,
eq ua lly so that the wear and tear i s equally d i st ri buted

, .
In the s ingle collector the first cells are always drawn

upon and are li kely t o run down be fore the l ast c e lls
, ,
which are only needed occa s ionally W i th the double .
collector if si x cells are required not only could cells 1

t o 6 be chose n but cel ls 3 to 9 or 6 to 12 or 12 to 18 or
, ,
FI G 58
. .
—Do ubl e co llect o r.
any other set o f 6 W i th the s ingle collector the first

.
cells must always prov ide curren t and ce l l N o 12 can .
only be used when eleven cel ls are in sufi ci en t A ccord .
i n gly wi th a s i ngle collector the last cells o f t h e series

, ,
are very sel dom call ed o n at all wh il e the firs t cells ,
have to do duty every ti me the battery i s used This .
object i on to the s ingle collector has been pa rt l y over

c ar v am c A PPA RA T U S . 173
com e by Mr C an ter who has an arra n gement fo r d i vi d

in g the whole number o f cell s i nto three or four groups
by a moveable connect i ng w i re but i t is not so pr eci se a
,
meth od as the double collector a fl o rds A nother ad

'
van tage o f the double collector is that wi th i t s ai d the

work ing o f every ce l l of the battery can be sep arately
t ested the double col lector however i s rather more
, ,
expensi ve I f i n t he figure o f the si n gle collector ( fig

. .
8
5 ) the w i re lead i ng fr o m ce ll N o I to the
. stud . num
bered 0 were taken i nstead to a second arm p i voted o n
the same axl e but electri cally i nsul ated from the fir st
one and capable o f i ndependent movement and were ,
led thence d irectl y to the b i ndi ng screw marked it

can be seen that w i th t he two arms on the studs 3 and 6
the current woul d be t aken fr o m ce ll s I V V and V I .
, . .
only that is to say t h e group o f cell s I V to V I would

, . .
supply the current to the c ircui t In like manner any

.
n umber o f consecut i ve cell s from o n e upwards coul d be

pi cked o ut from any part o f the whole seri es I t is .
usual for one o f the arms to carry a c ircl e so di vi ded

and numbered as to read o ff d irectly the number of cell s
in use .
The studs o f c urren t collectors m ust be o f good si ze ,
and th e po inter j ust broad enough to touch two at once ,
that th e number o f cel ls in the c i rcui t may be i ncreased

or di m i ni shed w i thout breaks o f current and unpleasant
shocks at t he moment when the po inter moves fr om one

stud t o the next A t t he same ti me care must be taken
.
that t h e moveable po inter o f any collector i s not l eft for

an y le ngth o f t i me i n contact w i th two studs at once .
for wh en i t i s i n that posi ti o n one cell i s short ci rcui ted -
and i ts energy i s be i ng ru i nously wasted .
When i t i s wi shed to test the worki ng o f a med ical

ba tt ery th e el ec trodes shoul d be placed in a bowl o f
,
water some l i ttle di stance i nterven i ng between the m

, ,
and the poi nter must then be gradually moved roun d

the studs the galvanom eter bei ng watched carefully
,
.
I f the battery i s i n proper order i t wi ll i ndi cate a regu lar

ri se o f current step by step for every cell added to the
,
c i rcui t I f the galvano m eter needle falls t o zero as the

.
poi nter i s pass i ng from o n e stud to the next i t i nd i cate s ,
that the current i s broken at that moment and i f a p a t i ,
en t were i n c i rcu i t he would rece i ve an object i onable

,
shock I f the needle falls to zero when the po i n ter i s

.
o n a stud i t shows that the connex i on between th at

,
stud and the battery i s faulty .
I t i s a bad pract i ce to try to test a battery by c o n

n ec t i n g the term i nals by a d i rect metall i c contact ex c e pt
through a coi l o f h igh resi stance ro o o oh m s or so , ,
otherwi se the strength o f current may be so great a s

to da m age the galvano m eter by throwi ng the needle o ff
i t s pi vot and i t w i ll probably be too large even wi th o n e
,
cell for a galvano m eter graduated in m i ll i amp e res to gi ve

readi ngs o f i t ; i f n o resi sta n ce co i l be at hand the plan
o f putt i ng the electrodes i n to a bowl o f water w i ll us u a lly
su ffic e to reduce the curre n t i n the c i rcu i t to a quant i ty
wh i ch can be m easured i n m i ll i a m p e res .
12 6 C om m u
. t at o r o r c u rre n t rev erser A n ap .
paratus fo r reversi ng the d irect ion o f the curren t i n the

exte rnal port i on o f the ci rcu i t i s i ndi spensable fo r some
m ed i cal purposes It i s n o t poss i ble to make an ex
.
a m i n at i on o f the re a ct i o n s o f nerve and muscle w i thout
on e . There are m a n y for m s i n constant use but o n e ,
o n ly wi ll be descri bed as i t has see m ed to the authors to

,
be the m ost conven i en t i n m edi cal work Th i s pattern .
i s sho wn i n the acco m p an yi n g figu re

( fig i t w as .
dev i sed by R ukmko fi

'
v .
I t consi sts of a cyl i n der o f vulcan i te M hav i ng at ,

GA LV A N I C A P PA RA T U S . 17 5
each end a metal cap or ferrule C D and suppo rted , ,
between two up rights i n such a way as to revolve

eas i ly about a hori zontal l i ne each end i s connected
,
to a bi nd i ng screw A B and ea ch metal cap i s prolonged

, ,
i n the form o f a cheek E F along one si de o f the vul

, ,
can t e cylin der fo r two th i rds o f i t s length

i -
O n e i ther .
si de o f the cyli nder sprin gi ng agai n st i t are two pi ece s ,
o f metal I and L
, connected wi th the term i n als o f the
,
battery When the cyli n der i s turned by m eans of

.
Fm g .
—C m mu
t at or .
han dle Z ei ther o f the metal cheeks ca n be brought

,
into contact wi th each o f the spri ngs I L The pos i , .
ti ve po le o f the battery connected say wi th L can thus ,
be brought i nto co n nect i on w i th ei ther the b i nd i ng

screw at A or at B so that the current can be made
, ,
to pass in e i ther di rect ion at wi ll round the external

port ion o f the circui t bet wee n A an d B The and .
signs o n the vulcan i te cyli n der i ndi cate the polari ty o f

the b i nd i ng screws ; i n the pos i ti on shown A i s pos i ti ve ,
a hal f revol u t i on of the cyl i nder alters A to n egati ve ,
and there fore the reverse side of the cyl inder which then
comes i nto vi ew wi ll have t he and si gn s trans
posed also .
17 6 M E D IC A L E L E C T RI C I T Y .
12 7 . R eg ul at i o n
urren t W hen the current i s
of c .
regulated by the m ethod descri bed i n 12 5 i t wi ll be ,
seen that n eglect i n g the resi sta n ce o f the battery the

, ,
electro m ot i ve force i s the o n ly th in g altered i n the ci rcu i t .
B ut by O h m s law we know that t h e curren t i s nu m eri

’
cally equal to the electro m ot i ve force d i v i ded by the

resi sta n ce o f the c i rcu i t so that i t m i ght be regulated
,
by i ntroduc i n g or rem ov i n g res i sta n ces the electro ,
m ot i ve force be i ng kept consta n t I n so m e cases i t is .
m ore conven i e n t to regulate by th i s m ethod In gene .
ral when the total res i stance o f a c i rcu i t i s large i t i s

, ,
m ore conven i e n t to alter the electromot i ve force than

the res i sta n ce i n the ci rcu i t Thus suppose a c i rcui t
.
,
has a total res i sta n ce o f 30 0 0 oh m s and i s acted on by ,
twelve cells o f 1 5 volts each there w i ll be a curren t

°
o f si x m i ll i a m p e res i f now i t i s requ i red to double the

current i t i s easi ly done by addi ng twelve m ore cells ,
tak i ng for gra n ted that the i r i n tern al resi stance m ay be

neglected but i f i t were des i red to m ake the alterat i on
,
by reduc in g the res i stance o f the c i rcui t i t would be

necess ary i n order to double the current to take out a ,
res i st a n ce o f 150 0 oh m s wh i ch m ight be i m pract i cable

, .
W he n i t i s desi red to i n cre a se curren t by tak in g out

resi sta n c e s i t i s o f course requ i s i te that the resi sta n ces
,
to be re m oved m ust first be co n n ected up i n the c i rcu i t

be fore the co m m e n ce m e n t o f the operat i on I f the total .
resi stance i s s m all th i s c an be done and i n such cases ,
the curre n t i s m ost easi ly governed by vari able res i st

a uces i n the c ircu i t Thus suppose a c i rcu i t m ade up
.
,
o f a cautery bur n er whose res i stance w i th i t s leads
a m ou n ts to o r oh m and an accum ulator whose electro

°
m ot i ve force i s two volts and i n ternal res i stance 00 2 '
o h m ; the current could be well governed by hav i ng a
vari able res i stance up to 5 oh m i n the c i rcu i t When .

c an v a mc A P PA R A T US . 17 7
the current was turned on wi th full resi stan ce i t would

amount t o about a m pe res and by reducin g the ,
vari able resi stance to 09 8 ohm a current o f 2 0 amperes

'
wo uld be gi ven whi ch would probably suffice t o heat t h e

burn er .
There i s on e advantage that belongs t o t h i s method

of re gulat i ng the c n rre n t vi z all the cells i n a batt ery
, .
,
are i n use the whole ti me and equall y so that there i s ,
n o li ab ili ty from the method o f use fo r o n e cell t o run
down and require rechargi n g be fore another but even ,
this advan tage wi ll not co m pensate fo r the cost of hi gh

resi st ance coi l s and the i nconven ience o f using them .
12 8. W O OL — R esi stances or rheostats * are

ma de up i n many forms A figu re of a res i st ance bo x
.
made up of wi re co ils and arran ged as a Wheatstone s ’
B ri dge was gi ven i n 67 The coils are gener all y .
ma de o f a len gth o f i nsulated G erman s il ver wi re

doubl ed on i tself ( fig 60) ( th at t he coi ls should have n o
.
F m 60. .
-
l of resi stan ce coi ls.
self i nducti on ) and co iled on a bobb in . C oils are then

f —
arranged i n the o llowi ng o rder z r 2 , , a, 5, 10 , 2 0 , 20 ,
5 ,
0 100 , 2 00 , 2 00 , 00
5 , 1000 , 2 000 , 2 000 , 5000 ohms
respecti vely so that any of them can be thrown in o r
,
out of ci rcui t by removi ng or replaci ng plugs on the top
T he word rh eosut i s perh aps t he l east obj ec t ion abl e o f t hose

referred to in 13 4 , oolelv h owev er bec au se i t h as been h al l o w ed by
of the resi stance box It wi ll be see n that wi th the

.
above arrange m ent of co ils an y resi stance fr o m 1 to

oh m s c an be put i n to c i rcu i t S uch res i stance
.
boxes are capable of the very h i ghest accuracy but as a ,
rule th i s i s not requi red i n m edi cal work an d they are ,
da m aged i f any large curre n t i s sent through them ,
besi des wh i ch they are exceed i ngly costly They are .
o n ly l i kely to be requi red i n large i nst i tut i ons where it ,
m ay be necessary to fin d res i stances o f apparatus or

the electrom ot i ve fo rce of batte ri es wi th h i gh accuracy .
12 9 . .
—
W i re rh eo st at The res i stance coi l that wi ll
be m ost frequently i n the hands o f the m ed i cal m an i s
so m et i m es known as the wi re rheostat“ ”
It i s very .
co n ve n i e n t i n cases such as the exa m ple gi ven above i n ,
wh i ch there i s a s m all extern al resi sta n ce on ly in the c i r

cu i t an d a large cur rent i s t o be regulated
, It usually . .
co n si sts of a lon g Open corkscrew coi l or hel i x of m o

derat e l y th i ck u n c o vered G erm a n si lver o r other w i re ,
such as pl at i nu m si lver alloy o f h igh spec ifi c res i stance

-
,
The curre n t i s led i n at one end o f the hel i x

an d a m e t a l sl i d i n g p i e c e wh i ch can pass fro m end to
en d o f the co i l fo r m s the other ter m i n al The re .
si st a n c e i nterpos e d i s e a s i ly see n to be proport i o n al to
t h e n u m ber o f tur n s o f t h e hel i x betwee n the en d

atta c hed to the ter m in a l an d the sl i d in g pi ece The .
for m o f th i s res i sta n ce i s favourable to cool i n g thus a ,
m u c h l a rger curre n t m ay be dri ven through i t than

through a co il o f covered wi re n o t ope n t o the ai r .
130 . W at er rh eo st at A n other resi stance apparatus

.
”
sold to m ed i cal m en i s the water rh eo stat “
It .
co n s ists of a glass cyl i n der watert ight and fill ed wit h

,
water or so m e sal i ne solut ion i t term i nates below i n a

,
m et a l foot B and b i nd i n g screw and a metall i c rod,
m ov i ng st i ffl y passes i n from above thr ough a collar A , ,

GA LV A N I C A PPA RA T U S . I 79
a nd th i s carr ies the oth er b ind ing screw When the .
r o d i s pushed qu i te down i t touches the base o f the tube ,
a n d the c ircui t i s completed through the metall ic

c ontact ; when i t i s rai sed the c u rrent mus t pass through
t h e badly conduc ti ng l iqui d The res istance o ffered by
.
t h e l i qu i d var i es w i th the leng th o f li q ui d to be tra

v ersed and the nature o f the solut ion and t h e rod on ,
b e roughly graduat ed for the res i stance o f the li qui d t o

’
Fro 6 1
. .
-
Wat er R heost at .
be used It wi ll easi ly be seen that a drawback t o the

.
use o f th i s form of resi stance i s th e pol ar izati on l ikely to

be produced by electrolyt i c changes i n the li qui d .
M oreover at the moment when the metal sl i di ng rod i s

separated from contact w i th the metal base of the tube ,
there i s a sudden great i ncre ase of resi st ance in the

circu i t and an unplea sant shock may be produced
, .
N 2
180 un m c u . E LE C T RI C I T Y .
C heap resi stances have been made o f d i sc s of graph i te

pi led loosely i n a tube and more or le ss pressed together
by a screw to vary the resi stance of the co mbi nat i on ,
these however are very unrel i able A h i gh resi st a nce .
for te m porary use may be i m provi s ed by ru l i n g a l i ne

wi th an ord i nary lead penci l on ground gla ss an d c on
n ect in g the c i rcu i t wi th the end s of t h e lin e b y m e an s
of p i eces of t i n fo i l . O ther form s o f graph i t e resi st

au ces have been devi sed for medi cal purposes an d in ,
certa i n cases they are useful as for example t o reg ul ate

, ,
i nduct i on currents .
13 1
. G a l v a n o m e t ers .
— I t i s generally of the utmost
i mportance that the medi cal man shall be ab l e d urin g
the course of an electri cal operat i on t o see at a glance
what current i s passi ng and for thi s purpo se a ga l vano
,
meter i s necessary W e m ay refer the st udent b ack t o

.
49 5
, 0 fo r a cu rs ory a cco u nt o f the t h eor y o f the
galvanometer . H ere we have t o de scri be on e o r t wo
that are i n common use .
There are certai n features th at fro m t h e n at ure of

the work they are called upon to perform are c o m m on
to all galvano m eters for med i cal purposes The m ost.
i mporta n t i s perhaps the method o f graduat i on These .
galvanometers are i nvari ably o f the fi x ed coi l or tan

gent form 5 )
0 that i s to say the current
, i nd i cated
by any read i ng i s nro port i o n al not to the angle of de
fl ex i o n but to the tr igono m etr i cal tangent of that angle .
H e n ce i t i s necessary that the ci rcle on wh i ch the posi

t ion o f the needle o f the galvanometer i s read must he
graduated not u n i formly but so that the read i ngs are
, ,
angle s whose t an ge n ts i ncrease un i form ly .
Th i s m ay be pract i cally carri ed out for any c i rcle that

i i
i t i s requ i red to d v de as ollows f — L et 0 ( fig 62 ) be the .
centre o f the ci rcle at P draw a tangent to the c i rcle and

,
c uvw x c A PPA RA T U S . 18 1
joi n O P . M ark 0 5 eq ual spaces P L L M M N &c , , ,
alon g thi s tangent l i ne and joi n each po int t o O the c entre

of th e ci rcle These li nes wi ll make such angles wi th
.
O P that the ir tangents i ncrease by equal steps and the ,
po ints where t hey cut t he c ircle wil l be the ends o f arcs

subten d i ng angl es at the cen tre o f the c i rcle whose t an
g ents ful fil the requ i red condi t i on I f the gal v ano m eter .
constant 51) i s such that a defl ec ti on o f the needle from

0 to 1 i ndi cates a current of n m i l l i amp e res fl o win g in
t he galvano m eter then a defl ex i on to 2 will i ndi cate
,
t hat 2 n m i lli amperes are pass i ng and so o n So that .
R N M L
7 10
1 . 63 .
—G u
rad at i on of gal vanom et er .
by su i tably choosing the equal spaces that are marked

o ff along the tangent l i ne any galvanometer scale may
b e made t o read i n m i ll i amp eres Thi s i s ca ll ed ca l i .
b rati n g the galvano m eter and the cali brati on o f ev ery

g alvanometer sh ould be checked fr om ti me to t i me by
the user A method o f doi ng th i s wi ll be descri bed i n
.
133 below .
A galvanometer ca li brated t o read m i lli amperes may

be called a mi l l i am pérem et er j us t as one cal i brated "
to read am péres is called an ammeter M ed i cal men .
owe i t t o D r D e Wattwil lo that the mi lli ampere has been

.
18 2 ME DIC A L '
s t s c rax c x rv .
'
chosen t o be the st andard fo r med i cal purpo

th i s i t i s a m ost conven ient measure .
M any galvanometers are provi ded w i th a

or three resi stance co il s whi ch may be i
parallel wi th the galvanomet er coi ls they ,
o f such values that they only all ow one t -
hundredth or on e thousandth o f the whole current to

-
pass through the galvanometer In 66 the necessary

.
calculati on was gi ven by means of wh i ch the resi stance

o f such a co i l called a shunt fo r a galvanometer o f an y
, ,
Fm 63. .
—V e rt i cal G al van om et er .
g i ven res i stance could be determ i ned The u se o f such .
a shunt is t oo obvi ous to need much explanati on S uffi .
c i ent wi ll be sa i d in the account o f E dd man n s large ’
gal vanometer below .
G alvanom eters fo r medi cal use are i nva ri a bly cal i ~
b rat ed and marked t o rea d i n m i lli a m peres by the

makers . Fig 62 shews the appea ran c e of a c ircl e
.
graduated at one part to read d irectly i nto current as ,
compared wi th on e di vi ded in equal di v isiom arc .

c ant c A PPA RA T U S . 18 3
M edi ca l galvanometers may be conveni en tly d i vi ded

i nto t h e vert i c al and horizont al forms F ig 63 shews . .
o n e o f the verti cal ty pe I t i s easil y read but does n o t

.
always work very well perhaps owi ng to a tendency to

,
clog from dust and d i rt at the a xi s i nterferi ng wi th i ts

,
m ovem ent . It i s conven i ent i n use however because , ,
i t is not necessary to set i t in a defin i t e posi ti on wi t h

regard t o the north and south li ne ( magneti c meri di an )
at the place wh ere i t i s to be used .
F ig 64 shews a horizontal galvanometer of a form

.
Pro . 64
.
- H o rizo n tal gal van o met er .
made by M C aij e, and

'
al so expla i ns the construct i on

of th e in st rum ent S S are b ind i ng screws V V are
' '
.
,
levell i ng screws D the base board G the graduated

, ,
sca le i n the ca se en clo si n g t he wi re co i ls B and C the ,
met al ca se o f the i nstrument The sma l l screw at 0.
move s the le ver A whi ch lifts the needle 0 3 i t s p i vot

wh en n ot in use . The po inter i s made o f alumi n i um
for s ake and i s set at ri ght angles to the real
n ew
,
l e whi ch i s hi dden i nsi de th e co ils Be .

18
4 ms m c u . E LE C T RI C I T Y .
fore use the i nstrument must be so placed an d levell ed ,
that the needle comes t o rest at the zero an d swi ngs ,
fre ely about that poi nt The magnet i c needle then

.
po i nts along the magnet i c meri di an o f the place where ii

i s t o be used .
Th i s i nstrum ent as generally made i s designed b r

measuri ng large currents only It i s cali brated t o read
.
up t o 2 50 m i ll i amp eres and each d i vi s i on represent s 10

,
o r 2 0 m i ll i a m p eres i t i s there fore not conven i e n t for

,
regulat i ng small currents but i s the form most u seful

,
fo r the electrolys i s o f n aevi and for the electri c bat h

, .
F ig 65 i s a representat i on of E del mann s large non

’
.
portable galvanometer wh i ch i s a very conve n i e n t and

beaut i ful i nstrument A t F i s seen one o f the three
.
feet o f the i nstrument w i th i t s levell i ng screw M i s t he ,
base board G a short cyl i nder o f glass covered by a

,
glass top L wh i ch i s perforat ed at the cen tre fo r the

,
needle suspensi on to pass through ; these make a c ase

for the i nstrument and keep i t fro m dust The m agnet .
wi th i t s lon g straw poi nter Z the end of wh i ch i s seen,
at W i s suspended by a cocoon si lk fibre supported from

,
a pin wh i ch c an be ra i sed and lowered by a rack and

,
p i n i on worked by the m i lled head S N i s a wooden , .
ri n g wh i ch supports the p i llar down wh i ch the suspen

si on passes T i s the scale a cyli nder of paper d i v i ded
.
,
to read i n m i lli a m p eres Th i s arra n ge m ent o f the scale

.
is spec i ally des igned i n order that t h e i n stru m ent m ay

be read fro m a di stance A t a and b are seen t he
.
w i res wh i ch lead the current i nto and out o f the gal

v an o m et er the three s m all d i scs nu m bered i n the fi u
, g re
10 2 0 and 30 should be nu m bered 10

, 10 0 100 0 they , , ,
are the heads o f three screws by mea n s o f wh ich

shu n ts can be thrown i n to reduce the proport i on of
current passi ng through the galvano m eter t o 1235 rho or ,
“
c uvam c A P PA RA T U S . 18 5
ru i ns respect i vely o f that i n the whole c i rcui t so that when ,
one o f these i s i n use the read i ng of the scale m ust be

multi pl i ed by 10 100 or 100 0 as the case may be to
, , ,
g i v e the whole current i n the c i rcui t .
I t h as al ready bee n menti oned that a galvanometer of

s o hi gh a resi stance that the resi stance o f a batte ry i s
P10 63 . .
—Bd l m
e ann s
'
ga l vano met er .
negli gi ble com 1 1ared wi th i t may be used for fin di n

g
el ectromot i ve forces and such a galvanometer i s call ed
,
a Vo ltmeter S mall volt m eters o f th is type are sold by

.
en gi nee rs fo r test i ng stor age cells and are ,

186 M s o rc u . s t a c r a rc rr v.
cali brated up to abo ut volts A figure i s gi ven o f the .
one sold by the E P 5 C ompany fo r testi ng the i r ao

. . .
cu mu l at o rs .The term i n als o f t h e i nstrum en t are c on

n ec t ed w i t h the rough ends of th e sma l l rod shewn and ,
these are pressed and rubbed aga in st the poles of the

cell to be tested thus m ak i ng a good c o n n ect ion S uch
, .
a voltmeter i s a necessary adj unct t o an accum ulator

( see 5 3)
1 1
Fx o 66
. .
—V o lt meter.
The re are many oth er type s o f voltmet ers fo r other

purposes C ardews consi st o f a long stri p o f plati num
.
'
.
i ri di u m wi re wh i ch i s heat ed by the current and ex ,
pands movi ng a po i nter whi ch i ndi cates the expansion

,
on a spec i ally c ali brated di al A yrton sud P m y s i s a co il

.
’
or soleno i d wh i ch draws a so ft i ron core i n t o i t and the

, ,
movement i s i ndi cated on the d ial by a very i ngeni ous

spri ng i nvented by them A l l these in su
. um en t s are
GA LV A N I C A P PA RA T U S . 18 7
cali brated by t h e makers to re ad in v o lts but should be ,
checked from t i me to ti me by the user .
132 T est i n g tn .t ru
. 1n en t s —A ll batteri es a n d oth er
.
electri cal instruments should fro m t i me to t im e be t ested ,
thus i t i s advi sable to know both the electromot i ve

,
force and i nternal res i stance o f batteri es i n u se If a .
Post O th ee res istance box is at hand so that the me t hod ,
o f Wheatstm s bri dge 6 7) can be appli ed the ea si est

'
method o f fin din g a battery resi stance is to couple up

two cells i n oppos i t i on to each other and fi n d the i r t e ,
si st an c e i n the sa m e way that t he res i stance o f a wire i s
found . H alf the resi stance o f the com b i nati on may

then be t aken as the resi stance o f the batt ery Or .
M ann s method as m odified by L odge may be used thi s

’
m ethod i s descri bed in S P T homfison s L essons or '

. .
,
in B alfou r S tew art cmd G us P racti cal P hysi cs or in

’ "
a l most any book on electr i cal test i ng .
The elec t romoti ve force of a battery may be read o ff

at once by us ing a su i table vol t m eter or i t m ay be fo und ,
by connect ing up the battery wi th a galvanometer and ,
a known high res ista n ce o f severa l thousand ohms .
The i n ternal resi stance i s negl i gi ble compared wi th

t h i s and i f the res i sta nce o f the galvanometer be kn own
,
we can fin d t h e electromot i ve Torce from the equati on

E
or E =RC .
R
Thus for example a certa i n cell was connected up
, ,
wi th a resi stan ce o f 9 00 oh ms and a galvanometer o f,
100 ohms resi st ance and gave a c u

,
rren t o f 2 m illi am
pé res amp e re ) The
. electromot i ve force o f the
battery was there fore E RC 100 0 x 00 2 2 volts
°
.
The electromot i ve forces o f batteri es may be compared

wi th great acc uracy by L atimer C larks P otent iometer ’
.
188 ME D IC A L n wc r arc rry .
T hi s i s well descri bed in Glazebrook and S haws Frac ’
t i cal P hysi cs .
133 V o l t a m et erl —T he
. peri odi c al t es ti n g o f a
.
galvanometer i s best ca rri ed out by m ean s o f a vo lt a

meter A battery o f three o r fo u r c ell s pre ,
ferab l y of the B u nsen o r G rove type i s con nect ed u wi th

p ,
an adj ustable res i stance a voltameter an d t h e ga lv ano

, ,
meter to be tested B y a tri al experi me n t i t i s found

.
what resi stance i t i s necessary to i nsert that the c urrent

may gi ve a conven i ent defl ec t i on It should be so ar .
ranged that the defl ec t i on of the galvanometer i s

Then everyth i ng i s made ready and the curren t i s turned
on an d the t i me taken ; readi ngs of t h e ga l v a n ometer
are taken frequently when conven i ent say at every ,
th i rty seconds and t h e current i s kept as n e arly as

,
possi ble constant by vary i ng the resi sta n c e i n the cir

cu i t The current i s allowed to pass fo r a m ea sured
.
t i m e con ven i ently ten m i nutes and the c i rcui t i s then

, ,
broke n .
From the quant i ty o f decompos i t i on that has taken

place i n the volta m eter the total quant i ty of electri c i ty
,
i n coulo m bs that has passed i s k n own Th i s d i vi ded .
by the nu m ber o f seconds gi ves the average current in .
a m p e res the m ean of the readi ngs o f the galvano

,
m eter i s the n taken and th i s g i ves the average curre n t

,
i n d i cated by the galvano m eter wh i ch should be equal

t o that ded u ced fro m the volta m eter I f i t i s not so .
,
the n ecess ary correct i o n to apply to the ga l vanometer

re ad i n gs i s easi ly calc ulated The commonest form of .
volta m eter s o ld by i nstrument makers i s t he water

volta m eter .
134 W a t er v o l t a m et er Th i s in strument i s shown

. .
i n fig 6 7 . P i s the stand wi th b i nd i ng screws B B

.
, , ,
T a glass tube closed above by a perforated cork b C

, .
GA LV A N I C A PPA RA T U S . 189
an i nner tube wi th plati n um elect rodes F F and wi th

, ,
'
two small open ings 0 O fo r t h e ex i t o f water di s

'
, , ,
placed from the i nner tube by the gases l i berated The .
i nner tube i s closed above by a s topper w hi ch can be

moved by the w i re A passi ng through the cork b The
, .
i nner tube i s t o be fill ed w i th aci dulated water
F ro 67 . .
-
Wat er vol t amet er .
closed above the outer tube i s t o be partly filled ; th e

,
l i berated gas collects i n the i nner tube and the water

dis pl a ced i s dri ven i nto the outer tube The amount o f
.
g a s li be rated i n a measured ti me can be read o ff by the

graduated sc ale on the i nner tube .
T hou gh an ex ceedi n gl y i n accura t e i n st rum en t it i s n o t di fii c ul

to u
se t o check t h e readi n gs o f a gal van om et er o r am met er . It
I 9 0 M E D IC A L E L E C T RI C I T Y .
m ay be used as fo ll o ws z —C o n n ect up wi t h a bat t ery givi n g su ffi

c ie n t el ec t ro m o t iv e fo rce t h e v olta met er, t he gal v an o m et er t o be
t est ed, an d a resi st a n c e wh ich m ust be ad j ust able , an d of u

s ch
a m agn i t ude t h at t he defl ect io n of t he gal v a n o m et er is a con
v en ien t o n e, v iz . , abo ut 45 ° o f arc . T k

a e t h e t i m e at wh i ch t he
c urren t is st art ed a n d reco rd t h e readi n g o f t h e g v a n o m et er as

a l de
scribed abo v e . A ft er t en m in ut es or a q uart er o f an ho ur, durin g
wh ich t im e t h e c urren t h as been kept

y co n stan t a s po ssible
as n earl
by v ar yi ng t he adj ust abl e resist an ce t h e c ircui t i s b ro k en an d t h e

,
v ol um e of ga s is read o ff ca e bein g t aken t h at t h e l ev el o f t h e

, r
wat er in side an d o ut side t h e m easurin g t ube is t h e same T h e t em .
e rat u re an d t h e h ei gh t o f t h e baro m et er m u st t h b t k en al l
p en e a ,
p pro e r c o rre c t i o n s b e i n a
g pp l ie d T h e m ea n .cu rren t rec o rded b y t he
av erage readi n g o f t h e gal v an o m et er sh o u l d t h en be eq u al t o t h at
c al cu l at ed fro m t h e v o l t am et er T h i s ca l c u
. l at io n m ay b e c arried
ou t as fo l l o ws z—E ac h c ou l o m b o f el ect ri ci t y ( o n e am pere fo r on e
seco n d) i n pass in g t h ro u gh t h e w a t er l ib erat es 1 18 cu b ic cen t im et res
o f h y dro gen a n d 0 58 c u b i c cen t i m et res o f o x ygen o r 1 7 6 c u bi c
°
, ,
cen t im et res o f m ix ed gases ; t h erefo re i n o n e m i n u t e 1 7 6 x 60
cu bi c c en t i m et res wo u l d be l iberat ed by a c u rren t o f o n e
am pere an d i n t en m in u
,
t es 10 56 c u b ic cen t im et res I n t h e same .
t im e a cu rren t o f t e n m ill iam pe res wo u l d l iberat e cu b ic cen t i

m et res of m ix ed gases .
A s h a s be en sai d t h e m et h o d i s a m o st i n ac curat e o n e si n ce a
ro
p p o rt io n of t he a
g s wh ic h sh o ul d be ev o l v ed al way s re m a in s dis
so l v ed i n t h e l iq uid o r a dh eren t t o t h e el ec t ro des . T he co rrec t io n s,
t o o , are so m ewh a t t ro ubl eso m e, t h o ugh t h e m et h o d is so ro ugh t h at

t he y m ay o ft en be o m i t t ed wi t h o ut muc h i m pa iri n g t he ac curacy o f
t he res ul t .
135 . C o pp er v o l t a m et er .
— A far better form i s the
copper volt a m e t er wh i ch i s e a s i ly m ade up by a n yo n e .
It s i m ply co n s i sts o f two plat e s o f th i n copper sheet ,
say 10 ce n t i m etr es by 5 ce n t i m etres suspended i n a ,
b e aker full o f s o lut io n o f copper sulphate They can be .
cla m ped by b i n d i n g screws to str i ps o f wood rest i ng

acr o ss the t o p o f t h e beaker The plates are dr i ed and .
cle a n e d care fully and we ighed separately be fore the

exper i m en t i s com m en ced A fter i t i s fin i sh ed they are .
c arvam c A P PA RA T U S . 19 1
well ri n sed i n d i st i lled water and aga i n dri ed by gentle

warm i ng and wei ghed That co n nected wi th the zinc
.
pole o f the battery wil l be fou n d to have increased i n

we ight the oth er wi ll have d im in ished by about an
,
equal a m ount The mean m ay be taken as t h e amount

.
o f decompos i ti on . N ow the electro chem i cal equ i valent

-
o f copper the quant i ty deposi ted by one ampere i n on e

(
sec o n d) m ay be taken as 000 33 grammes H ence if th e
°
.
current fl o ws for ten mi nutes and we fin d 0 1 gramme ‘
o f copper deposi ted the mean c u

, rrent wil l be g i ven by
C x 0 00 33 x 60 x 10 0 1 or C , 0 50 5 amp e res
°
5 5
0
°
m i ll i amp e res
. C are must be taken that the d ens i ty
of curre n t in the voltameter i s not t oo grea t or the cop
per is apt to deposi t in a fl aky manner and scale 0 5

whi le bei ng washed .
The copper voltameter i s in many respects superi or

t o the water voltameter si nce no speci a l i nst rum ent is
n eed ed and an observati on to determ ine the wei ght of
t he copper i s m uch s imp ler than the determ in at ion o f

the vol ume o f the gases evolved wi th all the necessary
co rrect i ons fo r press u re and tem perature B es i des in .
t h e la tter case the observ ed result i s incorrect because ,
the water alwa ys reta in s a porti on o f the evolved gas i n

sol uti o n .
C HA PTE R VI I .
Puv s ro noc v .
G en eral con siderat i o n s. D iffusio n of u

c rre n t in t h e bo d y . T he
bo d y as a u
co n d ct o r. T he resist a n ce of t h e bo d y . Physi o
l ogical effec t s o f el ec t ri c al u c rren t s . E l ectr ical ph en o m en a o f
n erv e an d muscl e E l ect ro t o n u Pfl ii ger s l aw o f c o n t rac t ion
‘
'
. s . .
T h e l aw o f co n t rac t i o n i n t h e hum an s ubj ect . U n i pol ar cx ci

t at io n . E l ect rical reac t io n s o f muscl e . T h e h eart . T re at m en t
u
o f s spen ded an im at io n . S en so r y n erves . N erves of speci al
sen se. O t h er o rgan s . R efresh i n g act i on of the c urren t

T o sm osis. T herm al efl ec t s. E l ec
' '
ro ph ic efiec t s. E l ect ri cal

t ric al o rgan s .
136 . G en era l —A lthough a large

c o n si d erat i o n s .
amount o f work has been done on the elect ri cal ph e

h omena o f nerve and muscle yet the i n fl u en c e o f e lec ,
t ri c i t y upon the t i ssues o f the body i s st i ll very ob scure ,
espec i ally is th i s the c a se i n i t s m ode of act i on i n the

rel i e f o f d i sease The con d i t i on o f electrotonus
. 142 )
i s largely m a de use o f to expl a i n the therapeut i c e ffects

o f electr i c a l tre a t m en t i n p aralysi s and other nervous
d i sorders but we have reaso n to bel i eve that there i s

,
so m eth i n g m ore than th i s ; m a n y observers have thought

that the appli cat i ons o f electr i ci ty to medi ci ne are of use
c h i efl fo r d i agn ost i c purposes or as a means o f ex er
y ,
c i s in g paralysed m uscles but there i s no doubt that it s ,
uses exten d m uch further and that di sti nct changes , ,
wh ich m ay be called trophi c ch an ges do follow treat ,
m e n t by galvan i s m ; for i n sta n ce the treatm ent of ,
uterin e fibro i ds by A po st o l i s m ethod where powerfu l ’
currents are passed through the uterus o n e electro de ,

PHY S l O L O G Y . 19 3
be ing placed on the abdomen and the other in t roduced

i nto the cavi ty o f the uterus certa i nl y leads to di m i n u
,
t io n i n the s ize o f the tum our an d to rel ief o f the sym

p t o m s .I t has also been observed that cons i derable
i ncre a se i n the subcuta n eous abdo m inal fat h as fo l l o wed .
th is treatmen t . The be n efit s o f A po st o li s treatm en t '
have been spoken o f as due to electrolys is but unt i l ,
further help can be obta i ned fro m the physi ci sts who ,
at prese n t are able to tell us l i ttle about the s t ate o f

a ffa irs goi n g on i n an electrolyte we must be conten t to ,
rema i n uncerta i n whether th i s i s the ca se or not .
There i s n o doubt however that i n the l iqui d be

, ,
tween t he poles o f a n elec t rolyt i c cell there m ust be

molecular changes qu i te as acti ve although not vi s i ble ,
t o the eye as those other c han ges wh i ch we can see to

,
be taki ng place i n the i m m ed iate n eigh bo urt o f the
poles o f the cell The t i ssues o f the body con duct the
.
gal va n ic c urrent i n an electrolyti c 5 59 )

8 m anner , ,
an d i t i s very proba ble t hat the ti ssue ele m ents betwee n
the poles do sh are acti vely in t h e molecul ar changes

whi ch are set up .
1
37. D i m i ei o n o f c u rre n t i n t h e b o d y — The .
dens i ty o f the current 68 12 4) an d the d iffus i on

,
o f the current as i t pa ses through the t i ssu es from o n e

s
electrode to the other have an i mportant in fl uen ce upo n

,
th e results produced .I t has al ready been stated that

i n large and heter ogeneous conductors l ike the hum an ,
body the current spreads out i n sheets as i t pa sses from

,
anode to cathode . D r D e Wattevil lo has ve ry clearly

.
i llustrated thi s as follows —H e says The reader may

p i cture to hi mse lf the electr i cal dens i ty at an
y po i n t of
a ci rcu it o f var i able di a m eter by represent in g the stre n gth

ven current fl o wi n g th rough i t by a certa i n
ber of l i nes . These li nes ex pa nd i n the wi der
o
19 4 M E D IC A L E LE C T RI C I T Y .
port i on s o f the c i rcui t owi ng t o the d i ffusi on an d be ,
com e crowded together i n the n arrower parts A crowd .
i ssu i n g through a narrow door and through gra dually ,
expandi ng passages an d fin al l y reach i ng the street l i ke

, ,
electri ci ty fl o wi n g through a c i rcu i t of vari able di a m eter ,
i s sa i d to be densest at the narrow ex i t and i t th i ns ou t , ,
i s d i luted in space as it were as i t reaches t h e wi der

,
”
outlets .
The path of a current between t wo electrodes placed

upon the body sur face i s not to be marked o ut s i mply
by drawi n g d irect l i nes fro m the one to the other for ,
the whole of the conduct i ng t i ssues between the elec

trodes help to provi de a passage for the current wh i ch ,
spreads out from beneath the posi t i ve electrode becom i ng ,
less and less dense as i t occup ies a wi der and wi der

sect io n al area of the conductor and aga i n grows denser ,
as i t s l i nes o f passage become once more gath ered to

gether to reach the negat i ve electrode .
F i g 69 shows the di vergence of the di rect i ons of

.
these l in es of current as they pass fro m a posi t ive

electrode placed upo n the back o f the arm to reach
the n egat i ve electrode placed somewhere upon the
tru n k an d i t very well i llustrates the fact that the
,
curre n t i s n o t c on fin ed to the space di rectly between

the electrodes fo r some o f the l i nes wh i ch i n d i cate it s
,
d irect io n actually com m e n ce the ir course by curving

,
down wards through the t i ssues below the electrode ;

on ce m ore usin g D r D e Wai tevi ll e s s i m i le o f a crowd
.
’
we m ight co m pare th i s to people in the streets of a

busy ci ty wi th a few o f the i n d i vi duals choosi ng to go
,
by a ci rcu i tous route through si de streets i n order to

secure a m ore open even if a more roundabout passage
, .
It follows that parts o f the body whi ch are outside

the di rect l i ne of the electrodes may be in fl uen ced by
P HY S l O LO G Y . 19 5
the current pass i ng between the electrodes and i t w il l ,
be see n from the chapters on treatment that th i s may

someti mes be advantageous and so m et imes the reverse
,
.
I t al so follows that the s ize of the electrodes is o f

i m portance i n trea t m ent fo r at the surface o f contact o f
,
a small el ectrode the densi ty of current per un i t of sur

face when a defin i t e qua n ti ty o f current i s fl o wi n g wi ll
, ,
be greater tha n when large electrodes are used ; thi s

poi nt has been already all uded to in 12 4 and wi ll be ,
aga i n re ferred to later .
138 T h e b o dy a s a co n du
. ct o r — The body i s a .
conductor exactly i n the same way as sal ine soluti on s or

mo ist sponges are conductors that i s to say i t i s an , ,
el ectrolyte and the t i ssues between the electrodes durin g

,
the pa ssage o f a curr ent are in exa ctly the condi t i on o f

the li qui ds in an electrol yt i c cell consequently the pas ,
sage o f the current causes the accumula ti on at the

pos i ti ve elec t rode o f ac i ds c hi e fl y hy drochloric from
, ,
the abun d ance o f sodi um chlori de in the j ui ces o f the

body and o f bases chi ch y soda fo r the same rea son at
, , ,
the n egat ive elec t rode The regi on betwee n the poles
.
shows no evi den ces o f e i ther free aci d or free alkal i

.
,
an d yet w e feel sure that there m u st be some exchanges

taki n g place all through the cha i ns o f molecul es betwee n
anode and ka thode M oreover i t i s not rea sonable to
.
,
assume that the chan ges are only t ak ing place in the ‘
fl uids o f the in tercellul ar s paces fo r th ey must a l so go ,
on i n the whole o f the cell substance w hi ch i s traversed

by the current .
139 T h e resi st a n ce o f t h e b o dy
. The conductin g .
-
power of the ti ssues li ke that o f any other con ductor

, ,
de pen ds upon the ir secti onal area and upon the l ength ,
of ti ssue t o be tr aversed .
D r W H S tone
. . . Lu ml ei an L ec t ures
,
“
18 8 6 h as , ,
0 2
19 6 M E DIC A L s ns c r n xc rrv.
care fully consi dered the subject of the resi st an ce o f the

’
hum an body and fin ally sets i t down at about 1000

,
oh m s B ut unless great care be taken t o en sure goo d

.
contacts the resi stance wi ll be much h igh er than th i s ,
because the gr eater part of t h e resi stance of the body i s

si tuated i n the ski n W e are told that C oun t da M on cel
.
experi m entally determ i ned the electri cal resi stance o f

h i s wi fe from wri st to wri st usi ng small pl at i n um elec
,
trodes and found i t at first to be

, ohm s gradually
,
fall i ng to ohms ; the di m i n ut i on in resi stance was

caused by the el ectrolys i s and destruct i on of the sk in
be n eath the electrodes leavi ng scars upon the C ountess ’
wri sts fo r the rest o f her l i fe A ccordi ng t o D r S tone

. .
the human body from an elect ri cal po i nt of vi ew i s a

, ,
mass o f fa i rly well con duct i ng materi al enclosed i n a ,
re m arkably badly conduct i n g cutaneous envelope . In

measur i ng resi stance therefore i t i s n ecesary first to
, ,
el i m i n ate surface co n t a ct res i stances for the resi stan o

,
at the ski n may be to ohm s but the rea

,
a n d essent i al po i nt to be ascerta i ned i s the very m u c
sm aller resi sta n ce o f the deeper t i ssues .TO ob t ai

good electri cal co n tact i t i s n ecessary that the pole
should be very large as co m pared wi th the curre n t an ,
i n pract i ce th i s co n d i t i o n c an be fu l fil l ed by i mmersi n g
the feet or hands i n bath s o f bri ne i n contact wi th ar I '
electrode o f lead hav i n g a sur face of from 50 to 10 9 4
square i nches In th i s way the resi stance o f the ski rt :

.
c an be reduced to zero so that i t i s a contact s u

, p er i o
to that gi ven by the i n troduct i on o f si lver needles thre £ 553

ches deep i to the t i ssues read i ngs f the i
‘
i t s
'
n n ; o res s a n c z
the body under these co d i t i ons gave f rom f oot to h i j

'
of n a n c z ,
10 2 7 ,
1 0 32 and 13 2 0 ohms respect i vely i n thr e e case = 5 ,
an d in the same three pat i e n ts the res i stance m easur e : d

”
fro m foot to foot was 9 30 9 30 and 9 45 ohms , .It ap
P HY S I O LOG Y . 19 7
pears from these experi m en t s that the essen ti al res istance

o f the full length o f the body from hand to foot i s about
100 0 ohms but that from the res istance o f the ski n a
,
much h igher figure 300 0 or 5000 ohms or even m or e

, ,
may be reached W i th needles i nserted in to the ski n

.
,
as i n electrolys i s o f n ae vi the resi stance i s much less ; for

,
the length o f ti ss ue to be traversed is less p arti cul arly ,
so when both poles are i nserted i nto the n aevus and are ,
consequently close together A fter the current has

.
been runni ng fo r a short ti me the res i stan ce begi ns to

ri se from the devel opment of polarizat ion 100) in the
t i ssues th i s ri se o f resi stance i s not usually percepti ble

,
wh en ordi nary medi cal electrodes are used beca u se i t ,
i s more than masked by the i mp rovement i n conduct i ng

power whi ch takes place a fter the current has been flow
in g long enough to i ncrea se the vascul ari ty o f that part
of the sk in whi ch i s i n con tact wi th the poles .
In th e experi ment o f C ount da M oncd o n hi s wife the

resi stance fell rapi dly as the ski n beneath the elec t rodes
became first congested and later destroyed but even ,
then the readi ng was h igher t han those of D r S tone .

,
because con s i derable polari zati on had been produced

and that rai sed the resi stance o f the body o r more cor ,
rec t l y perhaps i t produced an oppos ing electromoti ve

, ,
force wh i ch si mulated increased res i st an ce .
D r S tone has also found that in six case s of hem i

.
ple gi a whi ch he tes ted the paralysed si de o ffered m uch

,
less resi stance th an the sound si de ; the di fference be

tween the t wo s ides be i ng on the average 400 ohms .
The r esi stance of t h e body has also been shown to be

greatly d i mi n i sh ed i n exophthalmi c go i tre probably
th is i s due t o the i ncreased moi sture of the ski n in thi s
In el ec tri cal t reatmen t t he resi stan ce of the body

19 8 M E DIC A L s n s c r a rc n v.
m ust usually be taken as the sum o f the resi stances o f

the ski n an d o f the deeper t i ssues because the requ i re
, ,
m e n ts o f local i sed treat m e n t o ften m ake i t i mpo ss i ble to

use the large lead electrodes and bri ne baths wh i ch
were e m ployed by D r S ton e . The total re si sta nce o f
.
the hu m an body wi ll be fou n d to vary trem endously

wi th the vari at io n s i n the th i ckness or the dryness of
the sk in also accord in g to E rb i t vari es wi th the num
, , ,
ber o f sweat ducts ha i r foll i cles and sebaceous glands

,
i n an y p art for i t i s largely by m eans o f these fin e

,
cha n n els that the curren t passe s accord i ngly in di ffere n t

,
person s the res i stance be tween any symmetri cal poi n ts

may vary very wi dely and i n the same person differe n t
, ,
regi on s of the ski n m ay offer very different resi stances .
W hen the current i s appl ied to a m ucous me m brane

the resi st an ce i s much lower ; and when i t i s appli ed
through the m ed i u m o f n eedles thrust i nto the t i ssues ,
the res i sta n ce m ay be as low as 100 ohms or less ,
a ccord i n g to the d i sta n ce between the poles ; for i n

sta n ce w i th both poles in a n aevus a current o f 100
m i ll i a m p eres c a n be obt a i ned w i th ten volts showi n g
the res i sta n ce to be less th an 10 0 oh m s an d wi th both ,
poles i n troduced i n to the sac o f an aneuri s m a resi st

a n c e as low as 10 oh m s has bee n reg i stered S o too.
, ,¢
i t i s a well k n o wn observat i o n that the res i sta n ce d i m i n

i shes wi th the durat i o n o f the curre n t the s i ze o f t h ,
e l ec trodes a n d the n u m ber o f cells re m a i n i n g constant
E rb g i v es a table wh i ch br i n gs out th i s po i n t clearly

the e x peri m e n t wa s co m m e n ced wi th e ight cells an ,
t h e re a d i n gs o f a g a l v a n o m eter i n c i rcu i t were noted

the n u m ber o f cells wa s progress i vely i n creased b
fours a n d at e v ery step the curre n t was made an c
,
r e v er sed several t i m es a fter the n u m ber o f cells h ac’

,
bee n r ai sed to 2 4 i t was lowered aga i n in the sa me:

P HY S I O LO G Y . 199
manner unt i l at th e end o f the experi ment when t h e ,
number o f cell s left i n c ircui t was only four they were ,
act ually gi v ing a greater defl ec t ion o f the galvanometer

than twelve cells had previ ously done .
C ommencement
W ith 8 cell s 0
°
defl . W i th 20 cells 46 defl
°
.
° °
12 6 16 40
°
28
°
16 12 34
° °
20 4 2 8 26
° °
24 50 4 12
The resul ts gi ve n i n th i s table would probably have

been much less m arked i f there had firs t been a pro
longed spongi ng or soak ing of the ski n wi th hot water
at the poi nts o f appli cat ion ; fo r the e ffects shown de
pend at least i n part upon the i ncreased vascul ari ty and
perspi rat ion wh ich the g alvan ic current produces and ,
wh ich could have been a l most equally well produced

by the sti mulat i ng e ffect o f hot water .
The excessi ve res i stance wh ich i s somet imes o ffered

by the thi ck dry sk i n ( espec i ally o f pa t ients who have
been l ong c o n fin ed i n bed and when there has been ,
li ttl e or no perspi rati on fo r some t ime ) so m et i mes pre

sents a co n si derable obstacle to the electri cal exam i na
ti on of thei r muscles an d unless care i s take n i t i s apt
, ,
to mi slead .
140
. P h y si o l o gi c a l efl ect s o f t h e o u
'
rren t — The .
effect o f e lec t ri fica ti o n upon the n ervous syste m seems to

depend partly upon the quan ti ty of current fl o wi n g and ,
partly upon th e rate o f change o f the electromot i ve force

i n t h e c i rcui t. It i s possi ble to tolerate the gradual
i n t roducti on or the steady passage o f twe n ty or thi rty
mi l li amperes through the body if the contacts w i th the
ski n at the electrodes are large and good but the sensa ,
t i on of shock i s severe i f current s of fiv e m ill i am peres

,
are rapi dly thrown i nto the body ; and wh en t h e c urrent

i s broken rap i dly i t s sudden ces sa t i on a l so pr oduc es a
far greater i m pressi on than that fel t whi le i t is ru n
n i ng steadi ly Th i s shock at the break or open in g of

.
the ci rcui t i s di ffic ul t of explanat ion and noth i ng c om ,
parable to i t is observed wi th i nan i mat e elect ri c al cir

cu i ts or apparatus for i t is not o f the nature of an
,
i nduct i on e ff ect ; the explanat i on whi ch i s o ffe red i n

physi ologi cal textbooks namely that a sudden fall of
, ,
potent i al i s an effect ive st im ulus t o a nerve fibre is a fter

all no explanat ion .
The i m portant part played by rate of ch a nge of a

current in produci ng physiologi cal effect s i s clearly
sho wn by what has j ust been sa i d of the c urrent slowly
or suddenly m ade and broken through a ci rcui t wh i ch
i ncludes the body ; the part played by the quant i ty of
current passi ng i s seen by a comparison of the effects
o f a spark drawn from the pri me conductor o f an el ec
t ri c al mach in e w i th that from a L eyden j ar A spark .
a quarter o f an i nch lon g taken from the former pro

duces only a sl ight i mpress ion but a spark of the same
,
length fro m the j ar gi ves a vi olent shock The di ffer .
ence between the two i s largely a d ifference in quant i ty

of current pass i ng In both cases the electromot i ve
.
force i s very h igh and the total quant i ty i s small ; but

, ,
i n the case o f the L eyde n j ar there i s for the extremely ,
br i e f i nstant o f the di scharge a fai rly large c urrent b e

, ,
cause of i t s capac i ty 3 )
2 as a condenser .
14 1 .E l ec t ri c a l ph en o m en a of n erv e a n d m ul
c l e. —The electri cal pheno m ena of nerve are as fol
lows
N erve acts as a conductor i t s resi stance be i ng a bout
eq ual to that o f sali ne solut i ons Th i s i s t h e case.
P H YS I O L O G Y . 20 1
whether i t be a li ve o r dea d but there i s a pecul i ari ty i n ,
i t s conduct i vi ty whi ch i s unl ike that o f sali ne soluti on ,
v iz . i t s res i stance in any di rec ti on does not depend

,
solely upon i t s secti onal area as would be th e case in
homogeneous conductors but i t conducts more read i ly ,
along the length o f i t s fib res than across them and the ,
sa me pecul iari ty i s also found i n muscle * E m mer ha s .
shown that in nerve the tra n sverse resi stance i s as 5 1 ,
and i n muscle as 9 1 as compared wi th t hei r l on gi tu ,
d in al res istan c es I t is probable that th ese di fferences

.
in res istance s i mply s i gnify that as conductors t hey are

n o t homog eneo us .
E lect rical cu rrent s i n nerve and mu scl e .
1 C u rrent o rest —A li vi ng nerve or muscle i s a source

1 .
f .
o f electri cal c urr ents for if the wires o f a sen s i ti ve gal

,
v an o m e t er be attached to t wo po ints in a rem oved po r
ti on o f ei ther th e ex i stence o f a current wi ll be made

,
mani fest by the defl ec t io n of the gal v anometer needle ,
i ts d irect i on bei ng that wh i ch i nd i cates a current pa ss

in g through the wi re from the central part o f the length
of n erve to i t s extrem i ti es ; th i s current i s c alled the
cu i il i
f
rren t o rest I t s.more eas y demonstrated n an ex
ci sed an d t herefore damaged port i on o f nerve or muscle
than in a part w hi ch i s st i ll lyi ng uncut in the body ;

and i ndeed i t i s probable th at thi s c urrent o f rest only
exi sts in damaged t issue and is not present in norm al ,
parts at all but t hat i t is se t up by chemi cal changes

,
res u l ti n g fro m the i n j ury .
rren t o act ion —I f whi le the galvanometer i s at

o
b Cu
.
f .
t ac hed to i t the nerve or m uscle be st i m u

, lated i n any way ,
wh e t her by electri cal mechani cal chem i ca l thermal or , , , ,
T his m ay wel l be co m pared wit h t h e ph en o men a o f t h e co n d e u

t ion of heat in woo d, wh ic h t a es pl ace at a difl eren t k ’
rat e acco rdi n g
direcfion woo d
'
to the o t t he grai n o f t h e .
any other means then the galvanometer nee dl e wi ll gi ve

,
evi dence of the product i on o f an electri cal current by a

momentary defl ect ion i n the opposi te di rect i on t o that
produced by the current of rest ; th i s has been called
the n egative variation o f the current or the current of ,
acti on . It i s propagated i n both di rect i ons from the

po i nt st i m ulated and travel s i n nerve at the rate of 2 8
,
metres per second that i s t o say the d i sturbance of

, ,
equi li bri um produc i ng t h e current move s at that speed ,
wh i ch i s very much slower than the rate at whi ch an

elect ri cal current travels along a nerve and i s an en ,
t it ely d ifferent th ing The i m pulse wh i ch passes along

.
a nerve to cause muscular contract i ons or sensory i m
pressions i s not an electri cal i m pulse pure a nd si mple ,
although there i s an electri cal change associ ated wi th it .
I f a nervous i m pulse was s i mply an electri cal current it

should be tra n sm i ss ible by a n electri cal conductor as ,
for i nsta n ce a copper w i re but i t i s not so transm i tted

, ,
ne ither w i ll a pi ece o f da m aged nerve convey a nervous

i mpulse although i t may read i ly convey an electri cal
,
curre n t m oreover the veloci ty o f an electri cal current in

, ,
a conductor such as a nerve trunk i s i m m e n sely m ore

rap i d th a n the veloc i ty o f a n ervous i mpulse i n a nerve
trunk I n m uscle the current o f a ct i on i s propagated
.
at the rate o f three metres per second .
0 E
. l ec o om
t r t c curre n
'
t — D ur i n g the passage of a con

sta n t curre n t through a le n gth o f nerve a cha n ge i s pro
duc ed i n i t s curre n ts o f rest Take the case o f a long.
port i o n o f exc i sed nerve wh i ch has electrodes arranged

fo r the p a ss age o f a consta n t c urrent along i t s m i ddle
th i rd fro m r to r an d has also two galvanometers each
'
,
i nclud i ng i n the i r c i rcu i t a short length o f nerve near i t s

extre m i t i es and arranged to show the ex i stence of the
,
currents o f rest when the constant current so m et i mes ,

P HY S I O LO G Y . 203
called the polari z ing curren t has been t hrown i nto the ,
nerve and the mo m entary negati ve vari at ions produced

,
at the m o m ent o f clos ure are over the defl ec t i o n s o f the ,
galvanometers wil l be found altered the alterati on de ,
pen d i n g upon the di rect io n o f the consta n t c urrent .
O n e o f t he m wil l exh ibi t a greater defl ec t i on tha n be

fore the o t her one wi ll e x h i b i t a lesser defl ec t io n as
, ,
though the pol ari s ing current were rei n forc ing the one
and antagon i s ing the other .
Fl o . Ga —E l u
ectrot on ic c rren t s.
Are ference to the d i agra m ( fig 68 ) shows that the .
consta n t current has the same d irect i on as the current

o f rest i n the c i rcui t o f the galvano m eter B and has a ,
d i rect i on opposi te to the curre n t o f rest i n the c ircu i t o f

the galva n o m eter A and accord ingly the defl ec t i o n o f
,
the galvanometer B i s i ncreased as if re in forced an d ,
that o f the galv a no m eter A i s di mi n i sh ed as if a n t ago
142 .
—
E l ec t ro t on u
The electroto n i c curre n ts just
s .
des cri bed are n o t the only e ffects wh i ch are produced i n

a n e rve duri ng the passage o f a constant current alo n g
i t fo r there are produced i n addi t ion ce rt a in alterat io n s
,
in the i rri tab ili t y o f the ne rve and certa i n alterati ons i n
2 04 M E D IC A L n n n c r n l c rr v .
its conduct i vi ty ; th i s altered state i s kn own under the

name o f electroton us E lectrotonus then i s the condi t ion
.
o f a nerve dur i ng the passage through i t o f a constant
current but the e ffects i n that part o f the nerve near the
,
anode are not the same as those near the kathode thus ,
there i s one al t ered state round the anode or am lectrotonu s
and another d i fferent altered state round t h e kathode or

kathel ectroton u
s .
a . A n electroton s—
u I n the regi on
. the anode the irriof
tabi l i ty o f the nerve i s d i m i n i shed the fall i n i rri tab i l i ty

,
tak i n g place at the moment when the c i rcu i t i s closed ,
and rem a i n i ng di m i n i shed t i ll the c i rcu i t i s aga i n opened ,
when there i s a return to the normal A lso the con du .c
ti vi ty o f the nerve for nervous i mpulses be c omes d i m i n

i sh ed by the develop m e n t round the a n ode of a resi st ing
area through wh i ch n erve i mpulses pass only w i th di th
culty .
b K h ec o on
. at el tr t us — R ou n d the kathode the closure of
.
the c i rcu it c auses a ri se of irritabili ty wh i ch i s ma i n ta i n ed

duri n g the p a ssage o f the curre n t and re turn s to the ,
n or m al level whe n the curre n t h a s ceased to fl o w The .
sudden r i se o f i rri tab i l ity at the kathode on closure i s a

st i m ulus to the n erve an d so also i n a less degree i s the
,
ri se fro m a d i m i n i shed i rri tab i l i ty to the normal at the

a n ode o n ope n i n g The i m port a nce o f electroton us
.
partly l i es i n the expla n at i on wh i ch i t a ffords us o f the

beha v iour o f m uscle to wa rds co n st an t curre n ts at their ,
make ( closure ) an d bre ak ( ope n in g) E lectrotonus i s .
also useful m ed i c a lly i n gi vi n g us a clue to the treat

m e n t o f d i se a se accord i n gly where i t i s w i shed to i n
,
crease the i rr i tab i l i ty o f a part the con di t i on o f kath

electrotonus should be set up by appl i cat i ons of the
k a thode and conversely the appl i cat i on o f the a n ode i s
,
to be preferre d for i nduc i n g a state o f d i m i n i shed exci ta

a s xo wc v . 20 5
b ili t yand so o f reli ev in g pai n and spasm I t i s generally .
known that the constant current causes a muscular con

tract i on at the moment when i t passes i nto a m otor nerve ,
and aga i n at the moment when i t i s shut o ff but that ,
duri ng i ts steady passage the m uscle i s not thrown i nto

co n t racti on t hi s i s true fo r the most part but does not
hold good fo r weak currents nor fo r very strong cur ,
rents wh ich may produce a c ontract ion at the make

,
only or at the break only or m ay produce a state o f

, ,
tetanus It can be easi ly demonstrated by crus hing the

.
nerve at one part that sti mul i above the da m aged po int
ca n not transm i t a nervous i mp ulse downwards to the
muscle for by th e i njury the nerve i s d i sabled fro m con
,
y ey in g an i mp u lse though remain i ng an el ectri cal con

,
ductor I f then the elec t rodes be plac ed upon the

.
nerve one above the po i nt o f i njury and one below i t

, ,
i t wi ll be observed that the con t ract i on wi ll occur at

closure onl y when the pole below the crushed part i s
the ka thode and at openi ng onl y when the pole bel ow
,
the crushed part i s t h e anode showi n g that a st i mul us

,
is developed at the kathode at the mo m ent o f ri se o f

i rri tab ili ty at closure an d that the contract i on at break
,
i s started from the anode at the momen t o f ri se from a

mi nus degree to zero ( openi n g) F urt h er the kathodal
.
closi n g contracti on i s a stronger one than the anodal

open ing one t he ri se o f i rri tab i l i ty from th e normal
,
degree havi ng a greater e ffect than the anod al ri se to

norm al and the effect of the anod al open ing st im ulus i s
,
further di m i ni shed because o f t h e anelectrotoni c zone o f

i rn paired nervous co nduc ti vi ty whi c h surroun ds the
anode and blocks the passage o f the nervous i m pulse
downwards to t he muscle .
14 3 P fl u.
ger
’
s l aw o f oo n t ra o t l on — Th i s na m e .
i s gi ven to a table whi ch s u ms up the results o f ex

peri m en t swi th weak medi um and strong c urrents in

, ,
such a way as t o show the e ffect of open i ng an d closin g

wi th (a) descen d i ng currents ( kathode nearest t o muscle)
and ( b) asce n di ng currents ( anode nearest t o muscle) ;
0 stands fo r contract i on .
D s sc s un m o . A sc s n n mo .
C un n z ur . G L OS O as . O pn m uo . C L os uae . O Pl N G.
The n o n appeara n ce o f an open i n g contract i on wi th

-
weak currents i s expla i ned by sayi ng that the kathodal

st i mulus at closure i s more powerful than the a n odal
st i mulus at open i ng consequently i f the expe ri ment be
, ,
co m men ced wi th a current o f m edi um strength produc ,
i n g co n tract i on s at closure an d at open i n g and i f the ,
curre n t be gra dually an d progressi vely weakened t i ll it

approaches the poi n t o f m i n i m al st i m ulat io n the weaker ,
a nod a l ope n i n g st i m ulus w i ll be the first to fa i l a n d it ,
w i ll h a ve beco m e too weak to cause a contract i on be fore

the stro n ger k a thod al closure st i m ulus has beco m e too
weak I f the curre n t be st i ll further reduced a point
.
w i ll be reached whe n ne i ther closure nor open i ng will

have an y e ffect upon the m uscle W i th weak currents .
then the clos i n g co n tract i o n i s the first to appear the

, ,
ope n in g co n tr act io n requ i r i n g a stron ger current fo r it s

product i on or i n other words wi th an un i for m and
, ,
m oder a te current the clos i n g co n tract i o n i s stronger

,
than the open i n g co n tract i o n .
I f the curren t i s i n creased very m uch i n stre n gth a

poi nt i s reached when the contract i on i s no longer pro
P HY S I O LO G Y . 2 07
duced at both closi ng and open i ng ; and i nstead i t

shows i tsel f e i ther only wi t h closure i f the current be
descendi ng or only at Open i ng i f the current be ascend
,
in g. The reason o f th i s i s that wi th stron g c urre nts

there i s a consi der able obstacle o Hered to the passage o f
nervous i mpulses by the area o f anelectroton i c nerve ,
and thi s ly ing c hi e fl y between anode and ka t hode i s ,
able to block the pas sage o f the i m pulse o f openi ng from

t h e anode to the m u sc le i f the current be a descendi ng
on e and o f the clos ing i m pul se from the kathode if the
,
current be an ascend ing on e C urrents suffi c ien tl y

.
s t ron g to show these e ffects are not used i n m edi ca l

treatmen t and i t is not necessary to dwell longer upon
,
the m but the oth er pheno m ena o f the law o f contracti o n

,
whi ch are of i m portance i n pract i ce are that w i th the

weak or moderate currents used i n med ic ine the closi ng ,
contracti o n appears be fore the ope n i ng con tract i on and ,
when th ey are both produced t h e former is the m o re

vigorous o f the two Further the contracti on i s best
.
seen wi th a descend ing c urrent fo r then t he kathode is

n earest to the m uscle and i s able to t rans m i t i t s im
pulse to the m uscle wi thout any i nterference from the

d im i n i shed conduct i vi ty whi ch i s set up round the
anode W hen the current is ascend ing an d the kathode
.
is the furt hest away fro m the muscle i t i s separated

from i t by the res i sti ng anodal regi on consequently the
,
ascen di n g cl os in g con t ract ion i s weakened and pro ,
duces an e ffect about equal to that of the ascendi ng

openi ng contracti on .
These effects stud i ed in the firs t i nstance in d issected

and exposed nerves o f the lower an im a ls can also be ,
demonstrated in t h e hu m an subj ect and thei r v alue ,
and si gn ifican ce wi ll be brought out when the subject

of di agnosi s i s bei n g treated I t wi ll then be shown
.
that in certa i n pathologi cal co n di t i ons the norm al re

act i ons are so altered that the anodal clos i ng contract ion
may be e q ual to or greater than the kathodal closi ng
co ntract i on .
144 . T he p h en o m en a of c o n t ra c t i o n in th e
hum an subj ec t —E rb h asshown that the co n d i t ion
.
o f a ffa i rs i s n o t qu i te so si m ple when a nerve i s be i n g
tested in si tu as i t i s when the ne rv e has been exposed

, ,
and has the electrodes d i rectly i n contact wi th i t In .
spe aki ng o f the electr i cal exa m i nat i on of l i v i ng m uscle s

through the sk i n he says W e have to deal wi t h
nerves wh i ch are surrounded wi th m ore or less th i ck
layers o f well conduct i ng t i ssues and wh i ch are per ,
m eated by a large nu m ber o f the threads o f curre n t

d iffus ion we ca n n ot there fore possi bly m ai nta i n an y
,
un i for m curren t dens i ty i n the n erve ; the greate s t

de n si ty o f the current wi ll always be found i m m ed i ately
bene a th the electrodes even i n the i n trapolar port i o n s
o f the n erves the de n s i ty w i ll soon beco m e so sl i ght i f ,
the electrodes are n o t closely approx im ated that a pa rt ,
o f the n erve m ay be regarded as n o t traversed by th e

”
curre n t . I n the n e ighbourhood o f each pole there
occur two tr a cts perm eated by an ascen di n g a n d by a
desce n d i n g curre n t respect i vely Thus i t i s i m possi ble .
to i n st i tute a stri ctly physi ologi cal exper i m en tat i o n o n

the l i v i n g m an m ore especi ally the d i rect i o n o f the
,
curre n t wh i ch h a s erro n eously been cons i dered o f so

great i m port an ce m ust be excluded fro m all accou n t ,
a n d we m ust str i ve to fin d the law o f contract i o n s o f
the l i v i n g m otor n erve wi th i n the body wi thout referen ce

to
The order o f appe a ra n ce an d the relat i ve strength o f
Von Zi m e H a db k f G
ssen s
’
l T h
n oo
p e u t i
oc l ien era e ra s, vo . v .
,
E l ec t ro t h era peut i c s,
”
t ran sl at ed by D e Wa ttevi l l e.
P HY SI O LO GY . 2 09
the co ntracti on s so produced have been tabulated as
a. Kathodal
clos ing contract ion ( K C C ) 4 .
b A nodal
.
(A C C ) 2 .
c A nodal open i ng c ontracti on ( A O C )

. 2 .
d Ka t hodal
.
( K O C ) 1 .
145 Un i pol ar ex c i t at i on
.
— B y thi s means an ex
.
planati on i s gi ven of the law o f contracti on as observed

i n th e li vi ng subject fo r i t i s evi dent that in the common
,
case o f the anode placed on so m e i nd ifferent part such ,
as t h e sternum and the kathode upon the muscle to be

,
tested wh ich we will suppose to be the gastrocnemius

, ,
o n e wo u ld expect ( suppos i ng i t to be true that the

st i mul us o f clos ure i s purely kathodal and the sti mulus
o f open i ng i s purely at anode ) that the act o f clos i ng ,
the c ircui t would gi ve a contract ion KC C in the gas

t rocnemiu s but that th e ope n i ng would only gi ve a con
,
tracti on in the m uscles near the sternum Then there .
would be no KO C in the gastrocnem i us and agai n i n ,
the same way w ith kathode at sternu m and anode on

gastrocn em i us there would be n o A C C i n the muscle
, ,
but o n ly an A O G O bservati on shows t h at wi th t h e

.
un i polar method one can nevert heless obta in all four

e ffects KC C A CC A O G KO C in a muscle ; and the
, , , , ,
explanat i on o ffered i s that round the pole ( actual

pole ) there are area s o f opposi te si gn ( the vi rtual pole) .
W here the threads o f current in the ir passage through

the li mb e n ter i nto the nerve from the anode there is an
anodal area and where they emerge from the nerve or
,
muscle there i s a kathodal area E rb has carefully .
cleared up thi s po int by the di agram and followi ng

statement ( fig .
A glance at the figu re wi ll show that an i solated pole
placed upon a nerve must have n ot alone o n e but ev en ,

two vi rtual opposi te poles i n i t s nei ghbourho od ; i f the

current enters through the anode in a certa i n den si ty
the threads o f current wi ll fl o w along both di rect i on s o f
the nerve wi th d im i n i sh ing densi ty the kathode may be ,
regarded as virtually present at the poi nt at wh i ch the

densi ty has become so sl ight that the current i s i n efie c
'
t i ve .E very anode i s there fore surrounded by t wo

kathodes o f much less de n si ty ; and the reverse a l so
occurs round the kathode ; under all ci rcumstance s i n ,
h o . 69 .
—L i n es o f c urren t di ff us io n ro un d an el ect rode .
the u n i polar methods o f appl i cat i on i n add i t ion t o the ,
act i on o f the pole appl i ed d irectly we must there fore

expect to fin d the act ion o f the opposi te pole though
”
very much en feebled .
1 6
4 R
. e a c t i o n s of m u l
sc e — a S kel etal mu scl e . . .
I n a n ormal m uscle the efl ec t o f d i rect st i m ulat i on of

'
i t s fib res i s concealed by the e ffect produced upon it

through i t s nerves fo r the i ntra m uscular branches o f its
,
nerve both rece i ve the i m pression better and tra n smit ,

P HY S I O LO G Y . 21 I
it t o all parts of
the muscle more rap i dly than the
muscle fibres could do i t by themselves i f no nerves
were present S t i ll muscle per 55 i s i rri table and ca pable
.
of respond i ng to st i mul i by a contracti on but for th is i t

i s necessary that the sti m ulus sho uld have a certa in
m i ni mum durat i on rather longer than the m i n i mum fo r
,
a nerve trunk accord i ngly i t o ften happen s that a muscle

,
whose nerves have undergon e i nj ury may n o t respond

t o the rap i d sti mul i o f i nducti on c u rrents while they ,
wil l st ill respond to t he constan t current slowly i n

t erru p t e d.
W e have already alluded to the occasi o n al production

o f tetanus by the constant current thi s i s usually n o ,
ti ced as a phenomenon conti nuin g on the KC C when

st rong currents are employed and i t i s observed both ,
when the sti mulus i s appl i ed to the nerve and when i t

i s appli ed to the m uscles i t i s someti mes expressed by
the symbol KC T ( kathodal closure tetanus) or by KD C ,
( kathoda l durat i on contracti on ) .
.b Unst rip ed mu sclc — The . behavi our o f unstri ped

muscle resembles that o f stri ated muscle ex cept i n so ,
far as the latent peri od o f uns t ri ped muscle i s longer ,
and the rate o f passa ge of the con t ract i on from the

nei ghbourhood of the po int sti mulated i s slower i n con ,
sequence o f t h is i t i s q ui te easy to see that the s t i m ulus

starts from the ka t hode at closure and from the anode ,
at open ing When an organ co n ta ini ng uns t ri ped mus

.
cle i s st im ulat ed by a success ion o f farad i c shocks i t ,
slowly an d gradually passes i nto a state o f ton i c con

tract i on wh i ch pers ists fo r some t i m e after th e sti m ul a
ti on has ceased farad ism has been appl i ed t o certa i n of
th e abdom inal vi scera fo r the purpose o f setti ng up co n
tract ions i n thei r unstri ped muscle and i mprovi ng the
tone of the organs .
0 . scle — The
H eart mu . effect of electri cal st i m ulat i on
on heart muscle i s pecul i ar just i n so far as the habi ts o f
heart muscle are so ; thus heart muscle has a general

correspondence to unstri ped muscle but i t has a m ore
h ighly developed tendency to rhythm i c contract i on than
that wh i ch can be seen i n unstri ped muscl e and a
greater degree o f act i vi ty shown by i t s qui cker move
,
m ent and i t s shorter latent peri od ; i t has also the pec u

l i ari t y that a m in i m al st i m ulus i s as e ffect i ve as a max i
mal consequen tly gentle el ectri cal st i mulat i on tend s
,
c h i cfl to alter the rate o f the rhythm o f the heart a nd

y
by a sui table seri es of shocks i n regular sequence the
heart can be caused to take up the rate of the seri e s o f
shocks and so can be qu i ckened or slowed ( the latter
,
bei ng more diffi c ul t ) .
W hat i s known as the refractory peri od o f heart

muscle depends upon the tenac i ty wi th wh i ch it m a i n
tai n s a rhyth m wh i ch i t has on ce acqu i red an d the ,
sa m e rhyth m i c te n dency m akes i t al m ost i m possi ble to

produce a state o f true teta n i c con tr a ct io n i n i t It i s
.
m ore easy to i n fl uen c e the heart by the cont i n uous cur

ren t wi th regular i n terrupt ions or reversals tha n by
the i nduct i o n app a ratus .
1 7
4 E. l e c t ri c i t y i n c a s e s o f s u sp e n d e d a n i m a
t i on . G reat u n certa i n ty ex i sts as to the m ode o f usi n g

electr i c i ty i n c a ses o f apparen t death by drown i n g from ,
the ad m i n i strat i o n o f chloroform or from po i so n i ng by

,
carbo n i c ac i d gas E lectr i c i ty i n these cases i s not of

.
m uch use for the purpose o f i n fl u en c i n

g the heart but is ,
valuable fo r ass i st in g the process o f art i fic i al respi ration .
The regi o n o f the heart should be avoi ded as m uch as

poss i ble A n yth i n g wh i ch upsets the rhyth m i cal con
.
tract ion o f the he a rt i s l ikely to a rrest i t s act i o n alto

gether It has been fou n d by experi ment upon the
.
p a vs x o wc r . 2 13
heart o f dogs tha t if the appl i ca t ion o f the fa radi c cur

,
rent can be ti med so as to be synchronous w i th t h e

nor mal contracti ons o f the organ a contract ion o f in
,
creased stren gth i s i nduced but if not so t imed the

,
ordi nary rhythm ical act ion is i nterfered w i th v io lent ,
tremo rs of the card i ac walls occur fo r three or fo ur

m inutes ( as i f the heart were endea vourin g to recover
i t s los t rhyth m ) then wea ker trembli ngs follow and
ul t i matel y all movem ent ceases I n cases o f apparent
.
dea th if th e heart is st ill beati ng at all i t s act i on i s

, ,
very feeble an d therefore more li kely to su ffer from an

i njudi c ious appli ca ti on o f electri ci ty I n thes e cases
.
,
there fore i t is recommended that electri c i ty be used

,
ra ther as a help i n restori ng respi rati on and for this

purpose i t i s best th at t h e operator shoul d st and on the
ri ght si de o f the pat ient and as the arm s are rai sed each
t i m e in the performance o f Sy l vester s method o f induc in g
’
art i fici al resp i rati on

,
one pol e of a faradi c apparatus
should be app li ed to the motor poi n t o f the phren i c
ner ve on the right si de o f the neck ( o r a di vi d ed elec
trode can be used and appli ed to both si des) on th e
,
outer edge o f the lower part o f the s t erno masto i d and -

,
the oth er pole to the right s i xth i ntercos t al space at a

level wi t h the ensi form ca rtil age or t o the lower part o f
,
the st ern um ; th e curre n t shoul d run fo r two seconds ,
and be suspended fo r two seconds alternately C on .
tracti ons o f the di aphrag m wi ll thus be induced at the

same ti me that the thoraci c cav i ty i s enlarged by the
rai si ng o f the arms and a larger amount o f ai r w i ll en ter
the chest The appli ca ti on o f el ectri ci ty in these ca ses
.
o f a pparent death should always be secondary to the
endeavours to produce art ifici al respirat i on by other

m ea ns. T i me i s o f t h e greatest importance an d the
pati ent should n ot be le ft wh il e an electri c battery 18
be i ng sought for or set to work these dut i es should ,
always be le ft to a th i rd or fourth person whose assi s

ta n ce i s not actually necessary fo r carryi ng o ut the
ordi nary movements for i nduci ng art ifici al respi rat i on .
I f electri c i ty i s employed i t should be the faradi c or i n

t erru pt e d current and the ,
m ost use ful because the
m ost ready apparatus i s the old fash i oned m agneto -
m ach i n e wh i ch i s set i n act i on by turn i ng a handle

,
.
1 8
4 S e.n s o ry n e r v e s
j ust as the electr
. i cal st i m u
lat ion o f motor nerves causes m uscular contract i on s so ,
the st i m ulat ion of se n sory nerves produces sensat i o n s .
A ccord i ngly when an ord i nary m i xed nerve trunk i s

,
st im ulated i t s motor fib res m ake the muscles suppli ed

,
by i t contract and i t s sen sory fib res convey to the bra i n

,
o f the pat i ent experi mented upo n a pecul i ar sensat i on or
shock strong or weak

, i n proport i on as the current i s
,
stro n g or weak The pecul i ar i ty o f the sensat i on also

.
produces a mental effect so that d i fferent pat i ents ap ,
pear to vary i n the i r suscept i bi l i ty to these sensat i on s ,
thus i t i s sa i d that if a curre n t be transm i tted from

ha n d to hand through a l i n e o f people so m e w i ll say ,
they felt the shock severely and som e only sl i ghtly I n ,

.
the case o f Musch mbroek the i n ven tor o f the L eyden jar, ,
the n ovelty and pecul i ari ty o f the shock that he re

c ei v ed at h i s first tr i al o f i t produced such a n e ffect
upon h i m as to take away h i s breath and make h i m ill
fo r two days .
The se n sat i on produced whe n the sensory nerves are

st i m ulated i s called a shock an d accordi ng to the m ode ,
o f appl i cat i on they m ay be known as galvan i c faradic

, , ,
or in duct ion shocks an d shocks from a stat i cal machine

,
or L eyden j ar .
a .G al van i c se n sat i on s — I n the case . o f the constant g al

a
v n io current there ,
i s a sensat i o n not only at clo s ure
P a vsro wc v . 2 15
and open ing but also dur ing i ts steady passage i f the
, ,
cu rrent be fai rly strong but not if i t be weak

,
.
The se n sat ions are more percepti ble at the kathode

than at the anode but a good deal depends upon the
,
relat i ve s i zes o f the el ectrodes if one be much smaller

th a n the other th en the greater densi ty o f current at
,
the sm aller one increas es the cutaneous sensat ions there .
I f the elect rodes be held sti ll i n one p l ace other ,
sensat ions o f a burnin g character are felt and are acco m

p a n i ed by redden i ng urt i car
, i a or b li ster i ng
,
o f the sur
face these ch anges and the burn i n g pa i n are usually

,
a scri bed to the formati on o f products o f electrolysis .
In the removal o f hai rs by electrolysi s the fin e needle ,
l i ke electrode introduced i nto the ha i r folli cle feels much ,
as though i t we re ve ry hot The nature o f the surface

.
o f the electrod e also m o difi es the sensa ti on ; and the
current i s less pa in ful wh en the electrodes are firml y

pressed upon the surface because the contact i s the n ,
bet t er and the current i s d i stri buted over more poi nts
o f e n t r ance .
.6 Faradi c sensat ions —The faradi c apparatus gi ves a

.
seri es o f shocks corres pond ing to the rap i di ty o f t h e

vi brati ng contact breaker and if t hey be appl ied to the
,
dry sk i n the sensat ion i s more sharp an d pri cki ng than

when the ski n i s well m o i stened Outhi s account i t is .
usual when th e sensory e ffect i s espec i al ly desi red to

, ,
employ a dry brush o f many fin e metall ic wi res for the

electrode .
The fara dic shocks are also more pa i n ful if the elec
trodes are appli ed to s urfaces far apart from o n e
anot h er beca use o f the much greater length o f sensory
,
nerves whi ch are i n fl uen ced i n that case ; when con

ven i en t i t i s be t ter t o li mi t the appli cat i on t o the a ffected
pa rts and so t o spare needless d i scomfort t o the pati ent

,
.
2 16 M ED CA I L s n ac r m c x r v.
149 . N ervel o f sp ec i al sen se . —T h e nerv es o f spe
c i al sense respond t o electri cal st i mul at i on by thei r own

speci al sensati on s thus st i m ulat i on of t h e ol factory
,
nerve produces a smell li ke phosphorus and st i m u ,
lati on of the opt ic nerve produce s the i mpressi on o f a

fl ash of li ght The opt i c nerve seem s t o be remarkabl y
.
sensi t i ve to small electri cal current s an d the sensati o n ,
o f a fl ash o f l ight i s very eas i ly pr o d uced by the sm all

current obtai ned from a si lver coi n an d piece of zi nc put
i nto the m outh between the gums an d cheek
, W h en .
the metals are made t o touch the opt i ca l effect i s di s ,
t i nct . S ome observer s have even thought that t h e

colour of the fl ash seemed t o depend upon the di rect i o n
o f the current and that the kathodal closure gav e a
,
redd i sh colour and anodal closure a blui sh on e Th e se .
e ffects can be fully stud i ed by a battery of four or fi v e

elements wi th one po le at the nape of the neck and t h e
,
other over the temple or eyel i ds E xperi menters must .

,
however remember the acc i den t whi ch befell D uchen n e

, ,
who appl i ed a current o f u n k n own strength to a pa

t i en t s face and apparently caused very ser i ous da m a ge
’
to the sight o f one o f h i s pat i ent s eyes ’

.
T he au di tory nerve Th i s nerve also can be m ade t o

.
-
respond to galvan i c st im ulat i on It i s not so very easy .
i n healthy i nd i v i duals to produce the electri cal react i ons

o f the aud i tory nerve fo r fa i rly strong curre n ts are t e ,
qu i red and some of the e ffects upon the eyes and bra i n
,
m ake the experi m e n t u n pleasant but the i nvest i gat i on

i s i mportant because o n e i s frequently called upon to
,
treat tinnitus am zum by the galvan i c current and the

'
'
pr ogn os i s i n any part i cular case turns largely upon the

way i n wh i ch the audi tory nerve reacts There i s a .
close li keness between the formula of the audi to ry nerve

and that of the other nerves The kathodal closure pro .
P HY S I O LOG Y . 2 17
duces a sensati on o f sound wh i ch cont i nues d uri ng the

,
passage o f the current but the anodal closure does not

,
o n the other hand the anod al open i ng produces a sound
and kathodal ope n ing does n o t The formula then is .
K C sound .
K D sound .
KO
AC
weak sound
AO .
These audi tory phenomena wil l be ag ai n re ferr ed to i n

C hapter V I I I .
G alvan i c sti mulati on of the nerves o f taste i s easil y

produced and the si mple experi ment j ust menti oned
,
for produc i ng the opti cal se nsati on o f a fl ash o f li ght

will at the same t i me produce a me t al li c ta ste and by ,
pas sing a curren t fro m one pole at the back o f the neck
t o t he other below the ch i n o ver the hyo i d bone the ,
same metall i c taste i s produced .
150 O t h er o rgan a
. B esi des the physi ologi cal acti on
.
o f elec t ri ci ty upon muscle and nerve i t h as an acti on on ,
secret ing glands upon certai n vi scera and upo n the

, ,
bra i n I t i s qui te in accordan ce wi th what one would

.
natural ly expect that a current pass i ng through a secret

i n g gland or th rough i t s secretory nerves should cause
i ncreased secreti on ; an d tha t a c u rrent passi ng through
a v iscus co n tai n ing unstri ped muscle shoul d cause peri
stalti c co ntracti ons of that vi scus : and there i s no need
for u s to enter i nto detai l at present by descri b in g the
parti c ular behavi our o f the uterus o f the bladder o f the , ,
in te st ine or o f the spleen for these poi nts w i ll be better

, ,
trea t ed o f later .
I n the case of the bra in experi mental physiologists

have made much use o f electri cal st imuli for determ in
in g the si tuat i on of m otor centres i n the exposed cere

bral cortex W hen a cont i nuous current i s passed
.
transversely through the skull wi th the electrodes on ,
the tem ples or mastoi d processes there i s a di sturbance ,
o f equ i l i bri u m a feel i ng o f gi dd i ness or an actual u

, n ,
stead i ness wi th a tendency to fall towards the s i de of

,
the anode and con jugate devi at ion of the eyes t o the
,
s i de o f the kathode wi th a ki nd of osc i llat i on or lateral

,
nystagm us .
It has bee n supposed that the d i sturba n ce o f equi l i

b ri u m depends upon a state of kat h el ec t ro t o n u s o f one
he m i sphere wi th anelectrotonus of the other ; the form er

hem i sphere be i ng i n a state o f exalted exc i tabi l i ty and
the latter i n a state o f d i m i n i shed exci tab i l i ty thei r ,
act ion i s n o lon ger balanced and a sensat i on o f gi ddi ,
ness i s the result .
The bra i n i s not easi ly i n fl uen c ed by faradi c current s

appli ed to the outsi de o f the skull though respondi ng ,
.
read i ly when the electrodes are appl i ed d i rectly to i t s

substa n ce .
15 1. T he re fre sh i n g a c t i o n
” o f t h e g al v an i c
curren t D r G V P aara has reported so m e re m ark

. . . .
i‘
able experi m e n ts upo n what has been called by H ei

den hezn the re fresh i n g act i on o f the consta n t curren t ;
'
he i n vest igated the fat igue o f m uscles produced when

a weight i s held out stead i ly at arm s length and ’
gi ves the i n sta n ce o f a pat i e n t who was able to hold

out h i s arm hori zo n tally w i th a we ight o f seventee n
oun ces i n the pal m fo r a peri od o f four m i nutes an d
the n co m pla i n ed o f gre at pa i n i n the m uscles and
fat i gue an d decl a red h i s i nab i l i ty to go o n but was
,
rel i eved o f h i s pa i n at o n ce by the passage of a con

“
E l ect ric it y in M edic in e an d Surger y , D r. G . V
. P oore,
L on do n , 18 7 6 .
P HY S I O L O G Y . 2 19
sta nt current in a descendin g di recti on along the arm .
A nother person was then exper i mented on in t h e sa m e

way ; after holdi ng out the we ight at arm s length fo r '
seventy seconds he felt pa i n and fati gue but the a ppl i

, ,
cat ion o f the curren t at once removed both and he con ,
t i n n ed to support the we ight for h y e mi nutes an d a

q uarter and a t the end of that t i m e was w illi ng to go
,
lon ger D r P oore says : si m ilar ex pen m en t s to

'
on . .
these have been tri ed on se veral o f the author s fri ends '
and they all tend to show t hat th e enduran c e o f v ol un

tary muscular acti on i s enormous ly i ncreased by the
passage of a constant current and the feeli ng o f fat i gue ,
both d u ri ng an d a fter the prolonged effort i s mi ti gated

o r enti rely obvi ated
"
.
D r P oon also demonstrated that the force as wel l as

.
the end urance o f a m uscul ar e ffort could be i ncreased

by a galvani c current E ight success i ve squeezes wi th
.
a dy n amo m eter at intervals o f ten seconds gave an

average o f 48 § pounds for each s q ueez e but eight m ore ,
squeezes wi th the ai d o f the current gave an average o f

59 } pounds although
, they came t en m i n utes a fter t h e
h i st seri es and wh ile th ere was di st inct consc i ousness

,
of fati gue fro m the first experi m ent .
The c urrent used wa s never stron g en o ugh to produce n
i nvoluntary c on t ract ion o f the m u scl es .
152 .T roph i c efiec t s — E xperi ments were made by

.
“
D r B an d to determi ne the e ffect o f general fa radi z a
.
‘
t ion upon the growth o f some puppi es they were kept ,
under trea tme n t for four weeks be i ng farad ized da i ly ,
at th e en d o f the ti me the two puppi es whi ch had bee n

8 0 treated had gai ned i n wei ght faster and were per
cept i b l y b i gger than the two o t hers wh i ch had been ,
kept untrea ted as control a n i mals ; however oth er ,
B eard an d R kw l l ocM edi cal an d S u

e , rgi ca l U ses o f E l ec t ric it y .
"
M E DIC A L E LE C T RI C I T Y .
contract i on always y i elds a current wh i ch c an b e

m easured by a galvano m eter and Wal l er h as lately
,
shown a m ethod o f de m onstrat i ng in the huma n subj e ct

that there i s an electri cal current produced by t h e
heart s beat and that i t can be led o ff to a galva n o
’
,
meter by wi res from the two ha n ds It may be th at .
the pecul i ar powers o f electri c fish es have gr o wn up

from the electri cal current of act i on co m mon to all
con tract i n g m uscle but i t i s di fficul t to trace the i nter
,
m ed i ate steps i n the scale of develop m ent The skate.
has an electri cal organ i n i t s tai l wh i ch i s n ot able to

g i ve shocks although i t can strongly a ffect a galvano
,
m eter .
D uc x o s rs . 2 23
C H A PT E R VI I I .
D mo n o s x s .
M et h o d o f proc ed re. u C o m pariso n of diseased an d so un d sides.
Use of t he gal va n om et er T h e m o t o r po i n t s
. . R el at io n of
spin al n erve roo ts to mu

scl es I m po rt an ce o f
. ex peri m en t s .
a fl ec t ion s Pro f E rb m et h od
'
B il ateral
‘
. . s . E l ec t ro di agn osis o
c hart s. M o rbi d c han ges in t h e e l ect ri c al rea ct ion s . Q uan t it a

t i ve c h an ges . T he rea ct ion of degen erat ion . C ourse of t he
reac t i o n of degen era t io n . Part ial react i on of de gen erat io n .
C o n di t i on s l eadi n g t o reac t ion of degen erat i on . Pro gn osi s i n

reac t io n ot degen era t io n . A no m al o us reac ti o ns . Sen sory
n erv es . N erv es o f spec ial se n se . T he a udi t ory n erve .
156 . M prooed u
e t h od o f re — W hen a pati ent wi th .
any d i sord er o f t h e nervous system presents h i mself for

electri c al treatment i t i s nearly alwa ys necessary t o
,
begi n wi t h an investi gati on o f the elec tn c a l reacti ons

'
o f hi s nerves and muscles fo r much may o ften be ,
lea rned from this procedure o f electro di agnos i s as i t i s -

,
somet i m es termed .
It wi ll be found that a con si derable amount of care

and o f ti me m ust be devoted t o th i s prel im i nary i nvest i
g a t i on ; i t i s n o t nearly so easy to arr i ve at clear results
as o n e m ight be led t o expect fro m the perusal of a
cha pter on electro d i agnos i s T h e motor nerves and
-
.
the skeletal mu scles should be i nvest igated first and ,
both t he taradic and the conti nuous currents mus t be

employed .T o s i mpl i fy matter s the un i polar met hod o f
e xci tati on must be ado p ted th e other pole ( in different
,
el ectrode) bein g pl aced over a di stant part of the body ,

2 24. M E D IC A L E LE C T RI C I T Y .
as upon the sternum or the sacrum or the upper part of

,
the back accordi ng t o conven i ence or the requi re m e nts

o f the part i c u lar case E rb reco m m ends the stern um as
.
the best po si t i on fo r t h e i nd ifferent electrode b eca use i t ,
i s bo t h sy m m etri cal i n posi t i on and i s al so furth er

,
removed fro m the spi nal nerve t runks t han any pa rt o f

the surface of th e back . The i nd i ffere n t el ec t rode
fi
( g .
5 5 ) should be large , about t hr ee o r fo ur i n ch es
square i n order to overcome the ski n resi stan c e i t

, ,
sho uld be well m o i sten ed wi th water or sal i ne solut i on

but n o t so wet as to y i eld drops o f water when m od er
(
ately pres sed) and should be i n th oroughly good co ntact
wi th the surface of the ski n i n order t o provi de as man y
poi nts of ent ry fo r the current as pos si ble The o th e r .
or exci t i ng electrode m ust be small for t h e sake o f

local i s i ng the c ur rent to the part i cular spot requ i red ,
but not so sm all as to o ffer t o o h igh a resi stance ; fo r

farad i s m a s u
,
i table s i ze i s one o f about } i nch ( 2 0 m m ) 4
.
i n d i a m eter for galvani s m about 15 i nch ( 40 m m ) an d

, .
i t m ust be appl i ed wi th u n i form pressure It i s som e .
t i m es use ful to fasten the i nd ifferent el ectrode over the

tru n k o f the nerve supply i n g the m uscles to be tested ,
i n that way the e ffect o f the st i m ulat i o n can be m o re

easi ly l i m i ted to the m uscles u n der exam i n at i on A .
co n ve n i e n t for m o f i n d i fferent electrode i n such a case

i s one fastened to a strap or garter o f webb i ng or fl an n el
w i th a buckle to fix i t firm l y i n place I n exam i n i ng .
the co n d i t i o n o f the ul n ar nerve fo r exa m ple i n a case

, ,
o f i n jury to that n erve i n the forear m one should faste n,
the in di fieren t electrode over the trunk o f the nerve o n

'
the i n n er s i de o f the upper arm the exc i t i ng electrode

,
may the n be appl i ed to the i n terossei or other muscles

o f the hand wh i ch i t i s w i shed to test I f the cond i t ion
.
o f the m ed i an nerve i s i n quest i on one electrode m ay

n uc s o s1s . 225
be appl i ed be t ween the tendons o t th e pa l mari s longus

'
and the fl ex o r carp i radi al i s and the other as be fore t o

,
the m uscles o f the hand and fin gers .
157 . C o m pari so n of di s e ased an d so un d si d es .

—The case to be exam i ned may be wh i ch the on e in
m i sch i e f ( pa ralysi s an e s thes i a o r what not) i s li mi ted
,
t o on e part or o n e s i de o f the body or i t m ay a ffect both ,
si des The first case i s the easier because o f the ad

.
vantage o f havi ng a sound s ide fo r purposes of co m

pari son I f both s i des are i nvolved in the di sea se i t
.
becomes more di ffic ul t to recogn ize changes in the

electri cal reacti ons an d o n e has to fa l l back fo r gui d
,
ance upon previ ous experi ence or help m ay be found in ,
a compari son o f one s own correspond ing muscles wi th

’
those o f the pati ent .
158 . Use o f t h e gal v an om et er — F i rst the case o f .
a pati ent wi th an a ffecti on li m i ted t o o n e s i de may be

co ns idered It has been shown by E rb that i t i s usual
.
fo r the two si des o f a pati ent s body to be r emarkably

'
equa l i n thei r response t o sti m ulat ion provi ded always ,
t hat the ski n res i stance o f the t wo s i des i s the s ame or

nearly so Th i s skin res istance can be measured by the
.
galva n ometer and all owed for Fo r the m ost part one .
does not expect to h n d much di fference i n the ski n

res i stance o f the two si des but acc i den tly there may be
,
a di fference and the electro m ot i ve force of the testi ng

,
current m ust i f necessary be altered to sui t i t by i n

, , ,
crea s i n g or decreas ing the number o f cells i n the c irc ui t .
For i nstance if the galvanometer reads 5 m il li a m pe res

,
fo r the m in i ma l contract ion when the electrode i s

appli ed to the ri ght ulnar nerve st imulati on o f the le ft ,
ulnar nerve should also y i eld a m in i mal con t ract ion

when the galvanometer reads 5 m i ll i ampe res and th i s ,
whether the n umber o f cells o f the battery req u ired t o

Q
226 DIC A L s t s c r m c rrv .
'
ME
produce the defl ect ion be the same on bo t h si de s or not ,
for the amoun t of current enteri ng the n erve i s measured

by the galvanometer defl ec t i on and n ot by the number
of cells Bu .t the galvanometer cannot be u sed wi th the
farad i c current and as i t i s usual to commen ce wi th th at
,
for m o f st i mulus we are compell ed to appr o ach the

di ffi c ul t y i nd i rectly by est i m at i ng the strengt h o f the
,
farad i c apparatus w i th a sledge coi l 119 ) and read i ng
off the d i stance from secondary to pri mary i n m i ll i
metres and by a fterwards che ck i ng the resul ts obta i ned

,
i n that way by the readi ngs o f the galvanom e ter at the

ti m e when the constant current i s bei ng used proceed ,
in g i n th i s way the result can be expressed i n the form

of a table thus
H E A L T HY M AN ( L a m un s n ) !
D i st an ces b et ween coil s

D efl ect i on Of galv an omet er
i n m i l l i m et res
.
Fro n t al n erve
S pi n al A ccesso r y
n e rv e
U l n ar
Pero n eal
H ere tak i ng
,
the sp i n al accessory nerve the far a d i c ,
test showed that the left one gave a m i n i mal co ntrac t i o n

T his t abl e ofPro f E rb giv es gal v an om et er defiect io n s i n deg
. r e e s»
n ot in m i l li am pere s, an d t h e reader m u st t here fore be con t en t ‘0
n o t i ce t h at t h e n umbers are co m parabl e fo r t h e t wo sides, al t h o ug h

t h eir v al ues are n o t so di rec t l y p o po
r rt io n al t o on e an o t her as if t h ey
h ad been ex pressed in m illiamperes .

n uo s o sx s . 2 27
wi th the coi l at 17 7 m ill i metres an d th e r igh t at 17 2

mi ll i m etres that i s t o say the left was m ore suscept i ble
, ,
the d ifference be ing measured by the 5 m illi m e t res i n

creased di st ance between the co ils ; th i s m ight have
been due to a d iff erent degree of ski n res istance or to a
d ifferen t degree o f irr i tabil i ty of the nerve I f i t had .
si gn i fied a difi eren t ski n res i stance only th e n the m i n i

'
mal contract ions to galvan i sm shoul d have occurred on

both s ides wi th the same galvanometer read ing that i s to ,
say wi th the same amount o f current in c ircu i t but the ,
table shows t hat the le ft nerve responded w i th a current

o f 15 wh i le the ri ght needed a current o f fro m that
°
we are able to say certa inly that the lef t nerve was
stight l y the more i rri table o f the two and that the di f ,
ference between the 17 2 m m and the 177 m m was a. .
result of the greater i rri tab i l i ty o f le ft over ri ght and ,
was not due t o i ncreased sk i n res i stan ce on the right

si de Th i s example if th oroughl y understood makes
.
, ,
clear the mode of compari ng the t wo si des .
T o measure the s t rength o f the secondary current by

the number o f m i ll ime t res between the pri mary and
seco ndary co i l has a fter all but li ttle m ean ing and
, , , ,
d oes n ot enable us to compare together the results o h

t ai n ed wi th di ff eren t co i ls i t i s a rough means of com
,
p ar i ng d i ff er ent pati ents w i th the same co i l and that ,
only when the battery wh ich works the coi l i s acti n g

wi th uniform stre n gth a n d when the contact vi brator i s
,
working wi th the sa m e rap i di t y an d force and the same ,
object i on appl i es to galvanometers whi ch are graduated

in degrees 5 degrees defl ec t i on o f on e galvanometer
,
m ay mea n so m eth i ng to t ally d i fferent to 5 degrees de

flec t io n i n another o n e The gradua ti on of galvano
.
met ers in m illi amp e res enabl es us t o compare the rea d

ings o f on e wi t h those of another but we are n o t yet in,
Q 2
2 28 us n xc u . E LE C T R IC IT Y .
po ssessi o n of a si m pl e meth o d o f c o rrec t l y m easu ring
i nduct i on cu rrents .
159
. T h e m ot o r poi n t l — T o c o n t i n ue t h e ex amin
.
at ion of the pat ient ; the test s m us t b e a ppli ed t o the

m otor nerves the m u , scles an d t h e , cu t a n eous sensory
nerves i n the parts a ffected an d t h e y m us t b e compared

,
w i th the same pa rt s o f the op po si t e a n d h e al t h y side .
To do thi s i t i s abso l utel y es s en t i a l t o kn ow tho

roughly the po i nts wh ere the n e rv e t r un ks are most
accessi ble the m otor po i nt s of t h e m usc l es an d the
, ,
d i stribut i on o f the cuta n eous nerve s .
Th i s requ i res a certa i n amount o f a n a t o m ic a l kn ow

ledge and many di agra m s have b een p repared as a
gui de and help to the m emory mo s t o f t h e m are based,
upon Von Z iemssm s plates In the pre p a r a t i o n of these

’
.
plates the st i m ul at i on o f the ner v e t run ks a n d of t he ,
m otor poi nts of the m uscles was car ri e d o ut a s fo ll ows

The i ndi ffere n t electrode be i ng pla c ed up o n t h e stern u m ,
a fin e poi nted exci t i ng electrode o f m e t a l c o v e r e d wi th

wa sh leather was appl i ed successi vely t o d i ff e rent parts
o f the m uscle u n der exa m i nat i on u n t i l a po s i t i o n was
,
fo u n d ( the m otor po i n t ) where a m ax i m um e ff ect was

produced th i s was m arked w ith colour e d c h a l k o r with
,
n i trate o f s i lv er all the m uscles were i n t ur n e x a m ined

a n d the i r m otor po i nts m arked the l i m b wi t h t h e marks
,
was then photographed Von Z iemssm v e ri fi e d t h e posi

.
t io n s by follo wi n g the course o f the ner v e s i n the dis

sec t i n g roo m ,
an d fi n di n g where th e y e n t e r e d t he
m u scles a n d t h e relat i o n o f such po i nt s o f e n t r y t o t he
,
sur fa ce o f t h e body h e also exc i ted t h e m us cles of

,
b od i es r ec e n tly d ea d be fore the m usc ul a r i rr i t ab ilitv

,
h ad di sapp ea r ed a n d m a rk i ng the spots o n t h e s u rfa ce

,
o f t h e ski n wh ere c o n tr a ct i o n was m ost r e a di l y r duc d

p o e
h e th en c ut do wn an d fou n d that the m o t o r p o i nt cor

n mc n o s x s . 229
responded closely t o the po i nt where the nerve entered

the muscle .
It sho uld be borne i n m i nd that the motor po i nts are

not qui te constant fo r d ifferen t i nd i vi duals thei r exact ,
pla ce varyi ng a l i ttle in d i fferen t cases but n ot so ,
g reat l y as to d i m i n i sh the value o f know i ng the i r pos i

t ions In actual pract i ce the best posi t ion o f the elec
.
trode can be readil y fou n d by experi men t by movin g i t ,
about in the ne ighbourhood o f the usual posi ti on of the

motor poi nt o f any pa rt icular muscl e unt i l the contra e
t ion shows that the exact spot has been t ouched The .
ea se wi th wh i ch the motor po i nts can be fo und depends

a good deal upon the amount o f subcutaneous fat
present and the exa m i nati on o f the deeper m uscles i s
,
muc h more difi cul t t h an o f the superfic i al layer i ndeed ,
in the ca se o f some o f the deep muscles i t i s almost i m

poss i ble to produce sat i s factory evi dence o f a c on t ra c
tio n l i m i ted to the muscle sought fo r the d iff usion of the
,
current wi ll throw i nto act ion th e ne ighbouri ng super .
fici al muscles and so obscure the result .It i s very im

ortant to pl ace the pat i ent s l i mb i a good pos i t i on
'
p n so ,
tha t any muscular movement looked for may be read ily

s een the muscles must be lax the l i mb should be sup
,
o rted by the hand o f the operator and not lyi ng fi at

p ,
upon the table or couch . I t i s best t o begin wi th a

c urrent w hi ch i s strong enough to throw the m u scles
i n to contrac t i on and to apply i t o n ly for a very bri e f
m oment at a ti me in thi s way the pa ti en t wi ll be less
,
a l ar m ed and the process o f testi n g wi ll be sooner over

, .
I t i s wel l alwa ys to try the strength o f t h e current on

o nese lf before tou c h i ng the pat i ent .
I t i s assumed that the ac ti on o f t he in di vi dua l m us

cl es is known so that when a contract ion i s produced i t
, ,
can be referred t o i t s proper muscle The act ions of the

.
m uscles were elaborately studi ed by D uchen ne as o n e o f ,
the outco m es o f h i s m ethods o f treatment by local i sed

appl i cat i on of the faradi c current to paralysed m uscles ,
an d he has descri bed them at great len gt h i n h i s

P hy siol ogic des Mou vem m ts B esi des watch i ng fo r and
.
see i ng the m ovem ent produced by the con tract i ng m us

cle one m ay o ften feel a weak contract i on by plac i ng
,
the hand over the tendons l i ghtly or one may see o r ,
feel m ove m ents o f the fib res o f the m uscle i tsel f when

they are two feeble to m ove the bone t o wh i ch the
m uscle i s attached .
The subjo i ned table o f the poi nts at wh i ch c erta i n

nerves m ay be conven i ently st i m ulated wi ll be o f serv ic e ,
an d P lates I to VI
. wh i ch show the motor po i nt s
.
, ,
must be cont i nually re ferred to unt i l they are kn o wn b y

heart .The areas o f ski n wh i ch are served by t h e
several cutaneous nerves m ust also be thoroughly m a s
t ered ; H ei berg s A tlas of the C utaneous N erve s
’
tra n slated by D r Wagstajfi fi has so m e useful coloured

.
‘
outl i nes o f these areas of di str i but io n P rof F l ower s

’
. .
“
A tlas m ay also be re ferred to ( S ee P lates V I I t o . .
X L a fter Fl ower and R ann ey )

, .
P o i nts favourable fo r the electr i sat i on of nerves .
I n t he u
pper l i mb
1 . T he medi an , along the i nner border o f b i ceps a n d a t ,
the be n d o f the elbow .
2 . T he ul n ar i n the groove betwee n the i nternal c o n

,
dyle a n d the olecranon .
T he mu scul o spzm l at the po i nt where i t e m erges

'
3
-
.
,
fro m the tr i ceps ; na m ely on the outer s i de o f the ,
upper arm about the ju n ct ion o f it s m i ddle and

lo wer th irds .
B ail l i ere, T i n dal l an d C ox , 188 5.

n uc x o sxs . 2 31
T he mu
scq wtzmeou
-
s i n the holl ow of the ax i lla
, .
T he brachial p lex u s i n the holl ow above the clavi cle

, .
A t a spot 2 or 3 cent imetres above the clavi cl e

and a l i ttle extern ally to the posteri or border o f
the st em o mastoi d i mmedi ately i n front of the
-
,
transverse process o f the si xth cervi cal vertebra a ,
si mul taneous con tract ion ca n be produced i n the

delto i d b i ceps brach i al i s in ternus and supi nator
,
longus . Th i s po i nt has been called the su pra
cl avicul ar poi n t of E rb .
7 . T he an terior m en d, i n the fold of the groi n j ust out

s ide the femoral artery .
8 . T he sciat ic in the pelvi s through th e coats of the

, ,
rectum ; or just below the gluteal fold at the back

o f the th igh .
9 . T he peroneal j ust above the head o f the fibul a b e

, ,
s ide the b i ceps tendon .
10 . T he tibial nerve i n the popl i teal space and t o the

, ,
i n n er s i de o f the tendo A ch i l l i s .
acial , h e cart i lage o f the lower su

1. T he f through t r
face o f th e meatus audi tori us Its ch i e f ram i fic a .
ti ons can be reached where they e m erge from the

parot i d gland E rb chooses for st i mulat ion three
.
a fo r muscles above
m ai n branches of the faci al ( )
palpebral aperture ; ( b) for muscles i n front o f
upper j aw between the orb i t and the mou t h
,
c) for m u H
( scles of the lower jaw e tests each .
o f these i n two places first at po i n ts j ust i n front

,
o f the ear and secondly fo r (a) at the temple

, fo r ,
b at anteri or extrem i ty o f zygomat i c bone near

( )
i t s lower border fo r (e) at the m i ddle o f the i n ferior
,
border o f the hori zontal ramus of the lower j aw .

2 32 ME D I CAL E LE C T RI C I T Y .
12 . T he tat the supra orbi tal foram e n— at the

fif ,h -
- —
i n fra orb i tal foramen at the foramen me n tale on ,
the si de o f the tongue on the outsi de o f the cheek ,

.
I n t he neck
13 . T he sp in al accessor y , at the t o p o f the supra clavi
-
cula t tri angle , where the nerve pi erces the sterno

m astoi d .
14 . T he p hren ic on the outer edge o f the lower part

,
o f the sterno m asto i d -

.
15 . T he hyp ogl ossal along the upper border o f the great

,
cornu o f the hyoi d bone .
16 . T he recu rren t l ar n eal

y g along the outer border o f
,
the trachea .
I 7 . T he p n eu mogastri c and gl osso p hary ngeal a long the -
track o f the carot i d artery just below the angle o f

the j aw .
160 . R el at i o n o f spi n a l n erv e roo t s to musc l e s .
Frequently i t happe n s that paralysi s a ffects a group of

muscles ; i n these cases m uch l i ght may be thrown
upon the di ag n osi s i f i t i s poss i ble to trace back the
nerve supply o f the a ffected m uscles to thei r spi nal
roots Th i s i s not always easy part icularly when the
.
,
nerve trunks pass through a plexus l i ke the brach i al

plexus on the i r way from the cord to the muscles ; fo r
exa m ple the d i str ibut ion o f a paralys i s a ffect i ng so m e
,
o f the m uscles o f the hand m i ght enable u s to d i st i n
gu i sh between a lesion o f the trun k o f the m ed i an n erv e

on the o n e hand a n d a les i on o f the e ighth cerv i cal and
,
first dorsal roots o n the other ; i n the latter case the

whole o f the the n ar an d hypothe n ar e m in ences and all
the lu m bri cales an d i n terosse i would be paralysed ; i n
the for m er case so m e of these m uscles would escape ,
namely the hypothenar the i nterosse i the two i nner

, , ,
lu m bri cales the adductor poll i ci s and the i nner hal f of

, ,
n uc x o sx s . 2 33
th e fl ex or brevi s all , of whi ch are suppl i ed by the uln ar

nerve .
A paper pub li shed i n B ra i n 188 1 by D r P errier , , .

,
gi ves a tabular statement o f the more i mpo rtant spi nal

nerv e roots wi th the muscles suppl i ed by each A s i t
, .
i s li kely to be o f great value i n electri cal di agnos is we

reproduce i t here as m odi fied by D r D e Wat tevil le
, .
,
”
L ancet July 14 188 3
, , .
4t h cervi cal . —D eltoi d rhomboi ds spi nat i b iceps

, , , bra
c h i al i s ant i cus supi nator longus
, extensors of
hand .
5t h cervical .
—D elto i d ( clav ic ular port ion ) b iceps ; bra ,
ant i cus serratus m agnus sup inator long us

ch i al i s , ,
extensors o f hand .
6 cervicd
i k — L at i ssi m us dorsi pectoral i s major ser , ,
ratus m agnus pronators tri ceps , , .
7 t h cerv ical — Tere s m i nor

. lat i ssi mus dors i s ub sc a pu , ,
lari s pectoral i s m i nor fiex o rs o f han d tri ceps

, , , .
8t h cervicaL —Flexors o f wris t and fin gers muscles o f ,
hand extensors o f wri st and fin gers tri c eps

, , .
x st dorsal — M uscles o f hand ( then ar hypot h enar ih

.
, ,
3rd Im bar — I l i o psoas sartor

. i us adductor s extensor
-
, , ,
4t h l u
m har —E xtensor fe m ori s et cruri s ; peroneus l on
.
gus ; adductors .
5th 1a m b ar — Flexors. and extensors of toes —ti b i al ,
s ural and peroneal m uscles extensors and rota

, ,
tors o f th igh hamstri ngs , .
rst s acr al —. C alf hamstri ngs long fiex or of great t oe

, , ,
i n t ri n si c muscles o f foot .
and sacral — I n t ri ns i c muscles o f foot

. .
R e ference t o the paper o f D r F m ier wi ll show that .

2 34 ME D I CAL E L E C T RI C I T Y .
i n hi s table the funct ion of each nerve root i s e xpressed

i n ter m s o f the movements produced and not i n terms ,
o f the muscles concerned i n produc i ng the move m ents .
D r H erri ngham
.
* has also tabulated as fo llows the
results o f nu m erous di ssect i ons o f the brach i al plexus in
new born i n fants
-
.
Usu al nerve su pp ly
3 rd t h and 5t h cervi ca l — L evator ang ul i scapul a
4 ,
. .
5 t h — . R ho m bo i ds .
t h t h a d 6 t h i ea l — S uprasp i natus i n f asp i natus

5 o r 5 n ee rv . r , ,
teres m i nor .
t h d 6 t h ervi cal — S ubscapular i s delto i d b i ceps

5 an c .
, , ,
brach i al i s ant i cus .
6th e rmea
e l
'
— Teres m ajor pronator teres fl ex or carpi

.
, ,
rad i al i s S upi n ator longus and brevi s S uper

.
, .
fic i al thenar m uscles .
5 t h 6
,
t h an d 7 t h c er vi ca l — S erratus m agnus. .
6t h or 7 th c rvi cae l — E xtensores carpi rad i ales

. .
t h cervi cal — C or a cobrach i al i s lat i ss i mus dors i exten

7 .
, ,
sors at back o f forear m outer head o f tri ceps , .
t h an d 8 t h eervzeal — Inner
'
head o f tr i ceps
7 . .
t h 8 t h an d I st dorsal — Flexor subl i m i s a d pro

7 ,
. n
fu n dus fl e x or carp i ul n ari s fl ex or longus poll i ci s

, , ,
and pronator quadratus .
8 th eervzcal L ong head o f tr i ceps hypothenar m uscles

'
-
.
, ,
i n terosse i deep thenar m uscles

,
.
The pectoral is maj or fro m 6t h 7 t h 8 t h and I st dorsal , , .
The pectoral es min or fro m 7 t h 8 t h and I st dorsal

'
, .
D r G owersT also gi ves a table o f the

. approx i m ate “
relat io n o f the sp i nal n erve roots to the vari ous m otor ,
se n sory an d refl ex funct i ons o f the sp i nal cord .
Pro c R oy S oc
. M arch , 18 66
. . .
1
~
D i se ases o f t h e N erv o us S st em , y vo l . i .
, 18 8 6.
D I AG N O S I S . 2 35
16 1 . I m p ort a n c e of —Wh en the stu

ex pertm en t s .
d ent ha s acqu i red by pract i ce a fa ir degree o f pro fic ien cy

i n fin di n g the motor poi n t s he wi ll have conquered the
c hi ef di ffic ul t ies o f the i nvest i gat i on o f the reacti ons o f a
pat i ent s muscles N othi ng is so use ful as t o pract i se
'
.
frequently upon oneself and the unreasoni ng di sli ke

,
whi ch m any people have to apply ing currents to the ir

own perso n s i s m uch to be deprecated A farad ic cur .
rent w hi ch i s strong enough to provoke contract ion in

t h e muscles i s not really pai nful and i t certai nly i h ,
sp ires c o n fide n c e in the pat ient i f he sees the physi ci an

begi n by applyi ng the current t o h is own muscles .
S omet i mes the current appli ed i s not strong enough ,
and thus the m i stake may be made o f supposi ng that

muscles do not respond t o farad i sm when reall y they
would respond read i ly if a suffi c i en t ly strong current
were used .
162 .
’
—
B il at eral afl ec t l o n s P rof . E rb s
’
m eth od .
—B efore spea ki ng of the devi at ions from the normal

standard wh ich are met wi th i n d i sease i t would be
well to quote fro m £ 7 6 his account o f a plan fo r deal ing
wi th cas es ha v i ng les ions o f both si des o f t he body and ,
in wh i ch co m paris m s between a sound s i de and a di s

ea sed one are not poss i ble H e says : in order t o
.
“
eli mi nate the neces s i ty of co m pari son wi th other ind i

vidu al s and to fin d a standard o f co m pari son on the
,
sam e person I ha ve tri ed a w i der method of explorat ion

, .
It co n si sts i n determ in i ng the exc i tabi l i ty o f nerves i n

di ff eren t region s o f the body and afterwards com pari ng
,
the res ults and fi x i n g the relati ve value i n d i fferen t

i ndi vi duals We fin d a fa i rly constant corr elat ion be
.
tween the four pa i rs o f n erves we have chosen so that ,
t oo cons iderable dev i at ions o f o n e o f them wi th re fer

ence to the relat i ve value may be cons idered as pa t h o
2 36 ME D I C AL E LE C T RI C I T Y .
logi cal . H ence the followi ng method —I n test i ng

f
we must always choose these our nerves the fron tal —
nerve or branch o f the faci al nerve supplyi ng t h e fron tahs
'
muscle the accessory nerve the ul nar nerve at the elbow

, , ,
and the peroneal nerve O n each o f these nerves we

.
must determ i ne w i th great care wi th a fin e electrode ,
on the most exc i table spot the d i stance of the co i ls at

,
wh i ch the m i n i mu m faradi c contract i on occurs th i s is ,
done by mark i n g the nu m ber at wh i ch the weak but

vi sible contract i on i s obta i ned wi th the negat i ve pole of
the secondary co i l Then by means o f the galvanic
.
current and wi th a m i ddle s ized electrode moi stened ,
wi th hot water every t i me i t i s appli ed the galvano ,
metri c devi at ion i s deter m i ned wi th a defin i t e number

of cells ( ten or twelve) The posi t i ve pole rema i ns fix ed
.
upon the sternum and the negat i ve i s appl i ed t o all the

,
spots at wh i ch the exci tat i on i s made The numbers .
”
thus found are tabulated .
W e thus obta i n two seri es o f numbers the one repre ,
sent i ng the relat i ve farad i c exci tab i l i ty o f the fo ur

i f
nerves the other the relat ve state o the res i sta n ce a t
,
the correspond i n g poi nts on each s i de o f the body 1 .
have already poi n ted out how the results o f the secc> 1 1d
ser i es assi st the conclus i on s to be drawn fro m t h e
first
”
( see table , g I From th i s table
“
we l e a rn
that the numbers obta i ned fo r e i ther si de o f the b o d y

es
coi nci de al m ost exactly further all four pa i rs o f n et?
, ,
"
are exc i ted by m i n i m um currents o f suffici en t l y c O m ’
parable strength ; the relat i on between the ul n ars g u d
ero n e al s i n th i s respect i s o f spec i al i mport t h e ) ’

p ,
requ ire almost equal d i stances o f coi ls whi le the from 1 53 1 5

,
o ften respond to a di stance sl ightly less ( a slig y h tl

stronger current ) and the accessori es t o one a l i t tl e
greater ( a sl ightly weaker I th i nk it we l l“ to

D I A G NO S I S . 2 37
d i rect your attenti on here t o some of the difi c ul ti es and

sources o f error whi ch you may have to encounter In .
the hrst place you must fin d the place where the nerve
i s m ost exc i table and the n determ i ne the weakest
,
c urren t whi ch wi ll exc i te i t M uch skil l and pati ence

.
are requi red fo r thi s i t is wonder ful to see how sli gh t

,
a movement of the exc i t ing electrode wi ll produce a

wholly d ifferent e ffect S pec i al difficul ti es ari se in con
.
n ec ti o n wi th the ulnar an d peroneal nerves ; the si tuat ion
i n whi ch the former i s most exc i table i s about thr ee

cent i metres above the i nternal condyle at the i nner ,
border o f the tri ceps ; i n the case of the peroneal i t i s

three or four cen t i metres above the head o f the fib ul a ,
bes i de the tendon o f the b iceps and can be reached wi th ,
t h e electrode onl y after much sea rch ing .
B y m aldn g onesel f thoroughly fam il i ar wi th the be

havi our o f th ese four nerves i n a seri es of healthy
pa t i ents one obta i ns a standard wh ich is o f great value
,
i n the i nvesti gat ion o f cases of di sease fo r i nstance the ,
followi ng table gi ven by E rb fro m a case o f tu bes dorsal is ,
i llust rates h is m ean ing an d shows a change i n the direc

ti on o f i ncreased farad i c exci tab i l i ty i n the peron eal s
s r wca BE T WE E N C o m m M I L L l M E T R BS .
Riour .
Frontal I 7 0
A ccessory 166
Ulnar I 7 0
P eroneal 2 05
163 E l ect
. di agn o d l
ro - — D r L esl ie P hil l ips
c h art a . .
has drawn up a very us eful chart fo r r ecord i ng the re

su l t s o f the electri cal i nvesti gat ion o f n erves and muscles
i n wh i ch he has very conven iently uti l i sed the su gg es
2 38 M E D I C AL E LE C T RI C I T Y .
t i ons of P rof E rb H i s i nstruct i ons for usi ng them are

. .
subjoi ned .
S ecurely fasten a large plate electrode wel l mo i stened ,
w i th warm water to the sternum or nucha 1 B egin , . .
by fin di n g m i n i mal reacti on of nerves and m uscles to

farad i c current usi ng an electrode about a cent i metre
.
i n d i a m eter 2 B y means o f a larger electrode placed

. .
over the sa m e poi nts pass a galvan i c current fro m ten ,
cells and note defl ect i on o f needle of ga l vanometer

, .
Th i s wi ll detect di ff erences o f resi stance o n the two

—
si des the less the defl ec t i on the greater the resi stance .
3 .N ext pass to galvan i c current and observe the nee dle

defl ec t i o n at wh i ch first contract i on appears ( a) o n clos
i n g and ( b) on open i ng the current wi th the kathode
, ,
and then the same wi th the anode on the nerve or ,
muscle For galvan i c observat i ons use an electrode

.
t wo cent i metres i n d i a m eter C hoose perfectly sym .
metri cal poi nts to com pare ri ght and left D i p the .
electrode i n water each t i me be fore applyi ng t o the skin .
D o n o t allow the current t o flow longer than i s needfu l

for m ak i n g the observat i on so guard i ng aga i nst electro ,
ton i c error .
164 . M o rb i d c h an ge s in th e el ec t ri c a l reac
t i on s The changes i n the electri cal react i on s which

.
are fou n d i n d i sease m ay be classed as follows :
A . Motor .
( ) a farad i c
I I n creased exc i tabi li ty b
( ) galvan i c Q ua n {
t i t ative
a farad i c
2 D i m i n i shed exc i tab i l i ty
( ) c h an g eS
.
b
( ) galvan i c
R eact i o n o f dege n era a co m plete
( )
t i on ( )
b part i al {
O ther motor anomal i es
I
D A GN OSIS . 2 39
B . S ensory .
1 . Increased exci tab ili ty .
2 . D im i n i shed exci tab i l i ty .
5 16 .
Q uan t i t at i v e c h an ges . I ncreased or de
creased i rri tabili t
y t o m adi sm
f — B e fore form i ng. a di agnos is
o f an i n crease or decrease o f exc i tab i li ty i t i s necessary
t o keep stead i ly in m in d th e i m portance o f meas u rin g

the res istance of the pat i ent at the same t i me because ,
wi thout the galvanomet er i t i s n ot easy t o know how

much o f the result depends upon altered res i stance and
ho w much on altered exc i tab i li ty .
I n un ilateral d i sease increased or d ecrea sed faradi c

exc i tab ili ty i s shown by di fference in behavi our o f the
two s ides I f the normal s i de be first tested and the
.
d i stance in m il l i metres o f second ary from pri mary be

t aken wi th the m i n imal st i mul us an i ncrease o f exci ta ,
bili ty wi ll be shown on the a ffect ed si de if the mi ni mal

con t racti on shows i tself wi th a grea ter di stance between
the co il s I f both si des are affected then an i ncreased
.
,
farad i c exc i tab i li ty is i nferred if t h e m i n i mal sti mulus i s

seen wi th the secondary further from the pri ma ry than
the d i stance whi ch the operator has ta ught h im self t o
recogn i se as usual i n hea lthy people ; an d the in ference
i s supported it the galvanometer shows that there i s n o
abnormal di mi nuti on o f resi st ance ; or by E rb s method '
the compari son o f frontal accessory ulnar and peroneal

, ,
nerves may show an order o f exci tabi l i ty unl ike that o f

health ; i t i s n o t o ften that all four o f these nerves are
involved for both s i des s i tu ated as t hey are i n parts o f
,
the body remote fro m one another .
( )
6 I ncreased or decreased g van ic ex ci abil
al t i t
y
— G alvan i c .
increa se o f exci tab il i ty is shown by the develop m en t o f

KC C wi th a sm aller galvanometer defl ec t i on than usu al ,
by the ready product i on o f KD and generally by the ,
eas i er product ion o f all the contract ions .
G alva n i c d i m i nut i on o f exc i tab i l i ty i s sho wn by i n

creased diffi c ul t y i n the product i on o f all the c on t rac
t i ons t i ll a stage i s reached when only K C C can be
obta i ned even wi th strong c urrents and fin ally th is ,
react i on also m ay d i sappear ; galvan i c exci tab i l i ty is

then sa i d to be lost or abol i shed .
Increased exci tab i l i ty o f the nerves and muscl es i s

not very com m on when i t does occur i t represents
,
phases o f i rri tat i on and there fore i t i s m ost com m on i n

,
the early stages o f several d i sorders ( such as tabes ,
chron i c m yel i t i s hem i plegi a ) where at a later peri od the

,
react ions beco m e d i m i n i shed .
D i m i n i shed exc i tab i l i ty occurs i n m any old stand i ng

nervous d i seases i n m yopath i c m uscular atroph i es i n
, ,
some cases o f peri pheral neuri t i s ( alcohol i c an d other)

i n paralysi s or atroph i es a ft er joi n t d i seases I t s recog .
n it ion i s i m portant and part i cularly so when the

,
d i agn os i s rests betwee n i t an d the react i on o f degen

era t i o n .
166 . Q u a l i t a t i v e c h a n ge s
r e a c t—iT he
o n o f de
g e n e ra t i o n . Th i s ter m was i n troduced to s i g n i fy t he

altered electr i cal react i on s wh i ch occur in n erves and
m uscles u n der certa i n spec i al patholog i cal con d i t i on s ;
the pecul i ar feature bei n g that the cha n ge i s n o t on ly a
qua n t itat i ve o n e but also a qual i tat i ve o n e ; that i s t o
,
say th ere i s an alterat io n i n the n ature o f the respon se

,
wh i ch the dege n erate m uscles m ake to the co n t i n uous

curren t K C C beco m es less eas ily el i ci ted than A C C
.
a n d i n add i t i o n the co n tract io n when i i

( see , t s ,
provok ed i s a slow an d sluggi sh o n e d i ffer i ng greatly

, ,
fro m the very rap i d con tr a ct i on g i ven by a normal

healthy muscle E rb s defin i t ion of the react i o n of de
.
’
n uc n o sxs . 24 1
gen era ti on i s th e followi ng It is characteri sed by the .
di m inuti on and loss of faradi c exci tabi li ty I n both nerves

and muscles wh i lst the galvan ic exci tab ili ty o f the
,
*
latter rema i ns uni mpa ired i s somet i mes notably i n ,
creased and al ways undergoes defin i t e qual i tat i ve mod i

,
fic a t i o n s
"
.
Th is reacti on of degenerat ion o ften sy m bo l i sed by the ,
abbrevi ati on R D i s of very great i mportance ,

I ts di s .
covary and devel opment arose from an observati on of

B aierlacher i n 18 59 that the muscles i n a case o f faci al
,
paralysi s di d not respond to faradi sm but reacted wi th ,
unusua l force to galvan i sm and t o E rb s careful study ,

’
o f the sy mp t om then first made known we owe the most
i mportant fact conn ected wi th the subject o f electro

di agnosi s .
The i nvest igat ion o f the react ion of d egen erati on has
been pursued both cl i ni cally and exper i mentally and its ,
value cons ists i n the fact th at wh en i t i s present we may

di a gnose a break i n the nervo us tract reach i ng fro m the
”
end plate o f the muscle t o i t s nucleus o f ori gin in
“
the grey matt er o f the an t eri or cornu o f the spin al cord ;

the les ion there fore must ei th er be in the grey matter
M r. B o wl by i n h i s L ect u
res on I n juri es of N erv es , delivered at
t he Ro yal C o l l ege of Su
J un e 188 7 say s t h at i n his ex
rgeo n s, i n . ,
i en ce dim in u t i f t h it a bi li t y t l a i m i m uch m ore

p e r on o e e c o ga v n x s s
c o m m on t h an i n creased e ci t ab il i t y He says I h ave n ever seen “

x .
,
bu t o n c e t h e l east i n crease d e c it abil it y o n t h e co n t rary

x I ha e , , v
fo un d t h at t he gal van ic i rri t abil i t y dim i n ish ed rapidl y so t hat in t wo ,
o r t h ree weeks at a t i me wh en t h eo reti c al l y ex c it ab il it y sh o u

, l d be at
i t s h ei gh t , u d
st ro n g c rre n t s
pro u
ced b ut sligh t con tract io n s, wh ich
we re al so very slo w an d wavy M r B o wl by
"
peri en ce is pos
’
. . s ex
s ib ly due t o hi s ex peri m en t s h avi n g been made ch ic fl y o n t he ha n d .
A c o m pari so n o f t he ex ci t abi li t y of t he musc l es of th e h an d wi t h

t h os e o f t h e forearm , v er y oft en sh o ws an apparen t dec rease of i rri t a
bi l i ty i n the form er, b ut th is is due t o t h e grea t er t h ic n ess k of t he
s k in of t h e h and which o fl ers a h igh resi st an c e ( see abov e. 5

R
24 2 HE D I C A L E L E C T RI C I T Y .
o f t he a t n eri o r horn i n t he c el l s where t he n erve fibre

st a r t s o r i n t h e c o u
. rse of t he ne rve fib re from there t o
t h e mu sc l e . T h e rea ct i on of degen er ati o n does not

fo ll o w l esi o n s wh ic h are abo ve the spi n al ga n gli on cell
when c e t h e nerv e fib re spri ngs ( see t abl e p , . n or
does i t fe ll o w a fl ec t io n s wh i ch are co n fin ed t o t he mu
'
c le ti h re s pro per i d i o pa th i c mu sc ul a r at ro p hi es)

( .
I n R I ) t h e i rr it abi l i ty o f the n erve di sappear s ent irely ,
a n d t h ere fo r e st i mul at i on o f i t h as n o eff ect the muscle ,
o n t he o t h er h and reta i n s i t s i rri t ab il i ty t o the g alv anic
hn t n u t t o t h e far ad i c current th at i s t o say i t s i rri t a

,
hili t v is st i ll p resent fo r cert a in st i m u l i an d i t s co nt rae

,
t i o n wa ve c a n be tra nsm i tted fr o m mu scle fib re to
mu sel e ti h re m uch as i t i s i n a curari sed muscl e It

, .
do es n o t reac t t o farad i sm perh aps bec a us e the farad ic

,
sh u e ks are t oo bri e f b u , t i t r eacts t o t he sti mulus of a

sm ar t bl o w as i t d o es t o a galv an i c curre n t sl o wly made
a n d i n t errup t ed . A cura ri sed mu scle wi ll st ill re act t o

hn n di sm t h o ugh n o t so read i ly a s a normal m u scle
‘
. ,
t h e re fo re t h e t o t al loss o f farad i c irr i tab il i ty i n a muscle

sh mx i n t h r t i o f degenerat i on i i fi some
g e e a c n o s gn es
t h in g m u l e t h a n a torpor o f the i ntramuscular nerve
e n d i n gs i t m e a ns th at a troph i c change has occurred

.
i n t h e m u sc l e protoplas m and further evi dence o f the

,
c h a n e i s see n i n t h e product i on o f A C C m ore eas i ly

g
th a n Th i s altera t ion of i rri tab i l i ty i s an ex
t re m ely i mport a nt part o f the react i on o f degenerat i on ,
fo r i t i s ex actly the reverse o f what i s found i n healthy

muscle A n other i m portant alteratio n i s that the gal
.
v an i c i rr i t a b il i t y o f the muscle m a be greater than i n

y
health HC G bei ng more easi ly produced than be fore
, ,
a n d there fore A C C fa r more easi ly tha n before bec ause

,
i n health A C C re q ui res a stronger st i m u lus than K C C ,
i n the proport ion of 2 1

n uc n o sx s . 2 43
I t is n ot al ways that the phase of exaltat ion of mus

cul a t i rri tabil i ty i s man ifested and in m ost ca ses of
,
R D that i s o f co u
, , rse if recovery does not set ih the
, ,
later stage i s one of gradual fai lure o f the galvani c

i rri tab i li ty o f the muscle ; ACC however be in g always
, ,
the more easy o f the t wo to provoke and in the last ,
sta ge o f all A C C al one may rem a in fai ntly responsi ve

, ,
t o strong currents .
16
7 T h e
. c o urse of t he .
reac t i o n o f degen erati o n .
A t first fo r two or three days a fter the onset of the

les ion there wi ll be in the w e a progressi ve loweri ng
o f the galva n i c an d faradi c i rri tab i li ty then by the ,
second o r th i rd week the galvan i c and faradi c i rri ta

b i li t y o f the n erve wi ll be com pletely aboli shed —and i t
will rema i n so unless recovery takes place in that case
the ret urn o f motor power may precede the ret urn of
el ectri cal i rri tabi l i ty
.
I n the mu scl e the react i on t o faradi sm runs the same
course as in the nerve T o galvan i sm on the other

.
,
hand t here i s at first a progressi ve loweri ng o f exc i ta

,
b i l it y but by the end o f the second week thi s i s t e

,
placed by an in crea se o f exc i tabil i ty to a po int much

above the normal wi th sluggi sh ness o f contract ion and
A C C > KC C ; a fter a per iod o f three si x o r ei ght , ,
wee ks di m i nut ion o f exci tab il i ty sets ih and the dim in u ,
t ion is progress i ve unt il at last i t becomes stat i onary as

a mere trace of ACC .
I n ca ses wh ich recov er i t m ay happen that the vol un

tary power o f movement wi ll ret urn long before t h e
nerve can be made to respond t o elec tri cal sti m ul i but ,
more o ften the one recovers w i th the other .
The fo l lowi ng i s an account o f the course o f the

cha n ges wh i ch occur i n a typ i cal case o f R D a fter
di vi s i on of a nerve trunk .
2 44 111
31310 1
11 s L s c r n rc n v.
'
.
1 . A sudden arrest o f voluntary m ot i on in t h e m us

cles suppl i ed by the di vi ded nerve .
2
. A rres ted c o nduct i vi ty o f the nerve—t h ere fore ab o
l i t i o n o f exci tab i li ty to faradi s m i n the musc les s up pl i ed
from be low the wound when both electrodes are pl a c e d
o n or near the nerve trunk above the seat o f i nj u ry .
3
. For t w o or three days somet i
, mes o n ly f o r fo r t y
ei ght hours farad i c contract i l i ty rema i n s present i n
, the
muscles when the electrodes are appl i ed on the di stal
si de o f the sect ion or on the bod i es o f the m uscles The .
di sappearance o f the react i on t o faradi sm show s de

generat i on o f the i ntra musc ular nerve fibres an d end
-
plates .
4
. Increased galvan i c i rr i tab i l i ty a cc o mpan i ed by a
relat i ve i ncrease o f anodal exci tab i l i ty The a n odal .
closi ng contract i on ( ACC ) approach i ng i n ampl i tude

and ult i mately exceed in g ( about the si xth o r se venth
day) the cathodal clos i ng contract i on ( K C C ) . The
electrodes are appl i ed one on an i nd ifferent p a rt o f
,
the body and the other o n the m uscle depri ved o f i t s

,
nerve supply an d the d i rect io n o f the curre n t alter

,
mated on purpose to compare the ampl i tude o f t he

con tract i ons produced . The curren t i s co n veyed not ,
by the nerve the con t in u i ty o f wh ich i s severed but

, ,
m ore or less by all the t i ssues o f the body i nterven ing

betwee n the two electrodes .
D ur i n g th i s per i od the muscular fib ri l l a are los i ng

5
. e
the i r str i ated appeara n ce an d are undergo i n g some

cha n ge i n the ir co n st i tut io n The nuclei then i ncrease
.
i n n u m ber and there i s a prol i ferat i o n o f the co n ne c ti v e
t i ssue betwee n the fib ri l s Th i s ult i m ately wi ll lead to

.
a c i rrhot i c co n d i t io n in the m uscle and to a decre a s e of

the i n creased galva n i c i rri tab i l i ty .
6 As
. the muscle dege n erates and the c i rr h os is in ~
n uc N o s rs . 2 45
crea ses the galva n ic i rri t abil i ty steadil y decli n es st i ll ,
showi ng wi th decreasi ng force the A C C > KC C The .
fin al di sa ppearance of g alvan i c i rri tab i l i ty may not take

place fo r many wee ks o r mon t hs .
'
.
7 I t uni on o f the di vi ded nerve takes place the ax i s ,
cyl inder i s first restored at any ti me from the end o f

,
si xth week to the seventh or eighth mon th and vol un ,
tary movem en t i n the mus cles aga i n becomes possible .
.8 L astly a fter the regenerat i on o f the nerve m u

,
s ,
cula t regenerati on com m ences .The cathod al closure

con t ract ion gradual ly t e asserts i tsel f and the galvani c
-
,
i rri tab ili ty aga in very gradually ri ses to i t s former

condi ti on under wh i ch i t exi sted before t he nerve was
d i v ided .
S uch i s a revi ew o f the typ i cal el ectri cal reacti ons of

nerve and m uscle aft er complete severance of a nerve ,
and t hese reac t ions m od ified i n vari ous ways by th e ,
amount o f destruct ion to the motor centres or cells or ,
the conduc t i ng nerve fi bres are characteri st i c o f the

,
several nervous d iseases in wh i ch qu al i tati ve changes

in the electri cal react ions are to be observed .
P rofessor E rb i s care ful to rem i nd hi s readers that

var i ous devi ati ons from the typi c al form o f the rea ct ion
o f degenerat i on may be met wi th He says :
. Y ou “
must not expect to fin d in every pa t hologi cal con d i t i on

so great a un i form i ty i n the course o f these m odific a
ti ons as i s t o be met wi th in exper im ent or in a s i mple ,
traum at i c lesi on o f the nerves th i s does not o ften occur

in di se ase where man y devi a ti ons may be caused by
,
the nature o f the in jury d ifferent a ffect ions o f troph i c

,
in fl u en c es occa s i on al i m provement or n ew elements o f

, ,
d i sturbance foll owi ng one upon another ; and on e is n o t

warranted in concludi n g from some i rregulari ty such as ,
prese nts i tse lf in long stand ing ca ses that on e has di s

-
,
2 46 ME D I C AL E LE C T RI C I T Y .
covered some fresh anomaly The t i me at wh i ch repai r

.
takes place determ i nes great d ifferences i n the general

m an i festat i on o f the react i on o f degenerat i on I f th i s .
happens early the nerve may be endowed wi th galvan i c

and faradi c exci tabi l i ty wh i le the changes i n the muscle
are at the i r height these latter cannot be re formed so
,
qui ckly and requi re for the purpose some lapse o f t i me

,
°
.
I t may happen then that when the nerve i s ex c i t ed the

,
m uscle responds w i th normal contract i on s but st i ll ,
when sti mulated di rectly exh i bi ts the react i on of de

generat i on B ut i f repa i r sets i n very late i t may be
.
,
that the muscular galvan i c exc i tably i s already greatly

d i m i n ished when the electri c exci tab i l i ty o f the nerve
begi ns to be slowly restored There i s there fore an
.
, ,
i n defin i t e nu m ber of spec i al cases wh i ch n evertheless

,
may be mastered by care fully attend i ng to the condi

”
t i ons o f t ime and other c ircumstances .
168
. P art i a l rea c t i o n o f degen er at i o n Under .
th i s name E rb has brought together and grouped certa in

devi at i ons from the nor m al type ; i n these the behavi our ,
o f the muscle to galvan i s m i s ent i rely that o f the typ i cal
R D wh i le t h e behav i our of the muscle to farad i s m i s

m uch the sa m e as i n nor m al muscle showi n g only sl ight ,
qua n t i tat i ve d i m i nut ion an d the behavi our o f the n erve

,
also i s merely a sl ight qua n t i tat i ve d im i n ut i o n to gal van

i sm and farad i s m w i th n o qual i tat i ve alterat i on The .
galvan i c react i ons o f the m uscle show A C C > K C C a ,
co n s i derably exalted exc i tabi l i ty and the slugg i sh mode

,
o f contract i n g .
M uscles hav i n g the part i al react i on o f degenerat io n

m ay ex i st i n a l i m b si de by s i de wi th others showing
the co m plete form and other m uscles may show other
,
degrees o f trans i t i on between the nor m al state an d par

t i al or co m plete degenerat i o n but the ex i ste n ce o f such
,
n uc s o sx s . 2 47
a condi ti on as that i n whi ch the muscl es show a react ion

o f degenerati on though connected to the central nervous
,
syste m by a nerve sti ll funct i onal o r at least capable o f ,
co nducti ng i mpulses to the m uscl e makes i t more than ,
ever diffic ul t t o understand the exact mean ing o f the

m usc ular changes wh i ch gi ve ri se to the phenomena o f
t he rea cti on o f degenerat ion E rb espec i ally i nsi st s t hat
.
alt hough the parti al form could be si mulated by the

part i cular case o f com m enc ing recovery from complete
react io n o f degenerati on yet the t wo states are differ
,
en t ; fo r that the part i al reacti on o f degenerati on m a y
be present at the commence m en t o f an attack and may ,
be fo llowed at a later peri od by the co m plete form i n

the same nervous and m usc ular structures The ac .
cmn p an yin g charts o f P rof E rb ( figs 7 0 7 1 7 2 7 3)

. .
, , ,
rep t the pheno m ena o f the reacti on o f degenerat ion
crea sed exc itabi li ty o f the muscle to galvan i sm

ked c ontrast to t he d im in i shed react i ons o f the
galvan ism and farad ism and o f the mu scle t o ,
169 . c on di t i on s whi ch l ead t o t h e rea ct i on of
d egen er at i on — B riefl y spea k i ng R D

. follows upon ,
the motor path to whi ch D r .
lower segment that ,

"
o f the course o f a motor fib re whi ch
motor gangl ion cell o f the anteri or

ued down as a nerve fib re to the motor
“ It
en d plate benea t h the sarco lemma o f i t s muscle )
-
I t is wort h whil e t o co n sider for a mo m en t t h e who l e m ot o r

pat h , from t h e co rt e x o f t he brai n to the musc l es ; we m ay co n si de r
it as co m po se d o f t wo segm en t s, an upper an d l ower , eac h co n sis t s o f
h ucel l abo ve, a n erve fibre, an d t h e t erm i n al ramific at io n o i

’
a g g o
an
t h e latt er ; t he upper cerebro -

spin al segm en t con sist s o f t h e co r
248 us n t c u . s t s cr mc rrv .
does n ot damage l i m i ted t o the upper segmen t

follow .
R D then wi ll occur a fter d i vi s ion destructi on or i nj ury ,
o f motor nerve trunks an d a fter di sea se or i nj ury afl e c t

’
in g t h e ga n gl i on cell s o f the anteri or cornu of the cord .
Under one or other o f these morb i d states can b e

grouped pressure palsi es o f all ki nds d i fferen t form s o f ,
peri pheral neuri t i s di vis i on or lacerati on o f nerv es

, ,
pol i omyel i t i s anteri or both acute and chr o ni c pro gr es ,
si ve muscular atrophy it o f spinal ori gi n ( but n o t if o f

,
muscular ori gi n ) also lead po i son i ng acute and chro n i c

, ,
myeli ti s and di phth eri ti c par alysi s

,
The reacti on o f .
degenerati on i s n o t found i n the paralys i s o f cereb ra l

di sease ( except when th e i mpl i cat ion o f the nucle i o f
ori gi n or of the nerve trun ks o f the cran i al motor nerv e s
produces a react ion o f degenerat ion i n the m usc l e s
wh ich they supply) n o r does i t occur i n di seas es l i m i t e d
t o the whi te matt er o f the cord nor i n hysteri cal pa ra ,
lysi s .
D r de Wattevi l le h as drawn up the table on page 2 4 9

“ ’
.
fo r a gui de t o the posi t i on o f a les ion so far as i t i s i n d i

c at ed by the electri cal rea ct i ons .
17 0 P r o gn o si s i n t h e rea c t i o n of degen erat i o n .
—
.
O ther
th ings o f th e
that i s the cause and nature
di sease — be ing th e sa me the lesi on i s seri ous t h e
“
, ,
probable durat ion o f t h e d i sease longer th e de fin i t e ,
t ica l gan gl io n c el l , an d t h e p y ram idal fibre wh ich proc eed s fro m t he
cel l , passes t h ro ugh t he brain an d co rd, an d en ds by div i di n g in t h e

spo n g y subst an ce o f t h e an t erio r corn u . T he l ower spi n o m uo
sc u o
l ar se gm en t co n sis t s o f th e spin al gan gl io n ce ll , an d t h e fibre pro

c eed i n g trom t h i s, assin g fro m t h e an t erior roo t an d n erve t run of k
p
th e musc l e, where it divi des an d ram ifies o n t he m u scul ar fibre
It wil l be fo un d t h at t h is co n cept io n o f t h e m ot or pat h co n duces to
”
cl earer ideas m an y phen o m en a
of of disease . G on m . D i seases of
N ervou
”
s S yst em , 188 6. vol i , p . . . 116 .
L an cet ,
”
ju
ly 14t h , 188 3.
n uc s o sx s . 2 49
prospect o f a cure more remot e in proport ion as the ,
rea cti on o f degenerati on is developed an d complete ,
an d in proporti on t o the stage w hi ch i t h as reached
( E rb) .
T A B LE FO R L O C A L I SA U ON '
?
01 A L s s ro n F RO M m s
E t ec r s t c u . R EAC T IONS .
C o rt ex .
C o rpu s s tri atum .
Pedu n cl es
1. H l t hy ( h mmi g)
ea s a n .
Pa n s
.
A Norm al Fu i l di t ub r a n ce o f
.
. 2.
3 Og i
n c t o na
r an c
s
L at era l co l umn s .
Peri ph eral ( very sli gh t dis

.
n erv es
ease) .
M u
sc l es .
I rri tat i ve pro Brai n .
ec u in L a t eral col umn .
H ro ex ci t a C orn ea .
l i ty i n N e rve - rn uscl e .
Quan t i t at i ve it era ti o n s i n n erv e- mu

of sel e
al t era t i o n s. s pi n al o ri gi n .
A l t erat io n s i n nerve- m nscle of

i di o pa th ic ori gi n .
A l t erat i on s i n n erve- ni nscl e of

B . A bnormal p o e t - re
gen ers t i ve m i i h .
es t ru c t ion o f an t eri o r o rn .
D i sea se o f m u l t i po lar ce lls .
t ro ph i c ce n t res o f n erve
muscl e .
S ev ere l esio n o f n erve t ru nk .
S l igh t disease o f m u l t i po lar

D is ase o f t ro ph i c cen t res 0! m os
c u
e
S light di sease of n erve t r n k. u
H e i nstan ces the value of the sy m ptom in the prog

nosi s o f s i mple fac i al palsy di st i ngui shin g three forms ,
.
electri cal rea cti ons normal prognosis favour ,
able probable durati on three weeks I n termediate

, ( )
2 .
,
parti al R D durat ion one or two months ( 3) S eri ou

,
s .
,
complete R D prognosi s bad dura t i on 3 6 9 mon ths or

, , , ,
lon ger .
A t the same t i m e he emphas i zes the im portance o f the

savi ng cla use wi th wh i ch the quotat ion opens ins i sti ng ,
that i t i s not perm i tt ed t o rea son al ike in all paral yses ,
w i thout g i ving due wei ght to the i mportance o f the

lesion produci n g them fo r instance the prospects of a
,
case of faci al palsy from ca ri es o f th e pe trous po rti on of

the temporal bone cannot be expected t o resemble those
where the m i schi e f h as been set up by a mere exposure
t o cold ; and electri cal react i ons wh i ch are a gui de
to prognosi s i n cases o f the latter ty pe must not be
forced i nto a si m i lar i nterpretat i on fo r the fo rmer .
There i s an i mportant rem ark o f D r de Wattevi lle s from .

’
the paper quoted above It may n o t be unnecessary

to guard the student aga i nst the error o f looki ng upon
the occu rrence o f alterat i ons i n the response o f nerves
and muscles as i n i tsel f i nd i cat i ve o f i rreparable m is
ch ie f O uthe contrary R D i s oft en o f far m ore favour
.
,
able prognosi s than normal reacti ons wh i ch we have ,
already found t o be consi stent w i th absolutely i ncur

able lesi ons i nvolvi ng complete paralysi s
, I ntractable .
spasms tremors or convulsi ons agai n are never acco m

, ,
p a n i e d by a n y notable d i sturbance quant i tat i ve n or ,

”
qual i tat i ve o f the electri cal react ions
,
.
17 1 A n o m a l o u
. s el e c t ri c a l rea c t i o n s R D or .
partial R D occurs i n muscles whi ch are n ot paraly sed This .
cond i t i o n o f a ffa i rs was first descr ibed by E rb but it ,
has s i nce bee n n ot iced by B ern hardt K ast B uzzard , , ,
Hu g h es B en n ett an d others M any o f the .cases recorde d

have been i n people showi n g sig n s o f lead po i so n i ng ,
though not all were such an d for the most part t he ,
nerves respo n ded to farad i s m and galva n i sm though ,
not qu i te so well as i n health wh i le the m uscles showed ,
the alterat ions o f the react i o n s of degenerat i on ( par

t i al R D ) ; i n others the react i on o f degen erat i on was
co m plete the n erves respon d i ng not at all to farad ism
,
or galvan i sm .
T h e mu scl es resp ond b l u i h i

( )
b.
y a s
gg s con t r act on to a
sti mu lu s ei t her amdze or gal vani c app lied to t he n erve tru

f
'
nk
‘
.
, ,
T he mu scl e responds i n a simil ar sl u i sh manner to

( )
c.
gg
n mc n o st s . 2 51
fem l die u
c rrent s a
p pl ied to t he m usc le i t sel
f The . reader who
wi shes to master the i ntri cac i es o f th i s part o f the sub
j shou l d consult f i V i m volume
'
ec t P ro ess o r E r b n on Z e ssen s
on E lect rotherapeut i cs p 2 08 2 2 5 where he wi ll fin d

,
"
.
-
,
a descri pt ion o f several rare vari ati ons from the usual
course of rea ct ion o f degenerati on .
17 2. S en s ory n erv el — There i s but l i ttle to be sai d

.
o n the subject o f al terat i ons i n the electri cal reacti ons
o f sen sory nerves . S i mple i ncrease o f sens i b i li ty and

s imple decrease o f sensi b il i ty can be detected and ap ,
p a re n t l y the degree o f e l ectr i cal sens i b i l i ty correspo n ds
rather w i th the degree o f percept i on of pai n than wi th

that o f percept ion o f tact i le sensat ions Th i s has been .
determ ined in locomotor ataxy where these two forms

o f sens i b i l i ty are o ften a ff ected i n unequal degrees .
For i nvesti gat i ng the electro cutaneous sens ibi li ty i t

-
i s as i mportant t o not i ce and take i nto cons i derati on the

amount o f skin res i stance as i t was in ex am i n ing the
,
muscles and where exact results are wi shed fo r the

, ,
sledge form o f co i l must be used and the d istance o f ,
sec ondary co i l from pri mary must be noted and recorded .
For test in g the sensi bi li ty o t the cutaneous nerves o n e

'
should use a met alli c brush fo r t he act i ve electrode and

sh ould n o t mo isten the surface o f t h e sk i n or an elec
trode devi sed by E rb may be used I t cons i sts ( fig 7 4) . .
o f a bundle o f 400 metalli c wi res sheathed and var
n i sh ed enclosed i n a vulca n i te case o f about t wo centi

,
metres i n dia meter A t on e end the wi res are all put i n

.
metal l i c co mm uni ca t ion an d are attached t o an ord i

,
nary rheophore h andle the other end is pol i shed so

, ,
that when appl i ed t o the ski n i t has the e ff ect o f a

sm ooth surface . I t covers an ar ea o f sk i n o f about two
centi metres i n d i ameter an d i nto th i s th e current enters
,
i n 400 parts . Thus a more regula r act i on o n the n ume

2 52 ME D I CAL st sm t c rrv .
t on s nerve term i nati ons i s secured and wi th the faradic ,
c urren t the degree o f sti mulus may be est i mated for

the first appea rance o f sensa ti on and fo r the first ,
percepti on of pa i n The followi ng rem arks on t he

.
“
subj ect o f est i mat ing an e sthesi a are o f great v alue ,
in sh ow i ng how easy i t i s t o be m i sled i n test ing a

pati ent fo r an aesth esi a The pati ent sh o uld always
.
“
be placed i n such a posit ion that i t i s i mpossi ble fo r him

t o see th e hand o f the surgeon o r th e area wh i ch is ,
Fro .
7 4
—C
. u u
t an eo s el ect rode . a. S ide vie w . 5 EM
. w
vi e .
under observat ion H e shoul d n o t be all owed t o move

.
the fin ger o r other part touched for th ereby the mus ,
cu l ar sense co m es to the ai d and fal sifies observati on s , .
The i mpact o f the i nstrument used sh o uld be very l ight ,
fo r a pat i ent can frequently d i scern fri ct i on on an an a s

thet i c surface by means o f v i brati ons carri ed by t he
ti ssues to surroundin g heal thy have oft en
0 u L ec t ure. on I njUt IC S Of NW C,
"
Lm et , j un e 18870
,
A . A . B owl by .
n uc n o srs . 2 53
seen the sensory power of a pres umably an e stheti c part

tested by rubbi ng the pa rt wi th the fin ger whil e the
pat i ent s eyes were averted and almost always wi th the
’
result that the sti m ulus was correctly per c e i ved and ,
that a re t urn ing sen se o f touch was di agnose d by the

investi gator S uch a concl us ion is ent i rely erron eous
.
,
for as L ét iévan t has po i nted out any person can percei ve

,
fri ct ion appl i ed even to the fin ger o f another person if ,
i t be held be tween the b ases o f t wo of hi s own hu gers ,
i e the vi brati ons are conveyed to and apprec i ated by

. .
,
the nerves o f the surroun di ng di gi ts H ow much mor e .
must thi s be so i n th e case of a d i vi ded medi an nerve

when heal thy nerves are presen t on part o f the very
fin ger t o wh i ch the fri cti on i s appl i ed F ri ct ion should .
,
therefore never be u sed as a test o f sensat ion fo r the

, ,
same rea son the part wh ich i s bei ng exa mi n ed should

never be pushed o r t hrust away from the pos i t ion in
”
whi ch i t li es .
17 3 N erv es o f sp ec i a l s
. en s es — T he au ditory nerve
. .
O f the nerves o f spec i al sense there is o n e whi ch we

may d i scuss at present na m ely the audi tory because o f
, , ,
the i mportance whi ch the electri cal treatment of tinn itm

men s » : has gi ven to i t W e have already 149 ) po inted
'
ou t that i n heal th i t i s po ss i ble to obta i n react ions when

a galvani c current pa sses through t h e audi tory nerve and ,
t hat li ke the motor nerves the aud i tory responds more

,
readil y t o X C than to A O and generall y exh i bi ts the

,
same el ectri cal react i ons the response bei ng the pro
,
ducti on o f a subject i ve sensat i on o f so und ; but i n cer

t ai n cases o f ti nn itu s the aud i tory n erve answers to
elec t ri cal currents much more readi ly t han i t does in

health be ing affect ed even by a current o f the strength
,
of o n e m i lli am pere I n these cases i t i s supposed that

.
there i s a state of h yperse st hesia or of i rri tati on i n the

m m“ m
‘
25 a rc rrv .
4 . s
n erve an d that the ti n ni tus i s re a l l y t h e ex pression of

,
t h at i rri table state I n the s im p l e s t fo r m of hyper

.
z s th esia the kathodal closure g i v es l o ud s o u nds which

readi ly persi st so long as the c ur r e n t i s fl o wing (RD)
but cease at once wi th t he ope n i n g o f t h e c i rcui t while ,
th e anode ( an odal closure) di m in i s h e s o r a b oli shes tbe

sound which does n ot ret urn dn rin g t h e pa ss age of tlic
,
current an d o ften not for hour s a f t e r t h e current has

,
been stopped provi ded t hat :h e s t o ppa ge be very

,
gradua l so as t o di mi ni sh as ta r a s p o ss i b l e the eflect

,
'
of an oda l openi ng .
In the ex am i nat ion o f t h e rea c t i o n s o f t he au ditory

nerv e th ere are m any difficul ties fi r s t i n t h e apptia tion
,
of the current wi thout produci n g fre s h n o i ses from aeci

denta l movemen t s o f the el ect rod e se c on d from the , ,
tendency o f t he other ear t o respon d a n d so c on fu se the

resul ts .
T o appl y th e current t o the aud i t o r y n erv e it has

been recommended that t h e pati en t s h o ul d si t dow n
wi t h his hea d resti ng on a table in su c h a wa y that the ,
ear to be treated i s uppermost ; the e x t e rn a l auditor}

meatus can then be fill ed wi th water a n d t h e electrodt ,
i ntroduced i nto i t just so far as to di p i n t o the water;

the other electrode may be appl ied t o t h e s t ern um to ,
the nape o f the neck or may be held i n t h e h and orit

, ,
m ay be arranged underneath the othe r c a r t h e side 6 ,
pat ie n t s head rest ing upon i t the curren t i s t h en gently

’
and grad ually tur n ed ou .
O i these sever al posi ti ons o f th e i n di fl e r en t e lectrode

'
the last i s probably the worst for i t i s d i ffi c ul t to see

,
how t h e e ffect o f the anode c an be brough t t o be a r u p

one ear wi thout at the sa m e t i me produc in g a kathode
zone n ear the other ear ; but wherever t h e n egativ
electrode may be placed there i s alway s so m e like
,
D AG I NOSIS . 2 55
hood if both ears are very sensi t i ve that the ear n ot

, ,
operated on may gi ve responses co ming as i t does wi t hi n ,
a regi on of vi rtual kathode when the anode i s

appl i ed t o the other ear and vice versé and indeed if one
, ,
ear be much more sen s it ive than the other the app li ca
t io n o f a c urrent t o the less sensi ti ve one may produce
soun ds in the oppos ite ear only and th en the normal ,
form ula o f t h e audi tory nerve may appear to be t e

versed t h e responses be in g prod uced by a vi rtual
,
kathode i n t h e more sensi t i ve ear when the act ual

anode i s appli ed to the other and so o u a state o f , ,
th i n gs very li kely to con fuse the experi menter part icu ,
larl y when his pat i ent is n o t very i ntel l igen t Thi s .
react ion o f the oppos ite ear has been called the para
do x i c a l react i on .
W hen the external audi tory meatus h as been filled

wi th water t he sensa ti on i s so uncomfortable and t h e
,
external sounds are rendered so strange and boom ing ,
that i t i s a m atter o f diffic ul t y t o be sure whether any

no i ses whi ch may be heard are produced by the gal
v an ic current or not and the person experi mented o n
,
i s not at all in a condi t i on for m ak in g accurate observa

t i ons fort unately t he audi tory nerve can be sti mulated
i n other and si mpler ways and best o f all by a bifur ,
c a t ed or divided electrode wh i ch can be app li ed t o

,
both ears at once A t a pi nch a bi naural stethosco pe

.
answers very well small pads of moi stened sponge

,
bei ng subst i tuted for the i vory ear pi eces ; these ends
may be i ntroduced i nto th e meatus or may be appli ed ,
j ust in front o f the tragus and kept in place wi th out

unne cessary force by an elast i c band or spri ng ° If a .
M essrs. A rn o ld an d S o n h ave made a v er y c o n ven ien t divi ded

el ec t rodet o r t h is pu
rpm by co n vert in g t he fram e wo rk ot a l ight bln
aural st et hosco pe .
2 56 M E D IC A L s t s c r m c rrv.
s tethoscope i s used the lower port i on c an be rem o ved

, ,
an d the tubes closed up by small corks t h e wi r e from ,
the batte ry i s clamped t o the metal and t h e o ther elec ,
trode may be appl i ed to the sternum o r back or held ,
i n the hand F or experi mental purpo ses i t m ay be

.
placed in a bowl of water i nto wh i ch the hand can ,
be d i pped O n e can then experi ment com fortably upon

.
oneself usi ng on e hand t o turn on the current an d t he

,
other t o make connect i on through the bowl o f w ater ; a

comm utator and a galvano m eter should form part of the
c i rcu i t B oth ears are then under exactly si m i lar condi
.
t ions of pole and the extraneous noi ses from acciden tal
,
movements of the electrode i n the ears are reduced to
FI G 7 5
. .
—D i v ided el ect ro de.
a m i n i mu m The curre n t can be made broken in

.
, ,
,
i m i i
creased d n shed or reversed wi th ease an d t h e
,
e ffects noted and wri tten down and i n th i s way a l o n e

,
can one hope to arri ve at a sat i s factory k n owledg e O f

f
the electri cal react ions o the audi tory nerve T h e e x .
e ri m en t s are not very pleasant because the he l y a t h

p
nerve requ i res a consi derable amount o f curren t t o
st i m ulate i t perhaps as m a n y as 12 or 15 cells ( 15 m ill i

,
amp e res) an d i t s e ffects o n the opt i c nerve on t h e

, ,
bra i n an d o n the ski n under the electrodes all

,
fo r c e
,
themselves i n to prom i nence .

D I AG N O S I S . 2 57
G alvan i c hyper aesthesi a of the aud i tory nerve i s fre

quently m et wi th i n all sorts o f ear di sease but i t i s n ot
,
present i n all cases o f t i nn i tus or subject i ve noi ses ;

,
whe n t i nn i tus and galvan i c h ypermst h esi a coex i st the

subject i ve no i ses are readi ly i n fl uen c ed and controlled
by galvan i sm and many bri ll i ant cases o f cure have
,
been e ffected I f the t i nn i tus does not respond to gal

.
v an i sm i t i s m uch less l ikely to be b en efit ed by el ec t ri
cal treat m ent ( see also T i n n i tus C hapter X L )

,
The .
Oppos i te cond i t ion to electr i cal h ypermst h esi a namely, ,
electri cal torpor o f the aud i tory nerve i s also known

,
.
‘
2 58 M E D I C AL E L E C T RI C I T Y .
C HA PTE R IX .
G ENERAL T H E R A PE UT I C S .
I n t rodu y el ect ri ci t y urren t l nism

‘
ct or . E fl ect s of . C h o i ce of c , ga va
o r faradism . S t ren gt h of c urren t . C h o ice of po l e .M et hods .
G en eral faradisat io n . O t h er faradi c m et h o ds . G al van o faradi

-
sat i o n . G al v an isat io n of t he cerv i c al sym pat h et ic . C entral

gal v an isat io n . S el f t reat m en t by pat ien t s . E l ect ri c bel t s .
174 . I n t ro du —
c t o ryThe therapeut i c methods em
.
ployed wi th stat ical electri ci ty have been already con

si dered i n the chapter deal i ng w i th stat i cal apparatu s .
W e have now to consi der the m ethods of procedu re
wi th the constant galva n i c current and wi th t he ia

t erru p t e d cu rrent I n e i ther case the
. treat m ent m ay b e
ge n er a l or loc a l O f ge n e ra l m ethods the one most

.
fully deserv i n g the n a m e i s treat m ent by the el ectric

bath ( galva n i c or far a d ic ) wh i ch w i ll be fully dealt With ,
i n the n ext chapter .
f
I n com m e n c i n g the study o electro therapeut i cs t h e -
fi st
r quest i o n s to ar i se are the fo ll o w i n
g
—
z
( )
I W h a t
results are to be expected fro m the treatment ? (2)
W hen should the co st t curre t be used and
n an n w he n
,
the i n terrupted ? ( 3) W h a t i s the proper strengt h O f

curren t an d the proper dur a t i on of treatment ? (4)
W hat i s to be the d i rect io n of the current an d w hich
pole i s to be appl i ed to the a ffected part ? (5) t t '
l n
are the m a n i pulat i o n s requ i red

17 5 . E fl ec t s
‘
of el ec t ri c a l t rea t m en t .
—T he effects
G E N E RAL r n s aap s un c s. 2 59
produ ced by electri cal treatment may be arranged

thu s
a) S ti mu ets general and local ; t h ese
( l fi
at i ng and ton ic e
belong to both galvani sm an d fara dis m but espec i all y ,
to th e latter whi ch acts as a sti mulus pa rtly upon the

, ,
con t ract i le t i ssues both d irectly and thro ugh th eir motor
,
n erves partly by i t s e ffect upon the sensory nerves and

, ,
part ly in a refl ex manner through the vasomotor system ,
produci ng i ncrea sed vascular act iv i ty in the parts wh i ch

i t reach es . These e ffects are to a cert ai n extent sh ared
by other m odes of st im ul at ion as fo r in stance by m as
, ,
sage by treatment wi th hot and cold douches followed

,
by fri ct ion wi th rough towels and so forth ; but el ec t ri c ity

,
has certa i n advantages over these other m odes o f st im u

l at i on espec i ally i n paralyti c a ffect i ons from i t s greater
, ,
power of sett ing up m uscular contract ions and from the ,
ea se wi th whi ch i t can be di rected to any requi red parts .
The effects wh ich peri pheral st i mul ati on exerts upon

the cen tral organs play an im portant part i n electri cal
tr eatmen t and a fford the best explanati on of the ben efit s
,
wh i ch follow even i n cases where the treatmen t has

been appl i ed to the per i pheral parts only .
The s ti m ulat ing effect of electri cal treat m ent i s per

haps n owhere better shown than i n i t s i m m edi ate act i on
i n hysteri cal a ffect ions fo r a s i ngle appl i ca t i on o f the
,
faradi c current to the throat fo r a few m i nutes wil l often

en t i rel y di spel hysteri cal aphon i a and in hysteri ca l p ara
plegi a the an e sthes i a an d motor paralys i s wi ll frequentl y
va ni sh altogether in th e course of the first si tt ing .
b E l ectr oton ie e
fiee
'
ts —. These have been already con

si dered i n g 14 2 , and the physi ologi cal e ffects there
desc ri bed have been made the bas is o f much o f the
trea t m en t by the conti nuous current W i th the alter
.
natin g currents of the i nducti on c oil electroton ic st ates

8 2
2 60 M E D I CAL s L s cr m c rrv .
cannot be expected but wi th constant c urrents the

,
pheno mena o f electrotonus should be kept steadi ly be

fore our m i nds i n treat m ent fo r they show us when the ,
exc i t i ng act ion o f the exalted i rri tab i li ty of kat h electro

tonus i s to be brought to bear upon a pat i ent as in ,
paralyses and when the cal m i ng e ffects of the di

m i n i shed i rri tabi l i ty o f anelectrotonus are more desirable ,
as i n the rel i ef o f pa i n ful afiec t i on s

'
It has been objected that the theory o f electrotonus

as appl ied to treatment i s decept i ve owi ng t o the im ,
possi bi l i ty o f securi ng the e ffects of one po le un com ,
pl i cated by those of the other ( see and that

electrotonus i s only a te m porary cond i t i on which dis
appears as soon as the c i rcui t has been broken but in ,
S p i te o f these object i ons we are co m pelled very o ft en in
de fault o f any better gu i dance t o follow t h e indications

wh ich are a fforded by electrotonus W h i le admitting .
the theoret i cal truth of the first object i on we may say ,
that the predo m i nat i n g e ffect at the poi nt o f application

i s that o f the pole chosen fo r i n stance i n the case illu
,
s
,
t ra t d ( g
e fi 6.
9) the v i rtual ka t hodes are fa r weak er t ha n
the ac tual a n ode .
( e) E l ectro ly ti c
fi
e eet s
'
— These
. wh i ch are,
man i fest ch icfly
at the surfac es i n co n t a ct wi th the elec trode s are of use ,
fo r the m ost part i n the su rg i cal depart m ents o f electrical

tre t e t
a m n a n
, d w ll be m ore fully cons i dered i n a ch pt
i a e r
o f the i r o wn . W e a re not yet able to say how far the

i
troph c results o f electr cal treat m ent m ay depend p
i u OIl
m i
the olecular terch n ges set up or di rected by
n a galv a nic
cu rre n ts fo r we do n o t eve n k n ow whether the inter

,
cha n ges are o f no co n seque n c e or are o f extreme im

porta n ce .
op hi c C atal ti c or A l terati ve e ects — E rb has su

( )d T fi
'
r , y g .
g ested the hypothes i s th a t a st i m ulat i on o f troph i c n er ve s

G EN E RAL T H E R A PE U T I C S . 261
o r of centres may be poss ible by th e ai d o f electr ic i ty ,
sayi ng . It i s pro bable that every nerve contai ns troph ic

fibres and i s plac ed under the i n fl u en ce o f trophi c ce n tres ,
upon wh i ch the electri c st i mul us m a y act and so mod i fy ,
the nutri t ion o f nerves m uscles and other organs has

, ,
teni ng regenerat ion an d removi ng the more sub t le

”
nutr i t i ve d i sturban ces . We m ay ass um e that gym
nas t i c and other methodi cal ex erci ses i n fl uen c e the
muscl es by an exc i tat i on o f th e nu t ri ti ve processes due
to the calli ng i nto play of the troph i c nerves under the
st i m ulus o f motor acti vi ty Is i t not possi ble in the
.
sa m e way to account fo r many o f the cu rat i ve results

o f elec t ri sat i on by assum i ng a s t i m ulat i on o f the troph i c
”
proce sses .
( )
e O s m o tic ej ects — ( S ee 153 ,
17 6 . C h o i c e o f ga l v an i sm o r f ar a di sm — S ome .
i n di cat io n s fo r t h e cho i ce o f current wi ll have bee n

learn t from the last sect ion general ly speaki ng i t may
be sa id tha t fo r st imulat ion pure and s i mple farad ism
i s t he best ; farad i sm i s o f great value in paralysi s o f
m uscles if they are able to react to i t but i f they pre ,
sen t the reacti on of degenerati on then the constant

curren t i s the better F ashi o n has m uc h to do wi th
.
det ermi ni ng the cho i ce between the t wo modes o f

trea t ment .
D u chen ne was a firm bel i ever i n the superi ori ty o f farad i c
tre at m ent for a ll k i nds o f paralyti c cond i t ions and R emah ,
was as warm a supporter o f the co n stant current The .
former wri ter declared t hat he had met wi th far bett er

re sults from faradism than galvan i sm T he latter was
.
as c on fiden t o f t h e superi ori ty o f hi s method .
Whatever ben efit s may be produced by elect rolyti c

o r el ectroton i c efiec t s mus t be possessed by galvan i sm
'
al one ; t he advantages of exci ta t i on of trophi c or cata ,

~
2 62 ME D IC A L E L E C T RI C I T Y .
lyt i c e ffects may be shared by both A t prese n t t he

, .
cont i nuous current i s m ost i n favour and perhaps , , ,
ri ghtly so but unt i l the rat i onal treatment by electri ci ty

,
shall have overtaken the em pi ri cal i t i s not always ,
possible to gi ve any better reasons for the preference ,
than that such and such a m ethod has already shown

i tsel f to be use ful .
17 7
. S t ren gt h o f c u rren t — I n determ i n i ng t he
.
strength o f current i t i s necessary to re m ember that

but l i ttle ben efit i s l i kely to follow torture and that n o ,
needless pai n should be i n fl i c t ed upon the pat i en t .
W i th faradi sm the operator m ust gauge the stren gth

o f h i s current upon h i m sel f first and must repeat t he,
test wi th every i ncrease i n i t s strength ; a stri ct ad

h eren c e to th i s rule i s the best plan by far o f ensuring
the proper amount of caut i on P at i ents as a rule are
.
extre m ely i ntolerant o f pa i n ful shocks and it must be ,
rem e m bered that the very n a m e of electri c i ty i s en ou g h

to m ake many pat ients at least a l i ttle anxious or
al ar m ed o n the i r first tri al o f the re m edy the strange
look o f the apparatus wi th i t s glea m i ng knobs the
, ,
cl i ck i n g or hu m m i n g n oi ses wh i ch i t gi ves out and ,
above all the m ysteri ous n ature o f electr i c i ty co m b in e

,
to m ake every pat ie n t feel nervous an d the operator ,

,
h i m sel f qu i te fam i l i ar w i th h i s apparatus i s very l ikely ,
to forget th i s It i s therefor e wi se fo r h i m alway

. s tO
assu m e an att i tude of great c arefulness i n the m g an a e °
m e n t o f h i s i nstru m ents th a t he m ay not appear t o h i s

,
pat i e n t to be reckless i n h an dl in g the m .
W i th constant curren ts the galva n om eter pro v i d es
the m ea n s o f regulat i n g the dosage For most form

.
s O f
local treat m en t five m i ll i a m p e res i s suffic ien t an d y m a
,
be too m uch for chi ldren or sen si t i ve or nervous p p e o l e ’
n
at the commencement o f a course of treatment ; e ve
G EN E R AL T H E RA PE U T I C S . 2 63
thi s current must never be sw i tched on o r off abruptl y ,
but only very gr adually the pa ti ent be ing carefully ,
watched for an y s igns o f pa i n or d i scomfort th e current ,
col lector 12 5
) m u
st be properly made a nd tested
from t i me to t ime to see that i t allows o f altera ti ons in

the number of cells wi thout any breaks o f c i rcui t ; when
t he appli cati o n s are m ade to any part o f the hea d o r
neck addi ti onal care must be exerc ised the efl ec t upon
'
, ,
the brai n being very pecul iar and unpleasant espec ially ,
at make and break The o n ly occa si ons when la rger

.
currents are requi red are in electrolysi s of n wvi when a ,
c urren t up to 100 m i ll iampe res i s someti mes requi red ,
and in D r I ngl is P arsons m ethod o f treat ing ma lignan t

.
’
tumours in bo t h o f wh i ch an an aesthet i c must be used

, ,
d i A l i treatment I n the latter no an sthet i c

’
a n n po sto s . ae
is used although the current may exceed 100 mi lli

,
am pe res . Tolerati on of so large a current is rendered

.
poss ible by the use o f a very large electrode for the

cutaneous surface t o reduce t h e densi ty of the current
p er un i t o f sur f ace an d ,
by the i nsens i t i vene s s o f the
the uterus t o wh ich the oth er pole is appli ed .
T h e durat ion o f each s i tt ing m ay be on an average

ten m inutes but here aga i n the pat ient s feel ings must
,
'
be taken i nto account and the ti me shorten ed or ,
lengthened as m ay seem advi sable in each part icular

case .
The n umber o f si tt ings vari es very m uch usually a ,
cons i derable nu m ber are requ ired It is best to tell the

.
pati ent at th e co m m encement that he must not expect

m ag i ca l and sudden cures but rath er a gradual slow ,
i mprovement . In some cases o f i n fant i le paralys is i t

may be necessa ry to cont i nue treatment for three si x or ,
even twelve months A s a general rul e i t may be sa i d

.
t h a t at lea st a month o f treatment w i th t wo o r t h

, ree
2 64 M s n rc u
. s n acr m c rr v.
si tt i ngs a week i s required to produce perm an en t ben efit

, ,
but of course there are except i ons and i t i s n o t po ssi bl e

,
to lay down any prec i se rules It i s usual fo r i m prov e

.
ment t o begi n early if the treatment i s l i kely t o do good .
In that case the pat i ent wi ll be encouraged t o pers e vere .
I f at the end o f a month o f regular treatment ther e i s n o

v i s ible change or i f t h e i m provement h as ce ased t o b e
,
progressi ve then the treatment may be di scont i nued

,
.
17 8 . T e h o c e o po l e
h c i f — W ith farad i c alternat e
.
currents the i n fl uen c e o f pole i s reduced t o a m i n i mum ,
a n d the two electrodes m ay be cons i dered t o be o f equ al
value wi th cont i nuous currents there are well m arked

d i fferences i n the e ffects produced F 10111 electrolysi s .
the regi on o f the anode or posi t i ve pole become s ac i d ,
and i n the treatment o f n aevi the needles wh i ch are

n egat i ve beco m e surrounded by a soft sl i ppery m a teri al ,
a lkal i ne i n react i on and they are l i kely t o sl i p o u

, t and
so break the ci rcu it u n less care fully watched ; when a
,
stri cture of the urethra i s to be electrolysed the negat i ve

pole i s the o n e to be i n t roduced ; acc i dents have followed
neglect o f th i s precaut i on the pos i t i ve pole has been
used an d has beco m e firm l y adherent to the str i cture ,
and lacerat i on and bleed in g have followed i t s forc i ble

wi thdrawal .
The sedat i ve e ffect o f the a n o de 4 )

1 2 determ i ne s
i t s use i n n euralg i a sc i at i ca spas m and t i n n i tus au ri um

, , ,
wh i le the st im ulat in g e ffect o f the kathode and the

greater ease wi th wh i ch i t causes m uscular contract i on
have deter m i n ed the use o f the n egat i ve pole in para
lysi s . I t i s n o t possi ble to ge n eral i se further about the
cho ice o f pole but i n st ruct i on s w i ll be found i n the
,
chapters o n treat m ent .
A s i m ple rule has been la i d down for the d i rect i on of

the fl ow of current i n medi cal pract i ce by R emah wh o ,
csnsm r n s m es ur t cs . 2 65
a dvi ses that the current should pa ss along the nerve

fibres in the d irect i on i n whi ch they conduct namely , ,
downwards to the peri phery for treatmen t of m ot or

affect i ons and upwards from the peri phery fo r sensory
,
‘
a ffecti ons .
E m mer prefers to consi der th at the di recti on o f the

current i s o f less i mport ance than the in fl uen c e o f t h e
poles ; an d we should therefore speak o f th e cho ice o f
pole rather than the cho i ce o f the di r ecti on o f t he cur
rent because the current does n ot run i n stra ight lin es
,
fro m anode to kathode ; however the d isti nc ti on be t ween

,
direct io n o f flow and cho i ce of pole i s after all a subtle

on e. To apply the kathode to the paralyse d thumb
muscles the anode bei ng at the n a pe o f the neck m ay
, ,
rea so n ably be spoken of ei t her as treatment by a de

scendi ng current or as treatmen t by the negati ve pol e .
Those who object to speak o f the in fl uen ce o f d irect ion

o f current base thei r objec ti ons on the fact represented
i n fig 69 that round a pole appli ed to any pa rt o f the

.
,
surface o f the body the flow o f current i s not i n one but

in every di rec t i on an d therefore there can be n o defin i t e
,
di rection o f the flow in the muscle under t rea t m en t uth e

e ffects be i ng efiec t s o f pole and not e ffects o f di recti on
o f curren t H owever wi th the i ndifferent el ec t rode
.
,
central and the act ive o n e peri ph eral i t i s perm i ssi ble
, ,
to speak of treatmen t wi th descendi ng c urre n ts when

the act i ve el ec trode i s the ka thode an d o f asce ndi ng ,
curr ents when i t i s the anode ; the words ascend ing and
descen di ng ha vin g referen ce to the gen eral d i recti on
from anode to kathode and not i mplyi ng an y theory o f
,
the phys iologi cal or th erapeut i cal i m porta n ce o f the

di rect ion o f the fl o w at the seat o f d i sease .
17 9 M et h od l —
. M ost electri cal treatment i s n ow
.
carri ed out by u sing a s in gle acti ve el ectrode and an ,

2 66 us n rcu . s L s cr m c rrv.
i ndifferent elec t rode T h e si ze o f t h e in di fferen t el ec

.
t rode i s determ in ed by t h e cu rren t t o b e u sed ; t h e
o rdin ary si ze o f the t i n plat e el ec t rode ( fig 56) i s .
4} i nche s by but fo r tr e a t i n g n e v i by t h e un i po l a r
method i t must have three or four ti m es t h at surface .
The acti ve electr o de may be th ree four o r fi v e c en ti , ,
metres i n di ameter accordi n g t o the e xte nt of surfac e

to be i n cluded i n the trea tm ent ; the el ec t rodes m ust b e
m oi sten ed best wi th wa rm water the i ndi fferen t o n e i n
, ,
i t s sheath i s then pushed down the back of t h e n ec k fo r

pat i en ts wh o are dressed a n d si tti ng up or i t i s pla ced ,
un der the sacrum or buttocks fo r pati en t s lyi ng down .
The part to be treated i s the n bathed wi t h wa rm water ,
and the act i ve electrode appl i ed and the c urrent slowl y

,
ra i sed to three four or fiv e m i ll i am pé res T h e act i ve

, ,
.
e lectrode i s to be m oved slowly over the whole o f the
a ffected part ( labi le m ethod ) o r kept st i ll i n o n e place

stabi l e m ethod The curre t m b closed nd
( )
. n a
y e a
ope n ed fo r the sake o f produci n g m uscular con tract ions ,
or m ay be eve n reversed by m ea n s of a com m utator for ,
the sa m e purpose These reversals

. volta i c alterna
,
“
t i v es ( al tern ati ves vol ti an es

) are
, espec i ally power ful i n
exc i t in g m uscular co n tract i o n .
It i s ofte n adv i sable w i th faradi s m see i ng that there ,
i s the n no quest i o n of cho i ce o f pol e t o have the i n ,
d i ffere n t electrode also i n the n e ighbourhood o f the part

under treat m e n t by doi n g th i s the se n sat i o n s produced
can be l i m i ted to the parts a ffected and they w i ll ap ,
pear to the pat ie n t m ore tolerabl e than when a f arad i

z a t i o n o f the m uscles o f a l i m b i s attended by pa i n or
d i sco m fort i n a remot e and healthy part of the body as

well .
In treat i ng the m uscles o f the hand fo r i n stance i t is ,
often qu i te conv en ient to lay t h e i nd i fferent electrod e

G E N ERAL T H B R A P B UT I C S . 2 67
under the pal m wh i le the dorsum is bei ng treated , an d
18 0 . G en eral fhx ad i z a t i o m —We can now co n si der

the methods of general treat m ent The old plan o f fara
.
d il i ng pat i ents by means o f metall ic el ectrodes held in

the two h ands may be regarded as a rude atte m pt
at general farad i sm D rs B eard and R ockwell have
. .
elaborated a method of general faradi zat ion the ad ,
vantages of wh ich they cla im to have bee n the fi rst t o

bri n g be fore the n oti ce o f the m edi cal pro fessi on .
The object a i med at i s to br in g every port ion of the

body in t urn under t he i n fl uen c e o f the faradi c treat
ment so fa r as i s possi ble by external appl i c at ions .
They consi der that th i s is best accompli shed by

plac ing one pole under the feet or over the sacrum ,
wh il e the other i s moved over the general body surface .
The pat ient shoul d stand or sit wi th both feet rest in g

on the surface of a large m etal electrode covered wi th
m o i st fl an n el ; th i s must be kept warm by means o f a
hot water bottle or some other contri vance as the treat ,
ment lasts for from ten to twenty m i nutes The other .

,
act i ve electrode i s t hen to be moved over the vari ous

,
parts of the body two or three m i nutes be i ng gi ven t o

,
each o f the m ore i mportant reg ions i n order as fol lows .
To the head ( foreh ead and vertex ) 1 m i nute .
neck and cervi cal spi ne 4

ba c k 3
abdomen 3
arms 2
11 le ss 2 n
The appl icati on to the li mbs i s less im portant and ,
may be om i tt ed in cert ai n cases .
The act i ve electrode should consi st of a metal di sc o r

ball covered over by a large sponge ot si x i nches in .
2 68 us m c m . E L E C T RI C I T Y .
d i a m eter and kept m oi st wi th hot water T h e o bj ect

, .
of us i n g electrodes o f large si ze i s that by thei r mean s
the current i s rendered less pa i nful and c o nse quently ,
t he pat i e n t c an bear stronger appl i cat i ons ; the u se of
the operator s hand as the act i ve electrode i s al so

’
*
recomme n ded by D r B eard for the followin g reason s

.
,
vi z.
, i n certa i n cases i t i s m ore agreeable t o the pat ien t
from i t s softness and pl i abi l i ty ; and i t s tact i le sensi
b il i t y makes i t easy fo r the operator to gauge both t he
a m oun t of pressure he i s e m ploy in g and al so the force ,
o f the curre n t used W hen on e hand i s to be u se d as

.
the act i ve electrode the Operator should put h i m self in

the ci rcu i t by hold i ng the wet sponge in h i s o ther hand ,
t h e curr ent the n passes through h i s own b o dy from hand

to hand H e can thus read i ly vary the force o f the c ur
.
rent by alter i ng the degree of pressure wi th wh i ch he
holds the sponge fo r when i t i s firm l y grasped t he

,
curre n t passes m ore readi ly and i s i ncreased and when ,
the grasp i s relaxed the current i s d i m in i shed ; no bad

results follow to the operator o n the contrary he shares ,
w i th h i s pat ie n t the b en efit s o f the treat m en t an d con ,
si derab l e develop m e n t o f the m uscles o f the arms i s sai
to follow .
The pat ient may be seated wh i le the upper part of

the body i s un der treat m e n t but should stand up if ,
poss i ble fo r the a ppl icat i on to the h i ps and th ighs A .
loose garm en t l ike a sh i rt o r n ight g own can be worn or -

,
a large shawl or blanket m ay be t hrow n rou n d the pati

ent The el ect rode can then easi ly be m a n i pulated an d
.
moved over the surfac e o f t h e body wi thout exposure .
I n the reg i o n o f the head the forehead and the vert ex

are the m o st im porta n t ; if the ha i r i s at all lo n g or
T his m d o f appl ic at io i sp ke o f as t h e el ec t i c h a d or
e o n s o n
”
r n ,
the h a d el c t o de
n e rI t wa
. m pl o yed by D u
s ech enn e .
G E N E RAL T H E R A PE U T I C S . 269
t h ick i t may be moi stened to d im in ish i t s res istance , .
The treatment o f the back o f the neck and the whole

regi on o f the sp i ne i s consi dered to be extremely i mpor
tant and should be thoroughl y carr i ed out the electrode ,
be ing slowly m oved up and down along the whole

length o f th e back .
The sensa t io n s felt by the pat ient sho uld be o f an

agreeable nature a pleasant th ri ll wi th out any sort of
, ,
pa i n o r di scom fort The operator must bear i n m ind

.
that the sens ibi l i ty o f the surface varies in di fferent

parts o f the body and he m ust adapt the force o f the
curre n t to su it such vari at ions us in g the hand by pre ,
ference fo r treat in g those parts wh i ch are most sens i t i ve .
The results o f the trea tment by general farad izati on

are ma inly ton i c i n the ir nat ure a feel ing o f vigour ,
follo ws depress ion or fati gue are rel i eved t h e appet i te

, ,
i s i n c reased the pat i ent sleeps m ore so u

, ndly there is an ,
i ncrease i n the firm n ess o f th e muscles and an i mprove ,
ment i n the c irc ulati on In some pat ients these results

.
foll ow promptly i n others the i r development i s more

,
gradual the sa m e vari ab il i ty i n the respo nse o f pat ients

to other forms of elec t rical treatment has been observed
by others ° .
The treatment by general farad izat i on should be

carri ed o ut two or three ti m es a week or every other ,
day C urrents su
. ffic i en t l y strong to cause muscul ar
contracti on should be employed as soon as the pat ient ,
has become accust omed to the trea t ment and i s able t o

bear them wi thout apprehension }
0 T here are so me e
p p
o l e in who m t h e el ect ri c al c rren t u i s po we .
I n ! fo r goo d or for evil , whil e o t h ers agai n are but l i t t le affect ed by

it
”
.
—
E rb .
t Fo r a fu ll ac co un t o f gen eral faradi za t io n , wit h fi gu res , t he
reader sho uld co n sult M edical an d S ur i c al U ses o f E l ect ric it y

g .
B eard an d R ockwel l . H K L ewis

. . .
18 1 . Ot h er th ra di c m et h o ds .
—B ut l i ttle c an be
s a i d on the subj ect of the ki nd of coi l b est sui ted for
medi ca l trea t m ent ; we have already b ri efl y al
12 0
)
lu ded to the d i fferences between pri mary and secondary
i nduced currents ; and d i fferen ces o f degre e al so exi st
i n seco n dary co i ls o f d ifferent make accord i ng t o the ,
number of turns an d the th i ckness o f t h e seco ndary

wi re A fter carefully co m p ari ng the e ffect s produced
.
by two seco ndary coi ls one o f many turn s o f th i n wire

, ,
and the other o f few tur n s o f th i cker w i re both bei ng ,
alternately placed round the sa m e pri mary coi l we are ,
not able to percei ve any di fference i n the sen sory e ffects

o f the two co i ls wi th currents just strong eno u gh to
cau se muscular co n tract i on wh i le wi th stronger currents
,
both coi ls see m to yi eld equally pa i n ful shock s .
There i s also no appreci able d iffere n ce between t he

two poles o f a med i cal i nduct i on co i l It i s true that .
wi th large R uh m ko rfi coi ls the character o f the spark

'
di ffers at the two term in als o f the secondary wi re but ,
i n those power ful co i ls the d i ffere n ce betwee n the make

an d break curre n ts i s acce n tuated by the presence o f a
co n den ser i n such a way that the spark con si sts al m ost
ent i rely o f a seri es of bre ak i n g curre n ts pass i n g i n on e
d i rect io n A s there i s n o co n den ser to ord i nary m edical
.
coi ls an d n o ai r gap i s prese n t in i t s appl i cat i on to the

,
hu m a n body the shocks o f an i n duct ion apparatus are

,
best reg a rded as an a lternate passage o f currents i n both

d irect i o n s those i n o n e d i rect i o n be i n g rather more
,
sudde n an d o f rather h igher electrom ot i ve force than

are those i n the other .
I n co n s i der i ng the quest i o n o f the i n fl uen c e o f the

poles i n g al v a n i c t reat m e n t i t wi ll be found that our
,
stock o f k n owledge o f the subject i s at best only a very

slen der o n e certa i nly i t i s n o t en ough t o j us tify an y
,
G E NE RAL rns w s ur t c s . 27 1
con fiden t s t atements upon the re lati ve values of the

poles of a secon dary c ircui t .
When sensory i mpress ions are c hi efl y desi red the ,
dry ski n is farad i sed wi th a metalli c brush o f very fin e

wi res and the current employed must be more powerful
,
th a n fo r m usc ular st i m ula t ion here aga in the di fference

,
between short and lon g co i ls i s inapprec iable the t e ,
qui red cutaneous e ffects can be produced as well wi th

a short th ick secon dary coi l as wi th a lon g one o f thi n
wi re.
The farad ic current i s to be employed where ton i c or

st i m ulat i ng e ffects are ch i efl y desi red an d wi th thi s ,
object i t i s valuable i n t h e treat m ent o f paralysi s o f ,
a n aesthes i a , or i n condi t ions where the i nvol un t ary

muscl es requi re to be roused ; thus t he abd om en and
the rectum may be farad i sed for consti pat i on and the ,
bladder or the uterus fo r atoni c condi ti ons .
I n the trea t m ent o f paralysed or wast ed m u sc les

farad i sm has been e m ployed systemati call y si nce t he
t ime o f D uchen ne a n d even be fore hi s ti me i t had gai ned
,
a consi der able degree of populari ty The paralysed

.
m uscles ca n be farad ise d di rectly by the appl i ca ti on o f

t h e acti ve electrode over the i r sur faces or i ndi rectly by
i t s appl i cati on to t hei r motor ner v es ; i n ei ther way
si mil ar results are obta in ed .
R efer ence to the chapter o n di agnos i s exp l ain s the

met hods o f exci t i n g the i ndi vi dual muscl es and nerve
trunks and the trea tment con s i st s s i mply i n movi ng the
,
wet s urface of the ele ctrod e slowly over the m oi stened ski n
coveri n g the muscles wi th a sli di ng and a rol li n g mov e
ment Th is sl id i ng moveme n t i s a gu ide to t h e proper
.
degree o f m oi sture necessary I f ei t her th e ski n or t he

.
s urface o f the electrode be t oo dry the latter wi ll not

sli p smoothly but wil l seem to sti ck or move harshl y
, , .
When th i s i s felt the electrode must be moi sten ed afresh .
It must not be assu m ed that the degree o f b en efit

from farad i s m can be measured by the amount o f vi si ble
con tract ion o f the muscles u n der treatment fo r i n ad ,
d i t i o n to the exerc i se so produced there are vaso m o tor -
e ffects an d refl ex effects through the centres i n the

,
cord both o f wh i ch take part i n bri ngi ng about the

,
fin al results .
The durat i on o f each appl i cat i on i n local farad i sm

should be about t en m i n utes and th i s t i m e must be ,
d i stri buted over the m uscles or other part s need i ng

treat m en t W hen the dry brush and pa i n ful current s
.
are e m ployed fiv e m i nutes wi ll usually be qu i te long

,
enough an d the pat ie n t m ust on no account be red uced

,
to a state o f exhaust i on fro m over treatment The -

.
operator should always try the current by experi m e n t

on h i s o wn m uscles i n order to know exactly what
,
amount o f d i scom fort or pa i n h i s pat i ent i s called upon

to bear .
18 2 . G a l v a n o fa r a d i-z a t i o n — D r D e Wattevi l l e h as
. .
reco m m en ded the s i m ult a n eous use o f the cont i n uous

a n d t h e i n t e rrupted cu rre n ts u n der the above na m e .
The m ethod co n si sts i n u n it i n g the secondary i n duc

“
t io n c o i l a n d the galva n i c battery i n one c i rcu i t by

c o n n ec t i n
g w i th a w i re the n e a t i ve pole o f the one wi th
g
the pos i t i ve o f t h e other att ach i n g the electrodes to t he
,
t wo e x t re m e pol e s an d send i n g both curre n ts together

”
throu gh t h e body we are told that the e ffect s o f t he
,
fara d i c c urr e n t a re gr ea tly en ha n ced by a s i m ulta n eous

gal v a n i z a t i o n bec a us e the po i n ts upo n wh i ch the st i m u
,
lus fa l l s are in a st a te o f exalted exc i t a b i l i ty or kath

el ectro t o n us O w in g to the refresh i ng propert i es of
.
“
the g a l v a n i c cu rren t upo n m uscle the fat igue and ex ,
h a ust i on wh i ch m ight otherwi se be the co n sequenc e of

G ENE RAL T H E R A PE U T I C S . 273
energet i c fara di zat i on are avoi ded D r D e Wattevil le . .
has a very hi gh opi ni on o f the advantage o f th i s mode

o f treatment part i cularly for electris ati on of the ah
,
do m in al v i scera and i n rheumat i c condi ti ons and i n

, ,
a t roph i c paralyses .
The strength o f each componen t may be ab out the

sa m e as when e i ther i s bei n g used alone .
18 3 . G al v an i z at i o n of the c ervi c al sy m pat h et i c .

— A good deal has been wri tten o f th i s proceed i ng but ,
as D r D e Wattevi l le has po i nted out i n an enterta i n ing

.
and caust ic art icle in i t i s extre m ely doubtfu l

whet her the cervical sympathet i c has ever been appre
c i ab l y i n fl uen c ed by electri cal treatment A t least none .
o f the ord i nary phys i olog i cal e ffects o f st i mulat i on o f the
sympathet i c are produced o n the pupil or the blood ves .
se ls o f the head and neck ; the tr eatment i s carri ed out

by plac i ng on e electrode below the ear and the other at
the n ape o f the neck and pass ing a weak c urrent A ll .
sorts o f adva n tages have been cla i m ed fo r thi s method ,
wh ich has become an establ i shed part o f the rout ine

treat m ent o f m any morb i d states o f the central nervous
syste m so that i n E rb s opi ni on i t should be carri ed o ut
,
'
i n every case where i t i s hoped to act on the c i rcula

”
ti on and nutri t i on o f certa i n parts o f the bra i n D r . .
Mon tz M ey er s plan i s t o place a m edi um si zed electrode

'
’
at the angle o f the jaw wi th i t s sur face d i rected back

,
wards and upwards towards the vertebral column The .
other pole should be larger an d appli ed to the oppos ite ,
si de o f the back o f the neck o n a level w i th the fift h , ,
s i xth or seventh cerv ical vertebra The kathode i s .
usually placed i n front but not always ; the c urrent ,
should be t wo t o fi ve m il l iampe res and the durati on ,
A n el ec t ro t h erape uti cal superst it io n . Brain , iv

.
, 18 8 1, p . 20 7 .
A . D e Wa t tevi l le .
2 74 ME D I CAL s t s c r m c n v.
on e to three m i n utes the appl i cat ion stabi le I n certa i n

,
.
cases both si des m ay be treated successi vely A s th i s .
treatment m ust in volve all the other i m portant nerv ou s

parts o f the neck and the base o f the skull as well as ,
the cerv i cal sy m pathet i c i t would be better to adop t

,
D r D e Wattevi ll e s suggest i on and speak o f su bau ral

’
.
,
g al van i z at i on rather
, than o f galvan i z a t i o n o f the sy m
pathet i c .
18 4
. C en t ra l ga l v an l z at l o n Th i s i s a plan o f
.
apply in g electri cal currents to the nerve centres al so ,
i ntroduced by D rs B eard and R ockwell

. It con si sts i n
.
plac i ng the negat i ve pole at the ep igastri um wh i le the ,
posi t i ve pole i s appl i ed to certa i n parts o f the head ( c h iefl y

the vertex ) to the sy m pathet i c and pneumogastri c i n
,
the neck and do wn the whole length o f the spi ne fro m

,
”
the first to the last vertebra I t i s sa i d t o be useful i n
.
cases o f hysteri a n eurasthen i a sleeplessness dyspepsi a

, , , ,
and other co m pla i nts The durat i on o f the treat m ent

.
m ay be about t en m i n utes the posi t i on of the negat i ve

,
pole m ust be changed fro m t i m e to t 1m e to preve n t any ,
bad electrolyt i c e ffects upon the surface o f the sk i n b e

n e a th i t . The strength o f curre n t should be var i ed
between fiv e and ten m illi am pé res accord i ng t o t h e ,
part u n der treat m ent .
For the appl i cat i on o f con t in uous curren ts to the

skull three m ethods have been propos ed the longi ,
tu di n al the tra n sverse an d the obl i que

, I n the first.
the electrodes are appl i ed to the forehead an d occi put ,
i n the seco n d they are placed e i ther on the two s i des of

the frontal bo n e or o n the m asto i d processes i n the l a st
, ,
they are appl ied to the forehead on o n e si de and the

nape o f the neck The th ird m ethod i s co n s i dered
.
spec i ally use ful because the current then follows the
,
d i rect i on o f the m otor fibres from the cortex to the

GE N E RA L r us m s ur t c s . 2 75
anteri or pyram i ds o f the medulla The anode i s usually .
p laced i n front I n all three methods i t i s rec ommended

.
to use large elec t rodes and weak c urrents very gr adua lly
i n creased and the durati on of a s itt ing should not ex
,
ceed fi ve m inutes .
18 5 S el f t re at m en t b y pat i en t s — I t i s a matter o f
.
- .
the greatest im portance that all el ectri cal treatment

should be ca rri ed out by the med i cal man hi mself
whenever th i s i s poss ible and if i t i s not poss i ble fo r
,
hi m to do so then at least he sho u ld superv i se th e treat

ment as o ften as he can When pa ti en t s are left to
.
themselves wi th a battery the results are uni formly

unsat i sfactory and the usual consequence i s solely to
,
bri n g electri cal treatment i nto undeserved di scredi t I t .
would be very nearly as rea sonable for a pati ent to

attempt to act as hi s own denti st as fo r hi m to try to
cure hi m self by means o f a battery w i t hout full medi cal
adv i ce and cons t ant supervi si on O nl y those who use .
batteri es regul arly are able to deal wi th the diffic ul ti es

o f maki ng th em work properly and i t i s therefore ab ,
surd t o place o n e i n the hands of a pat ient who ca nnot

'
even know whe t her i t be work i ng properly or not .
18 6
. E l i
ec t r c h eI t I — I t i s necessa ry to say a few
.
words on the subject o f th e so call ed electri c bel ts -

.
These th ings occupy a pro m i nent pos i ti on in the

”
“
j ugglery of advert i si ng quacks and medi cal men ,
are fr equently cal led on by thei r pa t ien ts to gi ve some

advice or op in ion about them For the most part they .
co ns i st o f p i eces of z i nc and copper more or less fan

t as t i c al l y jo i n ed together and sewn i nto a leather belt
,
her e and there the pi eces o f metal project so that they

ca n come i nto contact w i th the body s u rface .
It i s q ui te possi ble that m inute curren ts may be set

up by the m o i s t ure of the sk in acti ng upon the metal
T 2
2 76 M E D I CAL E L E C T RI C I T Y .
pie ces of the belt ; evi dence that thi s i s so i s i ndeed

a fforded by the fact that soreness an d ul ce rat i on
i s so m et i mes produced at the poi nt s where the bare
metal touches the sk i n but i t i s di fi c ul t t o see wh a t
,
possi ble good result c an follow so far as the wearer s ’
general health i s con cerned

-
F ro m what we ha ve
.
already sa i d of the uselessn ess of pati ent s treat i n g

themselves at all by electri ci ty it fo l low s a fortiori th at
the in di scri m i nate buyi ng and weari ng of el ectri c belts
i s a fut i le proceed i ng eve n suppo si ng ( whi ch i s n o t
,
ofte n the case) that they are desi gned in a pro per
m a n n er to y i eld a curre n t A t the pre sent ti me the
.
num ber o f persons who wi sh to buy o r have bought a n

electri c belt i s consi derable an d on thi s acco unt i t i s
,
i m porta n t fo r med i cal pract i t io n ers t o have some know

ledge o f the ir plan o f construct i on and propert i es i n
order to be able to make use of reasonable arguments i n
poi nt i n g out the ir real worthlessn ess The small m i n or ity
.
o f pat i en ts who profess the m selves cured by the weari ng
o f electr i c belts are people o f that class i n wh i ch the
e ffect o f the i m agi nat i o n or the i n fl uen c e of what i s

,
- -
f—
now a days kno wn as sel suggest i on i s most act i ve ; for
the m the na m e of electr i c i ty has always had a n d wi ll
cont in ue to have m i raculous powers to the neglect of ,
reaso n and common sense .

s L s c r ax c BA T H . 2 77
C H A P TE R X .
T HE E t s cr mc B am fi ‘
T h e bat h . A ccesso r y aprarat us .T he gal v an ic bat h T h e faradic .
ba t h . T he gal van o - faradic bat h H o t air o r va po u

. r el ec t ric ba t h .
U ses i n c h ro n ic rh eum at o id art h ri t i s. G o n o rrh mal rh e um at ism .
Go ut . L ateral scl ero si s. M et al l ic po i so n i n g. T re m o rs . T he

i n t ro duc t io n of m edic in al ubst an ces in to t he body Ra yn aud s '
s .
di sease . S c iat ica an d lum bago . G en eral co n cl u

si o n s .
18 7 .T h e b ath — The electri c bath i s used in the

.
trea tment of morbid cond i t ions wh i ch affect the whole

const ituti on and espec i ally i n some o f those wh ich h ave
,
the ir ori gin i n the central nervous system I t i s the .
m o st t horough way of applyi ng general farad izat ion or

gener al galvan izat ion It i s rather an extravagant and
.
wast eful way of applyi ng the cont i nuous current except

i n such cond i t ions as those alluded to i n wh i ch the ,
gen er al system suffers and when th ere i s no local m an i

testati on o f the d i sease on wh i ch the e ffects o f the
curre n t can be concentrated G alvano faradizat ion can .
-
al so be conveni entl y applied through the med i um o f the

ba th when desi red but we have not found i t better
,
than the use o f ei ther galvan i sm or faradi sm al one .
In lead palsy the i nterrupted c urrent may be used

singly t o the ext en sor m uscles o f the wr i st and hugers
after t h e galvan i c bath i s concluded .
The bath itself may be made o f pol i shed metal o f ,
porcel a in or of wood ; but porcelai n i s by far the bes t

,
T his ch apt er is a repri n t , wi t h a fewal t erat io n s , of D r S t eavenson

.
'
s
”
papers in T he L an cet , 18 9 1, vo l . i .
m ateri al for the purpose When m ade o f metal the

.
bath for m s one of the electrodes ( passi ve electrode) one

pole o f the battery be i n g attached to i t S uch baths .
are usually made o f copper and are kept qui te bri ght .
A japanned m etal bath i s not sui table fo r any form of

electric bath because the j apann i n g i s never so per fect
,
as to i n sulate i t co m pletely wh i le i t also does not allow

,
t h e bath i tsel f to act as an electrode i n the way de
scr ibed fo r the br ight m etal bath W hen the copper .
bath i s used provi si on has to b e m ade so that the pat i ent

may not touch the m etal The botto m o f the bath i s
.
covered by a wooden latt i ce work on wh i ch the pat ient

l ies a rest i s also prov ided for the back and project ing
, ,
p i eces o f wood are placed at the sides at the level of ,
the h i ps so as to prevent the body of the pat i e n t from

,
touch i n g the si des o f the bath Th i s form o f bath i s of

.
l i ttle use except for general farad i s m or i t may be em ,
ployed to i n fl uen ce any part i cular region o f the body

by a moveable act i ve electrode used locally on d iffere n t
parts of the body an d the part that it i s appl i ed to has
,
fo r the t i m e be i n g to be out o f the water I n th i s way .
such strong currents ca n not be borne as when the whole

o f the body i s i m m ersed fo r although the curre n t i s
,
wi dely d i ffused i n i t s passage an d e n ters the body at

m a n y po i n ts yet i t w i ll be co n ce n trated at the part to
,
wh i ch the second electrode i s appl i ed an d there fore a ,
stronger current than 10 or 15 m i l li am pé res can n ot be

toler a ted It i s far better to e m ploy a bath m ade of a
.
non conduct i n g m ater i al such as porcela i n or wood

-
A .
porcela in bath i s the cleanest an d best but i t i s also the ,
most expen si ve an d i s very heavy E ach porcela in .
bath is made i n a mould and m a n y are rejected a fter

h r i n g on account o f some flaw ; th i s and the r i sk of ,
breakage makes the m expensi ve A wooden tub i s

, .
E LE C T R I C BA T H . 2 79
therefore someti mes used fo r the sake o f cheapness and ,
the best wood o f wh ich i t can be m ade i s oak I ts ap .
p e a ra n c e can be i mproved by hav i ng the outsi de po li sh ed

and i t s hoops of i ron pa i nted black The i nsi de o f all .
wooden baths used fo r electri cal purposes sho uld be

carefull y pa in t ed wi th non metall ic pa i n t W h ite n o n
-
.
m etalli c enamel i s the best fo r th is purpose I f the .
i ns ide of the bath i s not thus protected the wood i n t i me

becomes waterlogged I t i s then a con ductor o f elec
.
t ri c i t y and i s a l most useless fo r the purpo se o f the

,
elec t ri c b a th .
The water in the bath should be o f the temperature

o f 10 0 F but i t i s o ften advi sable to g ive the first bath
’
o f a seri es at a temperature o f fo r many pat i ents
Fl o .
76 .
-
E l ec t ro des fo r t h e bat h .
cannot at any ti me bear a hi gher temperat ure The bath .
should be well fill ed wi th water so that when the pat ient

li es in i t the whole body and the shoul ders m ay be
.
covered A bath thermometer m ust always be use d to

.
ascerta in and regulate the t emperature .
18 8
. T h e a ppa ra t u s req u i re d — O rd i nari ly the .
electrodes are metal plates placed at the head and foot ,
they sh ould always be kept clea n and bri ght These .
met al pla tes are prov i ded wi th b indi ng screws to wh ich

the battery wi res are attach ed ( fig The bes t met al .
is copper or n i ckel It i s no use hav i ng these m etal

.
sh e ets plated as i s somet i m es done fo r appear a nce

,
sake for the plat i n g qu i ckly leaves the pos i t i ve pole

,
.
The electrode placed at the head of the bath i s usually

the larger a n d m ay m easure e ighteen i nches by twelve
, ,
that at the lower en d o f the bath b ei n g eleven i nches by

n i ne S m aller plates are so m et im es u sed fo r the h i ps
.
and knees when i t 13 w i shed to local i se the current m ore

or less at those parts The water should alway s be
.
d eep enough i n the bath to cover t h e plates .
The shoulders an d back o f the pat i ent are kept from

touch i ng the plate at the head o f the bath by a rest
made o f wood so m eth i n g l i ke a p icture frame hav i n g
,
pi eces o f webb i ng stretched across ( fig The l ight .
Fm .
77
.
—B ack re st .
w icker fire scre en s wh i ch are m a de to fi t on to t h e

backs o f ch a i rs are very co n ven i ent an d co m fo rtable for
protect i n g the pat ie n t s back from touch i n g the m eta
’
plate .
A depress ion i s made i n the u pper bar c f t h e fra m e to

E L E C T RI C BA T H . 28 1
support the back o f th e pa ti ent s head The feet may ’

.
be all owed to touch the el ectrode at th e oppos i te end o f

the bath because the epiderm i s on th e soles i s th ick
enough to take care o f i tsel f I f a pat ient prefers i t .
,
the feet need not be placed i n actual contact w i th the

m etal but they should be kept in close prox i m i ty to i t
,
.
A part only o f the total c urrent in c i rc u i t traverses the

body the rema i nder pass i ng through the water i n whi ch
,
i t i s i mmersed the body i s the better conductor o f the

,
two though not grea tly so

, The water i n the bath
.
o ffers a broad co n duct ing m ed i um wi th a large trans ;

verse sect ional area several t im es larger than the
,
pat ient and therefore a considerable part o f the current

traverses the water and i s al together lost to the pa
t ie n t fi Th i s makes the employment o f electri ci t y in th e
‘
form o f a galvan ic bath a wasteful one I t has been cal .
cu l a t ed that an e ighth p art only o f the c u rre n t traverses

the pat ient Thus wi th a c urrent o f 2 00 m il li a m pé res
.
ass ng through the bath the pat i ent s body carri es '
p i
about 2 5 only I t can easi ly be shown t ha t part o f the
.
current trave rses the human body when i m m ersed in a

bath even if the feet do not touch the bottom electrode
, ,
for if o n e o f the legs i s held up out o f the water and so

rem oved from the c ircui t the current as reg i stered by
,
the galvano m eter i s i mmedi ately reduced B y d i ppi ng .
both hands i nto the bath at so m e d i stance apart the

galvan i c current passi ng i n the water can be eas i ly felt ,
for a certai n port ion o f i t then passes through the new

cha n nel o ffered to i t go ing up one arm an d down the
,
other W i th the faradi c c urrent the e ffect i s such t hat

.
t h e wri sts are q ui te doubled up by the contracti on o f

the muscles when the hands are held far apart I f sal t .
T he res ist an ce of th e when

bat h the pat i en t i s i n it i s ab o ut
120 oh ms ; but vari es with th e q uan t i ty of wat er used .
282 113 1
310 111 E
. LE C T RI C I T Y .
or ac i d i s added to the bath t h e wa ter bec o me s a be tter

,
conductor than before and the pat i ent s share o f the

,
’
total current passi ng wi ll be reduced I t i s the refore .
use less and object ionable t o make such add i t i ons t o t h e

water I n sp i te o f th i s fact many bo oks have adv i s ed i t
.
,
t o be done .I n the tre atment o f a case the current shoul d

be allowed to fl ow through the pat i ent for from ten to
fi ft een m i nutes I t i s o ften not poss i ble t o det ect much
.
i m provement in a pat i ent s cond i t ion u nti l a fter the si xth

’
o r e i ghth bath The first fiv e or si x baths may be

.
gi ven on consecut i ve days and then every other day ,
unt i l the end o f the course A course may consi st of .
th i rteen or fourteen baths A pat i ent may have m ore i f.
he wi shes and i f he i s cont i n u i ng to progress ; but often

,
a fter a course i s over the pat i ent s condi t i on wi ll con ’
t i n n e to show i mprovement a fter the baths have been

le ft o fi and the i mprove m ent wi ll be kept up unless
’
som e fresh cause ari ses to bri n g about a relapse .
The current to be employed i n a galvan i c bath must

be very gradually ra i sed un t i l the galvano m e t er reg i sters
2 0 0 m i lli a m pé res o f wh i c h the pat i ent really gets a
,
curren t o f about 40 m i l l ia m pé res ; but i t i s best fo r the

first fe w baths to use a curre n t o f 60 or 100 m illi
a m pé res o n ly A battery o f large L ec l an c h é cells
.
a n swers very well si xty o f these may be con n ected

,
w i th a swi tch board hav i n g a double or si ngle collector

12 5 a n d a co m mutator
) 12 6
) and a galvano m eter
gradu a ted to read up to 2 50 m illi am pé res must be
i n cluded i n the c i rcu i t A h i n duct ion apparatus is
.
also requ i red i t must be power ful and should be so

, ,
arr a n ged that i t can be eas i ly set i n act i on regulated , ,
an d sw i tched i n or out o f c i rcu i t .
A S t oh rer s bat t ery m ay also be used but

’
they are rather uncerta i n largely through faulty con ,

m cr x t c BA T H . 28 3
tacts at the upper part o f the carbon pl ates they al so ,
need more attenti on than L ec l an ch é cells .
18 9
. T h e g al v an i c b at h —The pa t i ent a fter enter
.
i n g the bath shoul d be allowed a fe w m i nutes to recover

from the reacti on produced by the war m water be fore the
c urrent i s t urned o u The curren t should be i n creased
.
slowly and cauti ously and th e galvano m eter watched

, ,
and at the term inat i on o f the bath the current m ust be

reduced as slowly .The di recti on of fl ow should gene
rally be from the feet to the hea d the kathode bei ng ,
at the upper end o f the bath and the anode at i t s foot,

.
A m edi cal man should always be present to regulate ,
i ncrease or di mi ni sh the strengt h o f the curre n t

, The .
pat ient can wear an ordi n ary bath ing cos tu m e W i th .
fiem al e pat i ents the presence o f a nurse or a ma i d i s

necessary but the med i cal man should also remai n i n
,
t h e ba th room wh i le t he c u
-
rren t i s fl o wi n g A n ar .
range m ent i s needed o n t h e swi tch board or on the ,
battery fo r complet ing the c irc ui t and fo r gradually

,
incr e as i ng the strengt h o f the current wi thout any

interrupt i ons taki n g place so that all chance of gi vi ng
,
a pat i ent a shock i s avo ided W i th the large currents

.
used th is i s m ost i m portant A s the c urrent i s.
slowly augm ented the first sensat ion ex per ienced by

the pat i ent i s us ually a s light pri cki ng or t in gl i n g at
the ankl es or at the kn ees A galva n i c t aste m ay be
.
perce i ved a s the c urrent beco mes stronger S hould the .
pat ient s head feel ful l or t hrobb ing duri n g the admi n is
'
trat i o n o f the bath a cold wet towel m ay be placed on

the top o f the head A n d i f any fa i n tness i s caused
.
,
the current m ust be reduced A h electri c bath must .
not be taken too soon a fter a fu ll m eal D uri ng the .
ba t h the p ulse rate i s sa i d to be d i m in i shed as are also ,
the respirati ons A ft er the bath the skin o f the back

.
near t o the uppe r electrode w i ll be found o f a br i ght red

hue th i s w ill gradually pass off i n an hour o r t wo
, .
A fter dressi ng the pat i ent should rest fo r fi ft een or

,
twenty m i nutes be fore goi ng out i nto the open a i r and ,
should not i m m ed i ately engage i n exhaust i ng exerc i se .
A fter an electr i c bath there appears to be n o part i cular

te n dency to catch cold and the pat i ent generally feels
e x h i larated and better S hould there be any s i gn of
.
languor or depression a fter a bath the treatment should

n o t be per severed i n .
19 0 T h e f a ra d i c b at h
.
— VVh en the i nterrupted
.
current i s used ei ther the pr i m ary or the sec dary coi l

m ay be e m ployed S pec i al farad i c coi ls 0 large size
.
are best for use w i th the bath There must be some .
m ea n s o f regulat i n g the strength of the pri mary current

ei ther by m ovi n g or sh i eld i ng 119
) the core o f so f t
i ron w i res i n i t s ce n tre ; or by a rheostat
The curre n t fro m the seco n dary coi l can be regulated
by the a m oun t o f the co i l that i s allowed to e nc i rcle t he
pr i m ary o n e It i s always best in the farad i c a pparatus
.
to h a ve the se c o n dary co i l a fter the D u B o i s R ey m on d -
sledge pri n ci ple that i s wou n d upo n a separate bobbin

, , ,
a n d c a p able o f sl i d i n g over the pr i m a ry fi

( g 47
s .
,
19 1 T h e g a l v a n o f a ra d i c b a t h — Treat m e n t by
.
-
.
the co m b i n ed curre n ts— co n st a n t an d i n terrupted— c an

a lso be v ery co n ve n i e n tly c a rr i ed out by me a n s o f t h @
bat h The two curr en ts a re passed alo n g the sa m e wi re ;

.
the ter m i n a ls o f the s eco n d a ry co i l be i n g con n ected ;
to the b a th e lect rodes wh i ch are also carry in g t he f

,
galva n i c c urre n t The farad i c bath i s spec i ally i n di

.
c a t ed i n t hose cases o f ge n eral deb i l i ty wh i ch are?

sui ted to ge n er a l far a d i z a t i on 18 0
) fo r wh i ch t h i ?
treat m en t c an o ften be subst i tuted wi th advantage
T h e e ffect i s dec i dedly i n v igo rat i n g ; we have al so
E LE C T RI C s un . 2 85
obta i ned good r es ults in cas es o f post h em i plegi c w eak

ness i n chr oni c myel i ti s and in exoph t ha lmi c go i tre
, , ,
and bot h c urrents can be felt i n the bath The con .
stant current o f the full strength o f 2 00 m i lli amp e res

may be used at the same t i me wi th a strong curren t
from the co il wh i ch i s work ed from a separate battery
, .
19 2 . H ot ai r o r v apo u r el ec t r i c b a t h — I n A meri ca .
electr i ci ty has been appl ied t o pati ents when i n a hot

ai r or vapour bath . Thi s form o f appl icati on i s sa i d to
possess certai n therapeut i cal advantages P ati ents who .
su ffer depress ion and are in oth er ways unable to take

the water electri c bath can o ften bear the hot ai r o r
vapour electri c bath The bath i s gi ven in a cabi net
.
cons t ructed for the purpose There i s a stool connected

.
to one pole o n whi ch the pat i ent i s seated h i s head ,
be i ng outsi de o f the box or cab i net The other pole o f .
the batt ery can be connect ed e ither wi th the fl o o r o f the

cab inet whi ch i s l i ned wi th z i nc or wi th spec ial elec
, ,
trodes to be appli ed t o d i fferent parts o f the body The .
ca b i net con ta i ns a hot water coi l wh ich i s con nected

wi th a boi ler and heat ing apparatus outs ide .
The pat ient be in g seated on the s t ool the hot air o r

stea m is adm i tted i nto the cab i net The vapour i s used .
at a temperature o f 9 0 to 100 F It produces perspi ra

° °
ti on and i s used for chron ic rheumati sm st iffness o f the ,
jo i nts and ski n di seas es I t i s also used at a h igher

, .
t emperature when employed for i nternal co n gesti ons .
The vapour bath cannot be borne at such a h igh tem .
p e ra t ure o r for so long a t i me a s the hot ai r 106 to 110 ,

° °
F i s the usual li m i t but the hot ai r can be borne up

.
,
to The neck i s surrounded by dry warm towels

to prevent the escape o f the heat There are holes wi th.
doors i n the s ide o f the cabi net through wh ich the med i
cal m an can pass hi s h ands for the purpose o f adjust ing
286 us n t c u
. BL E C T R l C l T Y .
the electrodes t o that part o f the pat i en t s body i t i s ’
wi shed to treat S omet i m es a projec ti ng metal arm i s

.
used wi th the end covered by sponge aga i nst wh i ch the

pat i ent s back o r epi gastri um can rest Th i s projecti ng
’
.
arm i s fix ed t o the back or si de o f the ca b i ne t and i s
con n ected wi th on e o f the poles of the battery .
A hot ai r or vapour electri c bath occupi es fift een or

twe n ty m i nutes A t the co n clusi on the pat i ent should
.
be cooled down by a shower bath ; a common wateri ng

pot m ay be used fo r th i s purpose A dra i n pi pe i s c on .
n ec t ed w i th the bottom o f the bath t o ca rry o ff the
m o i sture A lthough the pat i e n t i s enveloped wi th hot

.
ai r or vapour the curre n t can only be conveyed t o h i m
by contact o f the electrodes W e made a seri es o f ex .
ri m en t s at S t B artholomew s H osp i tal m ye rs

’
p e . so e a
ago to see i f a current could be conducted by spray P ure .
water and salt and water were used and forc ed o ut o f a

m etal nozzle connected wi th one pole of a battery the ,
jet wa s d irected on to a m etal recei ver connected wi th

the other pole and a del i cate galvanometer i ncluded in
what would have been the c ircu i t had the vapour con
ducted any curre n t but we could produce n o defl ec t ion
,
o f the needle .A hot ai r or vapour electr i c bath is

there fore noth i ng more tha n the appl i cat i on o f elec
t ri c i t y to a pat i ent whose sk i n i s rendered a better con
ductor through the war m th and perspi rat i on that i s
i n duced .The sk i n i s so ftened and so rendered a
better conductor The vapour bath i s more relaxi ng
.
a n d sooth i n g than the hot a i r bath .
19 3 . C h o n i c rh eu a t o
r m i d a rt h ri i
t s — The a fiec .
’
t ion fo r wh i ch the co n t i n uous current electri c bath is

most use ful i s chron i c rheum a toi d arthri t i s a most oh ,
st i mate compla i n t that usually resi sts all forms o f treat

ment . E lectr i c baths w i ll not cure i nveterate cases ,
E L BC T R l C BA T H . 28 7
but they wi ll do very m uch to arrest the progress o f

the di sease to reduce the pa i n and swell i ng o f the
,
jo i nts and otherwi se to produce amel iorat i on i n the

,
sympto m s The natural tende ncy o f the d isease i s

.
almost always from bad to worse but even in the worst ,
cases pers i stent treat m en t wi th the elect ri c bath co m

b in ed wi th pass i ve movemen ts wi ll result in so me
i m provem ent W hen the stress o f the compla i nt has
.
fallen on the hands and they h ave become d i storted and

useless bes ides the plates already descri bed as used fo r
,
electrodes i n the bath a se ri es o f metal handles o f

,
di fferen t s izes ( fig 7 8) covered wi th house fl an n el have

.
-
Fl o 7 8
. .
—H an dl es for rhe umato id art hri ti s .
been employed an d by the ir mean s the hands have

,
gradually been opened out S m all ha ndles are used

.
at first and gradually i ncrease d in s ize as the pat ient s ’
hand is able to rece ive them .
The han dles are attached to the negati ve pole o f the

battery and take th e place o f the foot plate
, The .
current then enters the body at the spine and leaves

i t by the hand wh i ch grasps the handle and i t i s thus ,
concentrated upo n the arms and hands B ut th i s local .
appl icat ion o f the curre n t sho uld only be used fo r about
the las t five m i nutes o f the ba t h ; i t shoul d never alto
gether take the place o f the general bath wh i ch probably ,
infl u en c es the whole system The h an ds m ay also be .

2 88 1
.1130 c 1 E
. LE C T RI C I T Y .
made t o grasp a metal b ar supported across

and covered wi th mo i stened ho use fian n el ( fig” .
In th i s po
ra i sed out o f
more curren t and the ,
rent fl o win g through

must be reduced to
altered cond iti ons .
c en t rat ed i n th i s 11 1
h ands the pati en t

more than ten or
a m pe res .
d i rec t i on
made the current m ust firs t be
,
reduced to zero and then i n

creased agai n I f the curren t .
were broken o r revers ed the ,
pat i ent would rece i ve a very

unpleasant shoc k even though ,
the current were on ly 2 0 m i ll i

am pé res.
A fter the comple ti on of a course

o f baths i t i s generall y poss i ble to
not ice so m e i m prov w i n t he
condi t ion o f the pat i ent A .
pat ient fo r i nstance wh o coul d

only cl i m b ups t a i rs slowly an d
pa i n fully becomes able to make
the ascen t wi thout a ssi st ance or
a wo m an who be fore c oul d not
hold her needle at all ha ds that
sh e i s able to use i t sl o wly T he .
d i rect ion of the i n the

Fro 79
.
R oss, D iseases of t he Nervou
s
S yst em , vo l . i
"
.
, p
.
3 2 6 .
s ra c r m c BA T H . 289
treatment of rheumat i c afl ec ti on s sho uld be wi th the

'
posi t i ve pole at the head o f the bath .
W hen the larger joi nts such as the knees hi ps or ,
sho ulders are the seat o f rheumato i d arthri t is the cur ,
rent ca n be loca li sed by the use o f the smaller metal

plates ( fig . one be ing pl aced on e i ther s ide o f the
bath so as to i nclude the a ffected jo ints between them .
The jo i nts shoul d be a fterwards subjected t o rubb ing

and passi ve movements L ocal arm baths or foot baths
.
are some t i mes g i ven when one l i m b or jo i nt only i s

affected A porcela i n or small wooden bath i s the best
.
,
and two small m etal plates attached to the respecti ve

poles o f a battery are placed one on e i ther s i de o f the
a ffected me m ber and a current al lowed to pass S o m e .
t i mes one electrode only i s placed in the water the ,
other ( a di sc elect rode attached to the negati ve pole )

bei ng app li ed to the a ffected joi nt or l i mb ; for i nstance ,
to a rheumat i c knee or to the arm i n a case o f cervi co

brach i al neuralgi a Bu.t ordi n ary galvan i sm w i thout
the i ntervent i on o f a bath seems to be more su i table for
these local i sed a ffect ions .
19 4
. Go on rrh e al rh eum a t i sm — Th i s a ffect ion has
.
also been treated by electri c baths o n the same plan as

that fo l lowed in the treatment o f rheu m ato i d arthri t i s
but not wi th qui te such sati sfactory results The pos i .
ti ve pole i s placed at the head o f the bath It is a dvi s .
able to employ pass i ve move m ents fo r the a ffected li mbs

a fter the ba t h .
19 5 G o
. u t — The galvani c bath i s wonderful ly efli
.
ca c i o us in gout more espec iall y in old standi ng and

c h ron i c ca ses I t has been suggested that i t act s
.
in part by el i m i nat ing the urate o f soda through

an elect rolyti c acti on but the proof of th is i s st i ll
,
wanti ng It i mproves the cond i t ion o f the jo ints and

.
U
2 90 ME D I CAL E L E C T RI C I T Y .
should be used a fter the acute attack s have pa ss ed

05 .
19 6 . L at eral ac l erosi a — Th i s i s another a ffect i on

.
that appears to be greatly ben efit ed by electr i c baths .
The bath i s gi ven i n the way already desc ri bed fo r

gi vi ng a ge n eral galva n i c bath The d i rect i on o f the .
curre n t i n the treat m e n t o f lateral sclerosi s should be

wi th the anode placed at the head of the bath so that ,
the curre n t e n ters the spi nal cord between the shoulders .
The electri c bath certa i nly reduces the tende n cy t o i n

creased refl ex exc itab i l i ty fo r u n der th i s treat m e n t the
,
spast i c ga i t i s i m proved and the tenden cy t o ton i c spasm

i n the l i m bs i s lesse n ed E arly expe ri ence led t o the
.
bel i e f that those cases o f spast i c r i gi d i ty acco m pan i ed ,
by severe tre m bl i n gs an d sudden contract i ons o f the

l i m bs i n bed were m ore amenable to treat m e n t when
,
they were the result o f d i rect i n jury to the spi nal cord ;
but latterly cases both of pri m ary lateral sclerosi s and
o f desce n d i n g i rr i tat i ve les i ons o f the lateral colu m ns ,
consecut i ve to cerebr a l d i sease have also bee n fou n d to ,
i m prove gre a tly by th i s tre a t m e n t W e have used both .
the fa rad i c and the g a lv an i c bath a n d have see n m ore im ,
prove m e n t follow the first o f these m ethods o f treat m en t .
19 7 . M et al l i c po i so n i n g, pl um b i s m , & c. —A
m ethod re m ov i n g po i son ous
of the body m etals fro m
by m ea n s o f a n electro che m i cal bath has bee n em -
ployed The m ethod was n troduced by Vergn és of

. i ’
H e h ad a b ad ul cerat ion on his h an d pro du ced by h an dl in g
m et al l ic sol ut i o n s i n t h e pro c ess o f el ect ro pl at i n-

g H e.c o n n ect ed
h is h an d wit h t h e po si t iv e po l e o f a bat t er ya nd
pl ac ed i t i n a bath
an d i m m ersed i n t he bat h am et al pl at e c o n n ec t ed wit h t h e n e at ive
g
p e
o l . A ft er a c urren t o f el ec t ric it y h ad been fl o win g fo r fift een
min ut es h e fo un d t h at t h e n ega t i ve p l at e h ad o n i t a t h i n h l m of
go l d an d sil ver . He repeat ed t h is h an d el ect ric bat h a few t i m es and

fo un d t h at hi s ul cer h eal ed l
H avannah For the removal o f metall ic i mpuri t ies

.
fro m the body i t has been recommended to use a

copper bath to wh ich is attached the negati ve pole
o f a battery the pati ent holdi ng out o f the water a
,
handl e covered wi th house fl an n el ( fig 7 8 ) first i n on e .
hand and t hen in the other for e ight o r ten m i nutes ; or

he may grasp t h e me t al rod ( fig but i t cannot be .
allowed to rest on the s i des o f the copper bath i t m u st ,
have some spec i al insul ated supports a n d be connected

wi th the pos it i ve pole When the metal to be removed .
fro m the body i s lead the water i n the bath shoul d be,
ac idulated wi th s ulph uri c ac id ; fo r o t her metals n i t ric

ac i d may be used Instead o f a copper bath a porcela i n
.
bath m ay be used wi th a large sheet of copper i mmerse d

i n the water and co n nected wi th the negati ve pol e .
The current enters the pati ent s arm passes th rough ’
hi s body an d so reaches the kathode taki ng wi th i t t h e ,
metal and depos i ti n g i t on the surface o f the éo pper

plate S ome of the m etal is also sa i d to remai n in the
.
water .
19 8 T rem o rs —The tremors o f mercuri al po i soni ng

. .
can be success ful ly treated in th i s way as many as ,
fiv e and twen t y baths have been requi red to produce a

- -
cure A lcoholi c tremors can o ften be c u red by si x o r '
eight baths .
199 C at a ph o ric m ed i cat i o n

.
— The introduct ion o f .
med i c i nal substances i nto the body has been recentl y

revi ved by D r C agney o f S t M ary s H ospi tal
. The .
'
system was advocated and pract i sed by Vergné s in 18 55 .
H e employed phosphate o f iron and n i tri c aci d The .
pat i ent was made to si t in a ba th contai ni n g a soluti on

of on e of these substances whi le hold ing the negat i ve
pole out o f the water The current was passed through .
”
Bri t M ed J o an
“
N o vem ber 8 88 9
. .
. .
29 2 ME D I CAL E L BC T R l C l T Y .
the water i nto the pat i ent and o ut at the arms in i t s ,
p assage i t carr i es so m e o f the substance i n solut i on

i nto the pat i ent D rs B oard and R ocs l l
. .
" say that ,
there i s l i ttle quest i on that the passage o f the c urrent

through the body i m m ersed i n certa i n m ed i cated solu
,
t i ons a i ds i n the ab sorpt i on o f so m e port i on o f the c o m

,
pound W eakly an d a n aem i c p at i ents m i ght i n th i s way

.
be m ade to ab sorb phosphate o f i ron D r C agn ey i n . .
h i s rece n t paper re ferred to the experi m ents o f Van

B ru ns an d H erman n M u nk
f A saturated solut
. i on o f
the substa n ces experi m e n ted w i th was placed i n t wo of
D u bois s co n duct i ng tubes an d the tubes were closed
’
w i th clay soaked i n the solut ion t h ey were then a ppl i ed , \
to the part o f the body i t was espec i ally wi shed t o i n fl u

e n ce The d i rect i o n o f the curre n t was reversed every
.
fiv e or si x m i n utes I f the curren t i s con t i nued long i n

.
the sa m e d irect i on the absorpt ion or os m osi s i s retarded

through polar izat i on i n the t i ssues I t i s therefore .
n ecessary to charge both electrodes wi th the solut i on to
b e i n troduced The curre n t should be fa irly stro n g an d

.
k e pt fl o wi n g fo r fro m fift een t o fo rty fiv e m i n utes A -

.
co n si d er abl e qu a n t i ty o f a dru g c a n be a d m i n i stered by

th i s m ean s ; tra ces have b een d i scovered i n the sal iva
a n d ur in e fo r s ever a l hours a ft e rw a rds .
T h e dr ug wh i c h gi ves the best results when a d m i n i s

t ared i n th i s way i s the i od i de o f pot assi u m an d when ,
o n ly o n e c h arged ele c trode c a n be used i t should be

att a c h ed t o the n egat i ve pol e because the i od in e is ,
e l ec tro n ega t i v e a n d has a t en den cy to travel tow ards

-
the p o si t i v e p o l e It i s cl ai m ed that i od in e c a n be
.
e ffect ively i n trod uced i n th i s wa y i n goi tre or stru m ous

M e dic al an d Surgic al U ses o f E l ec t ri c it y , 8 th edit . , p 7 68
. .
f E rb s
’ “
E l ect ro t h erapeu
-
t ics,
”
t ra n sl at ed by D r. D e Wa t teville ,
12 7
p. .
E L E C T RI C BA T H . 293
glands It ha s al so been used in cases o f labyri nthi ne

.
dea fness and in lead palsy also in syph il i t i c gummata

,
and i n d i seas es o f the ski n Iod i de of potassi u m m ay

.
be tr i ed i n th is way when i t d i sagrees wi th the stomach ,
and the effects o f the i od in e can be more di st inctly

loca li sed ( see also
2 00 R ay n au
. d s dl l ea l e —The electri c bath i s most
’
.
usef ul in all cases o f defecti ve ci rculat i on i ncludi ng those ,
cases o f local asphyxi a descri bed as R ay naud s disease i n ’
wh i ch the extrem i ti es o ften become blue and are very

l i able to ch ilbla i ns and so m et im es even become gangre
,
nous The cont inuous current should be employ ed i n

.
the manner already descri bed The pati ent s general .

’
nutri ti on and ci rculati on w ill be fou n d to have i mproved

at th e end o f a course and the tendency to c hi lbla i ns
,
lessened The co m plete bath is the best but D r T homas

.
,
.
B arlow i n h is appen di x to t h e translati on o f R ay nau ds

‘
t wo E ssays on L ocal r ecommends local

a rm electr ic baths i n the followi ng words
,
The use
o f the constan t curren t as recommended by R ay n au d has ,
been adopted wi th advantage by several observers in

cases o f local asphyx ia The method wh ic h h as been
.
found most sa t i sfactory by the translator i n four sepa

—
rate cases has been the fo llo wi n g z i mmerse the ex
t rem i ty o f the l i mb w hi ch i s the subj ect o f local asphyx i a
i n a large ba si n conta i ni ng salt and water ; place one
po le o f a co n stant current battery on the upper part o f
the li mb and the other in the basi n thus converti ng th e ,
sa lt and water i nto an electrode E mploy as man y .
el ements as the pat ien t can com fortably bear make and ,
break at frequen t i ntervals so as t o get repeated m ode »
rate contrac ti ons o f the l imb I n a typ ical paroxysmal

.
case if the t wo lim bs are s i mi larly a fl ec t ed i t w ill be

'
, ,
New S yde h am S o ci t y
n Sel c ted M n o graph s
e , e o .
2 94 ME D I CAL ELEC T RlC lT Y .
fou n d that the l im b wh ich i s subjected t o the above

treat m e n t wi ll m ore rapi dly recover than the o n e wh i ch
i s si m ply kept w arm It wi ll also generally be found
.
that the pat ient can tolerate the above m ode o f st i m u

lat ion m uch m ore read i ly than he can bear fri ct ion wi th
the ha n d an d that the use o f galvan i sm i n the way i n
,
di c a t ed or by s i m ply
, pa i n t in g wi th t wo s ponge elec
trodes held o n the l i m b a t a short d i stance fro m each
,
other wi ll so far d i m in i sh the pa i n that the pat i ent

,
beco m es able to bear sha m poo i n g a fterwards .
I n chro n i c cases although the rel i e f i s not so obv i ous

, ,
there c an be n o doubt at t i m es as to the value o f th is

m easure i n i m prov i ng the n utri t i on o f the l i m b a nd i n ,
keepi n g the threaten ed ga n gre n e at bay E ven when .
ga n gre n e in the l i m i ted for m wh i ch R ay naud descr i bes ,
has superve n ed galva n i s m to the parts above an d

,
around m ay be tri ed w i th adva n tage .
S ha m poo i n g ought certa i n ly to be e m ployed i n con

j un ct io n wi th galv a n i s m espec i ally i n chro n i c cases if
the e xtre m i ty o f the l i m b u n dergo es a degree o f atrophy ,
or i f c o n tr a ct io n s an d fib ro us a n kylos es t ake place .
I f t h e lo c a l a rm b a th i s us e d t h e author would rec o m

,
m e n d that t h e electrode out o f the w a ter be appl i ed t o

the n a p e o f t h e p a t ien t s n eck so that the whole n ervous
’
supply o f the arm m a y b e i n the c i rcu i t W he n t he .
co m pl et e b a th i s e m ploy ed th ere should be n o breakin g

a n d m a k i n g o f the c i rcu i t T h er e s eem s to be n o part i
.
cu l ar i m p o rt a n ce to be a ttach ed to the d i rect ion o f t he

curr en t .
29 1 . S c i at i c a a n d L u m b a go — These two pai n fu

. l
a ffec t i o n s are part i cularly su i ted to treat m e n t by t he
el ectric bath V ery good results are obta in ed by ordinary
.
local g a lv a n ic treat m e n t o f both these co n d it io n s but i t is ,
oft en m ore conven ie n t an d m ore agre eable to the pat i en t

to be t reated by means o f the ba th and the results are ,
very sati s factory A co u rse o f twelve baths usua l ly

.
su mces to e ffect a cure The ascend ing d irect ion of t h e

.
c urren t shoul d be prefe rred wi th the anode at the foot

o f the bath or t h e anode covered wi th fl an n el m ay be
,
placed near to the gluteal regi on on the affected s ide ,
the kathode re m a i n ing beh i nd the shoulders as usual .
G en era l c o n c l u l lom — A s a gonn a! tomc t h e

'
20 2 . .
i nterrupted current bath i s the best I t can be used .
most be n eficia ll y in many hy steri cal conditions in mums ,
t hema and si mple debil i ty The farad i c bath i s also of

'
use in allev i ati ng the di stress connected wi th the di s

cont inuance o f the morp hia kobi t .
The follo wing conclusi ons have been arri ved at by the
vari ous observers on the e ffects of the galvan i c and
faradi c electri c bath M etabol ism i s promoted consi der
.
ably A ppmn and digestion are i mproved The gen ital

’
. .
unct ion s are st im ul ated rcul at ion and nu rit ion are
f C i t.
b en e fit ed sl eep i s notably res tored and new vigour i s

, ,
i m parted to the mental and physi ca l faculti es I n short .

,
the electr i c and espec ially the faradi c bath i s credi ted
by all w i th a power ful in vigorat ing and n fraskmg act i on
upon t h e hu m an fra m e .
There can be no doubt as to the e ffi cacy o f the faradi c

bath i n states o f debi l ity an d i mpa i red nutr i t ion an d ,
especi ally in the vari o u s funct ional neuroses e g n euras ,

. .
,
then i a o f any k i nd and parti cularly sexual neurasthen ia

, ,
n ervous dyspeps ia palp i tati on hysteri a h ypochondria

, , , ,
B ascdows di sease &c I t i s also o f great value in pro

’
~
.
,
m o t in g the recovery of pati ents after an attack o f hem i

plegi a th e weakness and also t o a certa in degree the
, ,
rig i d i ty o f the affected parts becomes notably improved ,
i n many i nstances .
F urt h er the galvan ic bath i s ben eficial in tremulous

,
296 us n xc u . s w er s x c m .
states ( mercuri al an d al coholi c tremor an d e ve n i n

,
paralysi s agi tans where i t wi ll afiect at any rate a

'
deci ded all evi at i on of symptoms .It i s on e o f the m o st

effic i en t forms of treatment in c h ro n i c rheumat i s m , in
sci ati c a and i n rheumatoi d art hri ti s .
DISE A SE S O F T HE N E R VO U S S YS T E M . 29 7
C HA P TE R XI .
D i s s as s s 0 9 m s N E R VO U S S Y S T EM .
C erebral d sease
i
an d h em i pl egi a . E pi l eps y . C horea . T re m ors .
Hyst eri a . N euras t h en i a an d y

h po ch o n dri as s M i grai n e
‘
. an d
h eadac he . I n so mn ia . T i n n it us auri um E x o pht h al m os

. .
20 3. C ereb ral di sease ; H em l pl eg ta .

—I n t hi s and
the followi ng chapters we do not propos e to enter i nto
”
the whole subject o f D i seases o f the N ervous S ystem ,
but m erely to br ing forward qui te bri efl y an account o f ,
the facts wh ich have been establ i sh ed and o f the methods ,
whi ch are to be em ployed in the electri cal treat m ent o f

these cond i t ions .
T o obta i n success fu l resul t s i n cases o f di sease o f the

central nervous system i t i s not enough to apply treat
ment to the peri pheral parts only ; the seat o f the lesi on
produci n g the paralys is or other symptom must also be
br ought under the i n fl uen c e o f the current ; th i s rea
sonable fact is o ften enti rely lost sight o f somet i mes
by acc i dent the central n ervous system does secure a
certa in share o f treatment i n cases where the i nd i ff erent
,
electrode i s placed on the nape o f the neck for the sake

o f conven i ence wh i le the acti ve electrode i s be i n g a p
,
pli ed to the regi on o f the affected m uscles but thi s by ,
i tsel f is not suffi c i en t fo r to produce the best results the

,
treatment must be d irected both to the sea t of the les ion

a n d to the seat o f the symptoms It i s certa i n t ha t.
ch anges are set up in the cen tres when the i r peri pheral
a rea s are sti mulated and i n th i s way c u
,
res have been
29 8 ms n rc ar . E L E C T RI C I T Y .
effected even when the treat m ent h as been appl i ed only

,
t o the paralysed parts .
I n hcmzplegia good results are somet i mes obta i ned by

'
the faradi c st i mulat i on of the a ffected l i mbs and th i s i s ,
a very valuable fact because so l i ttle can be done i n

,
o ther ways to i mprove the cond i t i on o f o l d he m i pl egi c
pat ients . W e have seen great b en efit produced by the

electri cal treatment of such cases and that not once or ,
twi ce only but frequently The series of cases rec o rded

, .
by P rof E rb seems to show that a fter an attack of hem i

.
" ‘
plegi a the m uscles may re m a i n i n a cri ppled cond i t ion

from a sort o f torpor of some part o f the motor tracts so ,
that they re m a i n for a t i m e beyond the control o f the will ,
although there may be no absolute i nterrupt i on i n the

conduct i ng paths Thus a pat i ent may at once recover
.
much o f h i s lost power after a si ngle vi gorous fa radiza

t ion o f the a ffected l i mbs I t i s there fore ve ry i mpor
.
tant that th i s treat ment by farad i sm should always be

tri ed i n cases where a pat ie n t i s recoverin g i m perfectly
fro m he m i pleg i a Treat m e n t should not be co m m enced
.
unt i l a bout four weeks a fter the attack in order to avoid ,
all d an ger o f sett i ng up fresh m i sch i ef at the seat of the

les io n an d i t m ay be repeated three or four t i m es i n the
,
course o f a week A certa i n n umber of pat ie n ts will be

.
very m uch i m proved thereby The further treat ment .
should be d irected to the seat o f the lesi o n i n the brain ,
a n d g a lv a n i s m i s to be e m ployed the anode to the fore ,
head an d the si des o f the head an d the kathode to the ,
nape o f the neck the pos i t i ve electrode be in g slowly

,
m oved to and fro ( l ab i 1 e w i thout i nterrupt i o n s Th is

) .
d i rect ion o f the current has been chosen o n account of

i t s follow i n g the course o f the m otor tract The cu r .
re n t m ay be from one to fi v e m i ll i amp e res a n d th e

,
E l ect ro t h erapeu
-
t ics .
D IS E A S E S O F T HE NER VO U S S YST E M . 2 99
act i ve el ectrode should be of medium o r large s ize and ,
shoul d be adapted to the shape o f the pla ce on wh ich i t

i s appli ed .Th is treat m ent i s to be carri ed out da i ly fo r
four weeks the durat i on o f each s itt ing be i ng not m ore
,
th an five m i nutes I f aphas ia i s assoc i ated wi th the

.
hem i plegi a the anode may be appli ed to the regi on o f

the th ird le ft frontal convolut ion and i sland o f R e il I n .
cases o f so m e mo n ths stand i n g i t m ight perhaps be use

fu l to apply the kathode rather than the anode fo r the
sake o f i t s st i m ulat i ng effect .
The objects a i med at i n the syste m at ic galvan i sm o f

the head i n cerebral di sease are as follows —to pro m ote
the absorpt ion o f extravasated blood to ass i st the c irc u ,
lat i on th rough the bra in to remove aadem a and c on

,
gest ion and to i m prove nutri t i on A ll these m ay be

, .
c l a ssi fied as vascul ar e ffects and a certa i n a m ount o f

,
evi dence partly experi m e n tal and partly c li n ical has

, ,
been collected whi ch seems to show that such vascul ar

,
changes can be set up w i th i n the skull by long con -
t in u ed and regular galvan ic treatment Th i s i s a .
pro mi s i ng h el d fo r i nves t igat ion L owenfdd has .
clai med that an e m i a o f the bra i n may be set up by

the kathode and hypermm ia by the anode It has bee n
,
.
stated that a pro found e ffect c an be produced upo n the

cerebral c i rcul at ion refl ex l y by farad iz i n g the sk i n o f
re m ote parts ; fo r i nstance that farad izat ion o f the abdo
,
men may set up so rap i d a cerebral an aem i a as to pro

duce fa int i ng (L icbig and R obé ) The present pos i t i o n o f
.
electri c i ty i n the trea tment o f cerebral d i sea se i s st i ll but

very imperfectly understood nevertheless there have ,
b een a s uffic ien t number o f successf ul resul ts to make

the treatment very well worth a tri al i n every case ,
espec i ally as the prospects o f i mprovement from other

modes of treatment are so sl ight E ven when the .
morb i d cond i t ion i tsel f i s i ncurable someth i ng may be

done to rel i eve troublesom e sym ptoms such as headache , ,
sleeplessness m ental depressi on and so o n

, .
2 0 4 E pi l epsy
. Th i s has been attacked by electrical
.
A rthms
'
methods wi th a certa i n degree of success

, .
states that he has seen goo d results follow from stat ical
i i —
electr c ty h e cons i ders that the treatment to be effec
t i ve should be cont in ued fo r some lengt h of t i me but ,
that i t n eed not b e pursued unless b en efit i s seen i n t he

first two or three m on ths .
A l thau s says that i n certa i n cases the cont i nuous cur
rent may do a great deal of good H i s m ethod i s to .
di rect the electrodes to the m astoi d processes t he ,
cerv i cal sy m pathet i c and those per i pheral nerves in

the do m ai n o f wh i ch an aura i s repeatedly or occasion
ally experi e n ced H e g i ves three cases where galva n
.
i sm at once d i m i n i shed the frequency o f the attacks ,
an d we n t so far towards e ffect i ng a cure that the

i ntervals between the fit s was prolo n ged fro m a few
d ays to two mo n ths at least The further h i story
.
o f the cases re m a i n s u n certa i n as they were hosp it al

,
pat ie n ts an d ceased to atte n d but as i t i s probable ,
that they would have retur n ed i f n o t cured we m ay ,
perhaps suppose that the b en efit they rece i ved was

per m a n en t The n u m ber o f appl i cat io n s ra n ged from
.
eleve n to fift een E rb also reports that he has rece ived

.
a dec i dedly favourable i m press io n fro m the treat m e n t of

ep i lepsy by g a l va n i s m H e adv ises that the a n ode be
.
plac ed first o n the s i de o f the forehead wi th the kathode ,
to the n ape o f the n eck w i th a weak curr en t fo r one

,
m i n ute an d seco n dly i n the m i ddle l i n e o f the head in

,
fro n t w i th the sa m e curre n t an d fo r the sa m e le n gth of

t i m e the kathode be i n g over the occ i put The treat
,
.
me n t o f the neck and o f the seat o f the aura as recom ,
me n ded by A l thaus should also be tr ied

,
.
DISE A S E S O F T HE N ER VO U S S YST E M .
30 !
2 05 . C h o rea .
—S tat ical elec t ri c i ty has been success
"
fully tri ed i n th is d i sease In 1849 D r G olding B i rd . .
reported that th i rty cases out o f th i rty seven had been -
cured by electri cal treatmen t wh i le fiv e o f the others ,
were reli eved The plan o f treat m ent was the appl i
.
s
cati on o f sparks to th e sp ine The shocks fro m a .
L eyden jar we re found to be deci dedly harmf u l Dr . .
Golding B i rd s u ggested that the be n efi t depended upon

a cutaneous effect o f counter i rri tat i on by the sparks .
The pa t i ent sho uld be i nsulated and made to hold the

metal rod or cha in co n nected w i th one o f the conductors
o f the electr i cal mach i ne A n exci tor con si sti ng o f a
.
brass knob an d i nsulated handle ( fig 2 9 ) is attached to .
the oth er conductor and sparks taken fro m the sp i nal

,
colu m n and then fro m the a ffected l i mb unt i l a papular ,
erupti on i s prod u ced I n hem i chorea the hand o f the

.
-
affected arm i s made t o hold the m etalli c rod o r cha i n ,
if the m ove m ents are not too vi olent In the case o f .
ch i ldren i t is best to in sulate th e mother or nurse with

t h e ch i ld in her arms m aki n g e ither o f the former hold
,
the connected rod the sparks can t hen be taken from

,
the ch i l d s back and l i mbs

’
I n severe ca ses the treatment has to be repeated

every day or i ndeed twi ce a day in less severe cases
,
every o t her day or twi ce a week S ome pat i ents are .
rel ieved a fter three or fo ur appl icat ion s o f the t reatment ,
but co m plete cure results after a varyi ng t i me accordi ng ,
to the severi ty and durati on of the attack and the fre

q u e nc
y w i th wh i ch the treat m ent i s repeated .
W ri ti ng o n the sa m e subject in the G uy s H ospi tal

’
’
R eport s in 18 53 the late S ir W G u

"
, l l gi ves t wenty fiv e .
-
ca ses o f chorea treated by stat i cal electri c ity N i neteen .
were cured and five improved ; o n ly o n e res i sted the

L ec t ures o E l ec t ic it y a d G al van ism
n r
”
L o n d n 1849 :
n . o ,
treat m ent H e says : The fact stands we l l est abl i shed

.
that electri ci ty i s at present to be ranked a m o ngst the

means at our d i sposal for the cure o f chorea a nd that in ,
s evere cases i t s e ffects are often truly surpri si ng W here .
other m eans ca n not be employed ; when the pat i ent i s

scarcely able t o swallow ; where the sk i n i s abraded
fro m the prom i nent bo n es of the emac i at e d frame
when the powers of l ife see m nearly exhausted sparks ,
o f elect ri c i ty drawn from the whole length o f t h e sp i ne
wi ll often a fter a few repet it ions efl ect a favo urable

'
, ,
change and enable us to ad m i n i ster other mea ns of

,
cure .
S i r W Gu l l cont i nued to hold these i ews the end

( . v t o
o f h i s pro fessi onal l i fe a n d when I was appoi nted t o the

,
charge o f the electri cal department at S t B artholomew s .

’
H osp i tal he advi sed me to turn my attent i on part i cularly

,
to the treat m ent of chorea by stat i cal electri c i ty T he .
results I have had have been most sat i sfactory W E S ) . W
E rb proposes the use o f obl i que galvan i zat i on o f t he

head i n chorea but does not express any defin i t e opin ion
,
as to i t s value .
S o m e cases o f chorea treated recently by electr icity

are recorded by B an d an d R ockwell The m ethods used .
by the m were gener al farad izat ion or central gal

”
v a n i z at i o n the for m er method be i ng used u n less the
,
pat i e n t see m ed to bear i t badly G ood results appear .
to have followed both pla n s o f treat m ent the po i n t of

most i m porta n ce i n si sted upon by the authors being
that the curre n ts used m ust be ge n tle an d agreeabl e to
the l i ttle pat ien ts an d that all shocks or alar m s are to
,
be avo i ded .
I t i s di ffic ul t to est i mate the true value of the results

obta i n ed from the electr i cal treat m ent of chorea because ,
the ord i nary course o f the d i sease i s so uncerta i n both ,

DISE A S E S O F T HE N E R VO U S S YS T E M .
3 3
0
in its d urat ion and i t s sever i ty and beca use o f the ,
tendency to natural r ecovery .
I t m ight be useful to employ electri cal treat m ent

i n tho se cases wh ich have lasted a long t im e and ,
resi st the ordi nary m edi cal trea tment by rest and
drugs .
2 06 . T rem o rs — Bu t l i ttle can be done wi th elec

.
t ric i ty i n ca ses o f tremor I n paraly sis agitam i t has

.
been tried sy stemati cally ( Gown s B erger) wi thout any ,
sm a s .
A l t ham h as seen reli ef follow the galvan i c trea t ment

o f shaki ng pal sy of lo n g stand ing i n several cases but ,
he does not clea rly i nd icate h is mode o f trea t m ent .
B eard and R ockwel l gi ve two cases o f tremo rs i n wh ich

rel i ef was a fforded by central galvan izat ion .
The galvani c bath 19 7 has been found useful i n

)
certa i n cases o f tremor es peci a l ly in those due to tox i c
,
in fl u en c es ( alco hol m ercury lead ) ,T ran v erse galvan i , .
z a ti o n o f the head has been recommended by C héron ,
wh ile E rb suggests the longi tud i nal or obl ique galvan i

z a t i on o f the head .
20 7 H y ot erl a — H ysteri cal affecti ons have been very

. .
l argely treated by electri c i ty and fro m the pecul iar ,
nature o f the a ffecti on good results have followed the ,
most di verse form s o f electri cal trea tment The m oral .
efiec t of the trea tment part icularly when i t i s assoc i at ed

'
wi th spa rks or with shocks i s sui table t o th e state o f ,
mi nd of hy ster ia and therefore the l i terature o f M edi cal

,
E lectri ci ty from the ti me o f 7 01 m Wesley s D esidcrat u m

’
onwards is fu ll o f more or less won derful cures o f such

,
cases by electri c i ty A t the same ti me the value o f

.
electri cal trea tment li es rath er in the d irect i on o f re

l ievi ng symptoms t han o f curi ng the morb i d state and ,
i t is ne cessary to be prepared fo r occasi onal difficu l ti es

0
3 4 M ED IC AL E L E C T R IC IT Y .
and d i sappoi ntments even i n h y s t e ri c a l cases althou

, gh ,
good results wi ll usually b e o b t a i n e d W e must also .
be care ful not to cla i m t oo m uc h f o r t h e el ec t rical part

o f the treat m e n t when i t i s s uc c e s s f ul f o r i t m ay happen
that the touch o f an electro d e wi l l c u
,
r e e ven when there
i s n o current .S everal cas e s o f t h i s ki n d have come to

our not i ce S tron g galva n i c s h o c k s h a v e been used for
.
cutt in g short an hysteri cal fi t b ut t h e m o st useful rble ,
o f electr i c i ty i n hysteri a i s fo r t h e r e m o v a l o f paralyses ,
a n ae sthesi a and spas m s ; fo r t h e s e s y m p toms faradism

i s most usually employed e i t h er b y m e ans of an or ,
di n ary electrode or by the dry m e t a l l i c b r us h Statical .
treat m e n t espec i ally the tre a t m e n t b y s p arks is qu

, ite ,
as valuable i n these cases an d h a s b e e n very largely ,
pract i sed i n P ar i s O ccasi on a lly t h e c o n t i n uous current

.
i s better part i cularly where t h e c o m p l a i n t i s o f a painfu

,
l
po in t . These pa in ful poi nts c a n b e s uc c e ssf ully treated
by the appl i cat i on o f the a n ode s t a b i l e fo r fiv e or ten , ,
m i n ut e s at a s i tt i n g the co m m o n e s t s i t ua t i ons of the

,
p a i n b ei n g o v er the v ert ebr ae o r t h e s a c rum or th , ,
o v a r i e s o r b en ea t h t h e m a m m a
, H y s t e r i c a l a phonia
.
c an u su a ll y b e d i sp ell ed by fa r a d i c cu rr e n t s appl i ed t:
t h e t hr o a t fro m o u t si d e a n d fo r t h e m o s t p a rt t his
,
m eth o d i s b e t t er th an t h e m o r e se v e r e a p p l i c a t i o n of t he
el e c t r o de t o t h e fau c es or to the l a r y n x b e c a use the
, ,
p at i en t W 111 n o t a l way s sub m i t to t h e l a t t e r m et hod .
F o r t h e h y st er i c a l c o n d i t i o n a s d i st i n g ui s h e d fr o m t he
,
s pe c i a l s y m pt o m s i t I S a d v i sa bl e to m a k e us e
, o f o n e of
t h e m e t h o d s o f ge n er a l tr e a t m en t d esc r i b e d i n C h ap I X .
n a m el y e n e r a l fa r a d i z a t i o n c en t r a l g a l v a n i z at i o n or
.
g ,
,
t he e l ec t rl c ba t h .
T he e l e c t ri c a l tr eat m en t of hy st er i a d o e s n o t cousi t
m e re l y in se v ere a ppl i c at i o n s t h e far a d i z a t i o n

, mm
b e b ri skl y a ppl i e d but p a i n m u st n o t b e
, d e l i b e rat eiv
DI SE A SE S O F T HE N E R VO US S YST E M .
3 5
0
p rodu c ed ; to pun i sh hi s pati ent i s not pa rt o f the

m ed i cal man s duty and unless the pat i ent s c on fiden ce
' '
,
c an be won by ki ndly firm n ess the treatment wi ll very ,
p ro b a b l y b e i
. n va i n .
A nother very i mportant c o nsi derat i on i s the d i agnosi s

between hysteri a and organ i c di sease of some obscure
ki nd . It i s not at all uncommon fo r hysteri a to be
a ssoc iated wi th seri ous di sease fo r i nstance with , ,
phth is is moreover when the di a gnos is has been based

,
upon the alleged presence o f a persi sten t loca l i sed pain

i n a female pat i ent i t may after all turn out to be due
,
t o some seri ous laten t m i sch i e f W e have known two .
cases where pati ents wi th early mal ignant di sease of

the vertebr ae were supposed to b e sufferi ng from hysteri a
alone *.
2 08 H y poeh on drl al i s and N eu

. rast h en i a In .
th ese cond i t ions the general methods of el ec t ri cal treat

ment are of grea t value ; e i ther the elect ri c bath general ,
faradi zat i on or central galvani zat i on may be used wi th ,
addi t ional local treatment for an y sym ptom whi ch may

be espec i ally troublesome The posi ti ve charge from a .
s t at ic mach ine i s also very usef ul in certai n cases The .
value o f the trea t ment may be due to a beli e f o n the

pa rt o f the pat ie nt that an extremely powerful agent
( electr i c i t y ) i s be i ng brought to bear upon h i s case
certa in i t i s that the vague sy mptoms o f these pati ents

are so m et i mes d ispe l led i n a wonderful way by electri cal
treatm ent .
The management o f hypochondri acal pat ients requi res

a very great amount of care 1and in t reat ing such ca ses ,
'
C f D . r. Buzz a rd , Brai n , 189 0 . On t h e S im ul at ion of Hys .
t eria by O rgan i c D isease o f t h e N ervo u

s S yst em .
1 g A rav e res o n si b i li t
p rest s upo n py h s i ci an s wh o y are co n s ul t ed
by t hese pat ien ts T h e mere co n su
. l tat io n , ev en wh en t he advice is
X
306 us m car . n uac r m c rrv .
i t i s i m po rtant to attend to their psych i cal co ndi t i on as

well as to thei r bodi ly compla i nts D r G own s h as . .
i nsi sted on the i m porta n ce of the wi thdrawal o f the

attent i on of the pat i ent fro m hi s physi cal condi t i on he ,
says : i t i s essent i al to make the pat i ent r eal i se h ow

m i sleadi n g bod i ly sensat ions o ften are regardi ng the
actual cond i t ion o f the parts from whi ch the feeli ngs
seem to proceed and how essent i al i t i s that t h e sens a
,
t ions should be d i sregarded he should also be m ade t o ,
understand that h i s e fforts to neglect them wi ll not be

at once successful and that perseverance for a long t i m e
”
wi ll be necessary .
I t i s probable that i n neurasthen i a a certa i n degre e of

funct io n al d i sorder o f some part o f the nervous system
i s prese n t ; the cond i t i on has been di v i ded i nto t wo
ch i ef vari et i es neurasthen ia cerabral zs where the sy m ptoms
'
, ,
are sleeplessness low spi ri ts sensat i ons i n the head

, , ,
( g i dd i n ess we i ght feel i ng o f l i ghtness &c

, , ) an d ne uras , .
then i a spzral zs i n wh i ch muscular weakness languor

' '
, , ,
pa i ns i n the back and n u m bness o f extrem i t i es are

,
more espec ially co m pl a in ed o i .
B es i des these sy m ptoms the pat i ents usually su ffer

from dyspeps i a w i th co n st i pat ion or less o ften w i th
,
d i arrh oea acco m pan i ed by a feel i n g o f prostrat i on

, ,
and very m uch m ay be do n e for the i r general neura

sthen i c co n d i t i on by a care ful regulat ion o f the bowels .
W he n t h e sexual orga n s are com pla i ned o i galvan ,
i sm c an be appl i ed i n the manner recommended by
wi se , h el ps t o perpet u at e t h e m o rbi d st at e, an d wh en all t h at c an be

do n e t o re m o v e ac t ual diso rder h as been ac c o m pl i sh ed i t is o ft en
u
ri gh t t o ref se t o be an y l on ger a pa ssiv e pa rt y to t h e perpe t uat ion
of t h e s y m pt o ms . S o m et im es s uc h a ref sal , u if t he gro un ds for it

are m ade c l ear, wil l do m o re real go o d t o t he s ufferer t h an c an be
ach ieved by an y o t h er m ean s . G owers .
n t ss ass s 0 1
7 m e NE RVO U S svsr s u
.
3 7
0
E rb, namel y the anode o f l arge s ize to the lumbar sp ine

, ,
the kathode to the groi ns the peni s or scro t um and the

, ,
peri neum usi ng strong curren t s fo r one or two m i nutes

,
at a t i m e Faradi c trea t ment appli ed to the same parts

.
i s also sai d to be o f great u se in so m e cases I t has .
further been proposed that one pole should be i ntro

du ce d into the urethra or the rectum , the other pole ,
bei ng appl ied to the l umbar spi ne

M i gra i n e an d h eada c h e —A lthough i t m ight
.
2 09 . .
have been expected that elec t ri cal treatment woul d

be n efi t th i s di so rder yet but l i ttle success ha s hi therto
,
been obta i ned at least from gal va n i c or farad i c treat

,
ment . E rb has o n ce succeeded i n arrest ing an attack

by galvan i s m We have a l so seen a one s i ded headache
.
-
i nstan tly di spelled by the appli cat i on o f the anode to

the forehead and D r P oore has more than once removed
, .
a troubles ome headache by a s in gle appli ca t ion fo r a

fe w mo m ents o f a weak current to the head S tati cal .
tr eat m e n t has been rather more success ful A rthu

'
rs .
and M C h m both speak o f havi ng obta i ned favourable

’
res ul ts the latter gi ves an account o f a severe case in

, ,
a lady who had had attacks almost weekl y fo r fourteen

yea rs The treatment was by t h e so uffl e to the head
. .
A fter ei ght or ten app li cati ons the i ntervals became

longer and th e pa ti ent was able to do m uch more wi th
,
ou t bri ng i ng on an attack The pa t i ent though much

.
re li eved was not cured completely I t i s not clear from .
the accou n t whe t her the trea tment was appli ed during
the period of headache o r during the i ntervals but ,
pro bably i t was the latt er D r M C lwa recommends . .

’
t h e use o f negati ve electri c i ty in form o f the so u ffl e or

elec t ri c breeze .
A rt hu
'
rs says that the results he has obta ined i n

m igra ine just ify hi m in say i ng that altho ugh stat ical
x 2
30 8 us n t cu . E LE C T RI C I T Y .
treatment does not cure the di sease yet i t i s t h e best ,
mode o f treat i ng i t he considers that the cases m o st ,
easi ly i n fl uen c ed are those occurri ng i n wo m en at o r

near the i r m enstrual peri ods and those wh i ch depend ,
upon digest i ve troubles H i s procedure i s to use the .
so u ffl e fr i ct ions * and sparks appl i ed to the whole body

, , ,
espec i ally to the forehead and the epi gastri um ; the

durat ion o f each s i tt i ng be i n g from eight to ten m i nute s ,
and the course of treat m ent be i ng extended over a

per iod o f several months .
O ther for m s o f headache have also been treated by

galva n i s m but without defin i t e results
,
A l t haus h ow .
,
ever i s o f op in ion that they can usually be rel i eved by

,
a gen tle farad i sm wi th the electri c hand or by a gentle ,
co n t i nuous current and he has seen a large nu m be r o f,
cases i n wh i ch one or other o f these methods has

proved successful .
2 10 I n s
.o m n i a — E lectri c i ty i s very useful i n many
.
for m s o f sleepless n ess A ccord i n g to P rof E rb a de . .
c i ded in cl in at io n to sleep i s o fte n i n duced by the el ec t ri

cal tr ea t m en t o f the m ost W i d ely d ifferi n g parts o f t he
body but e spec ia lly o f t h e head an d n eck G e n eral
,
.
far a d i sm o r the fa r a d ic b a th are the b e st m ethods of

tre a t m en t but e v en local far a d i s m or local galva n i s m of
,
a l i m b i s freque n tly followed by a well m arked so pori fic

te n de n cy .
2 11 T i n n i t u
. s au ri u m S ubject i ve n o i ses i n t he .
E l t i l f i ti
ec r ca a e c i d u
r c t by m
on s i g t h e k o b o f an
r arr e o ov n n
ex cit or fi
( g 9 ) g
l .h t l
2 y t h iu f o f t h b d
o v er
e y t h ugh a l ay e
e sr r ace o , ro
o f dry fl an n e l T h e fl an n el m ay be wo rn as a
. wel l -
fi t t i n g garmen t ,
o r i t m ay be t i ed ro un d t he n o b o f t h e ex c i t o r k . T h i s l at t e r pl an is
best fo r t h e face an d h an ds . In eit h e r c ase t h e e ff e c t i s t o pro duce
an ab un d an t di sc h arge of v er y sh o rt spar s,k wh o se l e n gt h depen ds

upo n t h e t hi c k n ess o f t h e fl an n el . T he se n sat i o n is on e of warmt h
an d p ric kin g .
I
D S E A S E S O F T HE NER VO U S S YST E M .
3 9
0
ears are freq uently ben efi t ed by galvan ism From .
what has been already sa i d i n 17 3 i t appears that ,
when the ti nni tus is assoc i ated wi th an i rri table state

of the audi tory nerve good resul ts may be expected
,
from the sedati ve acti o n o f the anode wh ich may be ,
appl ied by a smal l el ec t rode t o the ear or t o the mas ,
t o i d process just behi nd the ea r or to the ski n imm edi ,
atel y in front of the tr agus We have treated a very

.
large number of pa ti ents for th i s complai nt and have ,
adopted an un iform pl an o f treatment the act i ve elec ,
trode ( anode) is bifurcated ( fig 75) and has a spri ng t o

.
reta i n i t i n i t s pos i ti on i n front o f the tragus It i s thus .
appl i ed to both ears at once The parts i n contact .
wi t h t h e ski n should not be o f less di ameter than two

cen ti metres I f the surface of the electrode is t oo s ma ll
.
some soreness of the ski n m ay be produced at the po ints

of con t act . A small pad o f mo is t abs orben t wool makes
the best co veri ng The i nd i fferent el ectrode i s pla ced
.
at the ba ck of the neck where i t i s kept i n posi t ion by

,
the pressure of the clot hi ng ; and a good galvanometer

and a rheostat should be i ncl uded in the ci rcu i t A .
si mple and conveni ent form of graph ite rheostat i s made

by M r S chafl wh ich enables the operator to i ntroduce
.
,
a res i st ance o f ohm s i nto the c i rcui t qu i te gradu

a lly. When everyth i ng i s ready the current i s slowly
and stead i ly ra i se d by the current coll ector to fiv e m i l li
am peres ( the rh eos tat bei ng at zero ) an d allowed t o
,
pass fo r ten mi nutes A s th e res istance o f th e ski n

.
dim i n i sh es the current wil l i ncrease slowly the galvano ,
meter may be allowed t o i nd i cate eight m i ll i am pe res ,
each ear i s then rece i vi ng four I f the curre n t should

.
be i nc li ned to ri se h igh er the rheostat must be brought

i nto use to keep i t at that s t ren gt h The pat ient should
.
be i nstructed t o pay att ent ion t o the no i ses and t o give

3 I 0 M E D IC A L E L E C T RI C I T Y .
not i ce o f any change occurri ng i n them i n the course o f

the s itt i n g In favourable cases the noi ses wi ll di m i n i sh
.
dur i n g the passage o f the curren t i f the current be t oo

quickly reduced at the end o f the treatment the no i ses
may return as loudly as before but i f i t be reduced very ,
slowly and gradually th i s should not happen O n th i s .
account the rheostat i s an i m portant part o f the appar a

tus ; at the en d o f the s i tt i ng the curren t i s to be re
du c ed by the rheostat fi rst and afte rwards by t h e
collector . It generally happens that the t i nn i tus i s
gradually d ispelled by the treat m ent at first the rel i e f ,
i s qu i te te m porary and the no i ses w i ll probably return

w ith i n a few hours but a fter each s i tt i ng the peri od o f
,
qui et i s lo n ger unt i l fin al l y they d i sappear altogether .
I f the si tt i n gs are repeated da i ly fo r the first week much

t i m e w ill be ga in ed a fterwards i t w i ll be suffic i en t to
,
apply the treat m ent twi ce a week fo r a fortn i ght or

three weeks or a m onth accord in g to the progress o f
, ,
the case .
T i n n i tus co m pl i cates n early all the d ifferen t for m s o f

ear d i s ea se fo r in st an ce i t m ay depen d upo n the accu
, ,
m ul a t io n o f wax or i t m ay be due to so m e other te m po

,
rary d i sord er o f the ear wh ich can eas i ly be cu red by

,
proper tr eat m e n t or i t m ay occur i n pat i e n ts whose

,
aud i tory apparatus i s n or m al as a part o f so m e ge n eral ,
m orb i d co n d i t i o n .
M ore co m m o n ly ho wever so m e chro n i c m i sch ie f

, ,
ex ists a n d the re m ov a l o f the subject i ve n oi ses may

be a m atter o f great i n terest to the pat ie n t eve n apart ,
fro m h i s dea fn ess or other ear troubles V ery m a n y of .
these c a ses obta i n great rel ief fro m galva n i s m .
The causes o f t i n n i tus c an be grouped i n to four d i v i

so s
i n — 1. M orb i d co n st i tut i o n al states i n clud i ng de ,
b il i t y renal d i sease an d the e ffect o f drugs such as

, ,
n xs s ass s 0 1
? m e NE R VO U S S YST E M .
3 1 1
q ui n ine and sal icylate o f soda 2 D i sorders o f t he . .
peri pheral audi tory apparatus 3 D i sorders o f the . .
ce ntral ( corti cal ) aud itory apparatus 4 R e fl ex di s . .
tu rb an c es espec i al ly from t h e re i o n o f the nith crani al

'
, g
nerv e " O f these four d i vi si ons the largest and most
im portant i s the second ; and a m ajori ty o f the pati ents
su fferi ng from t inn i tus belong to th i s group G alvan i c .
treatment is able to do a very great deal fo r these cases

provi ded i t be properly managed I f i t is not done .
c are ful ly the results wi ll be unsati s factory .
It has been objected to the galvan i c treatment that i t

is diffi c u l t and that the results are un c erta i n and at best
, ,
only temporary but when so l ittle can be done i n o t her

,
ways for these pat ien ts i t is at least a ga i n to be able to

rel ieve by galvan i sm the very di stressi ng sy m pto m of
t i n ni tus O ut o f a very large number o f pat ients who

.
have been under our treat m ent fo r no i ses i n the ears ,
the majori ty have been co m pletely free d by a course o f

gal v ani sm appl i ed i n the way already descri bed S ome .
o f them certa i nl y have returned a fter the lapse o f several
months fo r further treatment and in them the sym ptom ,
has for the m ost part agai n y i el ded promptly t o the

re n ewal o f galvan ism .
2 2
1 .E m ph t h al m i c gol t re —Th i s d i sease h as been .
frequently treated by electri ci ty and i n a fa i r nu m ber of ,
ca ses the trea tm ent has been fol lowed by good results .
It has been assumed that the seat o f the d i sease i s in

t he vaso m otor syste m and espec i all y in the cervi cal ,
sym pa t het ic I t i s i mportant to bear in m i nd as has

.
,
been po i nted out by Gown s that the sympath eti c system ,
i s represented in the brai n and on thi s acco u -

nt t he ,
S ee D r M . am a ugh éo n you: 2 On Su bjec t iv e N o ises i n t he H ead

” ”
an d E ars, p . 1 16 , D e n tal R efl ex es, L o n do n , B ai l l iére T i nda ll
an d C ox , 189 1.
3 I 2 M E DIC A L E LE C T RI C I T Y .
treatment should n ot be con fin ed t oo stri ctly t o t h e

regi on of the neck .
E rb calls attent i on t o the frequent associ at i o n of

neurasthe n i c symptoms wi th exophthalmos and t h i s ,
also suggests a cerebral ori gi n for th i s pecul i ar m orb i d

cond i t i on D r C ardew has devoted c onsi derable atten
. .
t ion to the elect ri cal treat m ent of exophthalm i c go i tr e ,
*
and he has reported a short seri es o f cases wher e
galvan i sm produced great i mprovement i n t h e sym
p t o m s . In nearly all of them the fr equency o f t h e
p ulse rate was reduc ed as much as twenty t o th i rt y

-
beats per m i nute the enlargement of the thyro i d was

,
greatly d i m i n i shed and the nervous condi t i on o f t h e

,
pat i ent was very much i mproved H e suggests that

.
the galvan i c treat m ent should be carri ed out by t h e

pat i ents themselves three t i mes a day and also at other ,
t i mes i f the palpi tat i on of the heart should become

severe . H e adv i ses that a current o f two t o three
m i ll i a m p eres should be appl i ed fo r si x m i nutes ; the
anode to t he regi on of the lower cerv i cal sp i ne the ,
kathode to the s i de of the n eck lab i le from the m astoid

,
process to the clav i cle The two s ides o f the neck

.
sh ould be treated alternately and the pat ie n t should

,
persevere w i th the treatme n t fo r two m onths at least .
D r C ardew has also proved that the d i m i n i shed resist

.
ance o f the body wh i ch had been observed i n th i s dis

ease i s due s im ply to the i n creased perspi rat ion and
mo i sture o f the sk i n .
W e have in o n e case see n re m arkable i mprovement

follow the farad i c bath a fter pat i ent treat m e n t by gal
v an i sm appl i ed locally had fa i led to do any good .
L an cet
“
J uly 189 1
, , .
DI SE A SE S O F T HE N E R VO US S YS T E M .
3 13
C HA PTE R XI I .
T onti n u
ed
)
ns N E R VO U S S YS T E M ( C .
T he Spin al co rd. T reat men t of paral ysis . M yeli t i s

. L o co m o t o r
atax y . I n fan t i le paral s y
is. Pro gressive m usc ul ar at ro ph y .
D i ph theri t ic paral ysi s . Paral ysis aft er spec i fic fevers . L ead

pa l s y .
2 13 . T he spi n al o o rd . —The spinal cord can be

easil y reached by the galvani c current less ea sil y by ,
the faradi c The use o f galvan i sm in d i sea se o f the

.
spi nal cord is in di ca ted fo r the sake o f i t s sti mulati ng ,
vasomotor alterat i ve an d catal yti c e ffects

, and
tr eat m en t has been followed by very good resul ts in
m any cases o f s i mple functi onal di sturbances and al so ,
t o a les s degree in chroni c degenerati ons .
The curr ent should usua lly be appli ed longi tudi nally ,
wi th large electrodes ( st ab i le) fiv e to twenty mi lli a m pe res

for two or three mi nutes the t im e may be prolonged ,
after the pat ient h as beco m e accustomed t o the treat

men t E rb advi ses the descendi ng dire cti on fo r i rri tat i ve
.
sta tes the ascendi ng fo r states of wea kness or chron ic

,
degenerat ion When the d i sease i s l i mi ted to a small

.
port ion o f the cord a transverse d irect ion o f the current

,
m a y be tri ed one pole be in g placed on t h e vertebral

,
col umn over the a ffected part and the other pole o n the ,
front o f the body at the same level .
1
2 4 T re
. a t m en t o f pa ra l y l l l — C erta i n funda .
m e ntal pri nc i ples o f treat m ent apply t o nearly all cases

o f paralysi s There must be ( 1) treatment o f th e seat
.
of disease brain , cord, o r n e r v e s , as t he case may h .
d ( 2 ) treat ment of th e pa r a l y se d m uscl w The n :
of disease i s t o be att ac ked i n t h e h o pe o l setfing u

p
t ro phi c or v asorno t or cha n ge s t h e r e , i n or de r to m
t he ca use of t he paralysi s a n d th e m usc l es are to be
trea ted in order to main t ain t h ei r n ut ri ti on and their
‘
ac t i vi ty ; moreover stimula t i o n o f t h e peri pheral m

,
ma y also act useful ly by in fl ue n c i n g t h e c e n t ral organs

t h rough th e medi um of sen so ry n e rv e s an d in a reilex ,
man n m may set up mot or i m pul ses a l o n g t h e n ewes to

'
the pa ralysed parts th is tends t o r es t o r e t h e con dncfivfiy

,
of th e nerve if that be at f u l t i n o th er words mch

a . .
the afiect i on purel y mot or a n d t h e sen s o ry fimctim

is
'
of t h e paralysed part s are n orma l t h i s re fl ex mode ol ,
i n fl uen ci n g t hei r mot or cent res is si rn p l e an d i t follows ,
th e n t ha t peri phe ral exc it ati on of a li m b i n infantflt

pa ralys is or of th e face in B el l s p a l s y i s cl ea rly ni
,
’
di ca t ed The good e ffects ob t ai n ed b y D uchm ufrom

.
farad i s m o f the m uscles in i n fant il e p a r a l y s i s may have ,
been brought about i n th i s mann e r I n pr oof of the .
re fl e x e ffects wh ich can be produc e d wh en a nerve

trun k has been i nj ured and repa i r i s t a ki n g p la ce it is ,
o ften no ti ced that voluntary power re tur ns a l i t tl e betot e

the return o f galva n ic a n d faradi c i r r i t a b il i ty in the
nerve H ere d i rect treatm e n t o f th e nerve
trunk by apply ing the e lectrodes to i t a b o v e t h e seat of
,
i n jury or i n d irectly through the agency o f r e fl e x sti me

,
lati on o f i t s centre w ill prove useful an d wi ll a cc el erate

, ,
recovery E rb says : .
“
A hi ndrance i n t h e m ot or con
duct ion wh ich cannot be overcome by t h e wil l 1nay
, ,
perhaps be conquered by a stronger art i fic ial s ti m ul ation

and the way thus made c lear fo r voluntary e xc i ta tion .
DISE A SE S O F T HE N E R VO US S YS T E M .
3 5
1
H en ce i f we allow the el ectri c i rri tat ion to act en erget i

call y above the seat o f les ion the h i ndran ce may perhaps
,
be in thi s way removed .

"
The paralysed muscles are to be treated by appl i ca

ti ons o f the kathode which must be well mo i st ened and
,
moved slowly an d firm l y over the affected m uscles ; the

c urre n t m ay be between h y e and ten m i ll i a m pe res an d ,
th e durat i on o f treatment ten m i nutes Fo r ch i ldren .
fiv e mi ll i amp e res i s qui te suffi c i en t It is i mportant not .
to use electrodes wh ich are too s m all The m ed i um .
si ze ( fiv e cent imetres ) i s sui table and less pa i n ful than,
smaller sizes because t h e dens ity o f the curren t at i t s

,
surface i s less I f five m il l i am peres should see m to be

.
p ai n ful to the ch ild the current must be reduced to four

o r three . I n add i t ion to the stabile appl icati ons the
current may be opened and closed or even reversed
suddenly from t ime to t ime fo r the sake of exc it in g ,
con tracti ons in the paralysed m uscles The in differen t .
el ectrode is to be place d over the spine i n the n eigbo ur

hood of the central lesion .
When farad i sm i s used a si m i lar m ethod of appl i cat ion

may be adopt ed the curren t m ust be care fully regulated
, ,
and the durati on o f treatment must be shorter ( fiv e

m in utes) O r both poles m ay be appli ed to t h e a ffected
.
part one bei ng buckled round the li m b i n a pos i t ion

,
close to the nerve trunk whi le the other i s m a n i pulated

,
over the muscles or lastly both electrodes can be

, ,
appli ed di rect to the muscle I f the muscles do not

"
respond to farad i s m i t i s better to use galvan i sm ,
althoug h even in such cases farad ism i s not altogether

wi thout e ffect D u . chenne has i ns i sted on the fact that a
fe w fu nct ional and l i vi ng fib res m ay be present i n a

muscl e wh ich apparently has e n t irely waste d and he ,
ma i nta i ns that round these as ce ntres fresh m uscle

, ,
3 16 ME D IC A L E LE C T RI C I T Y .
fib res can be encouraged to develop by pat i ent faradi c

treat m ent It i s not always easy t o be qu i te certa i n
.
whe ther such survi v i ng fibres are present or n o t but ,
he says that a fter long pract i ce he had learnt t o recog

n i se thei r presence even when the i r contract i on s wer e
,
too weak to produce any m ove m ent i n the bony lever s

to wh i ch they were attached .
2 15 M y el i t i s
. In acute m yel i t i s electri cal treat m ent
.
should be avoi ded as i t i s l ikely to do har m In chron ic .
m yel i t i s i t may be e m ployed w i th adva n tage i n the

man n er already i ndi cated i n 2 13 W hen there is .
much rigi di ty an d the refl ex es are excessi ve the gal

, ,
v an i c bath m a fl d so m e rel i e f to the symptoms

'
y a o r .
2 16 L o c o m ot o r
. at ax y — E l ectr i cal treatment has
.
not proved e ffectual i n arrest i ng th i s d i sease B ut yet .
fo r the rel i e f o f so m e o f the symptom s and e specially ,
fo r the p ai n s electri cal treat m ent should be tri ed for it

, ,
has o fte n a fforded much b en efit A few cases have .
been reported i n wh i ch substa n t i al i m prove m en t has

followed electr i c i ty appl i ed i n the earl i er stages of t he
d i sease .
2 17 .I n f an t i l e p a ra l y si s There i s n o doubt that

.
electr i cal treat m e n t i s o f the ut m ost value i n thi s dis

ease . Un fortu n ately the durat i o n o f the treat men t in
severe cases i s very lo n g an d i t requi res great perse
,
v era n c e o n the part o f the phys i c i a n a n d o n that of the
pare n ts to k eep i t up O uth i s accou n t i t o fte n ha ppens

.
that the pat ie n ts treated i n hosp i tals show m ore im

prove m en t tha n in pr i v ate pract i ce In the latt er case .
the tre at m en t i s n aturally a costly a ffa i r wh i le at the ,
hosp i t a l th s i s n o t so an d the m others bri g t

i ,
n heir
ch i ld ren r egularly for m on ths I n deed i n m a n y cases .

, ,
S tea ven son is cert a i n t h a t t h e el ec t ric b at h i s of great v al e for u

t h e t rem o rs an d rigi di t y of ch ro n ic my el i t is .
n x s s ass s o r
“
r un n e av o v s S YST E M .
3 7
1
they are able t o recogn i se the i mprove m ent in the ir

ch i ldren s m uscul ar po wers m ore read ily than the
’
med ical officers and they are both wi lli ng and anx ious
,
t o cont inue attendance fo r long peri ods even in the les s ,
prom i sing case s ° .
The course o f the di sea se i s as fo llows —the ch ild i s

brought wi th a hi story o f a past febril e attack a fter ,
whi ch i t was not iced that a l imb or l i mbs had become

paralysed P ower not return in g t o the paralysed parts
.
the l ittle pati ent co m es sooner or later fo r medi cal advi ce ,
wi th wast i ng paralys i s and the react ion o f degenerat ion

,
i n some or all o f the a ffected muscles Du chen ne po i nted .
ou t that o f the m uscles a ffected at the onset o f the

d i sease some may be more seriously in jur ed than others ,
and waste more rapi dly The electri cal reacti ons also .
vary th ose muscles wh i ch wast e rap i dl y soo n devel op

,
the react ion o f degenerat ion others though paral ysed , , ,
may reta in the ir power o f con tract i ng t o farad ism ,
wholly o r partly fo r a long ti me ; the latter wi ll i mprove

even if not treated but the ir recovery wi ll be greatly
,
promoted by treatment The others m ay not i m prove at .
al l rema i n i ng wasted and showi n g the reacti on o f de

, ,
generati on for years or unt i l th e ir muscular fibres have

,
al l a trophi ed when they wi ll naturally exh ib i t no elec

,
tri c e l react i on s at all .
Du chen ne looki ng at the d i sease from the po in t o f

vi ew o f farad ism only regarded even these latter m us
,
cles as be in g at lea st in part wi th i n rea ch o f treatment ,
an d he i ns i sts that a v ery m i nute and careful exa m i na
t ion m ay reveal a few contract i le fib res st i ll r em a i n ing ,
even a fter four o r fiv e or si x years o f pa ralysi s and

atrophy I f such l i vi ng fib res can be found then they
.
T ho se p ivat e n
r at ien t s who h ave persevered h a e n earl y al l f v o
t hem i m prov ed —W. E S . . .

m ay be encouraged by farad i sm to develop and t o act ,
as ce n tres for the growth o f new muscular fib re s unt il

consi derable i m prove m en t i n size an d power may be
obta i ned ; on the other ha n d if no such l i v i ng fib res exist
the prospects o f i mprove m en t by farad iz at i on o r any
other treat m ent are very slender i ndeed W i th the ai d .
o f the galvan i c current however perseverance wi ll

, ,
succeed i n greatly i mprovi ng muscles wh i ch are ex

t rem el y wasted an d show complete R D w i th greatly
,
d i m i n i shed galvan i c exc i tabi l i ty C o mplete r ecovery

.
m ust not be expected i n such muscles all that can ,
be acco m pl i shed by the treat m ent i s to make the most

o f such fi b res as are st i ll attached t o a l i vi ng gangl ion
cell an d by st i mulat i on to i n vi te a further development

,
o f new fi bres rou n d those wh i ch have escaped For t he .
method o f treat m ent see 2 14 .
The R D may be fully developed by the seventh day ,
galva n i c i rr i tabi l i ty may d i sappear i n si x months or it ,
may persi st fo r four or fiv e years A n y muscles or .
groups o f m uscles m ay be a ffected by the di sease ,
perhaps t h e m ost co m m o n seat i s i n the t i b i al i s a n t icu

s
and the pero n e i o f the l eg an d the delto i d i n the

a rm .
The defor m i t i es wh i ch result fro m the over acti on of

m uscl e s when
,
the i r antago n i sts are da m aged by t h is
d i sease are well k n own M a n y of the vari ous forms of

,
.
club foot are produced i n th i s way an d or igi n ate from

-
,
i n fant i le paralys i s . It m ay be worth wh i le to g i ve briefly

the m echa n i s m as sum m ed up by D uchen ne There are —
si x m uscles ( three pa i rs) w i th the spec i al fu n ct o i n o f
m ov i ng the foot upo n the leg ( )
1 The cal
. f mu sc le s
and the peroneus lo n gus ( 2 ) The t i b i al i s ant i cus and

.
The t ib i li
the exte n sor co m m i i i
un s d g torum ( 3) .a s
post i cus and the peroneus brev i s The st pa r ext fi r i

. e n d
DI S E A SE S O F T HE NE R VO U S S YS T E M .
3 9
1
the foot the second pa i r fl ex the foot an d the last pa i r

, ,
produce lateral movements .
The movements o f fl e x i on and extens i on by th e first

groups include lateral move m ents also because the pull ,
o f t h e muscles i s not q u i te d irect When s imple fl ex i on .
or s i m ple extens ion movements are requi red they are ,
produced by the co mb in ed act ion o f both compo n ents o f

each pai r ; thus the calf muscles extend and adduct
, ,
whi le the peronei exten d and abduct the tibial is an ticu s ,
fl e x es and adducts th e ex t en sor commu

,
n is digi tomm fl ex es
and abducts O f the re m a ini ng pa ir the one the tibial is

.
, ,
posti cu s adducts and the other the peroneu

, ,
s brevis ab, ,
ducts . There are ma n y other co m posi te movements

ca rri ed out by these m uscles but i nd i vi dually co n si dered
,
thei r acti ons are t hose j us t m enti oned The speci al .
deform it ies l ikely to fo llow th e paralysi s o f any o f these

muscles or o f an y co m binat i ons o f them can be pre
, ,
di cted i f the ir speci al acti on and that o f the ir an t ago

, ,
n i st s are borne in mi nd
, S ome of these muscles play
.
an i mportant pa rt in preservin g the arch o f the foot ,
and when th ey are paralysed a tendency to flat foot i s

well m arked A n oppos i te cond i ti on o f exaggerated
.
arch o f the foot i s a l so common it was first descri bed ,
care fully by D uchen ne under the name o f gn fi p ied em u

, ,
or ho l low claw foot It i s o f i mportance in that i t shows

.
t h e effect o f paralysis o f the i n terossei .
These muscles fl e x the prox imal phalanx and extend

the di stal phala n ges o f the toes by a single movement ,
they also produce lateral movements o f the toes Thei r .
acti on supplements th ose o f the other fl ex o rs and ex

ten sors o f the toes The long fl ex o rs that i s to say
.
, ,
torum, fl ex onl y the dis tal phalanges wh ile the extensors

, ,
cis, extend only the prox i mal phalanx I n the absence .
o f the antagon i si n g act i on o f the i n terossei the long ex
tensors extend the first phalanges permanently an d the ,
long fl ex ors fl ex the second and th i rd phalanges also

per m anently and th i s produces a claw l i ke att i tude of
,
-
the toes The abductor and fl ex or brevi s of the great

.
and o f the l i ttle toes act as the i nterossei and when ,
they are paralysed the claw shape becomes more in

t en si fied .
*
2 18 . P ro gressi v e m usc ul ar
at ro ph y — The clinical .
group o f muscular atroph i es has been di vi ded i n recent

years i nto two parts 1 Those owi ng thei r ori gi n to . .
lesion s o f the anteri or cornua 2 Those dependent on . .
pri mary d i sease o f the muscles themselves M uscular .
atrophy i s also produced by neuri t i s and by i njury to

the tru n ks of nerves .
In the d i sease known as progressive muscu l ar atrophy ,
electr i cal treat m en t may be employed but the prospects ,
o f cure are not very good S t i ll i n default of any other

.
better m ethod o f treat m en t i t i s reason able to believe

w i th D r G amers that the i n fl uen ce of electr i c i ty i s in the
.
right d irect ion a n d see i ng that pat i e n ts are often very

,
anx io us to make a tr i al o f i t i t i s qu i te r ight that efforts ,
should be made to obta i n allev i at io n o f the symptoms

by m e an s o f galva n i sm E rb h as seen rel i e f retarda
.
,
t ion a n d even arrest of sy m pto m s espec i ally in early

, ,
cas es an d adv i ses treat m en t o f the sp i nal cord par

, ,
t icu l arl y the cerv i cal enlarge m en t wh i ch i s so frequ ently ,
the seat o f the m ost severe atroph i c changes His .
m ethod i s to co m m e n ce w i th the anode to the cervical

sp in e an d the kathode to the cerv ical sy m p at hetic
,
,
follo wed by the kathode to the sp i ne a n d the anode tO ,
F a h or t ab t st f D uh
or m
s ra c
e a k
o t he h
c l l ow ch b
en n e s
’
r r s on o l
E i h S ci ce an d A t o f S ug y ”
’
fo ot , se e r c sen s en o l ii r r er , v . .
I
D S E A S E S O F T HE N E RVO US S YS T E M .
3 2 !
the sternum t h e lumbar e n largement or the peri pheral

, ,
nerves H e i nsi sts espec i ally upon the i m portance o f the

.
act ion o f both poles be i ng brought to bear successi vely

upon the a ffected regi ons o f the cord F inally the .
,
affect ed muscl es are t o be galvani zed kathode l ab i le

( ) ,
o r faradi zed the i nd i fferent electrode be i ng at the nape

,
of the neck The current should be moderately

“
.
s t rong but t oo vigorous a treatment i s not advi s

,
able .
E rb al so says that althou gh electri ca l treatment may

arrest or retard the progress o f the di sea se that yet i t i s ,
i n no way a c u re and that the curat i ve results sa i d t o

,
have been obta ined are generally the consequ ence o f

errors o f d iagnos is espec i ally i n cases o f neuri t is i n
, ,
fan ti l e paralysi s and atrophy a fter jo i nt a ffect ions

, He .
al so cons iders that the i diopath i c muscular atroph i es

have a more favourable prognos i s and he has seen ,
great ben efit follow electri cal treatment i n long stand

i n g cases o f that k i nd H owever D u chen ne declares
.
,
that by means of farad i sm he has been able to arrest

the progress o f the di sease in an advanced case to *
,
re establi sh the power o f the di aphrag m

-
whi ch had ,
beco m e seri ous ly i nvolved to restore the bulk and ,
v igour o f an i mportant muscle ( the b iceps) to d i spel the ,
fib ri l l ar twi tch ings and that the recovery was pers i stent
,
for several yea rs i n sp i te o f the fact that the pat i ent

,
returned to hard manua l labour a cond i t i on o f th i ngs ,
extremely li kely i n D uchen ne s op in ion to bri n g on a ’
relapse H e i s cert ai n th a t he has seen i ncrease i n

.
the bulk o f a muscle fro m farad izat ion i ndeed he says ,
that i t follows fa irly o fte n but only i n cases wh ere the ,
T he c ase is de sc ribe d an d figured, an d seem s t o have been n u

do ub t edl y o ne of
p g
ro ressi ve musc u y
l ar at ro ph . E l ect L oc ali s . ée ,
"
3rd E dit , p
.
5 0.
0
32 2 n am e “ . n ut c m c rn .
mu i t s fan di : i rd i y
'
scl e had n ot al t oge t h er l o s t .
H e lays down preci se i n st ruc t i o n s fit t he “ .

be adopt ed as follows
1 T o pass t h e moi s t en e d e l e c t r o de s m
. th uh
of each of t h e afiec t ed m us c l es , kee pi ng fil m h
t ogeth er, an d usin g a c u o f l o w i n t en fl ty (l1h )
'
rren t
c urren t ) .
2 . ulate the m usc l e s m o d era t ely andt i l t

T o st im ,
curren t wh ich i s n ot in t erru p e d v e ry freq u

t en t ly .
T o t reat on l y t h e m usc l es whi c h re a c t t o h mi l

3 . .
an d t o pay most att en ti on t o t h e m o s t i m portant

c l es, an d t o t ermin at e t h e si t t i n g b y a m il d faradin fn
of an y mu sc l es whi ch m ay b e t h re a t e n ed with a i
0
v asion of t h e di sease .
\Ve h av e presen t ed t h e v i ews o f b o t h t h ese 3 11d

E b nd D u chenne) beca u se i t m i h t b u fu l
( r a g e se t o co
a t oget h er a set i o
s of ca ses t re a t e d in each ( i lk
p re
t wo way s It m ay be th at b o t h wri t e rs a re t o a oami

.
e xtent prejud i ced ea ch i n fa v o u , r o f h i s o wn method
but D u chen ne at any rate i s wil l i n t l l w t h t l

g o a o a ga
v an i sm m a y be o f u se as an a i d t o t h e t r e at ment bi
farad i sm E rb o n the other h a n d d i s m i s ses faradisn
.
by say i ng that i t would on ly be em pl o y e d i n t h e absenCt

o f a cont i n u o us curre n t batte ry G o wn s i s o f opinion
.
t hat i f regul a r electr i cal treat m e n t b e a p pl i e d on one
side o n ly to a pat i e n t w i th progress i v e m u sc u l a r atrophy

i n bo th ar m s n o d iffere n ce wi ll be d e t e c t e d i n the rate
,
o f wast in g o f the t wo s i des .
T he electr ical react i o n s i n p ro gr e s s i v e m uscu lar

si m pli y are a l i ttle co m pl i cated b e c a use t h e a du al
,
g r
o f the m uscle fibre b y fi b r e o d uce s a

,
p r ,
« x w i
x i t i m i n
t w h i ch som e fib res react n o rm a l l y t o fa radism
twt t he m uc l s m o st uu
a s al l y at t ac k ed
e s se e D u h e op al
, c en n ,
,
“ U
A
N w : ( i o w
, D i ers
’
h
sea es o f t e N e so u s S y s t em
” rv
p 3 59 , . .
n x s s ass s o r m e n s avo us S Y S T E M . 2
3 3
and galvan ism whi le others respond only to galvani sm

, ,
wi th A C C > KC C ; i t may someti m es be poss i ble to

recogn ise i n a muscle that a sl uggi sh contract ion
a ppears a fter the qui ck contract i on the latter bei n g ,
pr oduced by the sound fib res and the former by those

w hi ch have the reacti on o f degenerati on :
2 19. P a ral y sis a f t er di ph th eri a —The pa ralys i s .
wh i ch follows di phtheri a tends fo r the most part t o

spontaneous recovery unl ess the medulla oblongata ,
a nd i t s nerves are so seriously a ffected as to cause

death by d irect i nterference w i th the resp i ratory and
card iac mechan isms The electri cal react i ons vary
. .
There m ay be the reacti on o f degenerat ion or s imply ,
a quanti tat i ve di mi nuti on or they may be norm al , .
E lec tri cal treatment may be e m ployed to hasten re

c o v ery and i t i s to be carri ed out generally accordin g
,
t o the plan la i d down i n 2 14 fo r the trea t ment o f
paralys is an d wi ll of co urse depend upon the pa rti cular

,
seat of par alys i s i n ea ch case The quest ion whether .
di phtheri a paral ys is is to be regarded as due to coarse

cha n ges i n the cord or i n the nerves or whether i t is
, ,
not rather a tox i c paralys i s h as so far not been clearly ,
settled The paralys is whi ch occurs after oth er spec ific

.
fevers ,
such as typhoi d small pox scarlati na and ,
-
, ,
others is perhaps o f a s imi lar nature

,
I n so m e of .
these however and al so so m et i m es a ft er di phtheri a

, , ,
perm an ent changes are produced wi th symptoms o f ,
c hro n i c m yel i t i s or chron i c neur i ti s .
2 20 L e ad p al ay
.
— I n paral ysi s due to lead the t e
.
act ion o f degenerati on i s usually present i n fact i t i s an ,
early sympto m and as has been shown ,

17 1 i t may
)
precede the par alys is The p arti al react ion o f de
.
generat ion may be present in some o f the affect ed

m uscles and so m e m ay even show si mple d i m inut i on
,
.
Y 2
2 n s m c ar E LE C T RI C I T Y
3 4 . .
E rb says t h at from the long durat ion of lead paralysis

an d the frequently o ccur ri n g relap ses the cond i t i on of ,
the electrical exci tab i l i ty may be consi derably compl i

c at ed i ndi st i nct and con fu
,
sed so that somet i mes nothin g
, ,
defin i t e c an be evolved fro m the elect ri cal exa m i nat ion .
Treat m e n t by elec t ri c ity i s of the greatest v alue muscles ,
wh i ch have lost thei r galvan i c i rr i tabil i ty al m ost com

p l et e l y may be se en to recover i t under th i s treatme nt ,
even a fter a few appl i cat ion s .
A s regards treat m e n t E rb advi ses care ful galvanize

,
t i on of the sp in al cord and as the m uscles o f the upper

, ,
l i m b are those m ost co m m only a ffected he carr i es this ,
ou t by the appl i cat i on o f the anode ( large si ze) to

the regi on of the cervi cal en largement and the other ,
to the sternu m us in g a current of ten t o twenty five

,
-
m i ll i a m p e res stabi le for two m i nutes the d irect ion is

, , ,
the n reversed ( but not abruptly ) fo r the sa m e period ,
and the paralysed m uscles are the n galvan i zed with the
kathode lab i le an d fa irly stron g curren ts fo r two or
, ,
three m in utes the a n ode re m ai n i n g on the n ape of the

,
n eck . I f t h e m uscl es respon d badly a few rever sal s of ,
curre n t m ay b e used at the ter m i n at io n o f the treat ment .
E rb de fe n ds t h e d i rect treat m e n t o f the sp i n al c ord on

the g rou n d that e ve n i f the les io n i n lead poi son ing be
o n e o f the n er v e tru n ks a n d n o t o f the sp i n al cord
, ,
there are n e verth el ess troph i c ce n t res i n the cord itself

wh i ch requ i re st i m ulat i on .
Treat m e n t m ust be lo n g co n t in ued to obta in good

results The value o f farad i s m i n th i s d i sease m ust not
.
f
be orgotte n A lthough m ore r ece n t wri ters advi s g
. e al
v an i sm al m ost exclus i v ely the exper i e n ces o f D u cht mw
,
prove that so m eth in g c an be do n e by farad ism also .
H e wr i tes th a t n lead palsy r ecovery w i ll follow

i th e
treat m ent al m os t always ev en i f the faradic irrita

, ,
DISE A SE S O F T HE N E R VO US S YST E M .
3 5
2
b i l i tyhas com pletely di sappeared from the m uscles .
R e ference t o 2 17 wi ll show that thi s opi n ion is even
a m ore co n fiden t on e than he was able to gi ve fo r

muscl es wh ich had lost farad i c irri tab ili ty completely
after i n fa nt i le pa ralysi s .
D uchem s method i s t o use t h e pri mary current wi th

'
rapi d i nterrup t ions and a powerful sti mul at ion fo r ten

, ,
m i nutes ; the treatmen t should not be prolonged beyond

that t i me lest fati gue and pa in be produced .
H e has co mm only found d i st i nct i mp rovement a ft er

ten o r twen ty si tti ngs even i f the a ffecti on is of long
,
stand i ng The delto id recovers q ui ckly the rad i al

.
,
e xtensors q u i cker than the ulnar D uchenne advi ses t o.
determi ne whi ch o f the extensors of the wri st are ai

fec t ed in order t o apport i on the tr eatment to each of
,
t hem in a proper manner H e does this by tell i ng the

.
pa ti ent to rai se t h e forearms and pronate them I f th e .
muscles are all three o f them paralysed there is then n o

power of extending the wri st at all I f the ext en sor .
carp i radi al is b revi o r can act extensi on o f the wri st i s

,
possi ble w h en t he fin gers are first fl e x ed I f the ex .

»
tenso r carp i radi ali s longi or can act then sli ght extensi on ,
i s associ ated wi th abducti on and i f the ext ensor carp i

,
ulnari s can act there wi ll be adduct i on

,
.
It i s extremely i mport ant when the lead po i son ing i s

a resul t of the pa t i ent s occupa ti on that he should be
’
advi sed t o gi ve i t up altogether o t herwi se rel apses are ,
a l most certa in t o foll ow h is return t o work When t h e .
the pa t ient re t urns to h i s occu pat ion partly cur ed before ,
the en d o f hi s long treatment he is almost certai n t o ,
r ela pse .
32 6 n s m c ar s . usc r mc rrv '
.
C HA PTE R XI I I .
T N E R VO US S YS T C on ti nu
ed
)
HE EM
( .
I nj uries o f n erv e s. Pressu re pal s N eu rit is y

Faci al pal s
. Para . y .
l si s o f ocu
y l ar m u scl es N eu ral gi a . S c iat ica S pasrn Wry . . .
n ec k W ri t er s cram p T et an
.
’
A n aest h esi a
. y
A n osm i a .0p . .
t ic at ro ph N ervo u
y .s deafn ess M u scu l ar at ro ph ies . .
22 1 . I njuri es o f n erv es .
— From what has been said
in 166 to 169 it follows that i nj uri es of n erves are
l ikely to be followed by the react i on of degeneration in
the muscles wh i ch they supply and th i s does al ways ,
follow i f the i njury to the nerve has been sufii cien tly
severe B ut as such i njur ies m ay be of any degree of
.
,
severi ty i t wi ll be fou n d th a t the react i on of degen era

,
t io n i s n o t i n var i ably produced fo r in the sl ighter cases ,
the n erv e recovers be fore dege n erat i ve ch an ges have

had t i m e to follow or i n deed the i n jury may be of such
,
a k i d a s to i m pa i r both m otor a n d se sory co d

n n n u c ti on
fo r a t i m e w i thout in terfer in g wi th what m ay be c a l led

the troph c co duct iv ty o the erve trunk or sett g P
i n i f n i n U
an actu a l n eur it is .
I n the ex a m i n at i o n o f c a ses in wh i ch an i n jury t o a
nerve i s suspected the a n ato m ical arrange m en t o f t h e
nerv e supply m ust be carefully kept i n m i n d .
The phe n o m ena produced i n m arked cases o j y f i n u r
to nerves are loss o f m otor p o wer im pa i r m e n t or l o s s o r

,
per v ers i on of sen sat i c n an d d im i n i shed tem perat

,
u r e in
the area o f d i stribut ion o f the nerve w i th tr p o hi c

,
DISE A SE S O F T HE N ER VO U S S YS T E M .
3 7
2
changes in the muscles ( R D ) and in the ski n The .
“
gloss y * ski n o f nerve trunk d i sease i s well known
"
,
and eas ily recogni sed } C erta i n nerves are espec i ally
subj ect to i njury those o f the upper extre m i ty be ing
,
afiec t ed i n a very large proporti on o f the cases

'
The .
commonest causes are — 1 D i vi s i on or lacerati on of .
nerve tr unks in acc idental wo unds parti cul ar ly wounds ,
about the wri st from broken glass 2 S evere in fl am . .
mati on round the wri st or elbow joints 3 C ontusi ons . .

,
espec i a ll y o f the shoulder or the elbow or di slocati o n s ,
o f the same parts 4 In fract

. u r es o f the upper li m b
.
,
t oo the nerve may be i nvolved i n the callus thrown out

,
duri ng the process of repa ir .
E lec tri cal trea t ment i s of the greatest value i n all

ca ses o f i nj ury to the nerves In many o f the less .
severe ca ses elec t ri cal treatment is s uffi c ien t by i tself

fo r the rest o rat ion o f t h e nor m al condi ti o n W hen the .
nerve has been co mpletely di vi ded the el ec t ri cal treat ,
m ent becomes an i m portant adjunct to the surg ical

pr ocedures wh i ch are necessary fo r the un ion o f the
d i vi ded nerve .
When the ulnar nerve has been completely di v ided

near the wri st the symptoms produced are —1 P aral y .
si s wi th was t i ng a n d the reacti on o f degenerat i on in the
hypothenar em i nence i n all the interosse i in the two

, ,
uln ar l umbri cales and in the adductor and fl e x o r brevi s

,
( i nner head ) of t h e thumb A f ter a t i me the de form

. i ty
”
known as the clawed ha nd i s produced
“
The .
T h e fi n gers bec om e ta peri n g. smoo t h , ha irless, al m o st vo id o f

wrin l es, gl os s , pi n o r rudd , o r blo t ched as ii wi t h perm a n en t
k y k y '
c h i l bl a i n s
. Pu g et , M ed T i m es an d G az et t e ,
.
"
186 4 .
1
»
For uabl e work o n
a v al t he s ubj ec t of In j urie s to N erves an d
o o d co l oured il l ust rat io n s o f l y sk in &c B o wl by I nj uri es

g g o ss , .
, see
a nd D isea se s of Nerves .
"
3 8
2 s t s c r n rc n v.
palm beco m es th i n an d fl at t h e hea d s of th e meta ,
carpal bones become undul y prom i nent t h e prox imal ,
phalanges are over extended the d i sta l ph a l a nges are

-
,
p e rmanently fl e x e d Th.i s i s the re s ult o f t h e paralys is
of t h e i ntero ssei . It h as a lready b een sh own 2 17)
t hat i n the foot the act i on o f the long fi ex o rs o f t h e toes

i s t o fl ex t h e d i sta l phalange s only and th a t o f t h e l ong ,
exten so rs i s to extend the pro x i mal ph al a n ges and that ,
when the i nteros se i are paraly sed t h e c lawed a tt i tude of

the toes is produced i n consequence T h e m echanism .
i s the sa m e i n t h e ca se o f the hand the i nte ro ssei flex ,
the proxi mal phalanges and extend the di st al o nes ; and

so supple m ent the move m ents o f the fin ers whi ch are
g
p e r formed by the long fie x o rs a n d extensor s 2 L o s s . .
o f sensat i on i n the l i ttle fin ger and the u l nar hal f of the

,
ri ng fin ger both front and back and i n the corresponding ,
part o f the palm and the dorsu m of the hand *

3 . .
Troph i c changes are produced i n the sk i n and finger

na i ls o f the an e sthet i c area often wi th oedema ; the ,
temperature of the part i s lowered and so metimes ,
there i s very severe p a i n o f a burn i ng character to ,
”
wh i ch the na m e o f causalgi a has been gi ven this is
“
,
not very co m m on nor i s i t usu a l ly present when the

,
nerve has been co m pletely d i v i ded W hen i t ex ists .
the te m per a ture i s ra i sed above that o f the opposite

i
s de ,
a n d the p t i e t exper i e ces a sensat ion o
a n n f h ea t ,
and seeks fo r rel i ef by cold appl i cat i ons .
A fter d i v i s io n o f t h e m ed i an n erve at the wrist the

cond t io s re d i ffere n t t h e cl awed hand wh i ch
i n a ,
i s 50
characteri st ic o f the d i v i ded ul n ar n erve i s not present ,
a n d the ch i e f feature i s the wast i n g o f the thenar emin

'
e n ce the abductor opp on ent; an d outer head o f the fl

, ,
ex ”
brevis o f the thu m b are paralysed atroph i ed and sho w
,
t he
,
B o wl by ”
lo c c it
“
. .
DISE A S E S OF T H E N E RVO U S S YS T E M .
3 9
2
react ion o f degenerati on There i s loss o f sen sati on i n

.
the th umb i ndex m i ddle and hal f the ri ng fin gers and

, , , ,
in the correspond ing part o f the palm and o f the two ,
d i st al phalanges o f the same hugers on the dorsum o f

the hand .
For th e symptoms foll owi ng the di vi si on of other

nerves M r B owl by s book should be consulted
.
’
222
. P ressu re pa ral y si s The m usc ulo spiral n erv e
.
-
i s o ften i nj ured from the pressure of a crutch o r from ,
the we ight o f the body rest i ng upon the arm d uri ng

hea vy sl eep In crutch palsy the pressure upon the
.
nerve i s hi gher up the arm and the triceps i s usual ly ,
pa ral ysed In slee p pal sy the tri ceps may escape A s

. .
the musc o lo sp iral nerve suppl ies the extensors of th e

-
forea rm hand and h ugers and the supi nator lo ngus an d

, ,
brevi s wri st drop i s produced in th is form of paralysi s ;

,
-
the affecti on o f the sup inator longus helps to dis ti ngui sh

i t from lead palsy The a ffect i on of sensati on may be
.
s light or severe .
P aralysi s from pressure h as been thought to be

secondary to compressi on o f the blood vessels o f the -
l im b produc i ng an e m ia o f the nerve but a ca se wh i ch ,
came under our observati on some years ago o f a pres

sure palsy i n the leg po ints rather aga i nst thi s vi ew .
I n th at case the pressure was on the great sc iati c nerv e

at the back o f the thi gh and there could not have been
,
any c o m press i on o f the femoral artery The pati ent was .
a young man wh o attended a m eet i ng and i n order to ,
have a bett er vi ew o f the proceed i ngs he sat upon the

back ra il o f hi s cha i r ; at the close o f the m eeti ng be
was unable to use hi s leg and was ass isted home The .
treatment co ns i st ed in faradi sm of th e l i mb and re ,
co v ery followed i n a week or t w o There was paraly si s .
of the calf muscles of the t i b i ali s ant i cu

, s and o f the ,
perone i the extensors of the leg were not affected

,
.
S ensat i on was una ffected .
P ressure pals i es may be treated by farad i sm or by

galvan i sm In the m ilder cases when the electrical
.
,
react i o n s are not i m pa i red farad i s m i s gen eral l y en ough

,
to bri n g about a favourable result i n the m o re severe

cases where the react i on to farad i sm i s weaken ed or
,
abol i shed galva n i sm i s to be used i n the m anner al

, ,
ready la i d down fo r the treat m e n t o f paralysi s

W hen the react io n o f degen erat i on i s present the
durat io n o f the paralysi s wi ll be longer than i n the
m i lder cases a n d the progn osi s m ust also be a guarded
,
o n e u n t i l the actual co n d i t i o n o f the nerve at the seat

,
o f i n jury c a n be m ade out .
I n those cases where there has been co m plete d ivision

o f a n er v e recovery ca n n ot be expected unt i l a fter the
,
d iv i ded e n ds o f the n erve have been un i ted When .
that h a s take n pl a ce electrical treat m ent wi ll greatly

,
ass ist the restorat io n o f the p a ra lysed an d wasted parts ,
e v e n though a ye a r or m ore h a s el a psed si n ce the inj ury ,
a n d i n cases where the atrophy a n d dege n er a t i o n o f the
m uscles h a s bee n extre m e .
S o e o the c a ses o severe co tus o

m f f n i n o f the n e r v e
tru n ks a re n o t rel i eved by electr ical tre at m e t n I f t h e .
n erv e has bee n per m a n e n tly d a m aged by the i nj u ry it
has rece i ved the n degen era t l o

,
n a n d a trophy w i ll s e t in
a n d wi ll progress i n sp i te o f t h e m ost ass i duous e l ec t ri

c a l or ot h er tre a t m e n t ; fortu n ately i t i s n o t u sual fo r th e
n erv e to be so co m pletely de stroyed an d i n m ost c ases ,

,
eve n o se vere i n jury to the erves persever g t

f n i n r e a t
,
m en t wi ll do very m uch to pro m ot e recovery .
D u chenn e s ay s that assuredly i t i s i n cases of trau

“
m at i c par a lys i s o f the n erves that fa rad izat io n y ield s t h e
most fortunate results H e h as re m ark ed that

.
t h e
DISE A S E S OF T HE N ER VO U S S YST E M .
33 1
re turn o f pa i nf ul sen sati ons in a previ ously an aesthet ic

part i s a favourable symptom and has observed that ,
elec t ri cal react ions ( to far adi sin ) may not re t urn unt i l
after the power o f voluntary movement has been t e
establ i shed .
H e i s sat i sfied that i t i s unwi se to trust too much to the

chance o f spo n taneous rec overy after injury of nerves
and has seen el ectri cal t reatment afl o rd im m ed iate bene
'
fit in a case fo r wh i ch the expectant treatme n t had done

noth ing d uri ng a twelvemonth H e advi ses faradis m .
appl i ed to each paralysed muscle in proporti on to i t s

degree o f paralys is and is o f opi n ion that the conti nu
,
ou s current wi th i nterrupt i ons i s a valuable auxi l i ary to
farad i c treatment .
W h ere poss ible the anode should be appli ed to the

nerve trunk above the seat o f i njury and the kathode ,
labile to the paralysed muscles wi th i nterrupt io n s or ,
reversa ls .
2 2 3 P a r al y si s o f t h e d el t oi d m u
. oc l e — T h e c ir .
cu m fl e x ner e is somet i mes i nj u

v red by blows on t he
sh oulder by di slocat ion o f the shoulder joi nt or in oth er
, ,
ways thus i t may be present i n crutch paralysi s

, The .
sym ptoms are i nab il i ty t o move the arm ou twards ( ah

ducti on ) .
S o m eti mes i t happen s th at the anteri or parts o f t h e

delto id muscle m ay be a ffected wh i le the posteri or part
escape or vice ven d the nerve supply of the m uscle is
,
by two d i sti nct branches of the c irc um fl e x nerve o n e ,
passin g beneath the humerus to the posteri or hal f o f t h e

muscle and the other turn in g upwards to the a n teri or
,
part E i ther of these branches may bea r the brunt o f

.
an i njury .
The ski n over the delto id also recei ves filam en t s from
the c i rc um fl ex nerve and loss o f sensat ion there may be
,
a ssoc i ated wi th the mu scular paraly si s I n a pat ien t .
under our care lately there was part i al rea ct i on o f de

generat ion and wast i ng i n the posteri o r part o f the
deltoi d whi le the anteri or pa rt was no rmal ; t h e cause
,
o f the i njury was an abscess at the back o f the s houlder
fo r the evacuat i on of wh i ch a long i nc i s ion h ad been

made ; there was a patch o f an e sthe si a over t h e para
lysed area The muscle recovered perfectly under
.
galvan i sm .
2 24
. N euri t i s — N erves wh i ch have been i njured
.
may become the seat o f a chron i c neuri t i s an d th i s may ,
S pread al e ng the nerve and prove very trouble so m e an d ,
i t may ev en lead t o permanent da m age t o t h e nerve

trunk .
W hen the part s around a nerve are i n fl am ed t he

nerve trun k may share in the morbi d proce ss o r neuritis ,
may be produced by the gradual compressi on o f a nerve

i n a m ass of fib ro u s t i ssue I n these ca ses a d i ssect ion
.
,
to free it from the scar t i ssue wh i ch i s comp ress i n g it is ,
i nd i cated . N euri t i s also develops i n the course of

cert a i n d i seases for i nsta n ce a fter some speci fic fevers
, ,
an d part o f the sy m pto m s o f locomotor ataxy are

probably due to a neuri t i s o f the peri pheral nerves .
The cond it ion know n as alcohol i c ne uri t i s has attracted

a good deal of atte n t io n o f late years N euri t i s may .
also be produced by cold and exposure The chief .
d i ag n ost ic feature of the form s o f neuri t i s i s the occur

re n ce o f pa i n associ ated w i th the p aralys i s wast i ng and , ,
i m pa i red sensat ion the pa i n i s an i mportant ai d to

,
d i a gn os i s O ften there i s th i cken i ng and tenderness

.
o f the a ffected nerve tru n ks wh i ch can be felt and t he ,
m uscles are also ten der i n m a n y cases ( G own s) .
I n the acute stages o f neur i t i s electri cal treatment iS

not to be recommended i n those wh i ch are not acu
,
te
DI S E A S E S O F T HE N E R VO U S S YS T E M .
333
t he anode i s to be used stab ile or lab ile over the a ffected

parts t h e kathode be i ng placed ei ther on a sound part
,
o f the same nerve h i gher up or else o n the nape o f the
neck ; a c urrent of fiv e to ten m il li amp e res should be

used fo r ten mi nutes at a s i tt ing .
I n cases o f long standi ng where the morb id process

i s one o f chron i c i ntersti ti al ch ange the kathode from ,
i t s st i m ul ati ng propert ies i s pre ferable When the .
ca use of the ne uri t i s i s n ot sti ll exi stent great i mprove ,
m ent may be obtained by treatment but not very quickly , ,
the elect ri cal appl icat ions must be persevered i n fo r

months and i t i s surpri s ing how much ben efit w ill
,
fo l low even where the was t ing an d the react ion o f

degenerati on have been most m arked A lcoholi c neu .
ri t is a ffects especi ally the extensors o f the wri st and

fin gers the fl ex o rs o f the foot an d t h e extensors o f the
,
toes produc ing a cond it ion of wri st drop and foot

,
-
drop ( B uzzard) but the neur i t i s i s o ften a general on e

an d any other parts may be a ffected .
2 2 5 P ara l y si s o f o c u
. l ar m u sc l es —A ll the vari ous .
forms o f p aralysi s o f thes em u scles may be trea ted by

galvan i sm O ccasi onally from exposure t o cold a para
.
lysis o f so m e o f t he ocul ar m uscles i s set up of a s imil ar

nat ure to t he ord inary rheumati c faci al paralys i s .
Trea t ment i s compl ica ted by the di ffi c ul t y o f reach i ng

the muscl es by el ectri c i t y The ir deep seated pos it ion
.
-
,
t he prox im i ty o f the bra i n and the ret i na and the sensi ,
t iv en ess o f t h e c onjunct iva all help to make i t practi cally

i mposs ible to exc i te co n tract ions in them .
I t has been proposed to use a fin e electrode and intro

duce i t i nto the conjunct i va ! sac a fter that has been ren
dered i nsensi t ive by cocai ne Usually however good .
, ,
results have followed a longi tud inal galvan i sat ion o f the
skul l t h e ka t hode be i ng placed stab i le upon the closed
1
334 us m c ax . E L E C T RI C I T Y .
eyel i d A curre n t o f 1 to 5 m i ll i a m p eres an d a dura

.
t i on o f 30 to 60 seconds are reco m m e n ded by E rb D r . .
Bu zz ard
* has recom m en ded the use o f the i n d ex h uger
covered by da m p m usl i n as the ac t i ve electro de ( see
18 9 hand e l ectrode or s m all spon ges m a used
, ) y b e .
They are so ft an d read i ly adapt them se lve s to the

su rface of the eyel i d The refl ex effect o f fa rad i zing
.
the sk in o f the fa c e m ay also be tri ed as reco m m ended ,
fo r the tre a t m e n t o f fac i al paralys i s D r G own s i s of . .
op in ion t hat electri cal trea t m en t i s o f l i ttl e use i n t he

tre a t m e n t o f paralysi s o f the ocular m u scle s though ,
gra n t in g that a sl ight tem porary i ncrea se o f po wer m ay

be observed a fter the current has bee n a ppl i ed for a
few m i n utes ; at the sa m e t i m e that fact sho uld a fford
ground s for h 0 pin g t hat b en efit m ight fo llo w systemat ic
a n d prolo n ged treat m e n t D r Bu z z ard has reported
. .
two cases where per m a n e n t i m prove m ent di d follow

galva n i s m .
2 26 . i l l
F a c a p a ra y s si — Th i s i s a co m mo n form of
.
p ara ly si s a n d very freque n tly co m es u n der e l ectrical

,
tre a t m en t .
I f we e x c e pt thos e c a ses o f paralys i s o f the faci al

m u scl es wh i ch for m p a rt o f h em i pl eg i a the re m ai n der
u su ally d e pe n d upo n d i sease o f the lower segm en t “
,
th a t i s t o say o f the n erve tru n k a n d i t s n ucleus of

,
or igi n a n d o f these the co m m onest seat i s i n the n erve

,
tr un k .
I t fo llo ws th a t the react i on o f d egener a t i on i s l ikely to

b e pr e se n t i n a large n u m ber o f c a ses o f fac i a l pal sy ,
a n d a ca se c a re fully watched a n d tre a ted fro m t he
co m m en c e m en t offers o n e o f the best in troduct ions to

t h e subject o f e l ectr i cal d i ag n os i s a n d therapeut i cs In .
all but the sl ighte st c a ses o f di sease o f the fac i al n er ve

o uL ”
vo l , 8 18 B rai n ,
an c et , p 4 5,
,
75
. 18 9 0 .
DIS E A SE S O F T HE N ER VO U S S YS T E M .
335
the farad ic reacti on d i sappears wi th i n the first t en

days o ften wi thi n t h e firs t week I f the pat ient i s
, .
tested dai ly the grad ual di mi nut io n o f faradi c and

, ,
exaltat ion of galvan ic i rr i tab i li ty w i ll be clearly s een .
I n test i ng the muscles i t i s well to bear in m ind that

the sk in o f the face i s sensi t i ve and the muscles are
,
near the s urface strong currents are there fore un n eces

,
sa ry and must be avo ided For the i mportance of the

, .
electri cal react ions in prognosi s see 170 .
The part o f the nerve wh ich i s usually at fault i s

that wh i ch passes alo n g the Fallopi an aqueduct .
I n th i s part a very l i ttle swel l in g of the nerve or o f

the walls o f the aqued uct i s sufli c ien t to cause com
press ion o f the nerve fibres D iseas e o f the ear and
.
expo sure to cold are the common est exci ti ng ca uses .
The electri cal treatment sho uld be i n accordance w ith

wha t has been lai d do wn fo r paralys is i n general vi z ,
galvani sm to the seat of les ion di rect galvan ism o f the

,
a ffected nerve and m usc les and refl e x sti m ulati on by

,
farad i sm o f the sk in o f th e face ; t reatment m ay be

commenced at once For reachi ng the seat o f i njury
.
the t ransverse galvan izat ion o f the sk ull ( 5 184) i s ad

v i sed wi th the electrodes beh i nd the ear or below i t the ,
anode stabile on the a ff ected s ide Then the nerve and

.
muscles may be treated wi th the ka t hode each o f the ,
ma i n branches o f the nerve being stroked i n a lab i le

manner from centre to peri phery and each musc le ,
be i ng treated wi th the sa m e pole stabile fo r hal f a

m i nute wh i le the anode rema i ns as at firs t L astly
, .
,
the ski n o f the face may be gently faradized wi th a

moi stened elec t rode I n older cases t he faradi zat ion
.
may be more v igorously appl i ed wi th the m etal li c brush .
2 27 . N eu ral gi a — Th i s morb id state o ffers a fiel d as

.
wi de as i t i s succe ss ful to the elec t ro th era peut i st ( E rb)

-
.
S ever e nervous pa i ns wh i ch m ight fa i rly be calle d

neuralgi c are o ften pre sent i n cases of i njury o r di sease
o f nerves but i n m any cases o f neuralgi a noth i ng so
,
defin i t e can be found Faggo recogn i ses t wo d i st i n ct

.
“
afiec t i o n s i n what i s com m only called ne uralgi a he

'
th i nks that one i s really due t o peri pheral i rri tat ion ,
but that i t i s not an i rri tat ion appl i ed t o the pa in ful

nerve so that the pat i ent i s m i staken i n h i s i nterpreta
,
t i on o f the l ocal sign Th i s i s somet i mes c alled refl ex

.
neuralgi a as an i nsta n ce he ci tes the tri gem i nal neu

,
ral gi a so often exc ited by d i sease o f a too t h In the .
other form o f neural gi a of wh i ch sc i at i ca may be taken

,
a s an example there i s every reaso n to bel i eve that t he

,
morb id process begi ns i n the trunk of the nerv e which

see m s to be the seat o f pai n .
The electri cal treat m ent o f neuralgi a may take ei ther

o f t wo d ifferent d i rect i ons In the more rat i o n al on e
.
the act i on of the a n ode i s brought to bear upon the seat

of pa i n w i th the object o f i n d u c in g a state of an el ect ro
ton us i n the hope that i t s sed a t i ve e ffects m ay gradually
,
leave a per m a n e n tly sooth in g i m pressio n upo n t he

nerve I n the other the pri n c i ple o f cou n ter i rri tat ion
.
-
i s follo wed a n d by the product i o n o f pa i n ful cutaneous

,
i m pressi o n s i t i s sought to create a d i vers i o n as i t were

in the n a ture o f the i m pulses co n ducted alo n g the n erve ,
a n d so to re m ove i t s neur a lgi c co n d i t io n C ou n ter .
i rr i t a t io n i s a v ery popular treat m e n t for neuralgic

pa i n s an d g alv a n i sm or far a d i sm a ffords a cou n t er
,
i rr i tant o f great co n ve n ie n ce i n appl i cat i o n E lec .
t ri c a l cou n ter i rr i tat i o n has the great adva n tage that

-
i t doe s n o t d am age or destroy the sk i n i n the way

t h at bl i sters or the cautery do The electri cal treat .
m e n t of n eur a lg i a i s n o t to be followed b li ndly In .
Prin ci pl es an d Pract ic e of M edici n e .

DISE A SE S O F T HE N E RVO US S YST E M .
337
every ca se whi ch o ffers i tsel f a m i nute and care ful

search shoul d be made fo r any local cause or general
morb i d cond i ti on and medi cal treatment must be
,
brought to bear upon them when they are found .
E lectri cal treatment is o f espec i al value i n cases where

no exc iti ng cause o f the neuralg i a can be di scovered or ,
where it cannot be re m ed ied by ord inary treatment .
There are very many such cases and electri cal treat ,
ment o ften a ffords speedy rel i ef We have already .
re ferred to the neural gi c pa i ns o f tubes dorsal zs in thi s

'
di sease and in other general morbi d condi t i o n s such as

,
debil ity ane mia and ky sten a neuralgi c symptoms are

'
, , ,
common and someti mes severe and electri cal treatment ,
shoul d be tri ed .
When pa i n ful poi nts are present i n a case of neuralgi a

they are t o be attacked by the stabi le acti on o f the
anode These pai n ful po ints were descr i bed by Vall eix
.
,
and shown to correspon d to spots at whi ch the cutane

ou s nerves emerge fro m bony canals or fasc i a but ,
perhaps they merely sign i fy a general tenderness o f the

nerve trunk wh i ch i s most mani fested at those parti en
,
l ar places where they are m ost subject to pressure .
2 28
. T ri gem i n al n eu ral gi a W i thout go ing into
.
the descri pti on o f the vari ous ki nds o f ne ural gi a i t may

be as well to consider for a moment neuralgi a o f the fift h
cran i al nerve and sc i a t i ca The fifth nerve i s perhaps
.
the com m onest seat o f neuralgi a and in very m any ,
cas es i t s condi ti on i s one o f refl ex ne uralgi a the ”“

,
teeth i n pa rt i cular be i n g very co m monly at fault next ,
i n freq uency errors o f re fract ion should be looked for .
B ut not all cases o f t ri gem i nal neuralgi a can be traced

t o an exc i t i n g cause and the most severe form known
, ,
a s tic dou l oum tx i s o ften present when no source o f

,
i rri tat ion can be found D m hm ne s treat m ent fo r all

'
.
z
for m s of neuralgi a ( except those i n wh i ch so m e gross

lesi on o f the nerve was present ) consi sted i n severe
farad i zat i on o f the pa i n ful area a fter dry i n g and powder
i n g the ski n to d i m i n i sh i t s power of conduct i on In .
th i s way he en deavoured to l i m i t the act i on to the

cutaneous surface I f the sk in were not first dri ed t he
.
curre n t penetrat i n g the t i ssues to the trunk of the nerve

was l i kely to do harm i nstead o f good .
H e reports o n e or two cases o f severe tic dou lourmx
wh ich deri ved great b en efit fro m th i s m ode o f cutaneous

farad i sat i o n but con fesses that h i s successes were rare
,
.
I n fac i al n euralgi a stat i cal treatme n t by the pencil

method 9 5) w i ll so m et i m es e ffect a cure I f the ca se .
i s obst i n a te s m all sparks m ay be taken from the pa infu l

regi o n D a i ly appl i cat i o n s shoul d be resorted to an d
.
,
i n very acute attacks two or three appl i cat i o n s may be

m ade i n o n e day T i c douloureux w i ll som et i m es dis
.
appear as i f by m ag i c by s i m ple posi t i ve charg i ng .
The stab i le act i o n o f the a n ode to the pa i n ful part is

o ft en o f use i n tr ig em i n al n eur a lg i a .
229. S c i at i c a I n th i s co m pl a i n t treat m e n t i s m uch

.
,
m ore fav ou rabl e . D u chenn e s a ys that a fter the appl ica
t io n o f the dry brush the p a t i en t i s asto n i shed to fin d all

the p a i n o f t h e sc i at i ca go n e an d though he tr ies to
,
provoke i t s return by m ove m e n t s o f the leg a n d foot ,
i t do es n o t do so S o m et i m es a s i n gle treat m e n t d i spels

.
t h e sc i a t i ca co m pletely at other t i m es the pa i n return s

,
a fter a fe w hou rs o f abse n ce a n d the treat m e n t m ust be

,
re pea ted but cure m ay be expected a fter four or si x or

,
e ight s itt in gs .
P rog n o si s i s good i f the first treat m ent produces even

a te m po rary rel ie f fro m the pa i n .
S teavm son has publ i shed an account of s i xty cases of

i‘
L a c et
”
jn 1
,8 8an
4 J u
.l y,18 86 , , .
DISE A SE S O F T HE N ER VO U S S YS T E M .
339
sc i at i ca treated by elec t ri cal appl i cati ons o f th i s num ,
b er th i rty seven were cured eleven were im proved two

-
, ,
fa i led and the rema i nder were un certa i n

, The m ethod .
employed was to apply the kathode lab ile to the back

o f the th igh along the course of the sc i at i c nerve and ,
over the lower port ion o f the spi ne whil e the anode was ,
placed on the abdomen The appl i cat ion last ed at each

.
s é ance fo r e ight to ten m inutes and the i ntegument ,
over wh i ch the electrode had passed beca m e suffused

w ith a bright blush the pati ent experi enc ing a glowi ng
,
feel i ng o f warmth i n the same track The st iffnes s o f .
the muscles was also re li eved and the pa t ient was able
,
to bend down an d get up from a s i tt i ng posi t ion w i th

great ease for several hours even a fter the early appii
,
ca t ions In the galvani c treatment o f ne uralgi c pa i ns

.
large electrodes should be used i t has even been pro ,
posed to use electrodes large e n ough if poss ible to cover

the whole o f the a ffected area at once ( Von Z icmssm ) .
L umbago i s al so qu i ckly reli eved by galvan ism wi th the

anode .
23 0 . H erpe ct i n eur i
al g a —The severe neuralgi c
.
pa in wh ich somet imes follows an attack of herpes g as!"

i s sa i d t o be read ily removed by the appli cati on of the
a n ode S ee a case reported by E rbfi
.
‘
2 3 1 S pa sm
. a n d wry n ec k There are several .
forms of spa smodi c muscular contract i on some ton i c ,
a n d so m e c lo n ic wh i ch are not uncommon

, S pasm i s .
not i nfrequently a refl ex phenomeno n thus there m ay ,
be severe spasm of the mus cles o f masti cat ion from

i n fl a mm a t i o n about the gums or throat an d in fl am ed ,
cerv ical gl ands so m eti mes cause wry neck O r th ere .
m ay be spasm from di rect i rr i tati on of the nerves as

i n wry neck from d i sease o f the cerv i ca l vertebr a} .
E l ec t ro- t herapeuti cs, p .

5 5
1 .
In ch i ldren and also though less commonly i n

, , ,
adults , wry neck may be due to expo sure t o cold or

wet and th i s form has been called
, rhe umat i c ” “
.
S pas m s are also common i n hysteri cal an d emot ional

p eople , and i n such they m a y come on q u i te spontane
ou sl y or as a sequel o f so m e sl i ght i njury These may .
persi st fo r years and may not only si m ul ate lateral

,
sclerosi s but may also lead to i t

, A part fro m hysteria
.
we often fin d that spasmod ic con tract i ons have been

brought on by prolonged m ental anx i ety or worry .
Fac i al spasm or h i stri on i c spasm i s not unco m m on in

i t s sl i ghter degrees and shows i tsel f usually i n the form
,
o f tw i tch i ngs o f so m e of the fac i al muscles S ometi mes .
the tw i tc h i ngs are very frequent and severe and though ,
at first they can be controlled by an e ff ort they may ,
i n t i m e become qui te uncontrollable The commonest .
form o f spasm however i s wry neck or torti col lzs tonic

'
, , ,
or clon i c The sterno m asto i d i s usually at fault but

.
-
,
occasi on ally the wry neck i s produced by contract ion of

the splen ius cap i tis or the trapez i us .
V ery often n o cause c a n be found for the wry n eck ,
an d perh a ps i t i s m ost obst i n ate i n these very c a ses .
E lec t r i cal treat m e n t has been o ften tr i ed for spas modic

a ffect io n s and i t i s very success ful i n so m e but fails
, ,
co m pletely i n others I n hy steri c al c a ses the faradic

.
,
brush or the appl i cat ion o f st a t i c sp a rks may always be

tri ed wi th good prospects o f i m prove m e n t I n the other .
cases g alva n i sm i s better the stab ile act i o n of the

,
anode b ei n g e m ployed over the a ffected m uscle and

i t s nerves .E rb h a s recorded twe n ty cases o f spasm
i n var i ous m uscles al,
m ost all o f wh i ch were cur ed by
electri c al treat m e n t a few of the m i m proved o n ly after
a very large n u m ber of s i tt i n g s but others w ere very ,
pro m ptly cured by three or four E rb also foun d that

.
DISE A SE S OF T HE N ER VO U S S YST E M .
reversals of the current were use ful in some of the

ca ses .
2 32 . W ri t er s ’
o ram p
the best known form
.
— Thi s is
o f a group of spasmodi c afiec t i o n s wh i ch are produced
'
by prolonged over work o f cert ai n muscles p arti cularly

-
,
when the work done i s o f a comp li cated and hi ghly

c o ordi nat ed ki nd
-
The name of functi on spasms h as
.
been gi ven t o thi s class B es i des th ose whose occupa

.
ti on i s wri t in g v iol in i sts pi ano players ta i lors and

, ,
-
,
shoemakers are sai d to be subject to si mil ar spasmodi c

attacks i n the muscles whi ch they use m ost often I n .
wri ter s cramp there i s a com b i nat ion o f muscular

’
spasm wi th pa ralys i s e i ther of th ese may predomi nate ,
and the first and ch ief seat of the cramp or palsy i s in

t h e i ntri ns ic muscles o f the thumb and i n the first dorsal
i nterosseo u s ; if the habi t wri t ing or what not be per , ,
severed wi th other muscles are made t o take the

,
place o f those whi ch are deranged and soon they also ,
su ffer .
G alvani sm i s o f great value i n th i s di sease but i t ,
m ust be helped by the co m plete abando n ment of the

hab i t wh ich h as caused i t s development .
D r P oore has pa id great atten t i on t o the subject of

.
'
wri ter s cramp and ad vi ses the use o f the conti nuous
’
current he places the anode i n the axi lla and th e

, ,
kathode over the ulnar nerve just where i t leaves the

bi ceps on i t s way to the olecranon The stren gth of .
c urrent i s short o f tha t whi ch causes muscular contra e

“
ti on but i s just suffici en t t o m ake t h e pati ent con sc ious

,
o f a ti ngle i n the end o f the l i tt le h uger when the cur
rent i s m ade and brok en The pat ient i s then made

.
to exerc i se the i nter o ssei by separat ing an d approx i

E l ec t ri ci ty i M edici e an d S ugery
n 18 76n M edi co C h iru
r r , .
“ -
i l T ran sact io n s, 188 7 .

"
g ca
mat i ng the fin gers rhyth m i cally A nother plan recom .
mended by the same wri ter i s to place the a n ode over

the m ed i an nerve at the i n n er border o f the b i ceps an d ,
the kathode over the body o f the fl ex or longus poll icis ,
wh i le the pat ien t i s m ade to flex rhythm i cally the dist al

phalanx o f h i s thu m b O ther si m ilar plans i ncluding
.
the co m b i nat ion o f a descend i ng curre n t w i th rhythmic

exerc i ses may be used .
In D r P oore s later art i cle on wr i ter s cramp he has

.
’ ’
shown that a good many pat ie n ts have s i gn s of some

sl ight cen tral lesi on ei ther i n bra i n or cord the largest
, ,
number do not show these s i gn s but many o f them ,
have altered farad i c i rri tab i l i ty i n the a ffected m uscles ,
and tre m ors an d te n dern ess o f the nerve tru n ks It is .
oss i ble that sl i ght neur i t i s m a be prese n t i n so me of

p y
these pat i ents .
I n the C en tral blatt f u r die esamm T hem

g e A p 1891.
,
.
, ,
M ax Wei ss d i scusses the electr i cal treat m e n t o f writ er s

’
cra m p and po i nts out that three cond i t i ons m a y be found

,
i n th e se cases ( 1) sp a s m s ( 2 ) t rem ors ( 3) p a ra ly ses and

, , , ,
so m et i m es th e re a re co m b i n a t i o n s o f m o re th a n on e of
these m o rb i d st ates I n t h e spasm od i c c a s es wh ich are
.
,
usually to n i c rath er th a n clo n i c o n t ak i n g up t h e pen , ,
the thu m b i n d e x a n d m i ddl e h ugers an d esp ec i ally the

, ,
thu m b an d i n d ex pa ss i n to a st at e o f to n i c sp a sm ; the
opp on nts pol l zczs a n d t h e fl ex or propmu s p ol l i ci s a n d t h e l ong
' ' ’
e ,
fl ex o rs an d i n terossei an d l u mbri cal es a l l sh are i n t h e spasm .
T h e e x t en so rs are l e ss co m m o n ly th row n i n to sp asm the ,
l or a n d ex tensor carp i u m share i o n ation

f
'
ex l n a m s a y t P r .
a n d sup i n at i o n are s eldo m a ffe c ted Furth e r th ere is .

,
p ai n i n the ul n a r a n d m ed i an area s t en d er po i n t s in the ,
ar m s o n both a n t erior a n d poster ior aspects an d at the ,
S p i n ous proces ses .
The d sturba ces are s i tuated

i n i n the med an i a nd
DISE A SE S O F T HE N E R VO US S YS T E M .
343
ulnar n erves not i n the m otor cortex nor in the sp i nal

,
cord The treatment recommended i s the use of con

.
st ant c urrents o f from two to fiv e or eight mil li ampe res

fo r fift een to twenty fi v e mi nutes w i th absolute rest -
from wri tin g ; galvan ize twi ce da ily d u rin g the first
weeks afterwards di m in ishin g to two or three ti mes a
,
.
week . A node i n the palm if extensi on i s the m a i n

sy m ptom on the dorsu m i f fl e x i o n
,
K athode to be .
placed on the nape of the neck or o n the upper and ,
i nner part o f the arm A node may also be appl i ed to.
t h e te n der po i nts fo r ten to twen ty mi nutes .
I n paraly tic cases galvan o faradizati on wi th a roller

,
-
el ectrode fo l lowed by the anode lab ile to the a ffected

muscles i s advi sed For tremors o f the a ffected muscles
.
the same procedure should be adopted .
2 33 T e t an y
. Th i s form o f spasm although not
.
,
very common deserves men t ion here becaus e o f the

, ,
peculi ar i ncrease i n electri cal i rri tabi l i ty w hi ch for m s

one o f i t s leading sy m pto m s There i s also as i s well .
,
kno wn an i ncreased i rri tabi l i ty o f the nerves and mus

,
cles to mechan i ca l st i mulat i on and thi s i s not c on fin ed ,
to any part icular nerve although i t has been m os t com ,
m ou l y observ ed in the fac i al nerve ( fac i al irri tab il i ty ) .
The pec uli ar spas m s can be evoked by co m press ion o f

a nerve trunk or o f a main artery o f a li mb ( T raum a) ,
or by a rough touch over a motor nerve E rb first "

.
‘
showed that the electri cal i rri tabil i ty was a l so i ncrease d

in thi s d i sease .
I n a recent paper D r B ern hardt } h as reported three .
cas es in whi ch the electri cal react i ons were exa m ined ,
his res ults compared w i th the nor m al i rri tab il i ty of th e

same nerves are represented in the follow in g table whi ch ,
A rc h f psy ch iat ric , 18 7 4, 5 2 7 1

"
. . .
Berli n Kl in Wochen sc h ri it , j u No
"
189 1, 2 6.
f . . ne .
344 us m c ar . BL E C T R IC l T Y .
gi ves the current i n m il l i amp e res requi red t o produce

the first contracti on , KC C .
Ns nv z . N o n n at . T s r an v .
3 C ase s.
—3 m il liarn peres m ill iamperes
M usc ul o -
spiral 2
'
—5 —1 °
Pero n eal —x °
x
K D T ( kathodal durat i on tetanus ) and A C C were also

more easi ly produced than usual A O T ( anodal open ing .
teta n us) wh i ch i s a most unco m mon react i on was also ,
observed i n on e of the cases The i rri tabi l i ty to faradism

.
was l ikewi se i n creased i n all three pat i ents I n the .
electri cal treat m ent o f tetany the in fl uen ce of the an ode

stab i le i s to be d i rected to the a ffected parts and the ,
current m ust be gradually d i m i n i shed at the term in ation

o f the s i tt i n g to avo i d the i l l e ffect o f the a n odal opening
( co m p a re The results o f treat m ent are s aid tO
be ent i rely favourable .
2 34 . A n e st h e si a The treat m e n t o f a n ae sthesia is

.
si m i lar to that used fo r paralys i s The cerebral an Q S

.
t h esi a wh ich so m et i m es o c c u rs wi th he m i plegia iS

usually n o t p er m a ne n t a n d i t m ay very o fte n be made
,
to di s a ppe a r by a few a ppl i cat io n s o f the fa rad ic brush

to the a ffected areas H yster i cal a n ae sthes i a i s also
.
eas i ly d i spelled i n the sa m e way .
W he n paralys i s a n d an ae sthes i a coex i st fro m disease

o f the sp i n al cord or sp i n al n erves the prognosis and ,
the treat m e n t are s i m i lar fo r both V ery often the .
an aesthes i a i s m uch less m arked tha n the paralysis and ,
i t recov e r s m o re qu i ckly i n the favourable cases .

D i s eas e s ?
01 m e n e avo us S Y S T E M .
345
A n e sthes i a o f the senso ry porti ons o f the tr ige m i n us

h a s also been observed see E rb E lectro therapeut i cs
"
-
, , ,
p 57
. 2 F agg
. a quotes from R om bcrg a case whi ch ca me
o n a ft er exposure to cold and mi ght therefore be o f a ,
si m i lar nature to the ca ses o f fac i al paralys i s produced
in the same way S eri ous di sease i n the ne ighbo u

. rhood
o f the G asseri an ga n gl i on m ay also produce ane sthes i a
o f t h e face .
2 35 A n o m i a
. A ca se o f anosm i a has recently
.
been under treatment in the electri cal dep art ment at

S t B artholomew s H os p i tal wi th a sati s factory result
’
. .
,
The pat ie n t was a wom an i n whom the loss o f smell

had com e on as a res ult o f i nj ury A fter twenty si tt ings .
the sen se o f smell returned so that she could eas il y ,
recogn i se the sm ell o f oni ons The treatment foll owed .
was galvan i sm stab i le the anode t o the m asto i d pro

,
cesses the kathode to the root of the nose for ten

,
mi nutes twi ce a week .
D r Wahl tu
. ch B ri t M ed Journal S ept
. h as
.
,
.
reported a ca se o f loss o f taste an d smell for h y e month s

after a sev ere co ld G alvan ism appl ied t o the nose and
.
tongue e ffect ed a cure a fter si x si tt i ngs

ri t i s an d a t ro ph y —G al van i sm has
.
2 36 O pt i c n eu
. .
also been u sed fo r op t i c atrophy and opti c neuri t i s ,
several cases have been reported in wh ich i mprove m ent

o f s i ght has follo wed W hen atrophy comes on w i thout
.
previ ous opti c neuri ti s t h e prospects are cons idered less

,
favourable The treatmen t i s ( 1) transverse galvan iza

.
t i on through the temples wi th reversals ; ( 2 ) longi tud i nal

through the hea d the anode over the closed eyeli ds
,
.
For a ful l account o f the trea t ment wi th reports o f e ight ,
cases by di fferent observers see E rb * .

,
2 37 A u
. di t o ry n e rve d ea f n ess The treatment .
E l ec t ra th erapeu
”
t ic s .
346 M E D I C AL E L E C T RI C I T Y .
already descri bed 2 11) as su i table for t i n n i tus auri um
may also be followed i n cases o f nervous dea fness .
A l thcms and others have reported successfu l cases .
S tat i cal treat m ent by sparks m ay be appl i ed to the

meatus an d to the ty m pan i c m e m bra n e by m eans o f a
spec i al form of spark regulator fi x ed i n a vul
93)
c an i t e speculu m . S o m et i m es the results o f stat i cal
treat m e n t are very sat i s factory .
2 38 .M u sc u l a r a t ro ph y A part from the atrophy

.
o f m uscles wh i ch follows d i sease o f the n erves or o f t h e ,
anteri or cornua o f the cord there are cases where t he ,
m orb i d process i s l i m i ted to the m uscles Thus a .

,
m uscle m ay waste fro m d i suse espec i ally when t he ,
d i suse i s secon dary to jo in t d i sease ; such a state of

th i ngs occurs i n the delto i d n o t unco m m o n ly also in
,
the exte n sors o f the leg a fter a ffect ions of the k n ee joint
, .
The electri cal react io n s i n these cases are natural or ,
there m ay be sl ight qual i tat i ve d i m in ut i on there i s no ,
rea c t i on o f dege n erat i o n .
Th ere i s also a n oth er group o f m uscular atrophies

wh i ch h a s b een c a lled i d i op a th i c
”
where there is ,
e x t en s i ve w a st i n g o f m u scl es but n o cha n ges are t o be

,
fou n d i n the c ord or n erv es The best k n ow n o f t hese

.
i s pseudo hyp ertroph i c p ar a ly si s here i n the early st ages

-
,
the a trophy i s m a sk ed by t h e d eposi t i o n o f m u c h a dipose

t l ssu e i n the plac e o f t h e m uscle fi b re s I n other fo rms .
o f m yop a th i c a trophy there m a y be n o such d e pos i t i on of
fa t a n d the s i ze o f t h e m u scles m a y sh ri n k fro m the first

,
.
Th ey are o ft en h ered i t a ry an d m ay occur i n several

,
m e m b ers o f a fa m i ly Th ere i s n o rea c t i o n o f degen era

.
t io n but o n ly a s i m ple d i m in ut i on to g a lva n i sm and

,
fara dl sm . N o t m uch good results have bee n obt ained

fro m electr i cal tr eat m e n t ; galva n i s m w i th weak currents
a n d regular farad i zat i o n have been reco m m e n ded and
may be tr i ed .
T R E A T M E NT .
347
C H A P TE R XI V .
OT HE R C o n o rr ro s s R E Q U I RI N G E t scr mc u T R E A T M E NT
. .
J o in t affec t io n s. S prai n s . M y al gia . A s ci t es . C o n st ipat io n . Ga

l ac t ago gue effec t s. N oc t u
rn al ure sisen . Weak n ess of the
bl adder an d in c o n t in en ce . M o rbid sex u al st at es. D ise ases of
wo m en I n c h i l db irt h A m en o rrh oea C hro n ic m et rit is an d

. . .
sub in vo l ut io n U t eri n e n eural gia A rrest o f gro wt h o f can cers

. . .
H ealin g o f ch ron ic ul cers G uin ea wo rm T est o f deat h

. . .
A fl ec t l o n s
j cons i derable
of the oi n t s . A
'
2 39 .
amount o f atten ti on has been gi ven to the electri cal

treatment of jo i n t a ffect i ons D r D an £on has fo un d
* . .
bri sk faradi sm w i th the metall i c brush to be a valuable

trea tment i n the i n fl am ed an d tender jo ints o f acute
rheu m at i s m ; he reports that m uch reli e f to the pa in
and tenderness follows at o n ce strong currents are wel l ,
borne and the presence o f fever i s not a c o n t ra i n dica

,
ti on t o the ir use D rosdofl f quoted by E rb m a kes

.
,
s im i lar state m ents he fo und that the sens i t i veness to

,
farad i c currents was much lowered over the a ffected

joi nts and that treatment da i ly for fiv e to t en m i nutes
,
reduced the pa i n co n s iderably lowered the temperatur e ,
of the jo i nt and shortened the co u

,
rse o f the case H e .
employed mo i st electrodes i n preference to the dry

brush Th i s trea tment m ight very well be tri ed i n
.
cases whi ch do not respond sa ti s factori ly t o sal i cy lates ,
rai t emen t des afl ec t ion s art i c ul aires l E lect ric it é,

"
Pari s,
'
T
'
0 “
par
188 7 .
1»
C en t . f ( 1 M ed
. . . Wissensch .
, 18 75, 17 .
348 n s m c ar s t s c n . u '
c rrv .
or when the pat i ents are sufferi ng much di stress from

the joi nt pa i ns .
D amon also m en t i on s that he has obta i ned favourabl e

’
results w i th farad i sm i n acute gouty arth ri t i s .
In chron i c joi nt a fiec t ion s also both the galvan i c an d

'
farad i c currents have been used the for m er should be ,
preferred O ccasi onally a si ngle joi nt may re m a i n dam

.
aged a fter acute rheu m at i s m whe n the other jo i n ts have ,
recovered or several joi nts m ay be left i n a cri ppled

,
state These are to be treated by strong cont i nuous

.
curre n ts wi th large soft electrodes appl i ed o n e to each

,
s i de o f the a ffected part and w i th reversals occasi onally

,
.
E fiusi on s ( hydrops art i cul i ) are qu i ckly lesse n ed and

'
the pa i n or st i ffn ess are d i spelled a fter ten or twelve

s i tt i n gs I f the m uscles roun d the joi nt show a t en
.
den c y to wast i n g they m ust n o t be neglected but m u st ,
also recei ve treat m en t wi th the kathode .
The sa m e treat m e n t i s to be tri ed when the joi nt has

beco m e st i ff fro m d i suse lo n g ba n dagi n g or old i njury
, ,
.
2 0
4 S p
. r a i n s a n d d i s l o c a t i o n s H ere the c.o n
t in u ou s c u rr en t i s the b e st appl i cat i o n both poles are ,
to b e pl a c e d o n the a ffected part large electrodes ,

.
R cmak h a s r e p ort ed c a s es o f c ure followi n g the appl ica

t i o n o f the cur ren t fro m fift y D an iell s cells to sprained ’
jo in ts T h e p a in the swel li n g a n d the d i scolouration

.
, ,
all qu ic kly d isappe ar a n d i n the course o f a few days

,
o r a we e k t h e p arts are well D an ion pre fers faradiza

.
t io n a n d h as m et wi t h good r esult s fro m i t s use

,
.
2 1
4 R .h e u m a t o i d a r t h r i t i s T h e treat m e n t o f this
.
co n di t ion by t h e e l ectr i c b a th h a s already bee n fully

d e scr ib ed The b a th i s the m ost co n ve n ie n t an d satis
.
ac
f t o r y m ode o f tre a t m e n t espec i a lly
,
whe n co m b in ed
W i th d i re c t g a lva n i z a t i o n o f the fi n g er jo i n ts as t h ere
l a i d d o wn The war m wat er n o doubt ex ercises in

.
E L E C T RI C A L T R E A T M E NT .
i t sel f a consi derable i n fl uen ce The use o f the con .
stant curren t wi thout the bath may also be pract i sed .
A lthough several wri ters report favourably o n th i s ci ty

g alvani c treatment E rb does n o t cons ider that he has
seen i t produce much ben efit H e i s o f opin ion that .
treatment should i nclude both the a ffected jo i nts and ,
also the central nervous system ( spinal cord cervi cal ,
sy mpath eti c ) .
2 42 M y al gi a
.
— Th i s i s the name gi ven t o tho se
.
pa i ns whi ch are felt i n over fati gued muscles ; when -
pa ti ents are i n a c on d it ion o f debi li ty so t ri fl in g an ,
amount o f muscul ar exert i on m ay be enough to produce

these myalgic pa i ns that the connect ion between them
,
and thei r true cause may be ent irely overlooked H ence .
myalgi a i s constantly co n fo unded wi th hysteri cal rheu ,
mat ic spinal and other d iseas es * The symptoms are

.
, ,
pa i n i n the muscles made worse on movement and ten

, ,
derness The ski n over the muscl es may also be very

.
tender The pai ns are o ften referred to one o f the ten

.
din o u s i nsert ions o f the a ff ected m uscle and the trunk ,
muscles are m ost commonly a ffected D r I n mzm men . .
t ions as co m mon seats o f myal gi c pa i n ( 1) the t rapez ius

at i t s i n serti on into the occ i pi tal bone and in to t h e sp ine
of scap u la ; ( 2 ) th e spi nes of the dorsal and l umbar
vertebr ae ( ori gins o f spinal m uscles ) ( 3) the front o f the
chest ( ori gin o f pectoral i s m ajor and m i nor) produci ng
infra mammary pa in ; ( 4) at the margins o f the ri bs or
-
,
at the pubes ( i nserti on s o f recti abdom in i s) .
M yalgi a m ay exi st i n persons who are apparently

healthy and i t may be d i ffi cult to dec i de what i s the
,
parti cular cause o f the m uscular fati gue which they

su fi er from ; at the same ti m e the i r pa ins may be very
'
o bst i nate and very trouble s ome and may res i st

,
al l
C hu
”
I n ma n on M y al gi a rchi l l 1860
, , .
50 c
141 1 s L s cr m c n v
350 . .
treatment un t i l the d i agnosi s i s clearly establ i shed an d ,
rest fo r the a ffect ed m usc les can be con t ri ved T he .
m ove m ents wh i ch spe c i ally aggravate the pa i n must be

carefully ascerta i ned i n order to deci de upo n the exact
m uscle wh i ch i s at fault G al v an i sm m ay so i mprove
.
the tone o f the m uscles as to enable them t o perform

wi thout fat i gue the work they are called upon to do .
L arge electrodes and powerful currents 2 0 t o 40 milli ,
a m p e res are to be u se d the a n ode to the pa i n ful part s

, , ,
the s itt i ng m ay be term i nated by a few reversals This .
i s the m eth o d ad v i sed by E rb H e also m ent i ons th at

.
v igorous farad i zat i on to throw the m uscles i nto power

fu l a n d repeated contract i ons i s som et i m es usefu l .
2 4 3 A sc i t e s
. . S everal wri ters have reported favou r
ably o f the treat m ent o f asc i tes by farad i zat i on o f the

abdom e n The appl i cat ion should be appl i ed en ergeti
.
cally fo r fift een or twenty m i nutes so as to set u p

v igorous and repeated contract i o n s o f the m uscul ar
walls o f the abdomen A s a co n sequence the uri ne is
.
i n cre a sed a n d the asc i tes te n ds to d i sappear T he .
pro spects o f per m a n e n t cure o f course depend upon the

cau se o f t h e a sc i tes i n e a c h p art icular case .
2 44
. C o n st i pa t i o n P e ri st a ls i s c an be set up by
.
far a d i z a t i o n appl i ed through the abdo m i n al w a lls and ,
the t en d en cy to chro n i c co n st i pat i o n c a n be per m a n ently

re m ed i ed by i t s use . The pol es m ay be placed on e on
the lu m bar spi n e an d the other o n the surface of the
abdo m en they should be o f l arge si z e ; the abdominal
,
electrode should be m oved over the whole surface of

the belly fo r a period o f fiv e or t en m i n utes A fter a .
few appl i c a t i o n s the bow e ls b eco m e m ore regular D r .

.
Wahl tuch r e ports seven cases i n wh ich the con t in uous

"
curre n t prod uced good results H i s m ethod was to u

. se
B it M d J o u al
r . e . 8 83
rn 623, 1 , n .
,
E LE C T RI C A L T RE A T M E N T .
351
a large sponge for the posi t i ve pole and an ord in ary ,
med i um s ized negat i ve electrode The former was .
appl ied to the ep igastri u m wh i le the latter was slowly ,
moved over the whole abdom i nal surface i n the di “

,
rect i o n o f the i ntest in al canal fro m the duodenum t o the

s ig m o i d fl ex ure whe re i t was fin a ll y fix ed and the
”
, ,
c urrent o f fro m fiv e to th i rty L ec l an c h é ce l ls allowed to

pass steadi ly wi thout i nterrupt i on fo r ten twenty or , ,
t hi rty mi nutes . The operat ion was repeated ever y

other day fo r periods o f from three to si x weeks The .
bowels graduall y beca m e regul ar in the i r act ion altho ugh ,
a l l aper i ents and enemata were stopped and they t e ,
ma ined so a fter the cessa ti on o f the trea t ment .
A nother plan for obst i n ate cases i s to i ntroduce a

bougi e electrode ( fig 8 0 ) i nto the rectum th e oth er
.
,
Fro 80
. .
- R ect a l bo ogi e el ect rode.
pole be i ng kept on the abdom en as before the farad i c ,
current should be employed to avo i d ri sk of sett ing

up ulcerat ion and soren ess o f the rectal mucous mem
brane .
2 45 G al a o t ag o gu
. e efl ec t l — Faradi sm appl ied t o
‘
the mammary glands has been fo und most use ful for
promot in g the secret ion o f m i lk M P im an declared “ .
that far a di sm has so powe rful an i n fl uen c e upon the

mammary gland that he bel i eves that even the breasts
o f v i rgi ns m ight be m ade to yi eld m i lk i n th i s way He .
appl i es on e el ectrode ( cup shaped ) over the papi lla an d

-
,
B ri t M ed
. . j o urn al ,
”
188 7 , i .
, p 799
. .
v es the other over the different pa rts of t he gland .
1er cases are q uoted by D rs B eard and R ockw ell . .
4 6 T.h e u ri n ary o rg an s ° — The results ob t ai n ed

.
the electri cal trea t ment of nocturn al i ncont inence

ch i ldren is very favourable B y plac ing on e elec .
de ov er the lower dorsal spi ne and the ,
peri neum the whole nerv ous supply o f

,
ca n be i ncluded i n the ci rc u it In a .
ca ses wh ich are due to phi mos i s ,
m worms an d ox aluri a there are ma ,
ic h durin g sleep the i nh i bi tory i n fl uen c e
ut res appea rs t o be i n abeyance and any ,
1ri ne i n t he bladder exc i tes a refie
HS and consequent ex p ulsion of the uri ne

,
.
es are read i ly cured by galv an i sm i t i s ,
Pro 8 1 ~ E lect rode for

. . en u
res is .
ess ary t o i ntroduce the electrode into tif; f
best plan o f treatment i s t o place t he m dt ti erent

'
ct rode upon the lower dorsal sp i ne and ,
: trode ( pos i t i ve ) t o the peri neum a u buttom ,
.ped electr ode i s most conveni ent T h e is .
;en si t i v e regi on and strong curr ents sh o ul d not be

,
p loyed the small

, area o f the pe r i neum i al ly i n
,
1ales makes i t necess ary that the el ec t ode shou

,
ld
in one place duri ng the whole o f the app li cat i on and ,
h a small electrode there would be ri sk o f electrolytic

x t s i f large currents were u sed The fi 8 1)
( g . .
0 D r W E S t cavm on i n Bri t M ed J ou rn al
"
. . . Nov 18 86
. .
, . .
E LE C T R lC A L T RE A T M E N T .
353
shows an elec trode of su itable shape It i s con t ri ved so .
that the washlea ther cover c an be cha n ged i n a moment .
The rin g of vul can i te i s pushed on over the pi ece of

washleather and holds i t i n place .
In ca ses of si mple i ncont inence o f uri ne when the ,
sphi ncter i s not at fault and when the a ffect ion i s due
,
t o the loss o f the power o f i nh i b i t i on duri n g sl eep or t o ,
pa ralysi s of the m uscular coa ts o f the bladder from

o v er d i stensi on o r other caus es then on e electrode m ay
-
,
be placed over the pubes Bu t in cases where there i s

.
weakness of the sph incter unless an el ectrode i s placed

,
in the uret hra i tsel f no doubt the most advantageous

,
place fo r the second electrode i s the per ineum The .
tendency o f all electri cal currents i s t o t ake the shortest

route poss ible to complete the ci rcuit alwa ys of course , , ,
choosi ng the road offeri ng th e least res istance I f on e .
electrode be placed on the lower dorsal spi ne and the ,
other above the pubes the sph incter ves ic ae i s almost

,
completely wi thout t he c ircui t and then rece i ves very ,
l i ttle di rect i n fl uen c e I have known elec t ri c i ty so ap

.
pl i ed in the case o f fe m ales from feel i ngs o f del icacy

, ,
wh en the sph i ncter vesic ae was no doubt at fa ult I f the .
current i s not appl ied directly to the part a ffected i t i s ,
best to di spense wi th elect ri cal treatment altogether fo r ,
i t most ass ur e dly wi ll fail .
M any o f t h e cases I have had have been in females

wh ere the sph incter was n o doubt at fault In on e case .
sent to me by D r M at t hews D am
. the urethra had ,
been dil ated to explore the i nteri or of the bladder .
Thi s was foll owed by i nconti nence A nother wom an .

,
aft er a di ffic ul t labour always had inco n ti nence in the

,
erect posi t ion Thi s case was c ured by galva n ism I

. .
have had s everal pat i ents who have been unable t o

reta in th ei r uri ne when maki ng the sl ightest extra c t
AA
112 0 10 11 B L B C I R l C I T Y
‘ ‘
354 . .
di n ary exerti on such as goi ng upsta i r s l ift i ng weights

, , ,
an d even when laugh i ng or cry i ng I do n o t remember .
any o f these ca ses wh i ch h ave not been cured by elec

t ri c i t y. I am not i ncludi ng cases o f old women in ,
whom v i olent bronchi ti c cough i s so often a ccompanied

by an escape o f uri ne although these cases no doubt ,
m ight be i mproved .
Undue frequency of m i cturi ti on i s a l so reli eved by

galvan i sm possibly by strengthen i ng the nervous supply
,
o f the bladd er so that the refl ex act i s not so readily

i nduced W he n th i s u n due frequency i s caused by
.
cyst i t i s I bel i eve that rel i ef i s effected by a healthier

,
cond i t i on o f the walls of the bladder be i ng i nduced by

the current I have had several cases of cyst i ti s sent
.
to me and they all i mproved ; som e have been cured

, .
O n e or two o f these cases I have treated i n con

junct ion w i th M r B ruce C larke I n the appl i cation of
. .
electri c i ty to the bladder for atony i ncont i nence or fre , ,
q ue n c y o f m i ctur i t i on I have usually employed , the cur
rent fo r about e ight or ten m i n utes every day or every

other day the greater m ajor ity of cases only requiring
,
i t about e i ght t i m es A sou n d i nsulated except at the

.
,
extre m i ty i s p a ssed i nto the bladder The strengt h of

,
.
the curre n t used has been from t wo t o three milli

a m p e r es up to fi v e i f the p a t ient could bear it A nother .
a ffe c t i o n co n n e c ted wi th the uri nary organs wh ich can

be rel i eved by g a lva n i sm i s n euralgi a of the pud ic nerve .
I have had o n e or two cases of the ki nd and one was ,

”
descr i bed a short t i m e ago in t h e L ancet 1886 “
, ,
vol ii p 18 1 The a ffect io n i s associ ated wi th severe

. .
,
. .
pa i n i n the peri n eu m o ften peri od i c and i ncreased by

, ,
walk i n g ; i t i s somet i m es accompan i ed by a painfu l

sp as m o f the urethra wh en ever an attempt i s made to
pass water The pa i n so m et i mes extends beyond the
.
E LE C T RI C A L T RE A T M E NT .
355
peri ne um into the gro i n The constant current app li ed

.
in the same way as for i nconti nen c e o f uri ne wi ll gene

ra lly reli eve the pa in after a few appl i cat i o n s .
For m any o f th e cases o f bl adder weakness i n ch i ldren

and young adul ts faradi s m appli ed in the same way acts
al most if not q u
, i te as we l l as gal vani s m
, .
I n retenti on o f uri ne occurri ng in hysteri c al subjects

one pole not i nsu lated may be passed i nto the urethra
, ,
-
and bladder and faradi sm appli ed care bei ng ta ken to

, ,
stre n gthen the current very grad uall y .
2 47
. S ex ual di s o rd erl —Vari ous morbi d
. se xual
cond it i ons have been treated by electri ci ty The .
nervous supply o f these organs i s a lmost iden ti cal in

pos i t i on wi th that of the bladder and rect um and the ,
sea t o f appli cati on i s somewhat s i mi lar in both ca ses .
The galva n i c c urren t i s usuall y the best to employ .
A small button shaped electrode connected w i th t h e

-
posi t i ve pole i s held to the peri neum and another larger ,
elec trode ( negat i ve) i s moved slowly up and down t h e

lower dorsal and lumbar spi ne The c urrent may be .
fro m 5 t o 10 m i ll i ampe res accord ing to t h e tol erance of

the pat ient and the t ime occup i ed m ay be ten mi nutes
, .
A pp li cati ons da ily for a week the n every other day , .
I n th i s way the sym ptoms may be d ispel l ed C onti n .
ence m ust be en jo i ned d uri ng th e treatment The .
pe n is and scrotum have also been far adi zed wi th the

dry brush fo r i mpotence and sexual debi l i t y .
2 48
. D i seases of wo m e n — E lectri cal me t hods are
.
largely made use of in gyn ze c o logi ca l practi ce not o n ly ,
fo r the sake o f obtai n i ng the di rect efl ec t s ( st im ulatin g

'
seda t ive or troph ic ) o f electri c i ty but also fo r e lec tro l y,
si s an d the galvano cautery ( see C hapters X V

,
-
.
,
M uch atte n ti o n has been di rected to the subject o f t h e

electri cal treatm ent o f fibro myoma and an i mmense -
,
AA 2
356 us m c ar . E LE C T RI C I T Y .
a mount l i terat ure has been pro duced sin ce the in

of
t rodu c t ion of D r A postol i s m eth o d o f trea t i ng that

’
.
com pla i nt by electrolysi s o f the uteri n e m uco us m em

brane H i s meth o ds and results wi ll be fully dealt
.
wi th i n the next chapter .
2 49 I n p art u
. ri t i o n — I n a paper r ea d by D r Kilm
. .
*
before the O bstetri cal S oc i ety the use o f the faradic ,
current i s advocated duri ng parturi t i on H e found that .
uteri ne contract i ons co uld be exc i ted o r strengthened by

i t s ai d though not i n all cases
, S omet i mes the resulting .
contract i ons were very severe and prolonged i ndi cating ,
po ssi ble r i sk to the ch i ld The farad i sm seemed to .
d i m i n i sh the pai ns felt duri ng the labour A fter the .
bi rth of the ch i ld farad i c st i mulat i on ensured a firm

uteri ne contract i on and much di m i n i shed the risk of
,
post partum h mm o rrh age

-
S ome med i cal men speak
.
very h ighly o f i t s value i n ch i ldbi rth an d make a prac ,
t i ce o f carry i ng a small farad i c apparatus i n their

obstetr i c bag I t has also bee n o f great use in fl ood
.
i n g a fter m i scarr i age .
I t follows that great caut io n should be used before

apply i n g electri cal treat m e n t to the abdo m en or pelvic
orga n s o f a pregn a n t wo m a n C ases have bee n reported .
where a m i scarri age has bee n the result o f faradi sm or ,
o f the L eyde n jar shocks used by D r G ol di ng B ird . ,
although th i s result i s n o t a n i n vari able o n e + .
2 50 A m en o rrh m a
.
—E lectr i c i ty has bee n e m ployed
..
i n the treat m e n t o f th i s co n d i t i on s i n ce i t s fi rst i n tro

duct i on i n to m ed ic i n e m ore tha n a hu n dred years ago .
D r G ol di ng B i rd had a very h igh op i n io n o f the val u

. e of
shocks fro m the L eyde n j ar fo r cur i n g th i s sy m ptom .
B ri t i sh M edic al J ou rn al , A pri l , 18 8 4
"
.
f G o l di ng B i rd, “
E l ect ri c i t y
a n d M agn et ism , 18 49 , L ect . V»
an d A ppen di x B .
E L E C T RI C A L r as am s n r . 357
He says in elec t ri c i ty we po ssess t he only really d irect

emmenagogue wi th whi ch the experi ence o f our pro tes
sion has furni shed us . H i s m ethod was to transmi t
"
t hrough the pel vi s twelve shocks in successi on from a

L eyden jar capa ble of holdi n g about a pi nt measu re ,
the di scharge was d irected from the sa crum t o the

pubes by means of conductors F aradi sm appli ed t o .
the uterus has also been found efficac io us in pat i ents

wi th amenorrh o za from sluggi shness o f the uteri n e func
-
ti ons apart from chlorosi s When t his condi ti on i s

.
present gen eral t reat m ent i s suffici en t and local appli ,
ca t i o n s are not cal led for and i n deed are undes irabl e
,
.
I n healthy women in whom menstruati on i s regularly

performed galvani sm or farad ism will som eti mes hasten
the appearance of the flow espec i al l y when i t i s appl ied
,
t o the abdomen or pel vi c r egi on The electri c bath

.
may have the same e ffect .
I t i s best to s uspen d t reatment in women durin g the

men strual peri ods otherwi se t h e fl o w may be rendered
,
excess i ve and i n pregnancy i t i s better not to employ

,
el ectri ci ty at all fo r abdom inal or b l adder troubles .
A lthough el ectri cal t rea t m ent in the healthy may

produce or accelerate mens t ruat ion i t wi ll not always ,
do so when that functi on i s in abeyance The best .
resul ts i n th is condi ti on as in others are obta i ned by

local is ing the trea tm ent to the a ff ected part s by the di rect
appl i cat ion of the electrode to the cervi x uteri al t hough ,
in the unmarri ed i t i s usually suffici en t t o place on e

pole o n the peri neum and the other over t h e sa crum o r
the pubes wi th the same precaut i ons and in the same
manner as advi sed fo r i ncon ti nen ce of uri ne F aradiz a .
t ion i s the best m ethod ; an electrode i n the form o f a

bougi e i nsulated except at i t s ex trem i ty is to be em
A postoh h as advocat ed the u se of a bi pol ar
'
ployed .
358 M E D IC A L s r s c r s rc m .
elec trode fo r farad i sm o f the uterus but i t i s n o t 2 11 ,
so sa t is factory as the un i polar method the c ur ,
someti mes passes d irect ly across from pole to po l

t h e extrem i t y o f the double electrode wi thout difi u
'
i tself at all throu gh the t i s ues i n t h e ne ighbourh o od

2 5 1 8 n b tn v o l ufl on — D r G reml in quo ted by
. .
,
B igdam rec o mm ends the tr ea tm ent of t hi s con di t i m

,
faradi zati on of the uteru s Its appl i ca t ion t o t h e

.
l arged fl ac ci d and congested organ produces co n t

,
t i on o f the muscul ar fib res im proves the ton e of ,
whole uterus di mi n ishes the conges ti on and la d

, ,
di m inut i on in i t s s iz e The meth od m m s t o

.
Ft o . 32
.
—B ip l o ar el ect rodes.
rati onal and i s supported by A postol i i n a papa

,
a
lated and publ i shed i n t h e B ri t i sh M ed i cal J ourn

“
There after d iscuss ing T ripw i n ’
du c ti on o f faradi sm as a remedy for u t eri ne

,
s
advocates the use of a bi polar electr ode ( fig 8 2) .
t rod u ce d i nto the vagi na o r the uterin e cavi t y i n p
of the un i polar meth od ( utero sus pu bi c ) em pl yed

o
-
h i s predecessor The secondary coi l o f

.
On so m e ne w appl icat io n s o f t he faradic u

c rren t in
E LE C T RI C A L T R E A T M E NT .
359
c urren t of tension i s reco mmended on the gro und

,
"
that the current o f h igh tensi on is less pain ful than the
”
“
current of quant i ty from a short thi ck secondary
wi re We have al ready gi ven a reason for pre ferri ng
.
t h e uni polar method .
2 52 . Ut eri n e n eu ral gi a — The use o f faradi sm for .
th e relie f o f pai nf ul a ffect i ons o f the pelvi c organs i n

women has been already alluded to I t i s i m po rtant fo r .
thi s purpos e to make use o f farad i c currents o f rapi d

freq uen cy The slowly interrupted far ad ic current pro
.
v
duces much more pa i n ful sen sati ons than those of a

rapi dly ac t ing i nstrum ent but by su i tably choo sing the
,
rate of i nterrupt ion o f the current a soo t hin g or be ,
num bing e ffect can read ily be produced .
The anode o f the cont inuo us current may be appl i ed

over the regi o n of the ovari es fo r tenderness and pa i n
in that s i tuat i on .
2 53 T rea t m en t o f o an oe r I n the B ri ti sh M edi

“ -
. .
cal Jo urnal fo r 188 9 vol i pp 9 36 12 8 8 D r I ngl is

”
, . .
, .
, , .
P arsons has publ is hed an account o f A rrest o f growt h

in four cases o f cancer by a powerfu l i nterrupted volta i c
c urrent D r P arsons adva n ces a theory that i t may
.
be possi ble to destroy the vi t al ity o f cell s by powerful

galva n ic shocks and lays stress on the known fact t h at
,
mal i gnant growt hs are prone t o break down an d de

generate and may therefore be o f a lower vi tal ity th an
,
t h e ce ll s o f healthy t i ssues H e then recounts the cases

.
i n wh i ch he ha s tr i ed to k i ll the cancer c ells wi thout

destroy i n g the parts in wh ich they were s i tuated by ,
i ntroduc ing a number o f fi ne needles a ll round the

growth and pass ing through i t a galvani c current wi th
,
sudden i nterrupti o n s C o m menc ing wi th ten th e c urrent

.
,
is grad u ally ra ised as h igh as 600 m i ll iamp e res fl a shed

“
See al so M edical Press an d C ircu

l ar, ”
D ecember, 18 90 .
6 ED I CA L s n s c r m c x rv.
3
'
0 M
through the growt h in every di rect ion from 50 t o 100

t i mes . The effect s sa i d t o be produced are a
cessat ion o f growth gradual d i sappe aranc e o f pain
, ,
some shri nk i ng and harden i ng of the tumour an d eu

l arged glands followed by i mproved nutri t i on and
,
better state of the general health The growth as a .
whole does not d i sappear but rema i ns as an i nert mass, ,
composed i n all probab i li ty of fibro us t i ssue only ”

.
2 54 T h e h eal i n g o f c h ro n i c u
. l c e rs Thi s was .
the subject of a commun icat ion t o the M edi co C hit u x -
g i c al S oc i ety i n 18 48 by S i r Spencer then M r

( ) W dls . .
A si mple galvan i c element made up of a plate of si lver

an d one of z i nc connect ed together by a wi re an d
,
appl ied to an ulcer were found to promote c i catriza

,
t ion at the part in contact wi t h the si lver whi le that ,
part wh i ch touch ed the zi nc plate became worse It .
would perhaps be profit ab le to repeat the experim ent

, , ,
wh ile endeavouri ng to m i n i m i se the un favourable action

at the z i nc plate by largely in creasi ng it s surface and ,
plac i ng i t upon a sound part of the sk i n .
D a i ly farad i zat i on o f a n i n dolen t ulcer for ten m inutes

w i ll so m et i m es i m prove i t s cond i t i on and promote
healthy act ion * .
2 55 G u
. i n e a wo rm — I n the B r i t i sh M ed i cal jou
. r
n al vol an accou n t o f the re m oval of a

( 188 3 , .
gui nea worm wi th the aid o f galvan i s m was publ ished

by M7 A lex ander Faul kner
. .
O n e pole o f a battery was held i n the pat i ent s hand

’
,
and the other was appl i ed to the protrud i n g extremity

o f the wor m the appl i cat i o n was cont i nued fo r an hou
,
r
w i th ge n tle tract ion and at the end of that t ime the

,
whole had bee n extracted : the usual process of with

drawi ng the gu inea worm l i ttle by l i ttle by traction
B eard an d R ockwel l .
s uzcr n i c u . m am s m .
36 1
for a few m inutes dai ly i s a very tedi ous a ffa i r and ,
may take weeks to complete it even l f the worm i s not ,
broken i n the process M r F aul kner s explana t ion of

. .
’
the act i on o f the galvan i sm i s that the worm i s be

numbed and ren dered i ncapable of res i st ing .
2 56. E l ect ri c i t y as a t est o f deat h

“
The el ec .
t ri c al react ions o i muscle to farad ism have been pro

posed as a test o f dea t h The contracti li ty o f l i v i ng
.
m uscle persi sts fo r a few hours a fter dea th and th en ,
di sappears .
I f the muscles of a perso n supposed t o be dead cannot

be caused to contract by a strong faradi c current li fe ,
may be co ns i dered exti nct if they do contract i t i s

,
possi ble that he m ay be ali ve C ert ai nl y no perso n

.
should be bur i ed if hi s muscles are sti ll contract il e .
“
Ofl im s an d L egros have shown that there is a stage
i n the death o f a muscle at wh i ch i t gi ves the reacti on
o f degenera ti on that i s to say the faradi c i rri tabi li ty
, ,
di sappea rs first wh i le the res ponse to dir ect galvan i c

,
st i mul a ti on co nt inues gi vi ng ri se t o a daggish co n

,
tract i on Thi s cha n ge sets in about four hours a fter

.
death and they relate a case i n wh i ch the react i on

,
enabled them t o specify correctly the ti me at whi ch

death had occurr ed .
”
T rait é d E l cct rici t é M édic aie Paris 188 8
’
.
, ,
362 us n xcu . s n ac r m c m .
C H A PTE R XV .
E L E C T R O LY S I S .
T HE l aws o f el ect rol y si s . S eco n dary reac t i o n s . A ct io n in t h e i nt er

po l ar regi o n . M i grat io n of t he ion s . Osmo si s . A c t ion s in
liv in g u
t i ss es. urgery
U ses i n R em o val o f h ai rs s H airy . .
mo les W art s
. N aevu . s Po rt wi n e mark A n eu
. ry sm St rie . .
ture o f t he u ret h ra o f t h e ( e so ph agu s of t h e rec t u

, m of t he , ,
Eu st ach i an t ube S t en o sis o f t he cervix u

. t eri E l ect ro l ysis in .
fibro m yoma D r A po st o li s m et hods E x t ra u

’
-
. . t erin e foet at ion .
-
.
C an c er .
2 57 . E l e c t ro l y si s .
—The laws accordi ng to
wh i ch sub
stances are broken up by the passage o f the electric
curren t an d the ter m s used i n consi deri ng the port ion
,
of a c i rcu i t i n wh i ch e l ectrolysi s i s occurr i ng were

shortly gi ven i n 5 8 60 It i s necessary here-
to e x.
pa n d what was the n sa i d a l i ttle The hypothesis of .
G rotthu s was expl a i n ed i n 59 accord i ng to wh ich th e ,
m olecules are arra n ged ow i n g to the d i rect i ve act ion of

curre n t i n l in es between the a n ode an d kathode an d all ,
alo n g th i s l i ne a co n t i nual deco m pos i t i on and rec ombin

at io n t akes place wh i ch however is o n ly m an i fested at
, , ,
the poles under ordi n ary ci rcu m stances I t i s perhaps .
better to look o n an electrolyte with C l ausius as a body ,
whose m olecules are cont i n u a lly undergo i n g d i ssociation

and reco m b i n at io n even when no current i s passing
,
.
W hen however an electri c stress i s set up there is a

, , ,
d i rect i ve force brought to bear upon the molecules that

are in a free state an d a m igrat i on i s set up the electro
, ,
negat i ve i ons passi n g towards the anode t h e electro ,

s uzcr ao wsx s . 6
3 3
posi t i v e ones towards the kathode ; i f the elec t ri c stress

i s su ffici en t to overco m e the tendency o f th e di ssoci ated
mol ecules t o recombi ne decomposi ti on t akes place P ut
,
.
crudely accord ing to thi s view the least electromoti ve ,
force t hat w ill produce decomposi ti on in an el ectrolyte

i s a measure of t h e chemi cal affin it y of the i ons i n that
electrolyte
S ec on dary react i on n —
.
2 58
. I t i s but rarely t hat
f
the act ual products o f e lec t rol ys is are gi ven o ff at the

elec t rodes in general th ey react wi th a further po rti on
,
o f the electrolyte or o f the solvent or wi th the substance ,
o f the electrodes and t he products o f th i s second ary

,
rea ct ion ap pear Thus fo r exam ple i f a soluti on of

.
, ,
sod i um sulphate be sub m i tted t o electrolysi s between

plati num electrodes the i ons are sodi um and the radi cal
,
but t he former instantly deco m poses the water

presen t gi vi ng 0 8 an e qui val ent quanti ty o f hydrogen
, ,
whi le the latter breaks up i nto sulphur tri oxi de ,
wh i ch combi nes wi t h water t o form sulphuri c ac id and ,
oxygen wh i ch i s gi ven o ff The result i s that the l iq ui d

, .
about the anode becomes ac id wh ile that at the ,
ka thode i s al kali ne O f course if the whole i s allowed

.
,
to mi x the t wo neutrali se each other and the whole

, ,
effect of the electrolysis is that some water has been

deco m posed .
I f the electrodes consi st o f metals t hat are ca pable of

be ing act ed on by the ions acti on wil l take place thus ,
i f copper sul phate i s electrolysed between plat inum

electrodes the ka thode wi ll be found to be all oyed wi th
th e co pper whi ch wi ll penetra te a cons i derable depth
i nto the plati num ( C m ) The anodes wi ll be d i ssolved
.
if the an ion i s ca pable o f form i ng a salt wi th them thus ,
a pl ati n um anode is rap i dly di ssolved i f used t o electro

lyse a chl ori de .
364 . un mcu n uc rnt cm
.
'
.
t heee hav e been sho wn to v ary with th e den si t y of t he

u
c rren tused I n gen eral t he most electro n egati v e ion
.
-
of t he mi x t u
re makes i t s appearan ce first b u t i t has ,
been sh own ex perimen t all y by H M t hat all elect ro

lyt es presen t are con cern ed
—
.
2 59 A c t i on b et w
. een t h e pol u I f porou .s semi
p er m ea bl e par t i t i on s be pl aced bet ween t h e el ec t rodes.
el ect ro l ysi s wi ll go on j u st as before, bu t by t h e help of

u
s ch part iit is possi bl e t o u
ti on s se a series of el ect ro
lyt es an d t o ex ami n e t he reacti on s at the boun daries of
each A stron g proof is t hen giv en of t he ac cu

. racy of
t he l aws of el ect rol ysi s quot ed in 560 F credo! s c . u

ceeded b y t hi s met h od i n preci pi t at in g magn esi a from a
sol uti on of sul phat e of magn esi a H e cau . sed an el ectric
cu rren t t o pass t hrou g h a so l ut i on of t he s al t t o a n ele c
t rode im m ersed i n wat er an d at t h e bou

, n dary bet w een
t he t wo l i qu i ds t h ere was a preci pit at e of magn esia

when the c urrent pa ssed fro m t h e sal t sol ut ion t o the
water C onsi derat i ons of thi s sort m ay perha ps hel p to
.
expla i n the act i on o f a cont i nuous cu rrent on t h e t issu es
of the bo dy
—
.
2 60 M .i gr a t i o n o f t h e i o n l — o n n o el l I t i s
. fo u nd
when electrolysi s is tak i ng place in a solut ion t h at the
strength o f the solut i on round t h e el ec t rod e s varies
duri ng the course of the electroly si s For ex ample if .

,
a solut i on of cc pper s u lphate be elect roly sed t he solu

t i on round the kathode i s weakene d much fast er than
that round the anode and so there i s an efl ec t as if the
'
copper sulphate in soluti on had moved bodi l y t owards

t h e anode Th is effect differs for di fferen t salts and
.
,
al so a cc o rd i ng t o t h e strengt h o f t he so l u ti on u n der
goi ng electrolysi s A fai rly full accoun t of a t heory

.
a w cr ao wsx s . 6
3 5
wh ich h as lately been put forward t o expl a i n i t and

other e ffec ts will be fo und i n Ostwald s O utlines o f ’ “
G eneral C hem is t ry B ook i x C hapter i v It is clear

u
. .
, , ,
however that whatever the ca se the effect i s li kely

, ,
t o be o f some i m portance i n the electrolysi s o f l i vi ng

t i ss ues whi ch may be looked on as a mass of sem i
permeable cells fill ed wi th a so l uti on of several electro
lyt es S odi um chlori de fo r example is one o f these
.
, , ,
and i t behaves Si m ilarly to copper s ulphate electrolys i s ,
wi ll th erefore effect a transference of the sod i um chlo

ri de i n t he li ne of fl o w o f the curr ent towards the anode .
Th ere is another acti on that takes place d uri ng electro

lysi s wh ich results in a tra n sferen ce o f the electrolyte .
Th i s has already been referred to 153

) as electri c a l
osmosi s .In general if electrolysi s i s tak i ng place
,
across a porous part it ion there i s a transference o f the

,
elec t rolyte i n the di rect ion o f the c urrent v iz towards , .

,
the kathode Thi s i s most not iceable i n cases o f elec

.
t ro l y t es whose conducti vi ty i s poor .
26 1 E
. l l
ec t o y
r si s o f l i v i n g tin u es — T o sum up .
then we shoul d expect to fin d effect s produced by t he

,
elec t r i c current i n pass i ng through the body chi efl y at

the po in ts of contact v iz the electrodes These are
, .
, .
local e ffect s due to the chem i cal acti on o f the sub

stan c es set free by pri mary or secondary reacti ons in
t he el ectrolysi s P robably we may say that i n all cases
.
wi th whi ch the m edi cal m an i s concerned the local

effects are due to th e secondary producti on o f aci ds or
oxi dizi ng agen ts at the anode alkal i es or reduci ng ,
agents at the kathode These may be co m p li cated by

.
soluti on o f the a n ode i f i t i s m ade of a metal that forms

a soluble chl o ri de S maller e ffects may be looked fo r
.
thro ughout t he body due to chem ica l act ion between

di fferent el ectrol ytes separated by cell wa ll s or other
366 us n x cu . E L E C T RI C I T Y .
se m i permeable septa m i grat i on o f the i on s o r transfer

-
, ,
ence o f the electrolytes due to electri cal osmos i s It i s .
easi ly seen however that all these three e ffects wi ll be

, ,
small wi th such currents as are used i n treatment and ,
probably in fin i t esi m al .
In a co m mun i cat i on to the L ancet D ecember , ,

”
18 9 0 ,
on The E lectrolysi s o f A n i mal T i ssues D r ,
.
G N S tewart gi ves a su m mary o f h i s i nvest i gat i ons he

.
,
found that pract i cally the whole o f the conduction

thro ugh an i m al t i ssues i s electrolyt i c and that the elec ,
t ro l y t es are the i norgan i c const i tuents ; when a t i ssu e
i s electrolysed al m ost the whole current passes by t he

salts ; the cha n ges produced in the prote i ds ( coagulat ion ,
for m at i o n o f ac i d and alkal i albu m en ) m ust therefore

be brought about by secondary electrolyt i c act ions .
S tr i k in g cha n ges i n the d i stri but ion o f the salts were

produced cha n ges suffic ien t i f produced w i th i n the
, ,
body to m od i fy nutri t i o n profoundly The a n t i septic

,
.
act io n o f the curren t was stud ied i n the case o f ordi n ary
putre fact i ve orga n i s m s and i t was shown that i t is ,
c h i efl y i f n o t e n t i rely arou n d the a n ode that th i s action

, ,
takes pl ac e .
* in
B ri efl y st at ed the electrolys i s o f a n im al t i ssues a
, ,
doubl e d eco m posi t ion takes place The s a lts con tain ed .
i n the t i s sue s spl i t up the alkal i es are l i ber a ted at the

,
kathod e a n d the a c i ds at the a n ode

,
The alkaline .
m et a l s p o t assi um an d sod i u m fro m the i r great affin ity

, ,
fo r o x y ge n d eco m pose the water i n the n e i ghbourhood

,
o f t h e k a thode l i b er a t i n g t h e hydroge n
, wh i ch appears ,
as b ubbl es o f gas The cau st ic pot a sh or soda thus pro

.
duce d sa po n i fies the a n i m al t i ssues j ust as whe n ap pl ied

i n the ord i n ary wa y a n d produ c es a so ft del i quescen t
,
esch a r wh i ch i s sa i d to heal w i th less co n tract i on than

,
D r .W E St . . i B it M ed J o u al
ea ven so n No n 2 7 t h 1886
r . . rn ,
”
v. ,
.
3 13 01 3 0 131
3 15 . 6
3 7
an eschar produced by e i ther a wound a burn o r an , ,
ac i d and therefore i s t h e most sui table to obta i n when

, , ,
i t i s parti c ul arly necessary t hat the least poss i ble con

tracti on shall subsequentl y take place The aci ds .
from the salts conta in ed i n the an i m al t i ssues are

l i berated at the anode ; generally oxygen i s li berated ,
but the rea cti on whi ch takes place at the anode depends
very much upon i t s composi tion I f the el ectrode i s .
made o f z inc chlori de o f z i nc i s formed whi c h exerts

, ,
i t s own spec ifi c acti on on the ti ssues in add i t ion t o the ,
oxi di si ng effect o f the l iberated oxygen The eschar .
formed at the anode is hard and comparat i vely dry ; i t

i s m o re li m i ted and the destruct io n o f the t i ssues more
,
co m plete ; the part decomposed i s there fore thrown off , ,
as a dry scab an d very li ttle o r no suppurat io n takes

,
place The eschar produced by the kathode is di ffer

.
ent I n i t s case the causti c efl ec t s extend to a sl ightly

'
.
,
wi der area are more i ntense the closer to the electrode

, ,
an d the outer l i m i ts o f the a ffected area are n o t so

thoroughl y des t royed and someti mes when a t oo strong
,
c urrent has been used suppurat ion t akes place and , ,
more or less t i ssue sloughs away in ad di ti on to that ,
destroyed by the el ectrolysi s necessari ly lea vi ng rather ,
a more pr o mi nent scar than i s left when the anode alone

i s used For the destruct ion o f small growths on the
.
face or on parts wh ere i t i s an obj ect to lea ve as li ttle

,
mark as possi ble i t i s there fore safer to employ o n ly

, , ,
the anode The part requi red i s then qui te destroyed

.
,
shri vels up and becomes a scab and heali ng proceed s

, ,
beneath i t A t the separati on o f the scab the ski n i s

.
,
left only a l i ttle whi ter than the surroundi ng texture ,
an d t hi s di fie ren ce i n colo u r soon ceases to be noti ce

able I n a m ucous m embrane l ike the urethra where
.
,
i t i s i m possi ble for heali ng t o proceed ben ea t h a scab i t ,

368 uan rcar n ucr n rc rrv
. .
i s fou
n d t h at , wit h t he an ode a sore i s produced which
,
i r i e t o a t ou h
g re an d m ore con t ract il e ci c at ri x t h an
g ves s
when th e n egati v e pol e i s em ployed T here are . ot her
objec t i on s t o usi n g t h e an o d e in t he el ect rol ysis of st ric
tures .T he decomposi t i on which t akes place at the

an ode i s al so modified by t h e su bst an ce of whi ch it is
c orn posed T he el ect rode it self i s part l y di ssol v ed, an d
.
en t ers in t o th e ne w combin ati on of S ome of

el em en t s.
t h e met al wou ld, th erefore, become ox i di sed, an d remain

i n t he u ret hra, an d t he el ec t rode w ou l d b ecorne so glu ed
t o t h e t i ssu es t h at i t w ou ld n ot be rem oved wit hou t

viol en ce .I n t h e el ect rol y si s o f an e u r
y sm s, t h e o x i da :
t i on of t he met al formin g th e an odal el ect rode is. no

dou bt , an adv an t age, as, i n addit i on t o th e coagu l at ing
efl ect o f th e posi t i v e po l e, if a st eel n eedle be u sed,
'
t here wi ll al so be a form at ion of chl ori de of i ro n which

si bly assi st s t h e coagu l at i on A t t h e n e g a t i ve o
p ,le
p o s .
t he hy drogen or alkal ies li berat ed in i t s n ei gh bou rhood
h ave n o c orrosi ve effe ct u p o n m et a l s, so t h a t i f a n
el ec tro de be kept negati ve n o o x i d at i on will t ake place

, ,
and when i t i s wi thdrawn from the uret h ra i t wil l be as ,
bright as when i ntroduced .
The caust i c effect of an electrode connected wi th the

n egat i ve pole o f a battery has t he se advantages o ver the
use of the ordi na ry caust i c soda or po tash A s poin ted .
ou t by D r P oore i t can be appl i ed t o part s difi c u

.
, l t of
access as the male u
,
rethra or uteri ne cervi cal canal .
It can be appl i ed t o the se regi ons and other s such as ,
the larynx pharynx or nasal duct where t he applica

, , ,
t ion of other caust i cs i s attended wi th a cert ain amou nt
o f danger Its effects can be li m i ted t o the points

.
touched by the electrode The caust i c efl ect can be

'
a rrested o r not commenced unt i l the appli cator in

, , ,
the form of the electrode i s in situ an d t h e duration

, ,
s ns cr n o wsx s . 6
3 9
and extent of the caust ic acti on i s ent irely under the

con trol o f the wi l l of the Operator .
2 62 . Uses i n su rgery — E lectrolys i s i s used i n sur

.
gery as a m eans fo r produc i ng destructi on of ti ssue in a

si mple and minutely local ised manner Thi s is e ffected .
i nd i rectly by the act ion of the chem i cal bod i es li berated

at the poles duri ng the passage o f the current A s .
these bod ies are d ifferen t at the t wo poles so the act i ons ,
whi ch take place at the poles di ffer from one another t o

a ce rta i n extent The advan tages of bei ng able t o
.
local i se the e ffects so preci sely i s wel l seen i n th e Opera

ti on for the removal o f ha i rs fo r here the destruct i ve
,
effects are co n fin ed to such a m inute area i n the i m me

d i ate ne ighbourhood of th e hai r folli cle that n o per
c e pti bl e scar i s produced altho u gh t h e ha i r folli cle i s
eradi cated E lec t rolysi s has been used for the foll ow
.
i n g pur poses The removal o f superfl uous h ai rs ,
of moles and o f warts D estruct i on o f n e vi

.
,
and removal o f port wi ne marks C oagulat i on o f

.
blood i n ane urys m s D estruct ion o f stri ct u

. res i n
the uret h ra lachrymal canals ( e sophagus rectum and
, , , ,
E ustachi an tube D estructi on o f the foetus in extra

.
u t cune ges t at ion

'
D estructi on o f cancerous growths ;

.
and ( 7) fo r the reli ef o f sy m ptoms in fib ro myoma o f the -
uterus Th i s last i s brought about as a secondary pro

.
cess whi ch has been found to follow electrolyt ic destru o

t i on o f th e ute ri ne mucous m embrane .
2 63 T h e re m o v al o f h ai rl —I f a fin e needle co n
. .
n ec t ed to th e n egati ve pole o f a battery o f four or fiv e
cells be i ntroduced by the s i de o f a ha ir and the ci rcu i t

be then closed electrolysi s takes place round t he needle
, ,
and the ha i r foll i cle i s des t royed by the alkali produced

the hair can then be removed easi ly and does not grow
agai n .
370 un m c ar . E L E C T R IC IT Y .
T h e meth od of o pera ti ng as is foll ows

T h e pati en t -
sh ou ld rec l in e in a good li ght H avin g pl aced t he in .
di fferen t el ect rode ( an ode) in con t act wi t h a co n ven i en t

f h p i b d h k h d i c h d
’
p a rt o t e at en t s o y t e a,t o e s a tt a e t o a
fin e n eedl e set in a h an dl e t h e cu rrent coll ec t or i s t u

, rn ed
on t o t ak e u p a b o u t fi v e c e lls i nto c i r c u i t t h e o p e r,
a t or
t h en pin ch es u p t h e sk i n r o und t h e h a i r w i t h h i s l eft

fin ger an d th u mb an d in t roduces th e n eedle as cl osely
as po ssi bl e t o t he roo t o f t h e ha i r h o l di n g i t in the ,
proper direc t i on for i t t o enter t he folli cl e t h e n eedl e ,
p a sses do w n r e a d i l y t o t h e r e q u i re d d i sta n c e a b o u t ,
a ten th o f an in ch a cu , rren t of abou t h y e milliam

d i h fi i h
‘
p é res pass es a n , s l g t e er v es cen ce s see n a t t e
o ri fice o f the fo ll i cle a n d at t h e end of t en seco n ds or so

,
t h e nee dle i s wi thdra wn A s a ru

. le t h e h air c an then
be easi ly li fted o u t by a fin e forceps ; i f i t sti ll rem ains
firm the needle must be i n t roduced a seco nd t i m e u
, n til
i t i s loosened the c urrent sho uld be just stro ng en ou g h

t o produce sl ight froth i ng The best way t o learn how
.
t o perform the man oeuvre i s by a few prel i m i nary ex

i m t on onesel f There i a certa i n amount of
p e r e n s . s
pa i n but i t i s wi th i n the l i m i t that can be borne wi thou

, t
fl i n c h i n g and an an ae sthet i c i s not necessary
, C ocaine .
may be appl ied to d i m i n i sh the pai n e i ther by ut il ising ,
the process of electri cal osm osi s 153 or by smearing

)
on the sk i n a small qua n t i ty of the followi ng o i ntment :
R C oca i ne h y d r o c h l o ra t .
5 i .
M enthol
C hloral hydrat .
L anol i ne
M . ft . un g .
Th i s prescri pt i on i s recommended i n D r H ay es very .

’
useful l i ttle book * S omet i m es the ha i r i s grasped by

.
”
E l ect ricit y i n F acial B l em ish es P S H ay es M D
“
C hicago , . .
, ,
s n s c r ao wsrs .
37 1
an epilati on forceps held i n the le ft hand wh i le the

needle electrode is bei ng i ntroduced and the electrol ysi s
,
is allowed to go on unti l the ha i r comes out but on the ,
whole the method first described i s perhaps the best .
D r H ay es who has given con

.
si derab l e attent ion t o the process
o f ep i lati on prefers t o u se a very
fin e needle wh i ch i s blunted o r
ev en s lightly bulbous at the point ,
becau se such a needle i s less

li kely to penetrate t oo deeply and
so pass away h o m the ha i r fo l
li ele . There i s no object i n usi ng
a plat inum or i ri d ium needle .
S teel an sw s every purpose and ,
i s stronger . The current may be

cl osed after t he nee dle has been
placed i n positi on by means o f a
key on i t s handl e ( fig . l ess
pa i n i s felt when th i s is done .
A go od deal o f practi ce i s re
qui red to perform th i s l i ttl e Opera
ti on ski lfull y no force must be
,
use d in removi ng a ha ir i t force

,
i s used the ha i r wi ll come o u t

before the foll i cle i s destroyed ,
l e avi ng i t s root behi nd and a,
new ha i r wi ll grow up from i t .
When many h ai rs are to be re

moved they shoul d be done at
success i ve si tt i ngs L ad i es as a p m
.
l m t e e o,
amm
,
rule become res tl ess from the p ai n ”

o f the Opera t i on a fter ten or twelve ha i rs have been
taken o ut and cann ot then keep q ui te sti ll A ti n y

, .
8 8 2
372 un n xcu awc n ucrn.
'
.
esch ar wit h a sm all z on e of redn ess is l eft u

ro n d t he
folli cl e Sev eral h ai rs i n close prox i mi ty shou
. l d n ot be
att acked at t h e sam e si t t i n g, for fear l est t h e n u t ri tion
of t he ski n shou l d be so mu ch i n t erfered wit h as t o l ead
to a sm all ul cer
quen t scar but t h e h airs
an d con se ,
sh ou l d be remov ed sporadi call y u

. n t il at t he l ast si t t ing
,
t he few rem ai n i n g on es can be gl ean ed off an d t h e place

l eft sm oo th an d bare I f th e pat ch of h airs i s sm all the
.
si t t i n gsmu st be less frequen t ; when th ere i s pl en ty of

room t o att ack a fresh part each t i me th e si t t in gs may
be repeat e d dail y , care bei n g al ways t aken n ot t o in ju re
t h e skin at an y on e poin t t oo mu ch .
I t i s as wel l t o caut i on pat i en t s t hat t h ere wil l be a

sma ll percen t age of ret urn in g h airs , but t h at t hese
can be d eal t wi t h a secon d t i m e if an y sh o uld so
ret u
—T h
rn .
2 64 . T ri c h i asi s. e rem ov al of eyel ash es for

t ri ch i asi s i s m ost perfec tl y accom pl i sh ed by el ect ro
lysi s an d thi s i s by far t h e be st met ho d
, of t rea t m ent
for th i s c ond i ti on We h ave seen m o st re m arkable

.
i mproveme n t produced i n th i s way The pat i ent was .
a man o f m i ddle age A t the com m encement of the

.
treat m en t both h i s corn e a were hazy from the presen ce

o f pa n n us as a result o f the co n t i n ued i rri tat i o n by the
turn ed i n eyelashes ; the removal of the eyelashes was

persevered wi th unt i l every one had been removed ;
by that t i m e the corne as had recovered perfect tran s
pa t en cy The pat i en t was most enthusi ast i c at the
.
great i m provem en t especi ally as epi lat ion wi th forceps

,
had previ ously been tri ed wi thout b en efit .
2 65 H ai y
. r m o l el — The best treatmen t for hairy
.
moles i s epi lat i on ; when the ha i rs have been removed

very l i ttle wi ll be seen of the mole but i f it shou ld ,
be pi gmented t h e electro de s suggested b y M r R W

, . . .
s ne cr no wsxs .
37 3
P arker and figured b y D r S taavcn m he used t o .

,
* ca n
produce superfici al dest ructi on o f i t s surface Th ese .
el ectrodes ( fig 8 4) consi st o f fl a tt en ed metal plates

.
~
co vered wi th plati num foi l of vari ous shapes and s izes , ,
and wi th handles they are attached to the negati ve

,
pole of the batt ery and hel d to the m oi stened surface

o f the mole whi lst a c urrent of fift y or s i xty m i ll i
,
amperes is passed through them ; el ectrolys is i s set up ,
and a sli ppery and al ka line materi al i s produced an d ,
the s urface i s gradually des t royed The plates are .
i nc li ned to sli p d uri ng the operati on thi s must be ,
guarded agai nst o r sound sk in may be des t royed as

,
Fm . 84
.
-
Place el ect rodes .
we ll as th e mole C hloro form must be gi ven as the

.
process is very pai n ful I f epilati on h as not first been

.
carri ed out thi s process may be continued unti l t h e ski n

,
is destroyed down t o the depth o f the roots o f the ha i rs ,
whi ch can th en be wi ped away but a sca r follo ws t hi s ,
operat ion and may be a l most as di sfigurin g a blem i sh

,
as t h e mole had been There fore ep ilati on should first

.
,
be performed and then the plates may be ca utiously

,
used if necessary for someti mes a sli ght superfici al

,
trea tment wi ll remove pigmen tati on wi thout destroyi ng

the whole depth o f the cut i cle C om pare the m ethod o f .
S k avn m . E l ec t ro lysis in S u
rgery .
"
C hu
rchi ll , 189 0 .
re m ovi ng freckles by the appl i cat i on of weak mercuric

chlori de so lut ion ° .
W arts m ay be destroyed by electrolysi s i f th i s m ethod

i s wi shed for other surgi cal m easures h owever are as
, , ,
good as or better than electri cal treatme n t fo r th i s par

t i cu l ar purpose .
2 66 N mv u —E lectrolysi s i s a very conven i ent way

. .
o f destroy i ng n a e v i an d i n so m e respects i t i s superi or

,
t o all the other m ethods but to secure first rate results , , ,
a certa i n a m ount o f pract i ce i s necessary The chief .
art i n treat i n g a n mv u s l i es i n the care ful regulat ion of
the curre n t used It i s easy to electrolyse a n aevus in

.
such a way as to destroy i t an d cause i t t o slough away

co m pletely but th i s leaves a scar an d the res ults are no
, ,
better tha n can be obta in ed by l igature or caustics .
The object to be a i med at i n the electrolys i s of n aevi

i s to c arry the destruct i ve act ion just so far as to coagu
late the blood an d break up the blood vessels withou t -
produc i n g a gen eral necrosi s an d slough i n g of the whole .
W he n the n ze v us i s en t i rely subcut an eous i t i s most ,
i m po rt a n t to s a ve the sk i n fo r the n the n aevus i s de ,
stroy ed w i th o ut a n y s c a r e x c ept at the m i n ute points

where the n e e dl es w ere i n t roduced W he n the n aevoid .
t i ssue i s qu i te superfic i a l an d in volves the actual t hick

n ess o f the sk i n i t i s ext rem ely di ffi c ul t to dest roy it
,
w i thout slough i n g The d i re c t i on i n wh i ch m ore in

.
v est i a t i o n i s n ec ess a ry i s towards lear n i n g wh at cu r

g
re n t or r a ther what de n s i ty o f current m ay be used
wi thout p ro duc in g too co m plete destruct i on o f the parts
arou n d the n eedles .
The u su a l pl an of treat m e n t i s as fo l l o ws z— N eedl es

att a c hed to the poles o f a battery are i n troduced i n to the
‘t H b a on
e r D i seases of t h e S k i N ew S y de h am Society
n , n ,
vo l . lx i .
s L sc o wsrs .
375
n ae vus one of Gmfi s galvanometers ( fig 64) i s i ncluded

,
’
.
in the ci rcui t the current i s then very gradually ra i sed

,
fro m zero up t o 40 60 or 100 mi l l i amp e res

, C are must .
be taken that the needl es o f oppos ite poles do not touch

one another I f they re m a i n i n contact all the t im e the
.
,
current s imply runs to waste t hrough the metalli c c i rcui t

8 0 produced and the n a
, e vu s ti ssue i s unaffected if they
come i nto momen tary contacts t h e pati ent recei ves a ,
shock each t ime they touch and separate For ch ildren .
who are under an a n aestheti c these sh ocks are very ,
undes i rable and wi th the currents used they may pro

,
duce symptoms of collap se espec i a lly if the n aev us be

,
on the hea d or face S oon a ft er t he com m enceme n t of

.
the operat ion the t i ssues round the needl es begi n to

cha n ge colour ; round the posi t i ve needles there i s hard
en in g and pallor and round the negat i ve needles froth
,
in g i s produced wi th the evoluti on of hy drogen gas .
Wh en plati num needles are employed gas i s also gi ven ,
o ff at the pos i t i ve pole one volume o f oxygen bei n g

,
li berated there for two volu m es o f hydrogen at t h e other

pole The posi ti ve needl es become firm l y adherent to
.
the t i ssue i n which they are i mbedded the n egat i ve ,
needles become very loose and are apt to sli p out but ,
they must not be allo wed to do so for the current must ,
not be suddenly i nterrupted fo r reasons al ready m en

t io n ed. S oon the t i ss u
es i mmedia tel y round the needles
become l i vi d or blackened th i s change shows itself first
,
at the negati ve pole and the ir pos it ion must then be

,
changed by taki ng the m out and t e i n sert ing them o n e -
at a ti me i n other parts of the n aevus un ti l the whole ,
of i t has been treated .
A n erythematous blush develops round the n a vus

duri ng the process o f electrolysi s Ten mi nutes is a .
sui t able length of ti me but th i s should be vari ed wi t h

,
37 6 ME DIC A L n w c r mc rrv .
the si ze of the n aevu s I f the n e vus i s very extensive

.
i t must be dealt wi th i n deta i l part be i n g attacked at

,
each si tt in g unt i l the whole has been destroyed .
The needles are to be carefully wi thdrawn a ft er t he

current has been very gradually l o wered t o zero they ,
must on no account be plucked out wh i le the current is

st i ll run n in g . The negat i ve needles are easi ly with
drawn but the posi t i ve may be adherent an d should be
,
twi sted out ge n tly A l i ttle bleedi ng may follow from

.
o n e or two o f the punctures but i t i s rarely o f any im

,
portance . I t h as bee n recommended t o re i ntrodu ce -
any needle wh i ch has le ft a bleedi ng poi nt an d pass ,
along it a reversed current for a few mo m ents a fter the

others have all been removed ( except one o f the opposite
pole for co m plet i ng the ci rcui t ) H owever a l i ttle piece
.
,
o f absorbent wool and a turn or two o f bandage usu ally
su ffic e to stop an y bleed i ng The a fter treat ment is

.
-
s i m ple The part may be le ft to for m a dry scab or a

.
,
i i m
l ttle borac c o nt ent can be appl i ed to t fo r t
i i h e fi r st
few days . A fter that if an y suppurat io n or local slou g h

i n g should develop an occas i o n al poult i ce at night
, ,
m
w th so e borac c o t en t by day wi ll be a su t l
i i i n m i ab ,
e
treatme n t M any o f the s m aller n ze v i dry up and need

.
no appl i cat io n at all I t i s almost i m poss i ble to avoid

.
destruct ion o f the sk i n an d scarri n g when the n a vus iS

cutaneous but the scars produced are
, m uch s m all er
than m ight be expected a n d are perhaps less exten sive

,
tha n a fter other surg i cal m ethods of treat m ent Some .
t i m es the pos i t i ve n eedles o n ly are i n troduced i nto the

’
n aevus the c ircu i t be in g co m pleted through the pat ient s
,
body by usi n g a large pad fo r an i ndifferent electrode .
In th i s case the resi sta n ce i s m uch h igher and therefore ,
a larger n u m ber o f cells i s requ i red There i s a greater .
r i sk of shock or fa i ntness espec i ally w i th n aevi of the

,
s ns cr ao nv s x s .
377
h ead and fa ce but wi th care the operat ion can be car

,
ri ed out succes sfully The adva n tages o f th i s m ethod are

.
that the po s i ti ve needles produce less severe destruct ion ,
an d so th ere i s less chance o f a slough be i ng formed .
t here is n o ri sk of short c i rcui ti ng and sh ocks from

contacts of needles of opposi te pole i n the n aevus i tsel f .
M oreover the densi ty o f the current i s more un ifor m and

, ,
t herefore the dest ruct i ve proce ss i s also more un iform .
P10 85
. —
. El ect rol ysis of n e v us . Pro per posit ion o f n eed l es.
Fxo 86
. .
— E lect ro lysi s of n a me . Impro per po si ti on o f n eedles.
The ra te o f destruct i on depends upon the den si ty

68 137) o f current at any part if n eedl es o f both
, ,
p o les are i ntroduced i rregularly i t i s very l i kel y that ,
t he current m ay be concentrated round the po ints where

they are nearest together and be very feeble in the ,
more remote parts The di agrams ( fig 8 5 and 8 6) t e

. .
present the condi ti ons under t wo d ifferent arran gemwt s

37 8 us n rc u . s t ac m c m .
of needles in the first t h e needl es are pl aced in such a

,
way as to be equi di stan t an d the den si ty of current is ,
th ere fore uniformly di ffused I n th e secon d they are .

,
al l very near to geth er at t h e po i n t s and there t h e current

i s o f far greater densi ty than at the peri phery o f the
n ae vu s t h e c fiec t o f such an arrange m ent wo u
'
, ld be to
produce a slough at the centre wh i le t h e peri ph ery ,
would n o t be destroyed at all In order t o si mplify .
t h e i ntroduct i on o f the needles in a proper mann er the .
wri ter h as devi sed an instrumen t ( fig 8 7) consi sti ng of

" .
Pro . 87 .
—B lp l o ar fiork el ectro de .
a handl e to carry the needles two three , , ,
can be screwed in to i t and ,
be alternately pos i ti ve an d
the two figures) B y thi s .
at eq ual d i stances from 0

operat i on and they cannot touch
,
they can be mov ed about si multa n

n aevus so as to bring t he whole of i t
the current .
It i s di ffic ul t t o fo rmul ate a rule

current to be used but i t is the d ,
i s the i mportant po int more so than th e ,
Dr . L ewi s y on “ , Brit . M ed . J ourn al ,

"
Feb . so t h,
itn proved in strumen t for the el ect roy lsis of n

‘
wv i .
E L E C T RO LY S I S .
37 9
of m i lli amperes employed I n the treat m ent o f uteri ne

.
fib roi ds by electrolysi s the curre n t at both poles i s the

same but at the ch i na clay abdo m inal electrode the
,
den si ty o f current per un i t o f surface i s small by reaso n ,
o f i t s exte n ded area and n o electrolyt i c e ffects are pro

,
du ced there wh i le the i ntra ut eri ne electrode i s of much

,
-
smaller sur face and the dens ity o f current i s propor

,
t i o n at el y greater and very dec i d ed electrolyt ic e ffec t s

,
are produced at i t s s urface F or the prese n t we m ight

.
say that the current dens ity shoul d not exceed th i rty
m i ll i a m p e res per inch of pos i ti ve needle if i t i s desi red
to avo i d sl ough i ng in a n zevus Thus wi th four n ee dles
.
,
introduced fo r a d i stance o f one in ch two be in g pos i t ive , ,
a current of s i xty m ill i a m p e res would be sufli c ien t ; and

wi t h twi ce the number i ntroduced fo r half that d i stance
the sa m e current wo uld yi eld the same e ffects .
T he appa rat u
s re —
wq i d O rdi nary L eclanché cells w i l l
u .
do very well fo r the electrolysi s of n sev i and the H cllcsm ,
dry cel l also answers a dm i rably W hen cases are to be .
treated at the i r o wn ho m es small cel ls m ay be used for

,
the sake o f the ir portabi l i ty but the current required ,
wi ll naturally tend to exhaust small cell s rather fast so ,
when possi ble i t i s better t o use larger ones The di al .
collector mus t work very smoothly the galva n o m eter ,
13 1) must read up to 100 m i ll i amp e res or m ore .
S tolmer s battery or any other battery m ay take the place

’
of the L eclanché or H el lesen c ell but they are not nearly ,
so conveni ent . Twenty cells are amply suffic ien t .
The usual arrangem ent o f wi res i s shown i n the

figu res i t cons i sts o f t wo parts 1 a m a i n lead fig 8 8 )
, ( ) ( ,
.
from the pole o f t h e battery ter m i nati ng i n a b i nd ing

screw and ( 2 ) several se co n dary leads or bra n ches each
,
ca rryi n g a needle and all attached to the b i nd i ng screw

,
of the m ai n lead The n eedles should be o f plati n um

.
,
380 us m car . ans cr m c rrv .
an d i nsulated except the ends i n

at , me the metal
so
must be bare for a di stance of half an i nch,and in
F10 . 88 .
—A t t ach men t o f n eedl es .
others fo r an i n ch to su i t the d i ffere n t si zes o f n e vus

,
.
The whole o f the bare part o f the n eedle must be buried

s wcr ao wsx s .
38 1
in the n e vus i n order that an i nsulated part m ay be i n

,
contact wi th the ski n th i s di m i n i shes the size o f the

,
marks whi ch wi ll be left at th e po i nts o f entry and i t ,
i s for th i s reaso n that needles are requi red wi th bare

po i nts of varyi ng length W hen needl es of one pole onl y
.
are used the other (in difieren t ) el ectrode must be a pad

'
of large s i ze t o d i m i n i sh as much as po ss i ble the densi ty

,
of c u rr ent at i t s surfa ce of co n tact and also t o di nfi mfsh ,
the resi stance .
C are m u st be t aken to prevent the needl es h om '
touch ing the pat ient s ski n by acc i dent or they wi ll

’
dest roy i t at the poi nt of contact .
The needles are attach ed to the ends of the wi res i n

vari ous ways .S olderi ng i s much the best though ,
the clamp ( fig 8 9 ) i s conven ient

. Un ions e ffec ted by .
Pro . 89 .
- C lamp n eedl e holder
.
twi s t i ng the wi re round the needl e are bad for they may ,
break adrift at a cri t ic al momen t and gi ve ri se to shock .
Wi th 100 m i lli am peres such shocks are dangerous to ,
in fan t s under chloroform .
A n an ae stheti c need n ot always be gi ven wi th older

pati ents but it is far better and more conven ient that i t
,
should be uwd the pa i n i s severe d uri ng the pa ssage of

,
the current but does n ot see m to pers i st a fter the oper

,
a ti on i s over .
267. P o rt wi n e m ark — Th i s form o f n e vus can be.
att acked by a process si m i lar t o that used in epi lat i on ,

38 2 m sm c ar . s n s cr m c rrv.
s everal needles may be used at once ei ther separate or ,
fi x ed i n prongs i n a handle the result t o be a i med at is ,
a sort o f t at ooi n g of the sur face t o pr o duce m i nute ,
poi n ts o f destruct ions w ithout c on fl uen c e o f the result

i n g m i nute sores F i ve m i ll i a m p e res per needle point
.
i s a suffi c i en t current for good results The positive .
pole i s best but both may be used The cocai ne oint

, .
me n t m en t ioned above 2 63) w i ll usually su ffi ce to

obvi ate the necessi ty fo r a general an ae sthet i c T he .
area a ffected m ust be treated i n a sporad i c manner as

advi sed fo r the removal o f superfl uo us ha i r The resu lt .
i s a d i st i n ct i m prove m ent i n the aspect o f the surface .
2 68 A n eu
. ry sm s E lectrolysi s has been tri ed for
.
the cure o f aneurys m s part i cularly for those wh i ch are

,
not su i table for treat m e n t by li gature or co m pression .
I n m a n y o f the cases recorded som e temporary i ncrease ,
o f hard n ess h as followed the operat i on but the cures are ,
but few an d the punctures made i n the sac walls have

,
som et i m es led to h aem orrhage The p ierci ng of the wall .
o f the an eurysm by the n eedles w i th the co n sequ ent ,
ri sk o f bl eed in g i s the ch i ef defect o f the operat ion ; it

may b e l e ss en ed by the use o f n eedles i n sulated e x cept
n e a r th e i r po i nt so as to l i m i t the electrolyt i c process to
,
the i n t erio r o f the aneurys m and to prevent an y action ,
up o n i t s wall .
The m ethod wh i ch i s ge n erally pre ferred i s to in tro

duce b o th pos it i ve an d n ega t i ve needles i n to the tu mour;
the n e edl es attached to the pos i t i ve pole beco m e corroded
i f th ey a re m ade o f steel but th i s i s not an object ion , ,
fo r co a gul a t i o n i s pro m oted by the salts of i ro n so pro

duc ed . has collected 2 3 cases o f these six , ,
recovered s i x teen d i ed an d o n e case d i sappe ared from

, ,
T tm reat o f T h o racic A euy sm s by E l ect o u ct ue

en n r r
p r n
-
,
M il an , 18 7 0 .
s L s c r ao wsrs . 8
3 3
observat ion S ome of those reported as cured had

.
relapses a few months later S ee also “

B ri t M ed . . .
Journal 18 9 0 vol i p 12 7 6 fo r a report of success ful

, , . .
, .
,
res ult a fter t hi rteen si tt i n gs in a case o f aorti c aneurysm .
A s far as can be made out from the de t a i ls furn i shed ,
the electrolys i s o f aneurysm req ui res large currents and

long si tt ings Twenty th i rty or forty cells have been
.
,
used and the appl i cati on cont i nued for hal f an hour or
,
- -
more A ssum ing the i nternal res i stance to have been

.
100 ohms i t m a have been much lower and putt ng

( y ) i ,
the electromoti ve force o f the cell s used at one volt

a p iece then twenty cells would gi ve a current o f about
,
2 00 m i l l i a m p e res and forty would gi ve tw ice as m uch

, .
Th i s current i f conti nued fo r half an hour would be - -

,
su ffici en t to set free a con si derable amount o f electrolyt i c

gases and in so m e o f the cases we read that the tum ours
,
beca m e resonant to percuss ion a fter the operat i on The .
free ac i ds and alkal ies produced by the electrolyt i c

separat ion of the neutral salts o f the blood would pro
bably soon recomb i ne i n the i r passage along the blood
strea m The clott i ng produced i n the aneurysm is soft
.
and di fli uen t .
2 69 S t ri c t u
. re o f t h e u ret h ra M odern wri ter s .
o n th i s subject refer t o C m ssd 18 39 as the fi rst to use , ,
electrolysi s fo r the cure o f th i s cond i ti on and to M all s: ,
“
and T rip ier as the first to pract i se i t systemat icall y A
’
.
good deal h as been made of the d ifference between elec

t ro l ysi s o f a stri cture an d des tru cti on of i t by the caust ic
,
a lkali set free electrolyt icall y at i t s surface as though ,
th e former process were so m eth in g essent i all y difl eren t

'
and less inj uri ous than the latter It has also been .
cla i med that the s t ri cture can be cured wi thout any

D e la gu e ri so n duabl e d ré tré c is semen t s de l u ret hre par la
'
r es
gal v an o -
ca st i u q ue ch imiq ue ,
"
Pari s, 186 7 .
8
destructi ve act i on upon the mucou s membr an e which

covers i t W e are di sposed to th i nk that the y ieldin g
.
o f a str i cture duri ng electrolys i s i s always due to i t s
actual corrosi on by the a l kali l i berated at the negat i ve

pole and that the mucous membrane because i t i s
, ,
nearest to the electrode m ust be the first part to peri sh

,
.
H owever those wh o have devoted cons i derable atten

,
t i on to th i s m atter are i n cl i ned to bel i eve that t he

,
epi theli u m i s not destroyed although the fi bro us t i ssue

,
beneath i t i s re m oved M7 B ruce C lark i n a paper on .
the subject says

"
W here I have had an opportunity
o f treat i ng an o ri fic e str i cture i t i s clearly demonstrat ed
that wi th such currents as one usually em ploys no solu ,
t i on of epi thel i al conti nui ty takes place a n d again ,
That absorpt i on does take place can be wi tnessed

when a str icture at or w i th i n half an i nch o f the urethral
o ri fic e i s sub m i tted to treat m ent I n these ca ses the .
surface of the ep i thel i u m i s seen to be gradually con

verted i nto a glut i nous saponaceous look in g material - .
I f th i s be w i ped care fully away the sur face i s seen to ,
be red an d so m ewhat con gested i n appeara n ce but it is ,
per fectly ev i d en t that the ep i thel i u m i s n o t ent irely

re m oved wi th such curre n ts as I am i n the habit of
”
e m ployi n g .
I n a paper read at the A n n ual M eet i n g o f the B rit ish

M ed i cal A sso c i at i on i n 18 8 6 by D r W E
, S teavmson
, . . .
,
the followin g accou n t o f electrolysi s o f stri ct ure occurs :

N o doubt th i s procedure w i ll b eco m e o n e o f the recog
n i sed m od e s o f treat m e n t o f str i cture i n th i s country as ,
i t has bee n fo r m a n y years o n the cont i n ent and in

A m er i ca . S i n ce our paper was read the plan we ad y o
c at ed has bee n adopted by several surgeons i n L ondon
T he T reat m en t of S t rict ure of t he U ret hra by E l ect rolysis,
”
T h e Pract it io n er, 18 8 6.
s ns c r ao wsrs . 8
3 5
and i n di fferent parts of the country Favourable co r .
roborati on o f o ur resul t s has co m e from S t Peter s .

’
Hos p i t al for S tone from D ubl in and from pri vate

, ,
s ources . It may n ot be dest i ned to become the most

usual m ode o f treatment although the most etiect uah b e
,
cause o f the elabor ate apparatus requi red th e numerous ,
detail s connected wi th i t s appli cati on and th e great care ,
and pa t ience requi red for i t s success ful employment .
For the trea t ment o f stri cture o f the urethra the ,
electrodes we h ave used are catheter shaped gum elast ic - -
bougi es endi ng i n a metal n i ckel plated p iece wh ich is

,
-
connected by a copper wire wh ich traverses the whole ,
length o f t he bougi e wi th a bi ndi ng screw o n t h e

,
handle . The bougies were m ade by M essrs M aw S on .

,
and T hofnpson .I n the electrolys i s o f stri c t ures i t does ,
not ma t ter o f what metal the un i nsulated part o f the

bougi e is made as the electrode duri ng t he passage o f
,
the current i s kept n egat i ve and th erefore the me t al is

,
n o t a ffect ed and the bougi e i s wi thdrawn as bri ght as

,
when i ntroduced In one or two o f our earl ier cases so

.
,
l i tt le sensatio n was prod uc ed in the pati ent d uri ng the

pa ssage of the current that i t was difi c ul t to bel i eve i n
, ,
t h e absence of a galvanometer that any decomposi ti on ,
was taki ng place at all The current was there fore

.
once o r twi ce reversed wi th th e commutator fo r a second

or two , wi th the result o f i m m ed i atel y ox i di si ng the
n ickel plati ng on our electrode whi ch wi ll be seen in ,
so me o f the i nstruments I have brought wi th me The .
shock of m aki ng and breaki ng the cu rrent soon sati sfied

us and the pati ent t hat some uncommon force was
pr esent in h is urethra The other elec t rode i n the
.
shape o f a fl a t plate o f tin covered w ith a m adou t o

reta in mo isture i s pl aced upon the pat i ent s back if he
,
'
is i n a recumbent pos i ti on or i t may be pla ced on any

,
cc
386 us m c ar . s L s c r n x c xr v.
other i ndifferent part of the body such as the i nside of ,
the th i gh The m etal plate i s made posi t i ve

. .
A n ord i nary boug ie i s first passed down t o the stri o

ture and by i t s m eans the d i stance o f the stri cture from
,
the meatus i s ascerta i ned and a mark made on t he ,
bougi e It i s then found out what sized bougie will

.
pass the stri cture S ay fo r i nstance i t i s ascerta ined

.
, ,
that a N o 3 boug ie ( E ngl i sh ) wi ll pass ; a N o 5 el ec

. .
trode i s then taken and passed down t o the stricture ,
where i t i s arrested It can be m ade certa i n that the

.
electrode i s arrested at the stri cture by previ ously mark

i n g i t a fter m easure m ent and co m par i son w i th the
,
bougi e first passed W hen the electrode i s i n position

.
aga i n st the stri cture i t i s connected wi th the negative

,
pole o f the battery an d the curren t closed and then

,
gradually i n creased wi thout breaks unt i l the m ax imum

stre n gth o f current i s reached that i t i s i ntended to
e m ploy na m ely abo ut fiv e or si x m i ll i a m p eres T he
, , .
electrode i s kept ge n tly pressed aga i n st the str icture in

the d i r ect io n o f the ord i n ary course o f the urethra No .
forc e i s u sed but the curr en t i s allo wed to do the work

,
.
The s urg eo n h a s to keep h i s atte n t io n co n t i n u ally ap

pl ied to the e l ectrode so as to g ui de i t i n the right ,
d i rect io n oth er wi se a fa lse p a ssage m ay be d i ssol ved

,
i n to t h e side o f t h e ur e thr a There fore sk i ll i n p assing .
a c a th et er i s a requ i s it io n I n the ha n ds o f a surgeon .
who k n o ws hi s way i n to the bl a dder a fa lse pass age is ,
not m ore l ik ely to be produc ed th a n i s the case i n pass

i n g a n ord i n a ry c atheter The electrode i s to be kept.
ge n tly pressed ag ai n st the str ict ure in the n orm al di

rect io n o f the urethr a un t i l fro m the d i ssolut i o n of t he ,
obstacle i n fro n t o f i t i t passes i n to the bladder T he

, .
curre n t th en should i m m ed i ately be cut o ff an d the ,
bougi e wi thdrawn The durat io n o f the Operat i on de

.
s ns c r n o wsx s . 8
3 7
pends upon the densi ty of the stri ct ure and the s trength
o f the current u sed .
A lthough as a gu i de I have m en t ioned that the cur

rent should be about si x m il l iamp eres the strength ,
reall y used i s regulated by the pat ient h i mself O n e .
great object i s to avoi d gi vi ng pa i n and by th i s means ,
a too great destructi on o f ti ssue i s prevented We .
requi re our pa ti ent to be consc i ous there fore no an aas

th eti c i s used or i ndeed necess ary for the only sensa t ion
, ,
produced i s a sli ght pricki ng at the sea t o f the s t ri cture .
I f anyt h ing a m ount i ng to pa i n should be compla i ned of ,
th e strength o f the current has to be d im i n i sh ed On .
removi n g the electrode th ere i s somet i mes found on i t

,
some sl i my matter l ike d is i ntegrated ti ssue ; and the

pat ient i s often i mm edi atel y a fter i t s wi thdrawal enabled
t o pass uri ne wi t h i ncreased facil i ty and wi th very li ttle
di scom fort A fter the operati on we have le ft the pat i ent
.
enti rely free wi thout any i nter ference for usually the
, ,
space o f ten days or a fortn ight and then have t ri ed ,
what si zed bougi e would pass I f no d i s i ntegrated t i s

.
sue co m es out upon the elec t rode some sort o f slough ,
or eschar i s thrown o ff at a later peri od—the next day ,
or a day or two a fter the operati on d u ring the passage ,
of uri ne.
G o ing back to the example we have a l ready taken ,
i i a fter d issolvi ng the st ri cture i t has been poss i ble to

, ,
pa ss a N o 5 electrode i nto the bladder after the rest

.
,
o f a fortni ght i t i s usually found that a N o 7 bougi e .
can be passed S hould that be the l im i t o f the in creased

.
cal i bre o f the passage a N o 9 el ectrode is taken and

,
.
,
the sa m e opera ti on repeated as before descri bed and so ,
on a fter the i nterv al o f another fortn ight unti l the ,
stri cture i s cured Before the R oyal M edi cal an d

.
C h i rurgi cal S oc i ety we summed up t h e results of ou r
cc 2
i nvest i gat i ons as follows In the treatment o f stri cture

o f the urethra by electrolys i s there i s usually n o bleed,
in g. I f h ae morrhage does occur i t i s acc i dental and , ,
usually shows that a too stro n g current o r the wrong

pole of the battery has been used N o an ae sthet i c i s .
requ i red It i s an assi stance to the operat i on that t he

.
pat i ent should re m a i n consc i ous The pa i n or dis .
co m fort produced i s t ri fl i n g The pat i ent can i n t he

.
case o f a sl ight stri cture pursue h i s ord i nary occupat ion

duri ng the per iod o f treat m e n t N o ant i sept i cs are t e.
qui red as the process i tsel f i s asept i c I n the majority

,
.
o f cases there i s no co n tract i on or return o f the strie
ture .
E schars formed by caust i c alkal ies are s ai d to heal

wi th less contract ion than wounds produced i n any
other way and electrolysi s wi th the negat i ve pole i s a
,
mea n s o f applyi n g the destruct i ve act i on caused by

the caust i c alkali es to parts di ffi c ul t o f access an d ,
i n a way wh i ch i s i m poss i ble by any other m eth od .
B ut b eyo n d th i s the curre n t appears to set up a n ah

,
sorpt i v e act ion aro un d an d wi th i n the dense c i catricial

t i ssue wh i ch for m s t h e str icture so that i t gradu ally ,
d i sa pp ears Th i s we h av e see n i n several ways A ft er

. .
electroly si s h a s proc eeded so th a t the electrode w i ll p ass

i nto t h e bl a dd er i t i s fo un d a fort n ight later th at a
,
bo ugi e o f t wo s iz es l a rger c an be p assed A dd i t ion al .
absorpt i o n m ust there fore have take n place i n the in

t erv a l . A n d a ga i n i n p e n i le st ri ctures where we h ave ,
be en abl e to fe el the h ard de n se t i ssue o f wh i ch they

are fo rm ed a few days a ft er el ectrolysi s we have n ot iced
, ,
that t hi s h ardn ess has d i s a ppeared .
Th i s progr ess i ve i m prove m e n t a fter the ter m inat ion

o f treat m e n t i s very r em a rk a ble a n d le n ds so m e colour
,
to the bel ie f that an actual absorpt ion o f fib rous t i ssue

s wcr ao nvsx s . 8
3 9
may be dete rmined by the passage of the c urrent It .
has also been stated that the c ure i s more permanent

i
th an t is a fter ordi nary di latat i on ”
— For report s o f .
M r B ruce C larke s cases wi th the i r subsequent h i story

’
.
, ,
”
see P ract it ioner 18 8 6 B ri t is h M edi ca l Journal
,
"
.
,
189 0 , vo l i
. .
, p .
94 2 .
I n a letter of recent date ( 18 9 2 ) M r B ruce C lerk: .
wri tes t hat he stil l cons iders th e resul ts of elec t rolys i s

t o be extrem ely good and permanent i n cases o f stri o
ture Oi a pati e n t who was treated by h im in 188 5
.
,
he says : I saw hi m a few days ago and passed a ,
N o 11 wi th the greatest ease

. N o instrument has been .
passed si nce the operat ion except by m yself once or ,
twi ce fo r purposes o f d iagnosi s .

"
2 70 S t ri c t u
. re o f t h e ( eso ph agu s — E lectrolys i s .
has been recommended for th i s form o f stri cture by

most wri ters on m edi cal electri c ity We have not bee n .
able to h n d any report of a case .
2 7 1 S t rl ot m e o f t h e re c t u m Th is can also be
‘
. .
treated by m eans o f elec t rodes shaped l i ke rectal bougies ,
wh ich are co n nected to the negati ve pole o f the battery .
A bougi e i s selected o f a size ra t her larger than the

stri ct ure to wh ich i t i s app lied firm l y A c urre n t o f
, .
h y e o r ten mill i amp e res i s pas sed A fter a vari able .
ti me th e stri cture gi ves way and the bougi e passes ,
through i t The ti me o f ea ch operati on m ay be fro m

.
ten m i nutes t o half an hour The operati on is repeated .
wi th a larger i nstrument i n ten days or a fortn ight N o .
an ae sthet ic i s requi red .
2 72 E u
. st a c h i a n ob st ruct i o n — I n the “
L an cet .
fo r N o v 188 8 a paper on electrolysi s o f the E ustachi an

.
,
tube was publi shed by M r C umbarbatch an d D r W E .

. . .
S teavm on The au t hor s descri bed thei r method s as

.
foll ows : The ins t rument consi sts of a vulca n i t e

E ustach i an catheter and an electr i cal bou gi e ( fig .
the bougi e i s made of a fin e fl ex ib l e copper cord about

seven or ei ght i nches lon g i n sulated by vul can i te t o
,
wi th i n an ei ghth o f an i nch o f i t s end The e n ds are .
soldered i nto a n i ckel plated cap The bougi e i s small .
e n ough to pass along the catheter and exceeds i t in ,
length by about an i n ch The handle end o f the bougie

.
i s provi ded wi th a b i nd i n g screw to wh i ch the i nsulat ed ,
copper wi re i s also attached fo r the purpose o f con ,
n ec t i n a rheophore from the battery O th i s end of

g n .
the bougi e an i nch i s m arked o fi d i vi ded i nto e ighths .
Fm 90 . .
—E ut
s ach i an cat het er el ect rode.
E ach eighth o f the i n c h p a s ses i n to the catheter a s on e

e ighth pr o trud e s at t h e oth er en d It i s ther efore pos .
si ble to tell whe n the c ath eter i s i n the o rific e o f t he

,
E ust ach i an tube h o w m uch o f the bo ugi e i s i n t he

,
c an al O n t h e c a t h et h er th ere i s a m etal r i n g or some

.
,
oth er m ark to i n d i cat e the d i r ect i o n o f i t s e n d wh en it

,
i s b e i n g i n s erted
.
E le c t roly si s o f the E ust a ch i an tube i s per for m ed i n

m uch the sa m e way as the electroly si s o f the other
m uco us pas sage s A pa d co n n ected wi th the pos i t i ve
.
pol e o f a b a tt ery i s m o i ste n ed an d placed at the back of

the p at i en t s n eck
’
The E u st ach i a n catheter i s th en

.
p a ssed alo n g the n o s t r i l a n d gu i ded i nto the tube ; t he

boug ie already attached to the negat i ve pole o f t he
,
s L s cr no wsx s .
39 1
battery i s passed along the catheter and E ustach i an

,
canal as far as i t w ill go until it meets an obstruct ion,

.
The c irc ui t i s then closed A gal vanometer should be .
i ncluded in the c i rc u i t and the current gradua ll y in

,
creased up to four m ill ia m peres A fri zzl i ng no i se wi ll .
be hear d by the pat i en t in hi s head and the operator , ,
by approach i ng h i s ear to the catheter may hear the ,
crackl i ng produced by the breaki ng o f m i nute bubbles

of a The electrolys i s i kept up fo r four m i nutes
g s . s ,
and usual ly be fore t h e exp irat i on o f th at t i me i f i t i s ,
poss i ble that the obstructi on can be re m oved i t wil l be ,
found that the bougi e can be pushed on fo r a s m all

di stance sometim es fo r i t s ful l length G enerall y on
, .
the first occasi on the E ustach i an tube i s rather sens i t i ve ,
but i t seems t o acqui re tolerat ion for the proces s and at ,
no ti me i s so m uch di scomfort experi enced as m ight be

expected The operati on has now been performed a
.
large number of t i mes wi thout any unpleasant e x peri

en ces nor has the treatment caused any pa i n e i ther at
, ,
t h e t i me or a fterwards .
In favourable ca ses there i s an i mmed i ate i mprove

ment i n the heari ng as tested by the grea ter d istance
,
at whi ch a watch can be heard a fter the passage o f the

i nstrumen t ; th e d i stance at wh i ch i t i s heard may be
doubled I n other cases the results are not so good
.
,
pa rtly from the di ffi cul t y o f reach i ng t he E ustach i an

tube and partly no doubt from other causes
, .
2 7 3 L ac h ry m al ob st ru
. c ti o n — I n a paper by M r . .
m vmson
“
and D S an account i s gi ven o f ten
7 55501 ) r t .
cases o f lachrymal obstruct ion treated by electrolys i s .
The advantage o f t h e method i s aga i n due to the ease

wi th wh ich the act ion can be co n fin ed to t h e exact
parts needin g treatment The i nstru m ent used by
.
0 B rit M ed
. . j ourn al ,
"
D ecember, 188 7 .
39 2 us n x c ar . s n s c r m c n v.
them i s a curved plat i num probe The o perat ion is .
very si mple the current requ i red i s small two t o four ,
mi ll i am p e res bei ng suffic ien t and the durat i on i s thi rty ,
seconds N o an aesthet i c i s needed ; t h e probe must

.
always be negat i ve the po sit i ve pole be i ng the usual

,
pad i n di fferent electrode Two or t h ree si tt i ngs suffice

.
to produce cure of the obstruct ion The cases related .
are c o n fin ed t o those i n wh i ch the obstruct i on was at

the puncture or i n the canal i culus and n o t i n the sac ,
i tsel f The operat i on i s s i m pler than the sl i tt i ng up of

.
the ca n al i culus and the i mprovement i s pe rm anent

, .
2 74 E l ec t ro l y si s f o r u
. t eri n e fl b ro i d e S i nce t he .
publ i cat i on by D r Georges A postoh o f h is m ethod of

'
treat i n g fib ro myoma an i m mense amount o f l i terature

-
,
has bee n produced o n the subject °

M uch has been .
sa i d both fo r and aga i nst A postoli s treatment and the ’
e n thusi as m wh i ch was at first shown in i t s favour by

ma n y wri ters has to a large extent been followed by a
,
react i on aga i nst i t There i s n o doubt however that

.
, ,
electrolys i s m ust hold an im porta n t place i n the treat

m e n t o f fib ro i ds bec a use i t o ffers an alternat i ve to t he
,
very seri ous operat i on o f abdo m in al sect io n an d in ,
m a n y c a ses i t a ffords great rel i e f to the sympto m s of t he

pat i en t eve n i f i t does not e ffect a rad i cal cure of t he
,
d i se a se W e propose here to gi ve a short abstract of

.
D r C arl et sT or ig i nal pap er pr o duced under the i mme

’
.
,
d i ate d i rect ion o f D r A postol i . .
The e arly atte m pts at tre a t in g fibro i ds by electrolysis

were do n e by C utter 18 7 1 ; R outh an d A l thaus 18 73 , ,
'
B racket , 18 7 5 ; S emel eder, 18 7 6 ; E verett , 18 8

7 ; A ime
S ee t h e M edic al J ou rn al s, 18 8 8 , 18 8 9 , an d publ ic at i o n s by D rs .
S tea ven so n , B a rt ho l o w, B igel o w, K ei t h , M a sse

y, E n g el man n and
y
m an o t h ers .
f
“
L a t rait em en t é l ec t riq u e des t um eurs fibreuses de l
’
ut eru
s ,
D r. L ucien C arl et , Paris, 188 4 .

s n acr s o v rsx s. 39 3
M ar ti n , 18 7 9 ; G al l ard, In 188 2 A postoli co m m u

18 8 1.
n i c a t ed a paper to the A cad é m i e de M é dec ine in wh i ch ,
he descri bed h i s method o f procedure H e rec o m .
mended an i nternal pos i t i ve el ectr ode o f plat inum and ,
an abdom i nal electrode ( negati ve ) o f mo i st ch i na clay
of large sur face and a cont i nuou

,
s current o f s i xty t o
sev ent y m i l li amp e res for from five to fift ee n m i nutes
,
.
In certa i n cases when the i nternal electrode could not

be pa ssed i nto the cavi ty o f th e uterus he thrust i t ,
through the cervi x i nto the ti ss ue o f the uterus in stead .
S i tt i n gs once or tw i ce a we ek The act i on o f the cur

.
~
rent was to produce destruc t ion o f the uteri ne mucous

membrane . The resul t s were t o reduce the s ize of the
ut erus and t o decrease the h aemorrhage
,
The de .
struct i on o f the m ucous membrane i s followed by a

healthy process o f repa ir by a process o f i nvoluti on
, ,
and by a c i catri sat ion wh ich checks the met rorrhag i a .
D 7 5 A postoh and C arlet arrange thei r account of the

'
operati on as fo l lo ws
1 T he seat of t he operat ion — I t must be i ntra uteri ne
. .
-
,
and the i nternal electrode m ust occupy the whole depth

of the uteri ne cavi ty To puncture th e uterus fro m the
.
abdo m en i s dangerous for suppurat ion and peri ton it i s

,
are l ikely t o follow adhesi ons are l ikely t o be formed

, ,
and t h e uteri ne mucous membrane i s not touched .
2. T he n atu f t he of xt ion
re o m — The pos i ti ve pole i s.
i nd i ca ted fo r the i nternal electrode when h aem orrhage

i s the ch ief sy m pto m the negati ve pole may be used
,
when th e fibro ids are large hard and subperi toneal and, ,
when there i s not much h aemorrhage for i f anyth ing i t ,
i ncrea ses the tendency to bleed in g .
The curren t must be qui te un iform and m ust be ,
ra i sed and lowered very gradually sudden i nterrup ,
ti ons wi th the large currents used are sufli cien t t o g i ve

d angerous shocks .
3 . T he f
strengt h o u
c rren t .
— The max i mum strength
wh i ch the pat i ent can bear i s to be e m ployed ; when
the uterus i s large a greater strength i s needed to pro
,
duce the same densi ty of current ( see C an

t eri z at i o n i s easi ly obta i ned i n an uterus o f l i ttle length
o w i ng to the smaller sur face fo r d i str i but i on o f the
current but a m uch greater current i s needed wi th a

,
le n gthened uterus owi n g to i t s greater area

, On e .
hu n dred m i ll i a m p e res i s the m ean stre n gth used by

A p ostol i s i nce 188 3 ( date o f D r C arlet s paper
’
.
,
and th i s i s generally well borne by the uterus I n .
hysterical pat i ents the current i s not well borne or ,
rather a fit m ay threaten unless the curren t i s very ,
caut iously i ncreased The operat i on m ust not be un der

.
~
taken duri ng acute peri metri t i s ( o r any other febrile

cond i t io n ) .
4 . T h e du ration o
f t he op e rati o n — The mean durat
. io n
should be fro m fiv e to ten m i nutes accordi ng to t h( ,
grav i ty o f the case an d the tolerance o f the pat ien t .
W he n p a t ie n t s have to retur n ho m e i m m ed i ately after

ward s h y e m i n utes suffi c es i n m o st cases
, A stron .
'
curr en t fo r a shorter t i m e i s better th a n a lesser currer

fo r a lo n ger t i m e .
5 . T h e n um b er
f
o si t ti n s
g
— A n absolute
. cure w i th com
p l e t e r e s tor a t i o n to h e alth ( ad i n tegm m) i s a n d w i ll ever ,
b e beyo n d o ur m ed i c a l r eso urc es

,
O ur hope i s t hat .
we m a y re d uce the si ze o f the tu m our by o n e half or -
o n e th i rd
-
a n d re m ove the
,
sy m pto m s W h eth er the .
tu m ours p er si st or n o t the operator should persevere

,
u n t i l the sy m pto m s are rel i ev ed a n d he ought n ot to ,
be sa t i sfie d t i ll th i s goal i s re a c h ed H e shou ld .

“
dep en d o n the g en eral co n d i t io n a n d st a te m e n ts of the

pat i en t a n d n o t o n wh a t d ig i t a l e x plorat i on reve als
,
.
T we n ty or th i rty s i tt i n gs i s the m ean n u m ber but ,

s wcr ao wsx s .
39 5
many pati en ts declare th em sel ves cured after h y e t o ten

si t ti ngs . If after great ameli orat i on the pati ent desi res
to gai n all she ca n from the trea tmen t i t m ay be t e ,
s umed but the pr ogress wi l l be much more sl ow than

,
at the co m men cemen t .

"
6 C hoice of ti n a — W hen pai n and losses are not very

.
great and other symptom s are not acut e choose the ,
i nter mens t rual peri od but o n t h e ot her hand wi th

-
, ,
seri ous symptoms maki ng li fe mi serable o r en dangeri n g

i t begi n at once even duri ng severe blee d i ng
, ,
.
The i nterval between si tt ings should be long enough

fo r all pa in o r di scharge produced by the previ ous o n es
t o have ceased . The operati on may be performed once
a week or even twi ce a week i f the pa t i ent i s able to
,
keep her bed or to rema i n very qui et .
7
. T echn ical deta il s — B efore
. commenc i ng ex p la i n t o ,
the pati ent what is goi ng to be done make sure that ,
the batt ery i s i n good order an d that a ll wires and ,
co n nect ions are sound d i sin fect the intern a l elec t rode
, ,
ada pt the abdom i nal electrode of potter s clay carefully '
t o the surface o f th e ski n first coverin g any l i ttle abra

,
s ion or acne spot however sma l l wi th a p iece o f o iled

, ,
si lk or gutt apercha ti ssue The pati ent must re m ove .
her s t ays and loosen all her ski rts and the abdomen ,
mus t be q ui te bare S he m ust recli ne on her back 0 11 a

.
couch or acro ss the bed t h e vagi na must be th oroughly,
sy ri nged out ; fin all y she must be as sured that th e ope r

at i on wi ll not be very pai n ful and that at the sl i gh t est ,
si gn from her the s t rength o f current wi ll be reduced ,
o n the other hand she m ust be encouraged not to com
plai n unnecessarily ; place t h e cla y electrode on the

abdomen see tha t i t s m argi ns do not touch t he gro i ns
,
o r pubes attach th e battery wi re the n introduce the

, ,
i nternal electrode wi th great care and gentleness ( Th i s .

39 6 M E DI C A L E LE C T RI C I T Y .
is the most diffic ul t part o f the operat i on an d i t may be ,
better to do i t before applyi ng the abdom i nal electrode) .
M ake sure that i t has passed to the full length of t he

uterus exam i ne to see that the vagi na and vul va are
,
perfectly sh i elded fro m m etalli c contacts and encourage ,
the pat i ent to press wi th her pal m s upon the clay elec
trode so as to keep i t well appl i ed D o not commen ce
, .
the current t i ll all pa i n fro m the i ntroduct i on o f t he

electrode has passed o ff A fter the operat i on tell the .
wo m a n that she wi ll have pa i ns for a few hours and a ,
sl ightly t i nged d i scharge for a day or t wo S h e must .
rest fo r two hours be fore goi ng ho m e a n d m ust then lie ,
dow n W alk i n g exerci se i s bad

. C onjugal relations .
must be absolutely forbi dden .
W eak i nject ion s of C on dy s fl ui d o r carboli c lotion ’
should be used once da i ly .
Fx o .
9 1
.
—A post o l i s u
’
t e ri n e e l ect rode an d sh ea t h .
T h e i n tr aut er i n e e l ectrode h a s the sh a pe o f a sound

-
,
i n sul a t ed e x c e pt at i t s e x t re m i ty th i s p a rt m ust be of ,
pl a t i n um a n d i t s l e n gth should be c a p a bl e o f adj ust

,
m en t to sui t the l en gth o f the ut erus The i n sulat ion .
should re a ch suffic i en t l y fa r to protect the cerv i x uteri

as well as the v ag i n a C are m ust be tak en that no
.
b a re m et a l to uch es the vulva or the sk i n o f the thighs , ,
or a p a i n ful sore place w i ll be produced .
D r A postol i s sou n d ( fig 9 1) i s fi t t ed w i th a sliding

’
. .
s nsc r no ws x s .
39 7
vulcan i t e sheath ; plati num pi eces ei th er sharp or blunt

, ,
are screwed i nto the end of the shaft and are chosen o f ,
a length to sui t that o f the uteri ne cav i ty S ubsequently .
Staaeensen m odi fied and i mproved the or igi nal pattern

by maki ng an electrode shaped l i ke a hard rubber
cath eter wi th a platinum t i p ( fig The advantage
.
of thi s shape i s that the i nstrument i s more fl e x i ble
and more ea si ly i ntroduced i nto the uterus and the ,
in s ulati on part i s not th icker than the rest therefore ,
i t can enter more eas i ly i nto t h e cervi x so as to protect
Fro 92
. .
—S t eaven wn o el ectrode fo r fibro -
myo ma
.
that I f th i s for m of el ect rode be used i t wil l be

n ec essary to have a set wi th pl ah n um ends of difl eren t
'
lengt h s whereas A postol sh sound ca n be altered to sui t

'
‘
each c ase by me ans o f changi ng the plati num po ints .
The electrodes wi th sharp poin ts are made for

puncturi ng the uterus when th e cervi cal canal cannot
be reached . P uncture however i s now very rarel y
, ,
A nord i nary uteri ne so und made wi th a plati num

poi nt and fit t ed wi th a bi ndi ng screw answers the
pur pose very well the stem
, can be i nsul ated by a
soft rubber tube sli pped over i t leavi ng bare the appro
,
39 8 us n rc ar . E L E C T RI C I T Y .
pri at e length at the end th i s soft tube wi ll enter the ,
cervi cal canal qu i te well the advantage i s that such ,
an i nstru m ent c an be kept absolutely clean a new pi ece ,
o f rubber be i ng sl i pped on fo r each operat i on and a
l i ttle vasel i ne s m eared over to protect aga i nst any pos

si ble escape of current through m i nute holes i n the
rubber .
The abdo m i nal electrode i s prepared by mak i ng up a

putty l i ke m ass wi th the potter s clay and water it is ’
then spread out evenly on a piece o f musl i n i n a layer

hal f a n i n ch th ick A metal plate wi th b i nd i ng screw
.
i s e m bedded i n i t s upper sur face and the m usl in is ,
folded over to enclose a round cake o f the clay It .
should m e asure about n i ne or ten i nches i n d i a m eter .
The preparat io n o f th i s electrode i s rather trouble

so m e a n d i t i s heavy and rather m essy fo r the pat ient
, ,
but i t ad a pts i tsel f well to the surface o f the abdomen

a n d gi ves good results S ubst i tutes fo r i t have been
.
dev i s ed such as l arge fiat bags o f bladder or d i alysing

,
p ar c h m en t co n ta i n i n g war m water These wi ll al so .
ad a pt th em selv es v ery closely M etal plates covered .
w i th m o i st en ed fl an n el or carb o n i n s m all lu m ps covered

,
w i th fl an n el to fo r m a cush i o n have also bee n tr ied .
A firm cake o f gelat i n e al so co n ducts very well an d ,
i s e a si l y pr ep ar ed i n a d i n n er plate It i s rather st icky .
and u n ple a san t however as i t h a s a te n de n cy to melt

, ,
at the t em perature o f the body The add i t i o n o f on e or .
two per ce n t o f alu m wi ll preve n t th i s an d i m prove t he

.
,
p a d,
w h i ch i s to be e n clo sed i n m usl i n an d used exactl y ,
as the cl ay el ectr o de It i s the n m uch m ore clean ly

.
a n d a gre eable than the potter s clay

’
.
I n a co m m u n i cat i o n o n the use o f electri c i ty in

gy n ae cology D 7 5 A ust L awm zce and N ewn ham writing
“ .
-
,
B it i h M edical J o un al
”
r s N ovem ber 18 9 1 r , , .
s L s cr ao wsw .
39 9
a fter i t s use in on e hundred cases arri ve at the fol lowi ng

conclusi ons In M y oma the results have been as
.
follows There has not been a very great reduct i on

i n the s ize o f the tumours but rap i dly growi ng tu m ours
,
have been checked i n the ir growth i n all i nstances

e x cept one The bleed i ng has been lessened i n a very
.
marked m ann er by t he i n t ra uteri ne use o f the posi t i ve

-
pole The pai n also has been lessened and i n some

.
cas es removed enti rely The general health h as been

.
much i m proved the feel i ng o f we ight has been reli eved

,
to a great extent and th i s out o f all propo rti on to the

,
d i m inuti on i n the s ize o f the t umo ur ”

.
They do not regard electr ic i ty as a means o f cure or

even o f rel ie f in all cases of myoma uteri ; but cons i der
it a very valuable add i t i on to the means o f treat in g a
very troublesome set o f ca ses .
They also menti on a pati ent wh o cont i nued to have

profuse u terine h mm orrh age from a fib ro id a fter removal
of both appendages the h e morrhage was very much
,
lessen ed by subsequent electri cal treatment .
2 7 5 O t h er u
. t eri n e di s ordera —S ubi n vol u
tion E lec . .
t ro l ysi s has also been used by the sa m e wri ter s fo r

sub i nvolut ion The i ntra uteri ne appl icat i on o f the
.
-
posi ti ve pole wi th a current o f fift y mi l li amperes gi ven

once a week fo r three or four t imes has a very good
eff ect , the uterus very rapidly undergoin g i nvolut ion ,
but they are o f Op i n ion that when endome t ri t i s i s pre

sent other intra uteri ne med i cati on g i ves better results
,
-
.
S tenosis of t he cervix can be removed by electrolys i s

ver y much i n t h e same way as in the treatment of
s t ri cture F i ve or t en m ill iamperes for a few m i nut es
.
usually suffi ce t o enlarge the canal of the cerv ix .
S everal el ectrodes o f different sizes may be req ui red ,
t h e gai n in cali bre i s sai d t o be permanent .

D y smmorrhwa amt Mmorrhagi a .

—The caust i c acti on of
the negat i ve pole has been tried for membranous dys
menorrh oea the method i s exactly the same as that used
,
fo r fib ro i ds and menorrhagi a apart from fi b roi ds has

,
been si m i larly treated by the posi t i ve pole .
2 76 . E x t ra u t eri n e f mt at l o n —A ttempts have been

- .
made to arrest the progress of extra uteri ne foetation -
by electri cal treatment an d successful cases have been ,
reported a fter galvan i s m and a fter faradi sm m ost of ,
the m by A m er i can medi cal m en A t the M eet i ng of the .
B ri t i sh M ed i cal A ssoci at i on at B ri ghton i n 188 6 D r , ,

.
A veh ng a n d D 1 P atch both made commun i cat i ons on the

’
subject each report i ng one successful case the former

, ,
treated h i s pat i ent whose pregnancy had lasted three

,
mon ths by farad i c currents wh i ch do not see m to have

, ,
been at all powerful O n e pole was plac ed o n the ah

.
dom i n a l surface and the other i n the vag i na so that the

tum our was i ncluded between the m ; a fter three si tt ings
the tu m our began to d i m in i sh and the pat i ent m ade a
good recov ery D r P etoh s pat i ent had bee n pregnant
. .
’
fo r about si x m onths a n d the foetal heart sounds were

,
aud i ble Two n eedle s were i n troduced through the

.
abdo m i n a l wall one at e i ther end o f the tumour they

, ,
were i n sul a ted except fo r three quarters o f a n i n ch at

the i r p oi n t s and a curr en t fro m th i rty L ec l a n c h é cells
,
”
was p a ssed fo r o n e h o ur the m other was not an a s ,
t h e t i sed a n d felt only sl i ght p ai n the heart sou n ds were

, ,
not a ffe c ted at the t i m e but four days later they had ,
ceased the pat ient m a de a good recovery an d had

,
con t i n u ed well fo r two or three ye a rs si n ce the operat ion .
In the d i scu ss ion wh i ch fo llowed the read i n g o f these

pap er s s everal speakers r el a t ed cases o f a s i m i l ar kind
wh i ch h ad occurred to the m selves and the generally ,
P obabl y bou t 2 50 m il iam peres

r a .
s L s c r ao wsx s .
40 1
expressed opi ni on was that elec t ri cal trea t ment m ight

be use ful when extra uteri ne pregnancy could be dia
-
n o se d be fore th e end o f th e thi rd or fourth month and

g ,
bef ore rupture o f the tube had taken place ; when the
pregnancy was further advanced el ectrici ty was not so ,
valuable because even if the foetus could be destroyed

,
by i t s means there was st ill cons i derable ri sk to the

,
mother o f sept ic po ison ing fro m the retent ion of the

dead foetus and i t was n o t l ikely to undergo absor pti on
, ,
although in D r Patch s case the tumour a fce t us at six

.
’
months had been reabsorbed without a c c i dent

, On .
these grounds Mr L awson T ai t emphati ca l ly condemned

.
the use o f el ectri c i ty and because i t was extremely di th

,
cul t to di agnose the tubal pregnancy before rupture he ,
cons idered that abdo m i nal sect ion was far pre ferable .
In the S t B artholomew s H ospi tal R eports vol x i x

.
'
, . .
,
18 8 3 D r Matt hew
, . s D u
ncan and D r Mawn have publ i shed .
a paper on extra uteri ne fce t ati o n wi th an account of

-
,
o n e case i n wh i ch electrolysi s had been t ri ed ; the preg
nancy had lasted fiv e months and the fce t al heart was

audi ble E lectrolys is was pr act i sed o n two occasi ons
.
wi th a fortn ight s i nterval The curre n t of forty cell s

'
wa s employed fo r si x m i nutes on the firs t occas ion the ,
poles were i n the vag i na and on the abdomen respect

i v el y ; on the second occas ion two needles connected
.
wi th the negat i ve pole were t hrust into the tumour

whi le the posi t i ve was appli ed to the abdom in al surfa ce
as be fore .
The foetal heart was n o t arrested on e ither occas ion .
O ther means o f destroyi ng the foetus were then em

ployed and the pat ient d ied o f peri ton i ti s a week a fter
,
the second s i tt ing ; post mortem t h e fe tus was found

-
very cons iderably macerat ed th i s was co n s idered t o ,
have been due t o the electri cal treatment .

M E D IC A L E LE C T RI C I T Y .
D r . P ercy u “
publ i shed a case of early ( six
B o l ton h as
o r e i gh t wee ks ) extra uteri ne foetat i on where electrolysi s
-
,
proved fatal from peri toni t i s but there was no post ,
morte m exa m i nat ion to show what changes had been

set up i n the tum our The case shows that electro
.
lys i s even in the early m onths i s not free fro m danger

, ,
.
D r L awson T ai t and other speakers at the B ri ghton

.
M eet i n g po i nted out that very often tubal pregnancy

may u n dergo sponta n eous cure It i s very l i kely that .
so m e o f those sa i d to have bee n cured by faradi c shocks

were really cases of th i s ki n d because i t i s diflicult ,
to see how a m oderate farad i c curre n t di ff used through ,
the large sect i on al area o f the abdo m en could exert any ,
e ffect at all upo n the t i ssues o f a young foetus though it ,
m i ght possi bly produce so m e m echa n i cal co m pression

by sett i n g up to n i c con tract ion o f the m uscle fibres in
the F allopi an tube round i t To slay even a small .
a n i m al i t i s n ecessary to have very powerful faradic

curre n ts care fully co n ce n tr a ted upo n a vi tal part A
,
.
foetu s ly i n g i n the m i dst o f the co n duct i n g t i ssues of the

a bd o m e n c o uld o n ly r e c e i v e a s m a ll fr a ct i o n o f the com
a t i l s m ll t t l c urr e n t y i elded by a m ed i cal coil

p ra v e y a o a .
2 77 C a n
. c e r — T h e d estr uc t io n o f ca n cerous tu mou
. rs
by el ectroly si s has bee n pr o posed .
A lth o u gh i t i s n o t l i kely that electrolyt i c treat ment

w i ll do m o re th a n prod uce slo ugh i n g o f p arts of a
c a n c er yet i t i s so m et i m es us eful whe n n oth i n g else
, ,
c a n b e d o n e b ecause the pa i n o f the ca n cer i s often

,
m u c h d i m i n i sh ed a fter electrolys i s as h a s bee n oh ,
ser v ed by A l t haus C ures o f ca n cer by electrolysi s will

.
be fo u n d r ep o rt ed i n m a n y o f the books o n electrical

tre a t m en t b ut a cl o s e st udy w i ll us ually reveal some
,
weak po i n t i n the h i story o f the cases related ( See .
al so ,
B it M ed J o u al
”
‘t r . A p i l 18 8 7
. rn ,
r , .
CA U T E RY A ND LI G H T I N G I N S T R U M E N T S .
4 3
0
C HA PTE R XVI .
C aur an v A ND o ur m c I N S T R U M E N T S .
T he gal van o eau t ery -

. h e can p A ecumu
l ato rs Wi res an d l eads
. . L a mps . Bat t efl es ior l amps R heo
st at s . T he y
c st osco pe. T he T he use of
el ect ri c light mai n s . T he el ec t ro m agn et .
2 78 T h e sal m i o ea u
. te w —The
. forms o f galvano
caute ry i n common use are al most i nn umerable but ,
thei r plan of construc ti on depe nds upon one general

pri nc i ple The small cauteri es used fo r o perati o n s on
.
the ear eye throat or nose cons i st of s m a l l loops o f pla

, , ,
t in um wi re mounted on stra ight or curved copper leads ,
wh ich are in sul ated from each other and then bound ,
toget her t o form a conve n ient stem ( fig These fi t .
co m m m . LO ND OI .
Pro 93 . .
—G l a van 0-ce ut erl es
.
i nto a handle provi ded wi th a key fo r ea si ly open ing or

c los i ng the circu it The plati n um loops owi n g to thei r
.
,
hi gh resi stance beco m e heated by the passage of a cur

,
ren t M any o f these han dles have conductors barely

.
thi ck enough t o carry the currents req uired to heat the

p la t i n um loop to redness and although m uch i ngenui ty ,
ha s been e x pen ded in d esignin g conven i ent contacts fo r

D O 2
4 4
0 us m c u . s t s cr m c rrv .
closi ng and Open i ng the circui t wh i le in use these are ,
someti mes so badly desi gned as t o add much to the
di ffic ul ti es o f t h e operati on T h e figure fig 9

( 4) show
.s .
t he u sual form of han dle known as S chech s '

.
,
Fro 94
. .
— '
Sch ech a han dle .
The shorter handles are more conven ie nt than the

large si ze wh ich is m ore expensi ve an d t oo unwieldly
, ,
for deli cate man i pulati ons .
I f the cautery mounts are t oo sl ender th ey wi ll be ,
come heated They are insul ated by a thi ck waxed

.
thread twi sted round them i n racki ng t ur n s which ,
keeps them fro m touchi ng altho ugh bi n di n g them ,
together and forms a suffici en t means of i nsulation

, ,
except when they beco m e overh ea ted .
7 10
1 95
.
-
C
. u
a t ery for larger i ncan descen t u
s rface.
B es i des the simple pla ti num loop s en wng in stru ,

i o
ments of vari ous shapes are made by h am meri ng tm

pl a ti num flat or by bendi ng i t in vario us ways Where .
a l arger i ncandescent sur face i s requi red a lo op o r spiral ,
of p l ati num supported in grooves on a porcel ain mou nt
is m ade the porcelai n then becomes hea ted t o redness

,
as well as the plati num see fig k

( D ifie ren t t hi c .
»
C A U T E RY AND ~ LI G H T I N G I N S T RU M E N T S .
4 5
0
nesses o f plat inum wire are used an d accord ingly the ,
current requi red v ari es greatly in different cauteri es

( see below ) .
S ometi mes a lon g loop of wi re i s used as an ecraseur ,
bei ng adapted cold t o the part to be removed and then ,
heated and a screw can be mounted on the handle figured

,
above fo r gradually drawin g up the wi re loop ( fig .
It is as wel l here to menti on

that the t emperature of a
cautery m ust never be al
lowed to ri se above dull
redness . A t a whi te heat
the cauteri s ing act i on i s so
rapi d that searing o f the
surfa ce does not take place ,
an d h e morrhage may follow
a s pro fu sel y as after di vi sion

o f th e ti ssues by a kn ife A .
large number of m odi fied

fo rms o f cautery and mount
wi ll be foun d in the in st ru
ment maker s catalogues '
.
The resi stance of the cau

t eri es just d escri bed may
vary fro m o 2 5 to 04 o h m
° '
.
The c urrent r e q u i r e d
vari es between e ight or ten
ampe res fo r the smallest to ,
upwards o f twenty for the

larger ones .
S t il l larger currents are

req u ired fo r a few cauteri es ,
wh i ch have been constructed rm 96 —8m m . . .
fo r spec i al purposes .
40 6 M E DIC A L E n s c r m c rr v .
*
°
In the prostat i c cautery o f P rof the part to . B ottim

be heated cons i sts of two stri ps o f stout sheet plat i num ,
each 2 0 m m x 8 m m wh i ch lie si de by si de i n the

. .
,
co ncav i ty near the beak o f an i nstru m ent wh i ch is

, ,
shaped l i ke a vesi cal sou n d The current passes along .
one stri p and retur n s by the other The large m ass of .
the plat i n um m akes the res i stance o f the part to be

heated re m arkably low about 000 5 oh m and c on se ,
'
que n tly an i m m e n se curre n t a m ount i ng to fi ft y a m p eres , ,
i s requi red to ra i se i t t o a red heat S uch a current as .
th i s taxes an y portable battery to the ut m ost This .
i nstrum e n t i s m ade fo r the rad i cal cure of the sy m ptoms

caused by enlarged prostate and i t s use has been ad ,
v oc at ed i n th i s country by M r B ru ce C l arke + wh o h as .
,
e m ployed it successfully on several occasi on s .
The curre n t passes through the i nstr ument to reach

the plat i n um stri ps the m etal tube i tsel f for m i ng one,
conductor wi th a s m all i n sulated return w i re down its

,
-
centre the rest o f the space i n si de the tube bei n g used

,
as a cha n n el through wh i ch water i s ci rculated to keep

the i n st rum en t cool The ret ur n wi re i s b arely abl e to
.
carry the l a rge c urr en t an d o ffers co n s i derable resist ,
ance th is i n c r eases t h e di ffic ul t y o f he a t in g the pl a t in um

,
.
2 79 C au
. t e ry b a t t e ri e s — The batte ries o f s mall .
cells wh ich are used i n m ed ical treat m e n t are arran ged

fo r hi gh el ectro m ot i ve forces w i th the m i n i m um of
we ight an d th ei r i n t er n al res i sta n ce i s o f l i ttle im
,
port an c e For caut ery purposes the co n d i t io n s are

.
qui te d i ffere n t an d the s m a ll m ed i cal cells are there

,
fore u n s ui t able L arge b i chro m a te cells have been

.
m uch used fo r cautery p urpos es but they are very ,
“
Bri t . M ed . J o ur n al ,
”
18 9 1, vo l . i .
, p . 112 1. D esc ri pt ion and
figure .
1 M edic o C h irur i c al S o ciet

g
-
y , J an . 18 9 2 .
CA U T E RY A ND LI G H T I N G I N S T RU M E NT S .
i nconven i ent , although they may be made t o yi eld a

large current fo r a bri ef peri od They are heavy and .
bul ky th e attach m ents o f the plates are numerous and

,
l i kely to get out of order They requi re perpetual .
atten ti on and they are exc ited by a very corrosi ve

,
l iqui d wh i ch i s li able to splash over and damage what

ever i t touches fin al ly from the i r t en dency to rap i d
,
pola ri sati on t hey are apt to fa i l suddenly i n use .
2 80
. A c cu mu l at ors — B y far the m ost co nveni ent
.
form o f battery fo r cautery work i s an a c cumulator ,
they do not polari se an d there fore they gi ve a steady

current the i r i nternal resistance i s very small the ir
, ,
capac i ty 99 ) i s large and they w i ll keep,

i n good
order fo r three months wi thout attent io n W i th proper .
care in use 113) they are per fec tly t rustworthy .
They are heavy but not m o re so t h an any other cau

,
t ery batt ery The E lectri cal P ower S torage C ompany pre
.
»
pares small two cell accu m ulat o rs for med ical p urposes ,
wei gh ing fro m t hi rty to forty pounds w i th three or h y e ,
plates per cell The smaller s ize wi ll heat cauteri es

.
requi ri ng e ight to ten amper es fa irly wel l though i t i s ,
rath er a s t ra in upon th e m the larger si ze wi th five ,
plates i s therefore more econom i cal i n use S t i ll fo r .
t h e bri e f peri ods dur i n g w hi c h the cautery i s required

the three plate cell s wil l suffi ce but i f m uch heavy work ,
i s requi red to be done th e larger s i zes are the be st At .
prese n t there i s a tendency to return to the ori gin al

P lanté type o f secondary cell as i t has the adv an
tage over pasted plates that i t i s not damaged by a h igh
rate o f d i scharge and they wi ll probably be superi or fo r
,
surgical uses A s at presen t made they are rather

.
,
heav ier than the E P S cells . . . .
The i mportance o f batter ies wi th a low i nternal res ist

ance wil l be se en fro m the next paragraph The stea dy .
40 8 us m c ar . E L E C T RI C I T Y .
current wh i ch can be obtai ned fr om any gi ven electro

mo t i ve force depends pri m ari ly upon the resi stance of
t h e ci rcui t 5 6 O hm s
,
law )
’
and th i s res i,stance i n the
case o f a cautery i s di vi si ble i nto three parts : ( a bat

t ery res i stance ( b) res i stance o f leads ( 0) res i stance of
, ,
the i nstrument A l l o f these m ust be kept down as low

.
as possi ble .
2 8 1 L ea d. o r c o n d u
. c t o rs — B y re fer ri ng t o
. 12 1
a table o f the si zes o f wi re su i table fo r car ry i ng d ifferent
curre n ts wi ll be found It wi ll be seen fro m that table

.
that m a n y o f the leads suppl i ed by i nstrument makers

are too slender to carry curre n ts o f ten t o twenty am
p e res I f the leads are too sm all t o carry the current
.
easi ly m ore electromot i ve force must be provi ded an d

, ,
a greater weight o f battery has consequently t o be car

r ied wh i le i n addi t i on the conductors are l i kely to
,
beco m e dangerously hot an d energy i s uselessly ex

,
pen ded .
It m ay be use ful to g i ve an example here o f the cal

cu l at i o n s to be m ade i n arra n gi n g the apparatus for
h e a t i n g a cautery L e t us suppose that a caut ery
.
h a v i n g a res i sta n ce o f 0 4 o h m an d requi r i ng a current

°
o f 2 0 a m p e res i s to be heated The battery power .
ava i lable co n s i sts o f two accu m ulator cells i n series ,
each wi th an electro m ot i ve force o f two volts the in ,
ter n a l r esi st a nce o f each cell b ei n g 0 1 ohm .
To obta i n a curre n t o f t wen ty a m p e res from four vol ts

t h e t o t a l r es i sta n ce i n c i rc u i t m ay a m ou n t to 2 ohm ‘
.
I f pr o per leads are u sed ( see t able the i r resist

,
a n ce wi ll be o o r4 oh m per m et re W e wi ll suppose
°
.
each wi re to be 5 m etres i n l en gth the i r total resist ,
a n ce w i ll then be 0 0 4 2 o h m The n ecessary resi stan ces

.
i n c i rc u i t i n th i s case ( res i sta n ce o f battery o f leads , ,
an d o f ca u tery) therefore a m ou n t to 0 2 004 2 04

° °
'
o64 2 , orsay o65 o h m Th i s leaves a margi n for faul ty
°
.
co ntacts and fo r rh eostat of 135 ohm and the cautery '
woul d be adequately and ea si ly heated For the ki nd .
of rheostat used w i th cautery see 12 7 .
B ut now suppose the leads are o f a s i ze havi ng a

resi st a nce o f 0 4 ohm per m etre Th is wi ll gi ve a total
'
.
resi stance in c ircui t o f 0 2 12 04 18 ohm leav

° °
in g a bare margi n of 0 2 ohm fo r faulty con t acts

'
Th i s .
would ce rtai n ly be i n suffi c ie n t as there are several ,
po in ts o f contact an d a small degree o f o x i dat ion o r

tarn i sh i ng at any one o f them wo uld be sufi c ien t t o
prevent the cautery fro m heat ing add to whi ch there ,
woul d in all probab ili t y be a co n si derable a m ount o f

heati ng i n the leads wh i ch would certa i nly i ncrease
,
t h ei r res i sta nce and m ight des troy the i r i nsulati on

, .
P 10 .
97 —L
. aryn gosc ope , wi t h el ect ri c l amp
.
Th ese examples show the i mportance o f using stout

co n duct in g wi res wi th plenty o f copper i n them and ,
o f keep ing all contacts an d b i ndi ng screws scrup u lously

clean and bri ght A rheostat must always be i n cluded
.
i n the c i rcui t when a cautery i s to be heated if thi s pre ,
ca uti on i s neglected there wi ll be much trouble from

,
over h eati ng and fus i ng o f the pla t i n um loops .
282 Su
. rgi c al l am ps The sma l l i n c andescent
.
lamps used fo r s urgi c al purposes have alrea dy been

consi dered in g 12 2 These li ttle lamps have been
.
ad apted to laryngoscopes ophth al moscopes endoscopes

, ,
and other i nst ruments ( hgs 9 7 They are not used

.
,
v ery uni ver sall y because i n ma n y c ases the mai ntenance

,
4 10 ME DIC A L E LE C T R I C I T Y .
of the ba t t ery i s troubleso m e and because other so urces

,
o f i ll um inati on are sufii ci en t .
Th ese small l amps vary a good dea l in thei r resi st

ance ohms ) and therefore the electromot i ve
,
fo rce requi r ed t o l ight them properly vari es also If .
the fil am en t i s slender or if i t i s ,
lo n g thei r resi stance i s h i gh if i t

, ,
i s short or th i ck thei r res i stance,
is less high A long slender hla

.
men t may requi re e ight o r ten

volts to light i t properly whi le ,
a shorter o n e wi ll gl o w wi t h six ,
volts The tendency at present

.
i s to i ncrease t h e len gth and re

si st an ce of the fil a m en t fo r the ,
sake of the better light to be

obta ined in t h i s way and al ,
though a larger number o f cells

m ust be provi ded t o overcome
the h igher res istance the current ,
consumed is l ess an d the ce lls ,
last for a longer ti me The rate .
o f consum pti on of en ergy by a
ten volt lamp wh ich glows pro

perly wi th 4 of an amp e re is°
four Watts whi le that

consumed by a si x volt lamp
usi ng 7 o f an am pe re i s
Watts I n these two cases t he
.
energy expended is a lmost the

same but the long& fi l am en t oi
,
ffi ggg
F ’G - gl ' N the ten volt lamp i es the mo t
wg él g 3
fl 0 0 '
g v s
li ght and the cell s las t longer

,
l am pe —There
.
2 8 3 B a t t eri es f o r i n c an desc e n t
.
.
C A U T E RY A ND LI G H T I N G I N S T RU M E N T S .
4 11
are four forms battery in use fo r l ight i ng small

of
lampe z— r .B ichromate cells 2 D ry batteri es .

3 . . .
C hlor i de o f s i lver ce l ls 4 A cc umulators . O f .these .
the b ichro m ate cells are the least conven ie n t fo r reasons

already gi ven 10 3 Unt i l lately however
, , ,
they have been used largely but the other ki nd s of ,
battery are much to be preferred H el ium s dry cell i s .

’
very c o nven ien t and i t i s cheap S i x or e ight dry cel ls .
o f thi s m ake are fitt ed up i n a p l a i n oak box by M v .
S chal l wi th a si mple form o f rheostat and they may be ,
trusted for a l arge number o f exami n ati ons I t i s wi se .
in choos ing a battery of th i s k i nd to have the cells as

large as poss ible that renewals may not be t oo fre
,
quently req ui red The chlori de o f s ilver cells are very

.
light and co nven ient fo r s m all lamps and woul d be the ,
best were i t not fo r thei r tendency to spo i l a fter a t i m e

fro m local act i on S ooner or later some o f the s ilver
.
chlori de becom es di ssolved in the exc i t ing l i qu id and i s ,
deposi ted as metal l i c sil ver on the surface o f the z i nc .
L ocal acti on th en takes place and bubbles o f hydrogen ,
gas are evolved the elec t ro m ot i ve force o f the battery

,
becomes wea kened and the cells are o ften burst from
,
the pressure o f th e gas .
I f accum ulators are used s m all ones may be had for ,
the sake o f portab il i ty S m all accumulators are put up

.
by sever al electr i cal firm s fo r li ght ing the fa i ry lamps

worn upon the stage and these wi ll serve very well fo r
,
surgi cal l am ps The small si zes na t urally requ i re t e

.
chargi ng m ore o ften than the large o n es but t h i s i s not ,
an obj ect i on because a ll accum ulators are bet t er fo r

,
bei ng recharged once every two or three months and ,
the capac ity o f t he sma ll cel ls i s suffic ien t fo r light i ng a

cy stos cope or s im ilar lamp for about twenty hours .
Thi s wi ll all ow of the use o f the lamp for an hour and a

4 12 me m o“ . a n s c r m c n v.
h al f per week for three mont h s wh ich i s qu ite as much

,
as i s l ikely to be requi red .I f wi shed t h e small ac c u mu

l ators can be recharged at home from a few cells of any
good pri mary battery .
2 84 R h eo st at s
. W e have .
already sai d that the la m ps vary

i n thei r res i stance very wi dely ,
and a vari able resi stance i n the

c i rcui t i s the most conven i ent
m ethod o f compensat i ng fo r these
vari at i ons wi thout i t so m e lamps
,
would be over heated and would -
qui ckly be destroyed M7 5 01 41

1 1 . .
arranges a rheostat of conven ient

size i n the handle of hi s battery
box The resi stance requ i red for
.
regulat i ng the lamps need not be

m ore than about si x or eight
oh m s A s the current to be
.
carri ed i s only about hal f an

a m pere i n a well m ade la m p the
resi stance i s easi ly m ade o f a few
turn s o f fin e ger m a n si lver wire .
R heostats are equally i m portant

fo r ca uter i es but there they have
,
to carry large c uren t s a n d m ust

be m a de o f th i ck w ire ; however ,
the i r tot a l resi stance n eed n o t be

so great fo r a var i able resi stance
,
o f hal f an o h m i s suffi c i e n t to
m od ify very greatly the current
i n a c a utery c i rcu i t
285 T h e c y st o sc o pe — Th is
. .
Fxo. 99.
—Cy t
s osco
p i s an i n strument for exa m i n i ng
e.
4 13
the m woous membrane of the bladder and i t i s ,
perha ps the most im portant and use ful o f all the

elec t ri c lamp i n struments because i t a ffords i n form a ,
ti on whi ch cannot be obtai ned wi thout i t The cysto .
sco pe h gs 99 100 ) consi sts of a be aked so und i n wh i ch

( .
, ,
Pi e »
. zoo .
—A rren mmen t of h i n p i n cyst oscope .
L .L mp C C A r
a . t im m u m
. o n C F Wi ndowin up of i n st ru
. men t .
there i s a telesc opi c arran gement by whi ch the surface o f

the bladder is vi ewed through a sm al l wi ndow o f rock
crystal T h e lamp L i s enclosed in the bea k o f the i n
.
stru m ent and throws i t s light through another wi ndow ,
al so o f crystal C F upon that pa rt o f the bladder wa l l

,
whi ch is in the fiel d o f vi ew of the telescope B i s a ‘

.
sc rew for mak i ng contact the wi res are fasten ed at C D , ,
fig 9 9 . For exa m i n i ng the upper part o f t h e bladder a

.
separate i nstrument wi th a uall refl ec t in g pri sm i s o wd .
A certa i n a mo unt of prac h c e i s required to use the cys

’
t osc ope properly and to rec ogn i w th e appeara n ces o f

,
the mucous membrane of the bladder i n health and i n

i t s vari ous morbi d condi t ions W i th the dummy blad .
der ( fig 10 1) the nec essary ski ll can be q ui ckly p i cked

.
up For a full account o f the i nstrument and mode of

.
us i ng it see M i H urry Fm wick s book on the E lectri c

, .
’
I ll um i nat i on o f the B ladder and A n an a

st h et i c i s n o t absolutely necessary fo r a cystoscopi c
exa m inat ion but i t i s more conven ient to employ one

, ,
t h o ugh co may be made t o do at a p i n c h The .
b ondon , an d A . C hw
rchi l l , 188 8 .
4 4
1 MED CA I L s na c r m c rrv .
bl adder mus t contai n six o r eight ounces of clear uri ne

or clear water if a proper vie w of i t s wal l s i s t o be
If the fl ui d present be even slightly turb id t he vi ew ,
i s very much obscured ; and if necessar y the bladder

must be washed o ut wi th warm boraci c lo t ion unt il
q ui te clear
. I f t oo li ttle fl uid be presen t in the bladder :
Pro . 10 1. —C y s t oo00pe an d dummy .
the b eak o f the i nstrument wi th the lamp

become buri ed i n the folds o f the mucous
and there wi ll be n o l ight M oreover i n th
.
,
mucous membrane m ay be burned .
When the bladder contai ns ei ght

the en d o f the cystoscope l ies free i n the on
la m p i s kept cool by the c irculati on o f the
i nstru m ent must be pushed wel l home i n t o t
c w r s av A ND o ur m o m sr aums n r s .
4 5
1
an d kept there ; if i t be allowed to work out at al l the ,
beak m ay become engaged i n the prostate and then ,
noth i ng wi ll be seen and the prostate may be burned .
The heat of the lamp i s un i mportant when i t i s sur

ro unded by a volum e o f water but when the lamp l i es ,
cl ose agai nst the m ucous m embra n e t here i s no c ircul a

ti o n of flui d round i t and i t gradually grows h o t and
,
may burn if h eld too long in one place .
2 86 T h e
.
p a n el e c t r os c o p e A nother un iversal .
l ight in g ap paratus has been i ntroduced by L eft” o f ,
V i enna under th i s name It consi sts o f a lantern wi th

, .
a handle and mi rror the light from a small i ncandescent

,
lam p is projected by the mi rror along a tube wh ich i s ,
i nserted i nto the part to be exam i ned Tubes of vari ous .
si zes are adapted to the i nstru ment I t i s es peci ally .
use ful fo r endoscopy of the urethra but i s also arranged ,
fo r exam in i ng the ear the pharynx the sto m ach & c , , , .
For a figure and descri pt i on of the instrum e n t see ,
M r Hu
. rr
y m isk s account ’
i n the “
B r i ti sh M ed i cal
Jour nal 18 8 1 part i p 462 and fo r a full account o f
,
"
, .
, .
,
the method o f us i ng it for exam i n i ng the urethra and of ,
the appearances o f the di fieren t morbi d states see h is ,
book already q uoted i n the last paragraph .
Fro . 102 . —L mp f a u
o r abdom i n al s rgery .
Another conveni ent lamp for abdom i nal surgery is

shown in figu re 10 2 It i s d esi gned in such a way as
.
to be kept clean an d asept ic wi thout any difli c ul t y I t .
may be left in the an t i sept ic solut i o n un ti l requ i red fo r

use . The attachment to the leads is by a double socket
4 16 us m c u . e rs c r a x c m .
fit ti n g,
one wi re m aki ng conta ct wi th the peri phery of
the tube wh ich carri es the lamp and the other wi t h an,
i nsulated lead passi ng down the centre T h e encl osi n g .
tube of glass prevents an y burn ing o f the ti ssues wi th

whi ch i t m ight come i n contact duri ng an o perati on .
287 .U se o f el ec t ri c l i gh t m ai n e —W hen electric .
li ght ma ins are at hand t h e current from them can be

,
P ro m3 —M Wo ekee t ransfo rm er.

'
. . r.
easily arranged to heat a cautery or li ght a sm all la mp .
The current must not be led di rectly i nto the in st ru

ments because i t s electromoti v e force i s so hi gh that it
wo uld at once destroy small apparatus by overheati ng
CA U T E RY A ND LI G H T I NG I N S T RU M E NT S .
4 7
1
t he m . the co nti nuous current systems of l ight

F or “
i n g a sui table resi stance must be in terpolated and for ,
the alternate current a trans former m ust be em

“ ”
ployed I n the L ancet for A ugust 189 1 a neat l i ttl e

.
“
, ,
trans form er for surgi cal purposes was descri bed by Mr .
Woakcs ( fig . L ike a med i cal i nduct i on apparatus

i t consi sts of a fi x ed or pri mary coi l i n whi ch the c u rrent
from the m ai n ci rculates and o f a sl i di ng secondary coi l
, ,
bui lt up i n three separate c ircui ts O n e o f the se gi ves .
a current sui table for a small surgi cal lamp another i s ,
fo r heat ing cauteri es and the th i rd i s for produc i ng an

,
i nterrupted c u rrent sui table for faradi zat i on The cur .
rents i n all three parts are adjusted by sl i di ng the

secondary over the pri mary co i l and the wi nd ing o f ,
each ci rcu i t ( number o f turns and th i ckness o f wi re) i s

c alculated for the electromoti ve force and current t e
qui red fo r ea ch purpose A lamp in the pri m ary c ircui t
.
serves the double purpose o f i ndi cati ng when the cur
rent i s turned on and o ff and acts as a resi stance ,
apparatus to keep down the current i n the prim ary c ir

cui t The i nstru m ent i s made by M r S chal l For use
. . .
o n t h e cont i nuou s current systems a good apparatus is

made by M essrs M{ liar and Woods o f 34 G ray s I nn R oad
.
'
.
R ecently a very complete l i tt le arc lamp has been

i ntroduced by M essrs Woodhou se and R aw
. son under the
name o f the M idget lamp wh i ch may prove a very ,
use ful source o f l ight fo r s urgeons especi ally fo r the ,
exami nat ion of the throat and nose or fo r g i vi ng a ,
general l ight d ur i ng operati ons It requi res a current .
o f h y e amp e res at an E M F o f fift y volts and there . . .

,
fore can only be us ed from the electric l i ght ma i ns At .
present i t i s a nov elty and has not been appl ied to

surgi cal purposes th e l ight i s sa i d t o be of 2 50 candle
,
power .
4 18 na wc u. s t s cr mc x rv .
2 88 . T he el ec t r o -m agn et .
i ns t r ument is very valuable for the removal o f fragments

o f i ron o r s t e el from t he vari ous pa rt s o f t h e body es ,
p eci a ll y f rom the eye P erma .
nent magn e ts can also be used .
“
M r S i meon S nell ha s made l arge
.
use o f th e elec tr o m agn et an d -

,
h as had great succe ss wi th i t .
I f the parti cle o f i ron be very

small or
,
i f i t be fi x ed at all
firm ly i n the t i ssues a m agnet is
n o t l i kely to rem o ve i t B ut it .
the pi ece o f met al be larger and ,
if i t be ly i ng loose as fo r ex , ,
ample i n the i nteri or o f the eye

, ,
i t m a y be wi thdrawn m ost suc

c essfu l l y by a magnet i ntroduced
through a sma l l i nc i si on .
O n e for m o f t h e i n st rumen t i s
figu red here fig
( . several i n
t erc h an geab l e pole p i ec es o f di f

eren t shapes and si z es are gene
ra l ly suppli ed th e most s ui table

,
one for ea ch case can be screwed

on at A as requi red A fe w cells .
of any bat t ery wi ll su m ec to ex
c i te the elec t ro magnet -

It i s .
so m eti mes useful t o magneti se i t

by closi n g the c urrent ci rcui t
a fter i t h as been placed i n posi
t i on near to the pi ece o f i ron .
Th i s i s done in t h e i ns t rumen t
w — w
P E
t o. r l t ma p t a
here figu
e .
red by pressi ng down

T h e E l ect ro m ngn et i n O ph t h al mi c S u
”
rgery an d B ri t M ed
0 n - . .
,
jou
rn al ,
”
Novem ber, 138 3
4 9
1
the small project i ng sl i p of metal seen on the surface

o f the co i ls .The sudden magnet i zat i on then tends to
j erk the pi ece of metal away from i t s bed The vi treous .
humour wi ll yi eld and allow the pi ece of i ron to com e

forward to the magnet I n fi rm er t i ssues i t i s not
.
always poss i ble to extract i t by an electro magnet fo r -

,
naturally i t cannot hold the part i cle as firm ly as i t

would be held by any k i nd o f forceps A large nu m ber
.
o f co m m un i cat i ons on the electro magnet i n -

surgery
wil l be found i n the med i cal journals .
A not her use o f magnet i sm i n surgery i s for the det ec

t i on of buri ed pi eces of i ron or steel For thi s purpose a
.
freely suspended magnet i c compass needle i s used .
W hen th i s i s approached to a p i ece of i ron or steel a

defl ec t i o n of the needle i s produced .
There are many ri sks of fallacy i n usi ng a magnet i c

needle for the detect i on of p i eces of i ron A n i ron .
bedstead a steel truss worn by the pat i ent or the

,
operator a pocket kn ife or other art i cle of steel m ay

,
act as a d i sturbi ng elem ent and i f unsuspected m ay

,
puzzle the operator hopelessly .

D E S C R I P TI O N O F PL A TE S .
P LA T ES I .
—V I .
T he Motor P oin ts .
PL A T E
HE A D A ND N EC K .
UPP ER L 1M B ( back) .
UPP E R L 1M B
(f ron t ) .
TH I G H (fron t) .
TH I G H A N D L E G ( back) .
L E G A N D Foo r ( ou ter side) .
P LA T ES VI I .
-
XI .
T he C utcmeou
s N 8 7 08 8 .
HE A D A ND N EC K .
UPP E R L I M B ( back) .
UPP E R L I M B ( fron t) .
L OW E R I M B (fron t)
L .
L O W E R L I M B ( back) .
PL A T E VIII
I n t ercost al humeral
L esser i n t er
.
in t . u
t
c .
I n t ern al
PL A T E IX .
humeral
L esser in t . u
c t an eo us
I u
n t ernal c t an eo us
I n feri o r
E x t ern al c ut an eous
u
gfi f} S i
A n t eri o r c r r
al i n
u u
c t an eo s
bran ch
c ati c
E x t popl it eal
.
Post t ibi al
t saphen o s
.
u
IND E X .
A ph o n ia, h yst e ical

r , 3 4
0
A postol i , on fib ro m -
yo m a , 39 2
A bdom en , l n i z at i on of,
A pparat u
2 7 3,
ga va s, st at i c al , 8 6
350 A rran gem en t o f cel l s, 7 1

A C C
. . .
( A n odal C l o si n g C o n t rac
A rt h rit i s, ac ut e ,34 7
t ion ) , 2 09 ch ro n ic , 2 8 6 , 34 8
A ccumul at ors, 134

A rt ific ial respirat i o n , el ec t ric it y ih ,
c apac rt y o f, 137 2 13
fo r u
ca t er y , 4 7
0
A scit es , 350
m an agemen t o f, 137
A st at i c gal v an o m et er, 50
rat e o f disch arge , 137 y
A t ax , l o co m o t o r, 3 16
sm all , for surgic al l am ps ,
A t m o sph eric el ec t ric it y , 8
4 11 A t ro ph y , muscul ar, 346

A ct i o n of po i n t s, 34 ressi ve, 3 20
p g
ro
A l t ern at iv es, v ol t ai c , 2 66
A t t ract i o n an d rep ul sio n , 24
A m al gam , el ect ric al , 17

A udit o ry n erv e, 345
A m al gamat i o n o f z i n c , 146 eri m en t s o n , 2 55
ex p
A m en orrh oea, 356 gal v an isat io n o f, 30 9
A mm et er, 53 y
h peraest h esi a, 2 53 2 57 -
A mpere, 57 reac t i o n s o f, 2 16 , 2 53
h ou r, 57
turn s, 8 0
A n e st h esia, est im at i on o f, 2 51
h yst e ical
r 344 ,
B at h , el ect ri c , ( see E lect ric h at h ) ,

in h em ipl egi a, 344
M r B o w lby .o n 2 5 2 ,
277
of t ri gem in u s 344 ,
B at t eri es, 112
arran gem en t of,

A n elect ro t on u 7 0
s 20 4 ,
y y c are o i , 145
A n eu r s m el e c t ro l
,
sis fo r 3 8 2 ,
ch oi ce of, 140
A n ode, 59
el ec t ro mo t iv e force o f, 139
effect s of, 2 64
i n t ern al resist an c e o f, 138
A n o sm i a, 345
medical , 140
A ph asi a, 2 99
FF Z
436 I N D EX .
B at t eries, t abl e o f, 139 B rush disc h arge, 10 9
B at t er y , S t eh rer s,
’
132 el ec t ro de, 110
b ichro mat e, 118 Buz z a rd, D r .

, on gal v a n i sin
g t h e
Bun sen , 12 1 oc ul ar m uscl es 333 ,
c h l o ride o f sil ver, 12 6 o n n eurit is 3 3

3 ,
D an i ell , 120 on h yst eri a si m ul at ing

dry , 129 n ervo us di seases , 3 5
0
G assn er, 129
grav it y , 12 1
G rove, 12 1
H el l esen , 12 9
L at i mer C l ar k , 13 1 C agn ey , D r .
, cat aph o ric m edica
L ecl an ch é , 12 2 t ion , 29 1
l it han o de, 114 C an cer, D r . Iu

g l i s P a rson s on , 359
ox i de o f c0 pper, 12 8 el ec t ro l ysi s i h , 40 2
pl a t es o f , 4 2 t reat men t by powerful s ho c ks,
po l e s o f, 4 1 359
S ch an schiefl ,
'
13 1 C apac it y o f cel l s , 114
seco n dar y , 134 el ec t ri c , 34

S m ee spec i fic i n duct iv e , 36
’
s 117
s ul phat e of m ercury , 13 1 un it o i , 57
t est i n g o i , 17 3 C ardew D r , .
, o n ex o ph t h al m o s,
312
B el t s, el ec t ri c , 2 7 5 C m ach in e , 9 5
arre s
’
c h ro m at e so l ut i o n , 118 C at al si s, 2 60y
i n din g sc re ws ,
16 2 C at a ph o resi s, 2 2 1
B zrd , D r . G o l di n g , on am e n o r C at aph o ric m edicat i o n , 29 1
t h ose , 356 C at h o de ( see Kat h o de

) , 59
o n c h o rea , 3 1
0 C a ut ery , b at t er fo r, 40 6 y
i n st rum e n t s, 40 3
’
B l adder, afl ec t io n s o f, 352
pa ral y si s an d weak n ess o f, l e a ds fo r, 40 8

2 46 rh eo st at fo r, 4 12
B o wl by , M r .
, on in j uries of n e rve s, C ell s ( see B at t er y) , 1 12
32 7 in se ries, 42
est im at io n o f an aest h esia , C en t ral gal v a n i z a t io n , 2 7 9
2 52 n e rv o us s y st em , t re at men t oi.
B rach ial pl ex us , pl a n o i , 2 33- 4
B rai n , dise ases o f, 2 9 7 C ereb ral di se a se, 29 7
gal v a n i z a t i o n o f, 2
74 C . G S
. . un it s , 24, 56
reac t io n s o f, 2 17 C h arge, di st ribut io n o f, 33
B ridge , Whea tston e s 66 ’
C h l o ri de o f sil v er c el l , 12 6
I N D EX .
43 7
C h o ice of c urren t , 261 C o n t act brea ker , D e Wa ttevi l le s ’
C h o ice of po l e, 2 64 I S4
C h o rea, 30 1 el ect ro mo t ive forc e, 40
y
C h ron i c m el i t i s, 3 16 C o n t rac t io n , an o dal , 2 0 4
C irc u i t , gal van ic , 4 1 l

'
efi ec t s o f po e, 2 09
C 1rcuit s , pri m ar y an d sec o n dar y , kat h odal , 20 4
7 8 l aws o f, in m an , 20 8
C ircum fl ex n erve, in j ury o f , 32 9 u

m in im al c rre n t s fo r, 344
C lu b fo ot , 3 18 Pfl ti ger s l aw
’
’
, 20 5
C o il s, faradi c, 8 1 t et an us 2 11 ,
i n duc t io n , 8 1 C on t ract ures 339 ,
m edical , 8 2 , 151 C o ul o mb
57 ,
pl an o f, 152 C rut c h paral ysi s , 222
Pri m ar y . 153 C urren t o f ac t i o n , 2 0 1
ul at ion o i 153
reg , rest , 20 1
Ruh m ko rfi 8 1 yt ic eff ect s of

'
, c at al , 2 60
seco n dar y , 153 c o l l ec t o rs, 17 0
sl edge form , 153 den sit y of , 19 3
C o l l ect o rs, 170 diff usio n o i , 19 3
doubl e, 1 2
7 di rec t io n o i , 2 65
si n gl e, 17 1 el ec t ro t on ic , 2 0 2
C o mm ut at or , 17 4 h eat in g effec t s o i , 7 3, 22 1
C o m pari so n o f co n t rac t io n s , 2 2 5 li n es o f, ro un d el ec t rode , 2 10
i n duc t io n c o il c ur m easurem en t o f see ( G al van o

ren t s, 155 m et er) , 49
C o m pass n eedl e, 43 reg ul at io n o f, 17
det ect io n of st eel un i t o f,

48 , 57
by . 4 19 v aso m o t o r eff ect s of, 2 99
C o n den sers, 35 C urren t s , i n duced, 7 5
C o n duc t in g wi res, 158

p mri
a ry , 155
C u
o n d c t i o n , 19 seco n dary , 155
el ec t ro l yt ic , 19 3 t h erm al effec t s o f, 7 3, 221
in t h e bo dy 19 5 C y st o sco pe 12
, , 4
C u
o n d c t o rs, 20
fo r st at i cal t reat m en t ,
10 1
C o n n ex i on s , 16 2
C o n st an t bat t er y , 116 D a n iel l s cel l , 120

’
C o n st i pat io n , 350 D efo rm i t i es, 3 18

C o n t act brea ker , 81 D egen erat io n , react io n o f, 2 40
438 I N D EX .
D e H am , 2 D yn e , 44
D el t o id paral sis, 33 1 y D ysm en orrh te a, 400
D en si t o f cu
y rre n t , 69
el ect ri c , 33
D epo l ari sers, 116
so l id, 11
7
D e ri ved c urren t s , 65
D i agn osi s, 2 2 3
co m pariso n o f sides, 2 2 6 E arly w it ers r , 2, 86
gal v an o m et er in , 2 25 B ars subj ect i

, v e n o ises ih , 30 8
i n b i l at eral di sease ,
-
2 35 E ff ec t of po l e , 2 6 4
D i al c o l l ec t o rs, 1 0 al t erat iv e , 2 60
'
7 E fiect s,
D i aph ragm , st im u l at io n o f, 2 13 yt ic 2 60
c at al ,
D i e l ec t ric , c o n st a n t , 2 5, 36 el ect o l yt i c 2 60
r ,
st rai n s in , 37 el ec t ro t o n ic , 2 59
D ifi usio n of c urren t , 19 3 sedat iv e , 2 64
D i ph t h eri t ic paral si s, 3 2 3 y so o t h i n g, 2 60
D irec t io n o f c u rren t , 2 6 5 st i m ul at i n g , 2 59
D i sch arger, 10 2 t ro ph ic , 2 60
D isl oc at io n s, 348 E l ect ric bat h , 277
D i so rders o f h earin g, 30 8 bac k rest , 2 9

7
sex u al , 354 bat t er y fo r, 28 2
ut eri n e , 3 55 c urren t use d fo r, 28 1
D i spl ac em en t , el ec t ric , 38 el ec t ro de s fo r, 2 79
D l st n b ut i o n o f c h a rge, 33 faradic , 284
D iv i ded c irc u it s, 65 gal v an i c , 2 8 3
D ry bat h , 10 3 ga l v an o fa ra di c ,
-
2 84
ce u s, 12 9 hot ai r o r v a po ur , 285
a dv a n t ages o f, 12 9 re sist an c e o i , 2 8 1
G a ssn er t e m pe rat ure o f , 2 9

’
s, 12 9 7
H el l esen
'
s , 12 9 uses oi , 29 5
D uch en n e , 5
on i n fan t l l e paral y s i s, 3 15,
3 1
7
on i n t errupt e d c urren t s , 156
on l ead pal s , 3 2 5 y
on p g essiv e m u
ro r sc ul ar at ro
h
p y. 32 1
o n sc i at ic a , 338 14 8 , 4 16
y
D n am o m ach i n e, 8 4
-
1a x .
439
E l ect ric al u
c rren t s in n erv e an d E l ect ro de, si t uat io n o f, 2 66
musc le , 2 00 peri n eal , 352

E l ect ri ca l depart m en t s, 4 po si t i o n s o i , 3 5
1
fricti o n s, 30 8 she at h , 169
m ach i n es, C arr é , 95 st an dard si z es , 16 5, 167
H ol t z, 89 ut eri n e , 39 6
in fl uen c e, 89 E l e c t ro di agn o si s ch art s,
- 2 37
L ewan do wski s, 9 7 E l ect ro l ysis 8 6

’
, 5 3, 2
R a msden s, 8 8 bet ween pol es, 364

’
ac t i o n
Vo ss , 9 1 in l iv in g t i ssue s 365 ,
Wi m sh urst , 92 in urgical prac t ic e

s , 3 6 2
o rgan s ( s ee E l ect ric eel ) , 22 1 l aws o f 60 ,
sta t e o fl i vi n g bo di es, 9 se c o n dar y react ion s , 6

3 3
t reat m en t , 2 58 y
E l ec t ro l t e, 58
prec a ut io n s i a , 2 62 E l ect ro l t i c c o n du
y c t i on , 193
E l ec t rici t y an d l pro cesses 7

v it a E l ec t ro - magn et ic fiel d, 47
—
,
as a t est o f deat h , 36 1 E l ec t ro m agn et s, 4 18

at mo sph eri c , 8 E l ec t ro m et ers, 30 -32
-
first used i n
ho spi t al s, 3 E l ectro m o t i v e forc e, 2 6
fun dam en t al ex peri m en t s, 13 i n du c ed, 7 8
gal v an ic , 0 o f b at t erie s, 112

4
o rigi n o f word , 1 un it oi , 54
ph y siol ogi cal effect s o f , 19 9 E l ect ro Pho rus , 20
posi t i o n o i , i n m edici n e , 6 E l ec t ro -
n egat iv e, 113
o si t i v e a n d n e at i v e, 1 E l ect ro po si t iv e, 113
p g 4
-
st at ic , 12 , 86 E l ec t ro sc 0 pes, 17
v i t reo us an d resin o us , 14 E l ect ros t at i cs, 12
E l ect ri cs an d n o n - el ect ri cs, 16 E l ec t ro t o n us, 2 03
E l ec t ro de, 59 , 163 E n ure si s

352 ,
ac t iv e, 168 , 2 2 4 E pil at i o n , 369

adh esi ve, 17 0 E pil eps 300 y .
appli c at io n o f, 17 0 E quipo t en t ial s urfaces , 27
u
a ral , 2 56 Equival en t s, el ec t ro ch em i cal , 61
c arbo n , 164 o f sil ver, 61
cl a y , 39 8 E rg. 7 3
c ut an eo us . 2 51 E x am i n at ion of pat i e n t s, 2 23
fo r bat h , 27 9 Ex c i t abil it y , al t erat i on s ia , 2 40
h an d, 2 68 Ex c it o r, 10 2
han dl es fo r, 164 Ex 0 ph t h al m i c go it re, 3 1 1
in differen t , 168 , 2 24 E x peri men t s, st at ic al , 13, 39

44 0 I NDE X .
urren t G al v an om et er, E del man n s, 18 4

’
E x t ra c , 79
E yel ash es in gro win g, 37 2 Guij
'
a s, 18 3
’
grad uat io n o f, 180
h o ri z o n t al , 18 3
i n di agn osis, 2 2 5
m edi c al , 18 1
F aci al u
n e ral gi a, 337 refl ec t i n g, 54
paral y sis
334 , sh un t for, 18 2
o
p g
r n o si s i n, 24 9 sin e , 50
spasm , 340 t an gen t , 5 0 , 180
Farad, 57 t h eo r y of
50 ,
F ara day , 5 v e rt i c al , 18 2
Faradi c bat h , 28 4 G al v an o sco pe, 49

c urren t s , 81 G en eral faradi sat io n , 2 67
m et h o ds, 2 70 m et h o ds o f, 2 68
Faradi z at io n , gen eral , 2 67 uses o i , 2 69
Faradi sm , in di c at i o n s fo r, 26 1 G i l bert , D r .
, of C o l c h est er, 2
uses o f , 271 G o it re, ex o ph t h al m i c , 3 11

Farri er , D r. , on spi n al n erv e G o n o rrh oeal rh e um at i sm , 2 89
ro ot s, 2 33 G out, 2 89 , 34 8
Fibro m -
yo m a , 39 2 , 399 G raphi t e rh eo st at , 30 9
Fisl d pl at es, 9 0 Gu l l , S i r Wi l l i a m , o n c h o rea, 30 1
Foet at io n , ex t ra -
ut erin e , 400 Gu y s H ospit al
’
R epo rt s, 4
Fo o t , m o v em en t s 3 18 o i,
F ri c t io n s, el ec t ric al , 30 8
H ai s em o al o i 36 9
r , r v ,
H ai y m l es 37 2
r o ,
G al ac t ago gue 351 e ffec t s , H d l t o d 2 68

an e ec r e,
G al v an i c t re at m e n t o f u l c ers, 360 H eada h e 3 7 c ,

0
G al v an iz at io n , c en t ral , 2 7 4 H a t t i m ul at i o f 2 12
e r ,
s on ,
G al v an ism , prel i m i n ar y acc o un t H at m ch a ic al eq ui a l e

e , e n v n t oi , 75
o f, 40 H at i g efi ct 7 3
e n e s,
i n dic at io n s fo r, 26 1 H m i pl egia 2 9 8
e ,
G al v a n o -
ca ut ery , 160 , 40 3 H e pet ic eual gia 339
r n r ,
G al v an o faradi z at io n ,
-
2 72 H erri ng ha m , D r .
, on brac h ial
G al v a n o m et er, 4 8 , 18 0 l e x us 2 34
p ,
ast at i c , 50 H y
ist o r o f m edic al el ec t ri c i t y , 2, 86
c o n st an t , 52 H ol l o w cl ub fo ot -
, 3 19
I N D EX .
H ol t z mach in e 89 ,
H orse power 7 4 ,
H uman body resist an ce of , , 19 5 Kat h el ectrot o n us, 2 04
Hypochon driasis 30 5 ,
Kat h o dal co n t ract io n , 2 09
Hypo t h esis o f fl uids 14 ,

Kat hode, 59
Hyst e ia 30 3
r , effec t s o f, 2 64
v i rt ual , 2 10
K C . . C .
( kat ho dal cl o sure co n t rac
t ion ) , 2 09
I n c an descen t l am ps, 160 , 409

I n co n t in en c e, n o ct urn al , 352
I n duct i o n , 18
L abil e m et h o d, 2 66
c o - efli cien t o f, 8
7 L a l a n de an d C haperon s c el l , 12 8
'
co il , 81
L amp, abdo m i n al , 4 15
el ect ro - m agn et ic , 75 L amps, bat t eries for, 4 10
l aws o f, 7 6
el ec t ric , 160 , 40 9
mutual , 7 8
L ar yn goscope 409
y
I n fan t i l e paral sis, 3 15 3 16 -
L at eral
,
scl ero si s, 2 9 0
Influ en ce m ach i n es, 8 9
L aw o f co n t ract i o n s, 209
In j uries o f n erv es , 32 6 L ead pal s , 32 3 y
I n so m n ia, 2 7 4, 30 8
L eads, 158
I n st rum en t s, m an agemen t o f, 84
for ca t eru y 40 8
I n su
,
l at o rs, 2 0 , 10 3
t abl e o f, 160
I n t ern al resist an ce, 138
L ecl an ch é cell , 12 2
I n t ero ssei , paral si s o f, 3 19 y ch argin g o i , 12 3
I n t erpo l ar region , el ect ro l ysis in ,
c h em i st r y oi 12 3
,
364
m an agem en t o f, 12 5
I n t errupt o r, u
a t o mat ic , 81
L egal o h m , 57 6 2 -
I n v erse q uares
s law o f, 25
L en z s l aw, 7 6
, ’
I o n s, 58
L ewa n dowski m ach i n e , 9 7
’
s
migrat ion o f, 6
3 4
L e den y jar, 36 , 10 1
n at ure o f disch arge, 10 7
L in es of force, 38
m agn et ic, 4 5
L in es o f i n duc t i o n , 38
f a l l a bert , 2 L it han ode, 114
J oi n t afl ect o n s,i L oco mot o r y

'
34 7 at ax , 3
16
f ulat . 74. 75 L odge, D r

. O l i ver, 12
I N DE X .
L o ss of t ast e an d sm el l . 345 M uscul ar rh eum at i sm , 34 9

L o wer segm en t . 247 M yal gia 349 .
Lum bago , 2 94 , 339 M y el it i s 3 16 ,
M yo m a u t eri 39 2 ,
M yo pat h ic at ro ph y , 346
M ach in es, el ect ric al ( see E l ect ri cal
M agn et i c held, 45-46 N aevus, c urren t used ih , 37 8

m o m en t , 45 el ec t ro l ysis o f ,37 4
n eedl e, 4 3 n e edl es for, 3 7 8 , 3 80
po l e , st re n
gt h o f, 44 N egat ive po l e , 4 2
M agn et ism , 4 3 vari at ion , 20 2
ph ysi ol o gical effect s o f, 10 N erve , u

co n d c t i v i t y of , 20 1
M agnet o -m ac hi n e , 83 fro n tal . 2 36
M amm ar y gl an d, st im ul at io n o f, N erv es, co m parat i v e ex c it abi l it y

2 45 o f, 2 36
M u
eas remen t o f c urren t s ( see G al in j uries o f 32 6 ,
v an o m et ers ) , 48 , 18 0 se n so y 2 14r ,
M e go h m , 57 N erv o us dea fn ess, 34 5
M erc uri al po iso n i n g, 2 9 1 y

s st e m , disease s o f, 29 7
M et al lic po iso n i n g 9
, 2 0 N eural gi a, 336
t rem o rs , 30 3 D r H i l t on F agg e
. o u 336
,
M ic ro farad, 58 h erpet ic , 339

M 1o ro v o l t , 57
-
ut eri n e 359 ,
M i gra i n e , 30 7 Neurast h en ia 30 5 ,
M il k, sec ret io n o f, 2 45 Neuri t i s 332 ,
M il l i am pere, 58 al c o h o l ic 33 3
M ol es , t reat me n t o i, 37 2 N eut ral ism g ro d, 9 1
M o t o r n erves, po i n t s fo r, 2 30 No ct urn al i n co n t i n e n ce ,
3 52
po i n t s , 5, 2 28 N o rm al re ac t i o n s, 34 4
upra
s -
c l av i c ul ar of E r b,
23 1
M usc l e , co n d uc t iv it y o i , 20 1
e x c i t at i o n o f , 2 0 8 , 3 44
h eart , 2 12 O b st et ric prac t i ce , el e c t ri c it y m ,
st ri ped, reac t i o n s 0 1
, 2 10 35 6
un st riped 2 11 , O cul ar m usc l es , paral y si s o f , 333
M usc ul ar at ro phy 32 0 , , 346 O erst ed
’
s ex peri m en t , 43
1a x .
443
O hm , 57 Po l es, po snt we an d n egat iv e, 4 1
O h m s l aw, 55, 64 Po l e t est er, 148

’
appl ic at i on s o f, 40 8 Po rt win e m ark , 3 8 1

On e fl uid t h eo r y , 15 Po sit iv e c h arge, effect s o f, 10 4
Oph t h al m oscope, 4 10 used fo r debil it y , 104
O pt ic n erv e , at roph y , 345 Po st -

o fii c e box , 68
react io n s o f, 2 16 Po t en t ial , defin i t io n oi , 3 0
Osm o sis, el ect ro l yt ic , 2 20 , 2 9 1, 6

3 4 el ec t ri c , 2 6 - 30
sl o pe o f, 66
Pressu re paral si s, 32 9 y
y
Pri m ar co il , 153
urren t 155
c ,
Pain , rel i ef o i , 2 64 Pri m e con duct o r 8 9 ,
Pain ful po i n t s i n h yst eri a 30 4 Pro gressiv e m u sc ul ar at roph y

, , 3 20
Pan el ec t ro sc0 pe, 4 15 Pseu do h ypert rO ph i c paral ysi s
-
, 346
Parall el , bat t eries i h , 7 0
y
Paral si s aft er diph t heria, 32 3
agi t an s, 30 3 CL
dist ribut i on o f, 2 3 2
Q uan t it y , el ect ric , 2 2
in fan t i l e, 3 15, 3 16
un it o f, 2 3
t reat m en t o f, 3 13
P a rson s, D r. Iu l
g , i s o n can c er, 359
Part i al R D , 2 46
B
P art u y .
ri t io n , el ec t ric it in , 356
Pen cil m et h o d, 109 R a msden s
’
m ach in e 8 8
Ph ysic al an al o gi es of el ect ri ci t y R ay n au d s disease, 29 3
’
,
2 8 -3 1 R eac t io n o f degen erat ion , 2 40
con di t io n s an d
h eal t h , 7 co n di t ion s l eadin g t o,
Ph sio l o gic al effect s o f con t i n u
y ous
c urren t , 19 9 , 2 0 8 co urse o f , 2 43
of i n t errupt ed c urren t s , di agn o st i c va lue o i , 2 47
155, 20 6
Phy sio l o gy , c ha pt er o u 19 2
, M r . B owl by o n , 2 40
Pl at es oi abat t ery , 4 2 m usc l e i h , 2 43
Pl ex us , brac h i al , 2 34 n erv e in , 2 43
Pl umbism , 29 0
part i al , 2 46
Po i n t s, ac t io n o f, 34 p ro gn o sis , 2 4 8
Po l ar isat io n , 59 , 115 R eac t ion s, an o m al o us , 250
Po l es, cho ice o f, 2 64 a udit o ry , 2 53
N ort h an d S out h , 44 ex peri men t s ou, 254

444 1a x .
R eact ion s, in i n fan t il e paral ysis,

3 18
i n t et an y , 343
St . B art h ol o m ew s ’
H o spit al Re
m o rbid c han ges i n , 2 38 po rt s , 3
o f special sen ses , 2 53 S ciat ica, 2 9 4, 338
q ual i t at iv e ch an ges i n 2 40 ,
S c l erosi s, l at eral , 29 0
q uan t i t at ive chan ges in 239 ,

S eco n dar y curren t s 155 ,
sen so r y , 2 51 S ecret io n o f m il k 351 ,
R efl ex ne ural gias , 336 S el f in duc t io n , 7 9
st i m ul at io n , 2 59 , 3 14 cc el fic ien t
’
-
o f, 80
R efresh in g ac t io n , 2 18 S elf t reat men t by pat ien t s, 2 75
R egul at io n urren t 17 6
of c ,
S en sat io n s, el ect ri cal , 2 14
R em ov al o f superfl uo us h ai rs , 6
3 9 S en so r y n erves, 2 14 , 2 5 1
R esist an ce, 55 S eries, bat t eri es i n , 7 0

bo x , 68 S ex ual di so rders, 30 6, 3
55
co i l s, 17 7 S hoc ks , 2 14
in t ern al an d ex t ern al , t reat men t by , 10 8

7 1
m easurem en t o f, 64 , 66 S h ort c irc uit , 17 3
o f an el ec t ro l yt e , 63 k
S in , resist an c e o f, 19 6
of bat t eries , 7 0 S l edge c o il , 153
o f c arb o n , 63 S l eep paral ysis , 2

3 9
of m et al s, 6 2 S l o pe of po t en t i al , 66
of m ercury 62 S m ee
’
s bat t er y , 117
o f t h e bo dy , 19 5 S park r gul at o e r, 10 6
D r. S t on e o u 19 5
,
S pa k s t eat m
r , r en t by , 10 5
v aria t io n o f , 19 9 S pasm o di c affec t i o n s , 3 3g

speci fic , 62 . S past ic ri gidit y , 290
un it o f, 57 S pec ial se n ses, react i o n s o i , 2 16
R e verser, 1
74 S peci fic i n duct iv e c apa c i t y , 25
R h eo ph o res, 16 4 S ph ere, ca
pac i t y of a , 34
R h eo st at , 1
77 , 4 2
1 S pi n al c o rd, di seases o f, 3 1
3
g ra h i
p t e, 18 0 ,
30 9 n erv e roo t s , rel a t io n to
wa t er 17 8 , musc l e s, 2 32
wi re 17 8 , S prain s, 34 8
R heu m at i sm 347 , S t abi l e m et h o d, 2 66
R h eum at o i d art h ri t i s , 2 8 6, 34 8 S t an dard c el l , C l a rk s,

’
13 1
R igi di t y , spast ic , 2 9 0 S t at ic al apparat us , 86

R oo t s o f spin al n erv e s, 2 3
3 t re at m en t , h ist o r y o f, 86
Ruh m ko rfi c o il , 81 in c h o rea , 30 1
S ir W . G ul l o n , 30 2
I N D EX .
445
S t at ic i n duc t io n , 110 T ran sform ers, 149 , 1

4 7
S tea ven son , D r. R obert , 4 T ra um at ic paral ysi s , 326
D r. W . E .
, on en uresi s n oc T reat men t , durat i o n o i , 2 63
turn a, 352 effect s o f, 2 58
on m ol es, 37 3 m et h o ds o f, 2 6 5
sc iat ic a, 338 T rem ors, 2 9 1, 303

st ri ct ure , 384 T ri ch i asis, 37 2
an d umberba tch
C T roph ic efl ec t s,
'
M r. on 2 19
Eust ach i an o bst ruc t io n 38 9 , T wo fl uid cel l 117 ,
an d M r .
y assa p on L ach r m aly T wo fl uid t h eo ry 14 ,
o bst r ct io nu , 39 1
S tahrer s bat t er
’
y , 133
S t ren gt h of c urren t , 2 62
S t ric t ure, el ect ro l ysi s i n , 38 3

of E ust ach i an t ube, 8
3 9
U l cers h eal in g of 360
, ,
of l ac h r mal y c an al , 39 1
U n it o f curren t 48 ,
o f oeso ph ag s, u 389
U n it s C G S 24
, . . .
,
Sub au ral gal v an i sat io n , 2 74 el ec t ro - st at ic , 2 5
Sub i n v ol u
-
t ion , 358 o f c apac i t y , 57
Subject iv e n o i ses 30 8 ,
of c urren t
57 ,
Su l a i ul a i t o f E b 231 o f el ec t ro m o t i v e force, 57
pra c v c r po n r
-
,
Sur ery el ec t ro l y si s i h o f m easu remen t , 2 4

g , 369 ,
y
S m pat h et ic n erve, gal v an i z at i o n of q uan t it y , 57
o f, 2 7 3 o f resi st an ce, 57
S yn co pe , el ect ri cit y in , 2 12 prac t ic al , 5 6
U pper r G ow
segm e n t ( D
n s) 2 47 .
,
U ret h ra st ric t ure o i 38 3

, ,
U rin ary o rgan s diseases o i 352 , ,
U t erus di se ases of 355

, ,
T ab esdo rsal is, 3 16 fibroi ds o f, 39 2
T an gen t gal v an o met er, 50, 18 0
T est in g i n st rumen t s, 18 7
T et an 343 y .
T h erapeu t i cs, gen eral , 258
T ic do ulo u reu x , 33 Vaso mo t o r efiect s, 2 7 3 2 9 9

7 ,
T im e con st an t , 80 Visceral o rgan s reac t ion s o f, , 2 17
T in n i t us u um
a ri , 2 16 , 2 53, 308 Vo l t 56 ,
el ec t ro de for, 256 Vo l t aic cel l simpl e, 4 2 ,
T o rt icol l i s, 33g Vol t am et er, 60 18 8 ,
T ox ic para l ses, 32 3 y co pper, 19 0

I N D EX .
Vol t amet er use o f, 189

, W ires , 158
wat er , 188 resi st an ce o f, 160
Vol t met er 53 186

-
, , t abl e o f siz es, 160
Vo ss machin e, 9 1 Wo m en di seases o i
, , 355
W rit er s cram ti 34 1
’
,
Wry n eck 339 .
Watt s 7 4 16 1
, ,
Wesley R ev yal m 2
, .
,
Wheat st o n e s bridge 66
’
, Z ero pot en t i al , 27
Wimshurst s m ac hin e
’
, 9 2
C A T A L O G UE NO . 7 . M AY . l 8 9 2.
A C A T A L O G UE
BOOKS FOR ST UDENT S .
I NC L UD I N G T H E
? Q UI Z C O M P E N D S ? -
C ON T E N T S .
PA G E sa c s
N ew S eries of M an u al s , Ob t s et rics . 10
A n at o m y , 6 Pat h ol ogy , H
i st ol ogy , 11
Biol ogy , 11 Pharm acy 12
C h erm st ry , 6 Phy si cal ISiagn osis , 11
C hi l dren s D 1seases, Phy si ol o

’
7 11
D ti y
en st r ,
8 Prac t ice 0 M edic me 11, 12
D i ti i
c o n ar es, 8, 16 Prescri pt io n Boo ks, 12
E Di e seas es, 9 ? Qu i z - C o m p en d e 14, 15
E ec tri c i ty , 9 S lun D
iseas es , 12
Gyn e co logy , 10 Su rgery an d Ban dag i n g, 13
H ygi en e , 9 T herapeu t ics , 9
M at eri a M edica , 9 U
ri n e an d U
ri n ary O
rgans , 13
M edi c al J uris pruden ce , 10 V
en ereal D
iseases, 13
PUBL I S H E D BY
P BLA KISTON SON 81CO

.
, .
,
M edica/ Booksellers Importers . and Pu

blishers .
LA R GE ST OC K O F A L L ST U D E NT S ’
BOO K S , AT
T HE L O WE S T P R I C E S .
10 12 W a l n ut S t re e t , P h i l a d e l p h ia .
J Fo r sal e by all Boo ksel lers ,

‘ or an y b oo k will b e sen t by mail ,
post pai d , upo n rec e1pt of price C . atal og es o f u bo o ks on all bran ch es
of M edrci n e , D en t ist ry , Ph arm acy . et c . su
, ppl ied upon appl icati o n .
j us t R ea d y
3000 Q uest l o n s o n M edical Subjects
P ri c e cen t s
.
10
A n ex cell en t S eri es of M an u
als .
—A rc b rm : qf Gy n e col ogy
'
A N E W S E R IE S O F
ST UD E NT S
’
M A N UA L S
O n th e vario us Bran ch es of M edici n e an d Sur ery
g .
C an b e us ed by St ud en t s of an y C o l l eg e .
Prlee of each , Handsome C loth. Fu

ll Leat her,
T h e obj ect o f t h is seri es i s t o fu rn i sh

goo d m a n ua l s
fo r t h e m edi cal stu den t , that wil l st ri e th e medi u m k
bet ween t he co mpen d o n o n e h an d an d t h e prol ix t ex t
bo o k o n t he o th er —
to co n t ai n al l that is n ecessar for y
t h e st u den t , wi th o ut emb arrassi n g h im with a fl ood o f
y
th eo r an d in vol v ed st atem en ts T he h ave been pre . y
red by well n o wn m en , wh o h ave had l arge ex
k i
p a pe r en c e
-
as t each ers an d writ ers , an d wh o are, th erefo re, well

in form ed as t o th e n eeds o f th e st u
—
den t .
T h eir m echan i cal ex ecu ti o n is o f t h e b est goo d type

an d paper, h an dso m el ill ustrated wh en ever i l l u y
st rati o ns
are o f u se, an d stro n gl bou n d in u n i form st l e y y .
E ach boo is so l d separatel at a rem arkabl l o w

k y y
ri ce , an d t h e i mm edi ate su cc ess o f several o f th e
p
vo l u m es sh o ws that t he seri es h as m et wi th po pu l ar
favo r .
No 1 . . S UR G E R Y . 3 18 I l l u s t ra t i o n s .
T h i rd E di t i o n .
A M an ual of th e Pract i ce o f Su r er
g By WM J y . . .
WA L S H A M , M . D , A sst S u
. r
g t.o , a n d D em
.o n st rato r c l
'
Su m , St B art h o l o m ew s H
ospit al , L o n do n , et c
’
rg . . .
18 I l l u t rau ns
3 s o .
P resen ts t he i n t ro duc t o ry fac ts 1n Surgery i n c l ea r , prec ise

l a n guage , an d co n t a m s al l t he l a t est a dv a n ces in P at h o l o gy ,
A n t 1se pt l c s , et c
It a rm s t o o cc upy a po sx t l o n m ndwa b et wee n t h e pret en t io u s

m a n ual a n d t h e cum b e rso m e S y s t e m 0 S urge r , a n d 1t s ge n era l
y
c h a rac t e r m a y b e sum m ed up m o n e wo rd—pra c t l cal T h e M ed i
ca l B u l l et m
Wal s h a m , b esndes b em g an e x cel len t surgeo n , is a t each er i n
1ts b es t sen se , a n d h a v x n g h a d v e ry g rea t e x pert en ce i n t h e
p r e pa ra t i o n o f c a n d nda t es o é
r e x a m m a t io n , a n d t h et r su bs eq ue n t
pro fess 1o n a l c a ree r, m a y b e re l l ed u po n t o h a v e c a rri ed out h is
wo rk suc c essful l y W x t h o ut fo l lo wi n g o ut i n de ta 1l h 1s a rra n ge
m en t , wh i c h 18 e x c el l e n t , we c a n a t o n ce say t h a t h is b o o k i s an
e m b o d 1m en t o f m o de rn 1dea s n ea t l y s t ru n g t o g et h er , w1t h an a m o u nt
o f c a re fu l o rga n i z a t io n well su 1re d t o t h e c a n di da t e , an d i n dee d to
t h e prac t nt no n e r
”
.
—
B r 1t i : h A l edica l j o ur n a l
, ,
.
Price of each Book, C loth. Leather,

T HE NE W SE R IE S OF M A NUA L S . 8
m s n a sn s W OM E N 150 B l u
’
No 2 . . on . e .
N E W E D IT I O N .
T he D iseases o f Women I ncl u

di ng D iseases o f the.
Bladder and U ret hra By D 11 men ” Professor

fg ?
. . i
o f Gyn n co lo gy an d D irect o r 0 e R oyt Un iversi

C l i n ic for Women , in M u n ich Seco nd E diti on R . . 2
vised an d E dit ed by T h eo ph il u s P arv i n ,
Professor o f O bst etri cs an d D iseases o f Wom en an d

C h i l dren in efierson M edical C ol l ege
'
g
150 R a gt ey .
mod 0 whi ch are

book will be a val n able on e t o ph ys ic ian s i en d a n fie an d
aatb fact ory o ne m pn t ln t o t he hands of stn den t s l t ls ism d in a
neat an d a tt ract i ve form an d at a very reaso n able pri ce
”
Bocm
.
.
—
No 3 O BS T E T R I C S 22 7 I l l us t ra t i on s
w
. . . .
A M an u al of M i dw ifery By A 1n an . 1 s C am u s, .
sue , Obst etri c Physi man and L ect u

.
rer on M id
th e D isease: of Wo men at Gu y s H ospital ,
’
L o n don ; E x amin er in M idwifery t o th e C o n oi n t

'
E x ami n in g Board o f E n glan d, etc “ fith 2 27 us . .
T his man u al is on e we ean st rongl y neco mm en d t o al l w ho

“
dui re t o st u dy th e ael en oe as well u t he prac fice of mid

S tu den ts at t h e pres en t ti me no t on l y are ex pected t o lt no w 0
cl l ee of diagn osi s an d th e treat m en t of t h e vari ou s emergen
2
£1:a co mpli ca ti ons th at occur in the pract i ce of midwifery but
,
fin d th a t th e t en denc y is fo r ex a mi ners t o ad : mo re qu es om
relat i n g t o t h e sci e n ce o f t h e subjec t t h an was t he cu s t om a few
years age T h e gen e ral st an da rd of the ma nu

. “ a l i s h igh ;
an d wherever t he scien co an d practi c e o f m i dwifery m well tan
i t will b e as o ne of t he most i mpo rtan t t ex t ~bo oln on g
su P ract i t io ner
"
bject . .
I LLU S T R A T I O N S
32 1 A ND A G LO SSA R Y .
A M an ual o f Physi ology By G ER A LD F Y x o , . .
Pro fessor o f Physiol ogy in Kin g s C o ll ege ,

'
L o n do n 32 1 Il
. l u
str ati o ns an d 2 G l ossary of T erms .
Fi fth A meri can from l ast E n gl ish E di tio n , revised and

i mpro ve d 8
75 p g a .e s .
T his vo l u
me was speciall y prepared t o furn is h st u
den ts wi th a
ne wtex t -hoolt of Ph ys iology , el em en tary so far as t o a v o id th eori es
wh ich ha ve no t h om e th e tes t o f t i me an d s ch u det ai ls of me thods

as are u
n n ecessary fo r st uden ts in o ur med i cal col l eges .
T h e brief ex ami n a t io n I
ha ve gi ven i t was so fav o rabl e t hat I
—
h eed i t in th e l ls t ol te x t -books reco mmen ded i n the d rcu
'
“
'
h r ot th e
ni versit y M edical C o l e
"
P rd l M . A um i . m .
3 7 5 0 1133 4 St r m , N m
,
or } .
Price of each Book. C loth . Luther.

4 T HE N E W SE RI E S OF M A NUA LS .
No 5 . . D I S E A S E S O F C H IL D R E N .
ss c o n n 3 0 11 10 11 .
A M an u al By J F G oo n mt n r, Ph s t o t h e y
'
. . . .
E velin a ospi t al H
for C hil dren ; A sst Ph s t o . y .
Gu s y Ho spit al , L on do n Secon d A m erican E di tion

’
. .
E dited an d R est r cd by L OUIS ST A R R , M D C l in i cal . .
Pro f o f D is o f C h dren i n th e
. . ospital o f th e U n i v
'
H .
y
o f Pen ns l van i a, an d Ph sici an t o t h e C h il dren s H os
’
y
p i t al , Phil a C o n t ai n i n g m an. n ew P re scri pt i o ns , a li st y
o f o ver 50 Fo rm u l ae, co n formin g t o t h e U S Ph arma . .
co poei a an d D i rect io n s fo r ma in g A rt ifici al

, uman k H
k
M il , for th e A rti fici al D igest ion of M ilk, et c 11 1115 . .
T h e m eri ts of t h e b o ok are m an A side fro m t he raisewort h y

p
wo rk o f t h e pri n t er an d bin der w ic h ves us a pun t an d page
'
t ha t deh gh t s t h e ey e , t h ere is t he add ch arm o f a st y l e of w m

i n g t h at i s n o t weari so me, t h a t m akes i ts st at em en ts cl earl
y an d
to rc 1bl y , a n d t h a t kn o ws wh en t o st op wh en it has sa i d en o u gl l
'
.
T h e in sert t on of t y pi cal t em pera t u re ch arts cert ai n l y en han ces t ll e

v alu e o f t h e bo o k I t is rare, t oo , to fin d in an t ex t - hoo lt so man y
.
t opi cs t rea t ed o f A ll t h e rarer an d o u

. t -o f t e-wa diseases are -
gi v en co n" snderat io n T h is we c o m m en d I t ma es th e wo rk
—
. .
v al u c dn a t i a, j u
’
ab l e A r ch zvc: o
'
. ly , 1890 '
.
T h e au t h or h as av o ided t h e n o t u n c o mm o n erro r o f wri t in g a

b o o k o n ge n era l m edi cxn e a n d l ab el i n g i t iseas es of C h il dren ,
’
D
b ut h as s t ea dil y kept i n v ie w t h e diseases wh l c h seemed t o be
m c iden t al t o c h x l dh o o d, o r suc h po i n t s m disease as appea r t o be so
e c ul i a r t o o r p ro n o un c e d m c h i ld re n as t o J u s t 1f m sist en c e u
p po n
t h em . A safe a n d re l i a bl e gu ide , a n m m a n y way s
a dm 1ra b l y a da p t e d t o t h e wa n t s o f t h e st u
”
den t a n d pra c t 1t 1o n er .
A m e r i ca n j o ur n a l of i l l ea zca l S ci en ce
'
T h o ro u ghl y 1n d1v 1du al , o rig m a l a n d e a rn est , t h e wo rk ev i

“
den t l y o f a c l o se o b s e rv e r a n d a n i n de pe n de n t t h i n ker , t h 1s b o o k,
th ou h m a l l a a h a db o k m d m m b n o m ea n s m a de
—
g s ,
s n o o r c o pe n i s y
up o f ba re o ut l i n es o r s t an da rd fa c t s T h e T h er apeut i c Ou
"
.
x et t e
A s 11 is sa 1d o f so m e
m ngh t be sa 1d o f so m e bo o ks ,
m en ,
so i t
t h a t t h e y a re
‘
b o rn t o g rea t n ess T h 1s n e w v o l u m e h as , we
b eh e v o , a m t ss t o n , pa rt i c ul a rl y m t h e h a n ds o f t h e y o u n g er
m e m b e rs o f t h e pro fess no n I n t h e se da y s o f p ro h x i t y m m e d1c al
l i t e ra t ure 1t i s re fres h m g t o m e e t W i t h a n a ut h o r wh o kn o ws bo t h
,
wh a t t o s ay an d wh e n h e h a s sa 1d 11 T h e wo rk o f D r Go o dh a rt
( a d m i ra b l y c o n fo rm ed , b y D r S t arr, t o m ee t A m e ri can req ui re
m e n t s ) I S t h e n ea res t a ppro ac h t o c l m ic a l t e ac h i n g wi t h o ut t h e
ac tu al p rese n c e o f cl m x c a l m a t e rnal t h a t we h a v e y et see n Nm .
—
Y a r k l l cdzca l R eco r d
’
. .
Price of each Book. C loth , Leather,

T HE NE W SE RI E S “ M A NUA
01 LS . 6
F O U R T H E D I T I O N W I T H A N IN D E X O F D I S E A S E S
, .
Pract ical T hen peu tiee, con sidere d wi th reference to

A rti cl es of t he M at eri a M edi ca C o n tain in g, also , an .
I n dex o f D iseases, w i th a list o f the M edicine:

appli cabl e as R emedi es By E D WA R D O N W s,
. J H ww
M D . 9 1. m m Fou
. . rt h E di tion
. R ewritt en and R e .
vised by D UD L E Y W B u x ron , M D . A sst to th e Prof

. . . . .
of M edi ci ne at U n i versi t C ol l ege ospi tal y H .
“
We wish a copy ooul d he put in t he han da ot every Smden t or ’
Pract i ti o n er ln t he co u n I n our est imat io n “ is t he ,

of t h e kin d ever w rit ten 1V V M t dk a l j ow l
.
-
. . .
D r Waring s T he ra pe u t ics ha s l o n g been kno w

’
. n as on e of t he
most t h oro ugh medi cal works T h e amou
u
an d val a ble of n t of .
ac t ual i n t el le ct n al labo r it re presen t s h l mmense A h in .
dex of diseases, wi th th e remed ies appro pri at e for th ei r trutmen t ,

closes t he vo l u me
"
.
—
But m M edi ca l a nd S u rg ical R M " .
“
1he pla n of thi s wo rk is an adm lrable on e, an d one well ed cn p
‘
l at ed t o meet t he wan ts of bu sy practi ti o ne rs . T h ere is a remark ’
able amou n t of i n format ion , acco m pan ied w i th id eas com men t s,
”
i mpart ed in a conc ise yet agreeab le st y le . & 4 1R ecord .
No 7 M E D IC A L J UR I S P R UD E N OE A N D
’
. .
r a m n n s vrss n e nm on .
By O N J R E E S E , M D , Pro fesso r o f M edia l u

J H . rispm
. .
den ce an d T ox i co l i n the Un iversi ty of en nsyl o
van ia ; Presi dent of t e M edical urispruden ce So ci ety J

o f Phl l a ; T hird E dit ion , R evised an d E n lar ed
g
—
.
T his admirabl e t ex t hoolt Am -

j n r gf M a i M
"
We lay t h is vo l mn e n idq after a careful peru

. . . . .
“
sal of i ta
wi t h the pm fo u n d im ress lon t hat l t sh o uld be m t he han ds even
do et o r an d la w rer t tu r
ll y meet s t he wan uof all smden t s
g
. .
He has su eoee c d i n adm irabl y con den si ng in to a han dy vol u me all

t h e esse n t ial po in ts a n d ~m i L e a“ ! a n d G M
" ’
-
. .
"
T he boo k befo re u s w i ll , we t hin k, be fo u n d to m w er t he ex
pect a ti ons of t he stu de n t o r pract i tioner seekln a man u al 0! ju ri s

pru d an d t h e cal l for a se co n d edl t i on is a rl n tes ti mon y
t o t he n a of t h e au t ho r s presen t e fl o rt
'
T h e med cal porti on
’
. f
o f t h is vo l ume seems t o be u n i fo rml y ex cellen t leavi ng l i t tle fo r
adverse crit ic ism T h e in fo rma t ion o n t he su h ect mat t er treated f
has been un fu n co mpiled , in acco m n ce wi t h recen t kn owledge
.
y
.
T he t o x i col ogi n po rt i on 1 1 a m sme ial l y ex c ellen t 0! t ha t pow

:3
.
t i on 0! t h e wo rk t reati n g t h e legal re l at i ons of the pract i tion er

a n d medical w i t neas , we can ex press a ge n e ral! fa vorab l e vet »
a nd Su
.
r eon , A n n A f b f , M :
g
Price of each 8 00k. C loth . uther
L .
ST UD E NT S ’
T EXT - BOO KS A ND MANUAL S .
A NA T OM Y .
I n wi et e r e
'
Human A n at o m y . 8 16 Ill ust ra t i o n s . A ne w
T ex t ~h0 0k for S t uden ts an d Pract it i o n ers , S yst em ati c an d T opo
gn phi a l , in c hi d in g t h e E mb ryolo gy , ist ology an d M H o rph o l ogy
of M an Wi t h special
. referen ce to the req ui re m en t s of
P ra ct i ce ! S urge ry an d I ed i ei n e . W i th 8 16 I ll u
s t m n on s ,
40 0 0‘ wh ich are o ri gi n al . O ct a v o . C l ot h , L ea t h er,

B n ll o n V et eri n ary A n a t o m y an d I ll us trat ed
'
s Ph y s i o l ogy . .
By Wm . R . Ball o u, l .Pro fesso r o f E q u

n .
, i n e A n at o m y at N e w
Y o rk C o ll ege of V et eri n ary S u rgeon s 29 gra phi c Ill u st ra t i on s. .
13 1
110. C l o th , I n t ed u ved for no t es,
H o l d en ’
s A n at o m y . A man ual of Di ssect i on of th e H um an
Bo y d . Fift h E d it i o n . E n larg ed , wi th M argi n al R eferen ces an d
over 200 Il l u
s t ra t i o ns . Oc mv o .
B o un d i n O i l c l o t h , fo r t h e Di ss ect i n g R oo m ,
No st uden t m y ca n t ake u
of A na to p t h is hook wi t h o ut b
pl m ed an d i nst ru ct ed I ts D
i agrams are o ri gi n al , st ri ki n g
. tz
s
v e , gi v in g m o re a t a glan ce t h an pa ge s o f t ex t descript i o n .
T h e t ex t ma t ch es t h e ill us t ra t i ons in direct n ess o f pn e

—
0 0
”
t i cal pli cat i o n an d cl earness o f de t ail N m Y or k M edi cal
?
.
R ot or
H o l d en ’
s H um an O st eo l o gy . C o m pris ing a Descri pt i on o f t h e
Bo nes , wi t h C o l o red D e li n eati on : ot

'
th e A tt ach m en ts of th e
M usc l a . T h e Ge n eral an d M icr05 00pical S truct ure of Bo n e an d
i ts D evel opm en t. W it h Li h t o graph ic Pla t u an d N um ero u

s I ll us
t rat i o ns . S ev en t h E dit i o n . 8v0 . C l ot h ,

H o l d en s
’
L a n d m a rk s , M e di ca l a n d Surgi c a l .
4t h cd . C lo .
,
H e at h
'
s P ra c t i c a l A n at o m y . S i x t h L o n don E di t i o n . 24 C 01
o re d P la t e s , a n d n ea rl y 300 o t h er I ll u
s t ra t i o ns . C l oth ,
om
pe n d o f A n a t o m y Fl ft h E di t i o n E n la rged
’
P o t t er s C . . .
16 L i t h o g ra ph i c P l a t es 117 I l l u st ra t i o n s
. S ee P ag e 1¢ .
C l o t h , 1 00 ; n t erl eav e d fo r N o t es , 1 2 5 I
C HE M IST R Y .
B a rt l e y e d i c al C h e m i s t ry S e co n d E di t i o n A t ex t b oo k
’
s M . .
-
pre pa red spec na ll y fo r M ed i c a l , Ph a rm ac eut i c a l a n d D en t a l S t u

den ts \V1t h 50 l l u
. I
s t ra t io n s , Pla t e o f A b so rp t i o n S pec t ra an d
Gl o ssa ry o f C h em i ca l T e rm s . R e v xsed a n d E n l a rged . C lo t h , 2 50
T ri m b l e . P ra c t i c a l an d A n a l y t i c al C h e m i s t ry . A C o urse in
C h em i ca l A n al y s is , by H e n ry T um b l e ,
P ro f . o f A n al y t i cal C h em
is t ry i n t he Pin k . C o l lege of Ph a rm acy . I ll u s t ra t ed. Fo urt h
E d i t io n , E n l a rge d . 8vc . C lot h ,
a S ee f at “ 2 to 5 f or [i d o / S t udm ts M
’
an ua l s .
ST U DE NT S ’
TE X T BOOK S - A ND MANUALS .
C h em i sb y C on t i n ued .
B lox am s
'
C h em i s t ry , I n o rgan i c an d Og r an i c, wi t h E x peri men ts .
Seven t h E di t i on . E n l arged an d R e wri t t en . 281 ll u
s trat i ons I .
C lo t h , L eat h er,
R i eh t er ’
s I n o rg an i c C h em i st ry . A t ex t - bo ok for S t uden ts .
T h ird A m eri ca n , fro m Fift h German E di t i on . T ran sl at ed by

P ro f . Ed g ar F S m it h , mm )
. . 89 Woo d E n grav i n gs an d C ol ored
Pl at e of S pec t ra . C lo t h ,
O
R i eh t er s
'
rg an i c C h e m i st ry , or C h em ist ry of th e C arb on
C mp u d Ill u
o
'
o n s. s t rat ed . S ec o n d E d it i o n . C l o t h , 4 50 .
S y m o n ds . M an ua l of C h em i s t ry , fo r t h e spec i al us e o f M edi
cal St uden ts . By B R A N D RET H S i mo n n s , A . M .

, A ss t .
Ph y sic ian R o o sev el t H ospi t al , Out Pat ien t - D epart m en t ; A t t en d

i n g Ph y sician N o rt h west ern D ispen sary , N e w Y o rk. 12 1
110 .
C l o th ,
L efl
'
m an n ’
e C o m pe n d o f C h em i s t ry . I n o rgan ic an d Ogr an i c .
I n cl udin g U rin ary A n al y sis T h i rd E di t io n ev i sed R .
I
. .
C l ot h , n t erl eav ed fo r N o t es,
L efi m an n B ea m i n P ract i c al
'
an d . P ro gres si v e E x e rc i s e s
C h em i s t ry . 110 .
12 1 I ll u st rat ed . C l oth ,
M ii t er . P ra ct i c a l an d A n a l y t i c al C h e m i s t ry . Fo urt h E di
t i on . R evi sed , t o m eet t h e req ui rem en t s of A meri can M edi cal
C oll eges , b y Pro f C C . . . H am i l t o n . I llustra t ed f C loth ,

H ll d
o an T he ri n e , C
. U om m o n P o i so n s , an d M i l k A n al y s i s ,
C h em i ca l an d Mi c ro s c o p c a i l . Fo r L ab ora t o ry Use . Fo urt h
E dit i on , E n l arged . I ll u st ra t ed. C l oth

V an N ii y s ri n e A n a l y s i s I s . U . llu . C lo t h 2 00
l
W o ff s A ppl i ed M e di c al C h em i s t ry L wren ce Wol fi
’
’
. By a ,
em C h em ist ry J efl erso n edi cal C oll ege C lo

'
M . D .
, D . of 111 M . .
,
C HIL D R E N .
00 0 6 1
11 1
11 an d S t a rr . T he Di s eases o f C h i l d ren .S ec o n d
E di t i o n . By J . F Go o dh art ,
. M . D .
,
Ph y si cian t o t h e E v elin a
H pi os tal fo r C h i ldren ; A ssist an t Ph y si cian t o Gu y

’
s H ospi t al ,
L d on on . R
ev ised an d E di t ed by ou is S ta rr, M L . D .
, C l in ica l
Professo r of Di seases o f C h ildren i n t h e H o spi t al o f t h e U i n v er
si ry Pen n sy l v an ia ; Ph y si ci a n t o t h e C h i ldren s
of
’
H pi los ta ,
Ph il adel ph ia C o n t ai n i n g m a n y Presc ript io n s an d

. F mulor a ,
con form i n g t o t h e U S . . Ph armacopoei a , Di rec t io n s for m aki n g

A rti ficial H um an M ilk, for t h e A rt i fic i a l D ig es t i on o f M il k, et c .
Il l u st rat ed . C loth , L eath er,
H at fi el d Di s ea s es of C h i l d re n By M P H atfi eld, u
. .
Di
. . .
P ro fesso r o f seases o f C h i l dren , C h icago M edical C ol le

C ol o red Plat e . 12 mo . C l o t h , 1 00 ; n t erl eav ed, I
9 "
Sec [ ag a 14 a n d 15 f or l ist of ! Quix C m f m dsf
U DE NT S X T BOO KS A NUALS
°
ST T E A ND M
'
-
.
S t arr D i seases o f t h e
. i gest i v e O rgan s i n n fan cy an d D I
C h i l dh oo d Wit h chapt ers on th e n v est igati on of isease,
. I D
an d on t h e Gen eral M an agem en t of C h il dren By ou i s S t arr, . L
C l i n ical Pro fesso r of D im C h il dren in t h e n i ver
es of U
si ty o f Pen n syl van ia . I llu s. S econ d E di ti on C l o th , .
D E NT IST R Y .
F i l l eb ro wn . O pera t i v e
C l oth , D e n t i s t ry . 330 mus .
F '
l a gg e Pl ast i c s a n d P l a st i c il l i n g 4th E d C l ot h , F . .
G o rgas en t al M e d i c i n e
. D M an u al o f M at eri a M edica an d . A
T h erapeu t i cs ourt h E di t ion . F C loth . 3 50 .
H a rri s P ri n c i pl es a n d P ract i ce o f D en t i et ry
. I n cl udin g .
A n at o my , Ph y si ol ogy , Pa th ol ogy , T h erapeu t i cs , en t al Su rgery D

an d M ec h an ism . T welfth E di t i on . R evised an d en l arged by
Professor Go rgas . 10 2 8 I ll ut s rat ions . C l oth , L eather,
R i eh a rd eon ’
s M e ch an i c a l D en t i st ry . Fifth E dit ion 569 .
I ll ut s rat io n s . 8vc . C l ot h , L
eat h er,
Be wi l l . D en t al Surg ery . 200 I ll ut t i s ra ons .

36 E d . C lo .
,
T aft s
’
Op e rat i v e D en t i st ry . D t l Stud
en a en ts an d Pract i t io nen .
Fo urt h E di t io n . 100 I ll uts ra t io ns . C l oth , eath er, L

T al b o t . I rreg ul ari t i es of the T eet h , an d t heir T reatmen t .
I llut s rat ed. sy o . S ec o n d E di t i on . C l oth ,

T o m es
’
D en t al A n at o m y . T h i rd E d . 1 1
9 mus . C l o th ,
T o m es
’
D en t al Surge ry .
3d E di t i on . R ev ised. 29 2 11
1113 .
7 7 2 Pages . C l o th ,
W a r re n . C o m pe n d of D e n t al P a t h o l o gy an d D en t a l M ed i
c i n e. I llut s rat e d . C loth , I n t erl ea ved ,
D IC T I O NA R IE S .
Go uld ’
s N ew M e di c al Di c t i o n a ry . C o n t ai n i n g th e D efin i t i on
an d Pro n un c ia t io n of al l wo rds in M e dic i n e , wit h man y useful
T l
a b es et c . 56 D ark L ea t h e r , 3 25; M on ,
T hu m b I n dex
H a rri s
’
Di c t i o n a ry o f D en t i s t ry . Fi ft h E di t ion . C om pl e t el y
r e v x se d an d b ro ugh t up t o da t e b y P ro f Go rgas . .
C l ot h , L ea t h er,
C l e a v el a n d
'
s P ro n o un c i n g P o c k et M e d i cal L ex i co n . 3 12 t
E di t io n . G i v mg c o rre c t P ro n un c i a t i o n an d D efin i t i on . V ery
sm all po cket si ze . C l ot h , re d e dges .

75 po c ket -
bo ok sty l e ,
L o n g l ey s
’
P o c ket Di c t i o n a ry . T he St uden t
'
s M edic al L ex ico n ,
g iv m g D efin i t i o n a n d Pro n un c i a t i o n o f al l T erms u
s ed in M edi
c in e , wi t h an A ppen di x g i v m g P o iso n s a n d T h eir A n t i do t es ,

A bbrev xat t o n s used i n Presc ript io n s , M et ric S cal e of oses , et c D .
24 m0 . C loth , 1 oo ; po cket -b o ok sty l e ,
A? See pag e: 3 to 5f or l i st of S t uden t s M

’
an ua l s .
ST U DE NT S ’
T E XT BOOK S - A ND MAN UALS .
EY E .
H a rt ri d g e o n R e fra c t i o n . sth E di t ion . Il lu s . C l oth ,

H a rt r i d ge 1 the
01 O ph t h a l m o s co pe . I ll ut s rat ed. C l ot h ,
M ey er. Di s eas e s o f t he E ye . A co m pl et e M an ual for S t u
den t s an d Ph y sici ans . 2 70 I ll ut s ra t i o ns an d t wo C ol ored Plat es .
8y o . C l ot h , L eath er,
S wa n zy . Di s eas es o f t h e E y e an d t h ei r T re at m e n t . 158
I ll u st ra t i o n s F . o urt h E di t t o n . C l o t h , 3 00
Fo x an d Go uld . C o m pe n d of Di s e a se s of t h e E y e an d
R e frac t i o n . 2d Ed . E n l arged .
7 1 11
1115 .
39 F orm ul a .
C lot h , I n t erl eav ed fo r N ot es,
E L E C T R IC IT Y .
B i g el o w P l ai n T . a l ks o n M e di c al E l e ct ri c i t y an d B at t e ri es .
I ll u st rat ed . t h 2 Gl ossary of E l ect rical T er ms . C lo t h ,

M o m pe n Su
’
a so n s C d of M ed i c a l an d rgi c a l E l ec t ri ci t y .
Wit h n umerous I llust rat io n s . 12 1

110 . C loth ,
HY G I E N E .
P n rke s P ra ct i ca l H y gi e n e
)
’
(E d . A . . S even th E di t i on , en
l arged . I ll u
s t ra t ed 8v0 . . C l ot h ,
P a rk e s
’
(L . C .
) M an ual of H y gi en e an d Publ i c H e al t h .
S eco n d E dit i o n . 12 1
110 . C l ot h ,
W i l so n ’
s H an d b o o k o f H y g i en e an d S an i t ary S c i en c e .
S even t h E di ti o n . R evi sed an d I ll ut s rat ed . I n P r ess .
M A T E R IA M E D IC A A N D T HE R A PE UT I C S .
o m pen d o f T h era peu

’
P o t t er s C M a t e ri a M edi c a , t i cs a n d
P res c ri pt i o n W ri t i n g . Fift h E dit io n , revi sed an d improve d .
See Pag e 15 . C loth , I n t erl ea v ed for N o t es

B i ddl e s M at eri n M E l ev en t h E d i t i o n By t h e l at e
’
e di c a . .
J efi ers o n C ol
'
J oh n B Bi ddl e, . M . D .
, Prof . of M at eri a M edi ca in
l ege, Ph il adel ph ia . R ev ised by C l em en t Bi ddl e , M . D .
,
an d
H e n ry M o rris, 8 vo .
, i ll u
s t ra t ed . C lot h , L ea t h er,
P o t t er . H a n db o o k of M a t e ri a M ed i c a , P h ar m a c y an d
T h era peut i cs . I n cl udin g A ct i o n of M edic m es , S pec i al T h era

peut i cs, Ph armacol o gy , et c . By 8 2 1111 0 . . L . Po t t er,
M 1 c l>
1 . . P ro fesso r of th e Pra c t ice of M edi ci n e m
C oo pe r C o ll ege , 52 11 Fra n c isco
M e d ical T h i rd . R ev ised an d
E n l arged E di t io n 8v0 C l ot h , . . L eat h e r,
W ari n g T h erape ut i cs Wit h an n dex of

. . I Di seases an d
R
e m edies 4th E di t i o n R ev xsed
. C lot h , . . L eat h er,
8 “
S ee pag e: M a n d 15 f or l i st f a
o i c C ompa ct :
C lo t h , 3 . 00 ; L eat h er. 3 30 .
L e wen D i sea se s o f W o m en
'
. A P ra ct i c a l T ex t - Bo o k 139
I ll ust rat ion s Secon d E dit ion
.
. .
C l o th ,
Pm i n e W i n c kel s D i sea se s o f W o m e n S ec o n d E d i t i on
' '
.
I D
.
n cl udin g a Sec ti o n 0 11 i seas es of t h e Bl a d d e r a n d U re t h ra

R m
.
150 1 1
111
3 evised
. Sa : 3 C l o th ,
. L ea t h er , .
M o rri e. C o m pen d o f Gy n e co l o gy . I ll ut s ra t e d . C lo t h ,
W i n c kel ’
sOb A T ex t - h o o k 0 11 M i d wi fe
st et ri cs . i n c l ud
i the Di
s e a s es o f C h i l db e d By D r F W i n c h PM
n!
. . . .
n z col a n d i c t o r of Dt h e o y a l Un i v ers i t R
y C l i n i c for
n
0 y og re
Wo men , in un ich A ut h o ri zed T ra n sl a t i on , b y
. C l ifto n
Ed g a r , M D e <
.: t.111 L
er 0 11 b st et ri cs , O
n ive rs i M ia l C o l U .
l ege , N e w o rk, wi t h n ea rl y 2 00 h a n dso m e i u s t ra t i o n s , t h e

m ajo ri t y o f wh ich are o rigi n al 8y o C lo t h , . L e a t h er ,.
L an d i e C
'
o m pen d of Ob s t et ri c s . Il l ut s ra te d . e di t i o n
en l arged . C l oth, I n t erl ea v ed fo r 0 000 ,
,
G e l n h i n s M i d wi fery
'
By A . . L e wis Galab in , n . o .
22 7 Ill u
st ra t i o n s See pag e 3 . . C l o th . 3 -0 0 3 L a
,
t h e r , 3 - S°
j f q m UM
'
9 See 2 to or It d .
ST U DENT S ’
TE X T BOOK S - A ND M AN UALS .
PA T H O L O GY . H 18 T O L O G Y . B I O L O GY .
B owlb y 8 111¢i en l Pa t h o l o gy
.
'
an d M o rb i d A na t o m . 1
01
'
Studen t s 13 5 .
D n v i 2 E l em en t n ry B
‘
i l o o gy . Ill u
st ra t ed . C lot h .
1
01112119 2 8 22 00 1121 2 o f Pa t h o l o gy . A 11 1
2 01 1
1 1{ 0 1 8 1
001 11000 12 .
47 llu I
st rat i on s 12 1
110 . . C1
01h, 2 . 00
‘
a T he object ot t hh booit is t o
‘
. nn fi
ol d t o
M 21
1 2 of pet ho l ogy in 2 pl ai n , pn ct ical
w
the m i t hi n m y co mpre h en s i on 10 i n c se u
of t he s bject u .
Gi bbec Pract i ce! H i 2 t o l o gy T hi rd E dit i on

'
nn d P a t h ol o gy . .
C l o th 1 7 5 .
Vl reh ow s P m t M ’
-
o rt e m E x m in n t i o m .
311E d C 1 01 h , 1 00
. .
P HY S I CA L D IA GNO S I S .
F en wi ek uden t
G ui d e t o P h y s i cal D i ag n o 2 i 2 7t h
'
. St 2 .
E di t i on . 1 17 ll us t ra ti on s I 12 11
10 C lo t h , . .
T y so n St u 111
'
1 0 1P h y ei cn l D i n gn ofl e
’
d en t 2 112 1101
'
2 10 0 1 112 .
.
. 12 1
110 . ot . 1 25 Cl h .
S I O L O GY P HY .
Y eo ’
Ph yfl l F i ft h E d i t i The P pul S tu 0 02 1 a a
g
2 o o
l{g
on . 1
? Y . eo .
H C ll g L d S u ll 3
g y p i t d 11h 1 1i £
o e e, on on . n
m 3 W11h
81 7 1I d S n
r n e 12 12 011
2. 2
02 22 1 C l th 3
11
21 ; La th
n ex . n . o , . 00 er .
Bm h k C mp d
n f Ph y fl l gy
er 2
'
Illut t d S i t h
o en o o o s ra e . x
Cl h
.
E di i t on .
; I l df N 5 ot , 1. 00 n t e r en v e or ot es , 1.2
S t i rl i n g 9 12 011 n cl u
02 1 Ph y 2 i o l o g y , 1
. di n g C h emica l 2 1111 E x
peri mea tal Ph ysi ol ogy 142 1 1102112 110 02 C l ot h 2 2 5
m
. . . .
Kl rh e N ew 12 11 T h01011¢ hl y R eviud
’
Ph y 2 i o l2 1 Ed .
E n lamed 502 1 . tn ti o n2 .
; Hist ol ogy an d M i
-
1111112 11 Ph
11101
y 2 i o l o ¢y 1 1
11 111 .
A m to m 2 1111wi t h special referen ce 10 Pn c t ienl M edi

ci n e ou. F
rt h E ( ti o n 1m m 2 110 E dited by Prof 51 g . . mm .
345 11 1
112t r2 1i o112 C l ot h , 1n t her, 8 00
—
. .
Wi t h t h i2 uden t ul d f i l i
hi2 m m in uio n
T
.
ex t
"
—L h l oo t
a na
2t
t .
h i2 001
1 12 n d, no 2 t
111 co a n
P yfi ol ogi efl L e b o n t o ry . Bein g Pract ica l E x

erd 2e2 for t he Studen t 3 50 11
1112 0 2 001
12 . . Bv o C l ot h ,
.
PR A CT I C E .
Pn et l ee M edi ci n e . A Ma ud By F rede rick

L
.
aylox Ph ysici n n t o 2 0 11 ect u

'
rer 011 M edici ne 1 11
y
, s
”
M 5L
Hot pl tal . l o ndon : to E vel i na 1 1021 1
1 21
1 C '1 1 .
. M ateria 1 10 11
1 102 1 0 Pharma ceu
111 t i cn l
0 1011
112117 . ni ve rsi ty of on don U C l ot h, eat h er. 5 00 . L .
a s“ m u " n d u/ w b d q/ ’
f M -
W I
ubs ti t ut e
s for the
PHA R M A CY .
S t ewa rt s C o m en d o f P h arm ac B ased R em i n gt on s

' ’
Edit i 352
n
T ex t Boo k o f harma cy
-
T h i rd on , 110 1 W i t h n ew
1
I I t
. .
T abl es , n dex , E t c C lo t h . , n erl eav ed fo r N o t a ,
R i L t i G mm
ob n so n . f Ph a m
a ny a d M di i
ra ar o r ac n e c n e.
By H D R bi P f o f L ti L
n son , gu g d ro esso r o a n an a e an
Li u U i i ty f K Lw Wi t h
. .
t era t re , n v ers I t o an sas , a ren ce . n ro

du i by L E 8
ct o n u P f f Ph m 2y i d
t e, r 0 ro esso r o nr ae n an
D f h D p Ph m y U i
. . . .
, ’
ean o ,
t e it y f K
e t . 0 m ar ac ,
n ve rs o an s as . 12 o .
C l th o ,
S KI N D I S E A S E S .
A d n ( M C l l ) S ki D i
ers o n , cA a n sea s es . cc
W 1t h C o l o red Pl a t es an d n s Wo od
um erou
C lo th ,
V an H a rl i n S ki n
en 0 1
1 i s ea s es D
an db o o k of t h e D is . AH
eases o f t h e kin , t h ei r D 1agn osi s an d T rea t men t ( 11 -
11211 a l ph a .
bet ica ll y ) By A rt h u r Van arl in gen M D C l mi H L ec t u rer

Prof o f D is eases o f
.
0 11 D e rm a t o logy , J e fl e rso n M edt ca l C o fi

. .
'
ege .
t h e S ki n i n t h e Ph il adel ph ia P ol y c l in i c 2 d E dit i o n E n l a rged

W1t h co l o red an d o t h er pla t es an d ill ust rat ions 12 m o C l o t h , 2 50
. . .
29 S a pag es 2 t o 5 f or I f“ d N m M a m
. . .
'
.
ST U D E NT S ‘
T E XT - BOOK S A ND M AN UALS . 13
S UR G E R Y A ND BA ND A GI N G .
100 11 1
119 8 A I ll ut t i (m u w T ex t Bo ok s ra
wg
1 2 11
1 1 ,
ne -
.
500 ons te
l
co ore d) 11 200 0 i gi l 0 1 are o r na
L th
.
,
C l th t t o , ne ea er , ne
1 1
2 00 12 0 0 . O p t i i S u r g y eraA S y t i H db k
o ns n er . st en n c an oo
( Ph y i i S tu d
s c a ns .0 H pi t l S ug B W H A
en ts 2 1 a r eo ns .
&y 11
01 1 os . . .
t S ug
'
1 1
'
2 00 1 1, l
201 0 a" A 10 1
1. ss r eon s 02
pit l ; S ug
x t R y l 1 1 11 £0 C h ild
r eo n a 0W m t
o a 02 1 1 ren 2 1
1 o en , e c .
1
99 I l l ut t i s ra 6p g on 8 C l th
. L h
100 a es . ve . o . e at er,
13 m o o r S u
110 2 11 rgery , an d 1g
1 . Nin th E di t ion . 142
1110213 1101
12 60 17 0111
1111
: 2110 . Di et C lot h ,
H om i uh Su
C om pen d rgery . M i n or Su rge 0!
8 0 11023 113 A 111 121 100 2, ract u r es . isloca t io ns 10111 F D
D iseases, 2 n 01h e t A h t isept ic
m
01 2 11102 1 2 2 110 T rea t m en t By 0 1111111 2 110111117 1 , 2 1L , . .
t uto r 0 18 1113 01 d i l C li d
i
7 0 1
1 01 20 11 M e ca o eg e 4 th e i t ion .
F
.
.
d an d R un n e 136 1 11115112 0002 2110 o rm a ul

i
.
121110 C l ot h ,
. 111 011 02 1100 for th e 2 001 00 0 0! 0102 ,
an d S u rzical 0011
10 ‘ 1 l l l u m g
t t
2121 2 of 21 st n E an y
g
.
i m po rti n : is go red T h ls , wi t h t he Se i on 0 1
rg ca h bon w
.
A rt erie2 , form an am pl e T ex b book 1 01 th e ry Su i l .
W 2 12 h 2 111 “ 1111112 1 Pract i cal 8 111 7 T h i rd E di t i o n

231 Surg 10 2 110 D em
. .
Wm ) Wm aut
.
3 Pm m ed $1111 111 S t Bart holo mews H ospital : Surgeon 10

.
. . . .
,
'
Free fi ospital 140110011 With 318

. .
vin o , . .
C lo t h ,
UR I N E , UR I N A R Y O R G A NS , ET C .
3 01
12 110. Th e U C om m o n P01 ri n e ,
12 e n d T h e
20 1 2 110
M il k C he mi cal an d M icrosc opica l, fo r abo rat o ry Use 1
. 1
1112 L
F
.
t r2 100 ou rt h E di t io n
. 12 1
110 I n terien v ed C l o th , . . .
12 11
1 0 . Ki d n ey 0 12 02 2 02 1 0
111 Ui r n ary D eran gem en t s .
42
1
10 1101
12 . 12 1
110 .
572 pages . C lo t h .
”w he n 10 S m i t h
21 On t h e Ui r n e. The C h mi e a
c lA nal h 01
g1
.
Ui C h mi l L b
jP
the By o hn a o ra t o ry .
F s mu
r ne . e n 0 1
1
of Pen n 2 ; 2n rof. E . . t. c um ,
t he U ri n e . A P ti rac Gu
calide 10 t he E x ami na t ion
Wit h ( 30 1
0120 Pl a tes
1 an d W000 8 113 12 11
1 1
132 7t h Ed . .
E n larged . 12 1
110 . (1011
1 1,
V nn N ay 2 , U rin e A n el y ei e. 11
1112 . C lot h .
VE NE R E A L D I SE A SE S .
111
11 2 110 C ooper St uden t e a 10 11
’
. l 1011210 2 1
wi t h o rm a s F l . F ourt h 3 011
1 0 11 . 12 1
110 .C l o th .
e s“ A l g er u a nd u[ or I td
'
d I Qm e-
C ot
’
d: I
NE W A ND R E VI S E D
—
E D IT IO NS .
?
Q UI Z C O M PE N D S?
o m pen d s f o r S t ud e n t s Use
’
T h e B e st C
in th e Q ui z C l as s , an d wh e n P re
pari n g fo r E x am in at io n s.
C ompil ed in a ccordan ce wil l! t h e l a t est t ea cfi i n g: af firm i

n en t lect urer: an d t ice m ost p opu l a r T a h booh .
T h e fo rm a most co mpl et e , pr act i ca l a n d ex h au

y sti ve
set o f m an u als, con tai n in g i n fo rm a t i o n n o wh e re else col
l ect ed in su ch a co n den sed , prac t i c a l sh a pe T h oro u h

g y l .
up to th e tim es i n ever respect , c o n t a i n i n g man n ew y y

resc ripti on s an d formu l a , a n d o v er t wo h u n dred an d
p
fifty i ll u st ration s, m an o f whi ch h a v e b e en d rawn and y
en graved speci al l for th is seri es T h e au y
t h o rs h av e had .
l arge ex perien ce as q u iz-m ast ers an d at t a c h es o f co ll eges,

wi t h ex ceptio n al o pportun iti es fo r n o t in g t h e m o st recent
advan ces an d m eth ods .
C l ot h , I t ea c h n erl e av e d fo r N o t es,
No . 1. H U M AN A N A T OM Y
B a s e d up o n G r a y F i ft h , .
"
E h l e r c d E d it i o n , 1101
1 1010
1 V t s c e r n l A n a t o m y , fo rm erl y
11111 18 ed s eparat el y 1 L i t h o g ra p h P l at es, N ew .
a b l es a n d 117 o t h er I l l u s t ra t t o n s By Su m O L .
R M
.
M R Q ? ( Londq S urg e o n U S
fi
PO T T E M A , D . .late A . A . . .
A rm y P ro fesso r o f Prac t xce , C o o pe r I e d i ca l C o ll eg e , S a n Fran

.
c nsc o
N os . d3 P
2 an T I OF M E D I I N E . RAC CE
F o urt h E 01 C .
t ion B ) D A N XE L E H p G H Bs , M D , D e m o n s t ra t o r o f C l i n i c al
. . . .
M edx c m e m J efi e rso n M edi cal C o ll ege , P h nl a d e l p h i a I n t wo p a rt s

'
—C
. .
PA RT mu ed E m pt x v e a n d P e r i o d i c a l F e v e rs
I . ont , , D i sea ses
o f t h e S t o m ach I n t es t m es, Pe ri t o n eum , B x h a r y P a s s a g es , L wer
,
K i dn e ) 5 e t c ( m c l ud m g T e st s fo r Uri n e ) , G e n e r a l D i s e as e s , e t c
,
P A R T I I —D 15 ! & S C S o f t h e R e spl ra t o ry S y s t e m ( i n c l ud t n g Ph y
,
si c a l D mg n o s m) , C i rc u l at o ry S yst em an d N e r v o us S y s t e m ; D 15
e a s es o f t h e B l o o d e t c ,
T h e< e 111 1113 b o o ks c a n b e re garde d a s a fu l l s e t o f n o t e s upo n

t h e I r ut nc e o f M e d l c m e o n t am m g t h e S
.
m
’
. .
e y n o n
y s, D e fi n i ti ons ,
,
C aub e s S y m pt o m s Prog n o sxs , D xagn o sx s T re a t m e n t , e t c , o f ea c h

, , , .
d x se 1< e a n d m cl u
.
,
dmg a n um b er o f pres c n p t i o n s h l t h e r t o un pub
fish ed .
No 4 P H Y S I O L O G Y i n c l ud i n g E m b t s 0 10 S 1x t h
'
fifi
. .
,
E 0111o n B ) A u r m P B R UB A K E R M D , P r o } o f
'
.
, .
.
Pc m 1 C o l l e g e o f D e n t a l S urge ry D e m o n s t ra t o r o f P
'
. . .
m j c tTc n o n M e dx c al C o l l ege , Ph nl a del p h x a R e v i se d , .
“ 111
1 I ll us t ra t i o n s .
No 5 . . O B S T E T R I CS I l l u t F o ur t h E d i t i o n
. s ra t e d .
By
L A N D I S , 3 1 u P ro f o f O b s t e t ri c s a n d D i s e a s e s o f
.
s v C .
m S t a rl i n g M c d c al C o l lege , C o l um b us , 0 .
R e v i sed .
E th t l on N e w l l l ua t ra t l o n e .
BLA KISTONS QUIZC OM PENDS
’
-
N 0. 6 M A T ER I A M E D ! C A T H ERA P EU T I C S A N D
. .
P R E S C R XPT I O N W R I N N G F i ft h R i d E d i t i o
w
‘
. ev se n.
Wi h p i l R f
t h Ph kfl iul A t i f D e e ren ce t o t e s c on o
L t R iu f h U S Ph m p i m1 1 013 M y
es ec a
1
1110 mpl t ti l
a co P i pa i B d
e e ar e c e on rescr 01
1 r . ase on
as ev on o t e ar aco tz a 10 1
1 1 11
By 8 4111171 1 0 L 1
. .
uno fi c tn al remedi es .
? 11 A . . . . . .
A A 8 1113 U 8 A m y ; of Prac ti ce ,
. . . . .
C o mm c01
a 1C 01
1ege, S an c im I mpro ved and E nh rged, .
w“h ex .
N0 7 G E G 001119 000 of D iseases 01Wo men

Y N CO L O Y A . .
D O
. .
R n ! “ M ou e mon st rato r of bst etrics, 1 06 01-

Q
nt s, 10 1
1
edi cal C ol l ege Phi ladel ph ia 45 1 115 1
1 1
10 1001
, . .
No 8 D I SE S OF T HE S EA EY E
A ND FR I N. RE A CT O
By L Wm
. .
T rea t men t 1110 S Fox , .
D
{
C h ief cal A ssis t an t 0 01
1 0111 ept . 08 311011 M ed .
l eal C o aege
F o rm a ul
seco n d E n l arged 11110 m pro ved
. 1
1 00 n dex I . I .
No 9 S G Y , M 1 U R ER
001 8 1 11 c ry an d B en deg i n g ( 11
u
110 .
i n cmm . Wo n ds ,
. .
110 100 ou rt h 8 01 11 F
011 ad la u
t m
. .
D h lo en ti ons , $pui ns , A mpu ta ti o m a110 01 er open t ion s : 111

111 1. 8 9 0 11111 1 1 1 1 5 Tu mou. Sh ock, et c
3
1111 01 01 01111, .
t h e S pin e , Bar, 0111. T est i clu. A 001, 30 0

o t her u rgieal D iseases By 001111 1: 3 0 1111111. A 11 .
D emanst ra to r of S m gery j efl m o n M edl cal C ollege E M
. . .
'
'
.
01 10 8 01 111300 84 aw n ia 1 1110 136 1 .1101113 1100 1 F .
N o 10 . I ST C H EM
11101311111 1: 1110 rgan ic RY
For M edi cal . O .
D I U A l
.
ncl u an d M edien l
‘
11110 en tal 8 111001111 di n g ri n ary na .
C hem ist ry By 8 1111111 em m a P of L

rgery , Phil a
.
‘
Pen n s C o ll ege ot en a ! S u
’
D l hi rd E01
’
.
'
110 0 R
ewri t t en , wit h n dex I .
No . 11. P H A R MACY . B ased u

pon R e mi n gt on
T ex t -book
'
s
of B F E S m e ar .
. .
Q u i b hl as t er
at Ph iladel p C o of Ph armacy .
‘'
l h trd 8 01
1100 . evised R .
N0 . E T E RI N A R Y A N A TO M Y A N D
11 . V P HYS I O L
O GY 9 I ll u l . B y Wu R 9 B LL U P 1 !
s t rn t on s . . . A O , 10 0
m y t N Y C ll g f V
.
Eq ui A ne i
n a to y S ug a . . o e e o et er na r r eons.
N o. 1 D EN T A L P A T H O L OG Y A N D D E N T A L M E D !
C l 8 C i i g n th m . m m hy p i
on ta n n f I a e os t n o n ts o n te res t
h D
10 t l ud t 8 G
e W W men t a st C li l l en . eo . . h n, n ce
C hi f P C ll g f 1Sug y Phi h d l phh 111
'
e ,
en n a o e e o 11
1 r er , e . 1
11 .
N o. 1
4 D I S EA S E S O F C H I L D R E N
. By D M A R CU P . 1
1. S
f Di
.
1 C h ild C h im M di l
'
[1 1 P f
117 11
110 ro . o seas es 0 re n , o e ca
C o llege . éo lo md Plate .
W h m u mumm mm A m uttm
.
g boo k: a re cfi
on s t a n t lae
y r em ix ed ( a keep 1
1) wit h
t he l atest read ings a n d di rcowrza , 10 M a! M g r con t ai n
’
01 116: n ew met hod: a n d p 1 “ N o

m
w
.
a re so campl d e i n detail . con cise in la

r i n t ed a n d bowed E m
p 01 5 o n e f o r a .
n ot e: u pon M e subj ect u n de r con s id erat io n .
11
1111110 110 D e ec rl pfl ve Ci rc a“ ? F ree .
J US T P UB L I S H E D .
G O UL D S NE W
’
M E D IC A L D IC T I O NA R Y
C OM PACT .
C ONC I S E .
PRACT ICA L .
AC C URAT E .
C OM PREHENSIVE
UP T O DAT E .
It c o n t ain s T a b l es of the A rt eri e s , B a c i l l i , G an
g a , L eu
l i co m ai n es , M i c ro c o c c i , M us c l es ,
’
N erv e s , P l ex us e s , P t o m a i n es , et c , .
et c .
,
t h at wi l l b e fo und of g rea t
us e to the st uden t .
S m al l o ct avo , 52 0 a
p g es, H alf D -
ark L eat h er,
\Vit h T h um b I n d ex ,
H al f M o ro cco , m arbl ed edges,
Fm m ) M D A C OST A ,
M . D P ro fesso r of Prac t ice an d
C l m xc al M e dl c m e, J e ff e rso n M edic al C o l l ege , Ph i ladel ph i a .
[fi n d zt a n ex cel l en t wo r k ,
doi n g c r ed zt t a t ke l ea r n i ng an d
di sc r i m i n a t i o n f
o t il e a ut / zo r .
"
fl "
. Sam ple P a g es fr ee .

MedicalElectricity 11182181

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

MedicalElectricity 11182181

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

M E D I C AL E L E C T R I C I T Y

STUDENT S AND PRA CT IT IONE RS

wi dow i n j uly last wi th the r equest t h at I should c om

l e t e i t for p ubl i cati on

O u careful exami n ati on of t he man u scri pt i t was

o f bri ef n ot es and fragments wh i ch

use in new hands the result bei ng that much o f D r

S t ea ven son s long and valuable experi ence in electri cal

t reat m e n t has unfortunately been lost The plan o f t h e .

book however was cl early sketch ed out an d h as been

foll owed wi th but l i ttl e m odi ﬁca t i on C hapt ers I I V . .

W ith regard t o C hapters I I and I I I whi ch deal . .

wi th theo reti cal ma tters i t was j udged t o be advisable

t o rewri te and bri ng them u p t o date and I tak e t h

o pportun i ty o f ex pres sin g my warmest thanks t o M r .

m e in th i s part o f the book .

I t may be thought by some that the phys ical part o f

t o try to bri ng together into the volum e all th o se parts

t o i n di cate the textb ook s whi ch m ight wi th most ad

out a thorough groundi n g i n the physi cal part o f the

of therapeut i c s wh i ch i s at present a l m ost en t irely

quackery wh i ch surrounds and d i scredi ts med i cal elec

att i tude of the medi cal professi on and we have only ,

our sel ves to bla m e i f the publ i c i nsi st on seeki ng else

W i thout attempt in g t o enum era t e all the works on

been made i n prepari ng t h i s l i t t le book I take the ,

opportun i ty of acknowledgi ng my especi al obl i gat ions

L odge P ro f E rb D 1 D e W att ev ill e and D r V i vi a n

E arly medi cal wri ters F irst appearan ce i n h ospi t al prec

medici n e I nﬂuen ce o f phy si cal co n dition s on h eal th

D ivi sion o f t he Subj ect . Fu n damen t al E x perimen t s. Hypo

E l ec t mph oru E lectric Quan ti ty U n it of Quan t i ty

Lawo f I nverse S q uares . E lec tromoti ve Fox ce . Po t en ti al .

E l ect ric D en sit y . A ct i on of Poin t s . C apaci t y

of a S phere . C o n den sers . l

j ar. St rai n in t h e D iel ect ric . L i n es of I n du

Sim pl e Vol t aic

C on t act el ec t ro mot ive force . cel l or b att er y .

S outh see k in g pol es; S t ren gt h of pol e . Permeab il i t y .

M agn et ic m omen t . M agn et ic ﬁel d . L i n es of force . Field

G al van o m et ers . T a ngen t S in e gal van omet ers

v an o m et er co n st an t . A m m et ers an d vol t met ers R eﬂ ect in g .

l aw . Pract ical un it s . E l ect ro l ysis . A n o de an d k at hode .

L aws of el ect rol ysis . E l ec tro -

N et work of con d ct o rs.u

ran gem en t of bat t eries . I n t ern al resi st an ce. H eat in g

m ach in e . D yn amos . Pract ical n ot e

H ist orical D escript ion of in st rumen t s R amsden s m achin e

H ol t z m achin e Voss mach in e Wim shurst s mach in e

C arré s m ach in e Pro fessor L ewan dowski s mach in e

C on du c t ors T he L eyden jar .M odes of appl icat io n . .

T h e dry elect ric bat h . E ff ects of a po sit ive ch arge.

T reat m en t by spar s T k . reat men t by shoc s. k T h e brush

disch arge . S t at ic I n duct ion t

E ssen tial s of a good bat tery . E l ectro mot iv e force of cel l s .

C apaci t y o f cell s S mee

batt ery Bi ch nom at e bat t ery D an ie ll s bat t ery G rave s

an d Bu b att eries L eel anc hé ba tt er y C hl or ide o f

s itver bat te r y . O x ide of co pper bat ter y . O t y bat t eri es .

oel L S t ohrer s batt ery A cc u mulat ors T abl e of bat te ries

C hoi ce of a ba t tery . C are of a b at t er y . Use of el ect ric

c o il s. Pri mar y an d secon dary curren ts

R egu l at i on o f curren t R esi st an ce s Wire rheo stat . . .