0"T' LAERT> "! - USP

372 RECENT TIMES.
attributed dilatation of the pulmonary veins, oedema of the
lungs, enlargement of the right side of the heart, dropsical
swelling of the feet, and smallness of the pulse, all to
stenosis of the left ostium venosum, i.e., auriculo-ventricular
orifice; and also on another occasion when he ob*
served calcareous degeneration of the aorta ascendens and
of the semilunar valves with insufficiency of the latter and
declared this had resulted in a partial regurgitation of
blood into the left side of the heart and cardiac palpitation.
LANCISI gave more detailed information concerning these
pathological changes especially as to so-called ossification,
that is calcareous degeneration of the valves, and as to dilatation
and hypertrophy of the heart* SENAC first drew
attention to the abnormal position sometimes occupied by
the heart on the right side in consequence of pathological
conditions.! Unfortunately the erroneous views of doctors
firmly resisted the correct interpretation of facts in regard
to the significance of the so-called polypi of the heart,
although KERCKRING had already declared them to be due
to post-mortem changes.^
Pathological anatomy reached the highest point attained
at this period in J. B. MORGAGNI who, in possession of all the
knowledge which had been accumulated in this field, verified
and completed the results gained by numerous observations
of his own and for the first time gave clear and defined
expression to the problems and tasks of this branch of
science.§ In his investigations he also sought the aid of
experiment.|| STEPHEN HALES did likewise and produced
artificial dropsy by injecting water into the vascular system..
HALLER'S labours upon sensibility and irritability were
supported chiefly by experiments on animals and by vivisections.
He knew well the use of these aids and
declared : "• One single experiment of this kind has often
* PHILIPP in the Janus iii, 318 el seq.
X SENAC : Traite de la structure du coeur, Paris 1749.
X TH. KERCKUING: Spicilegium anatomicum, Amstelod. 1670, p. 145.
§ F. FALK: Die pathol. Anatomie des J. B. MORGAGNI, Berlin 1887.
|| PHILIPP in der deutschen Klinik, 1853, No. 45.