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Library FACTS On fel rE A. Re P By RICHARD C. CABOT, M.D. Professor of Medicine and of Social Ethics at Harvard University ILLUSTRATED PHILADELPHIA AND LONDON W. B. SAUNDERS COMPANY 1926 Copyright, 1926, by W. B. Saunders Company MADE IN Use Se Ae PRESS OF We Be SAUNDERS COMPANY PHILADELPHIA ee x aN taka tal a a. 6IGSE eee + eet ee Ol PREFACE I cannot too strongly insist that a large part of this book represents not my work but that of others. The necropsies and )necropsy records of the 1906 cases on which my conclusions rest, are the work of Drs. James H. Wright and Oscar Richardson. A good many of these necropsies I have witnessed. AI of their protocols I have studied in whole or in part. But my task has been merely to collect, arrange, and at times to interpret the results of these pathol- ogists’ labors so far as they relate to cardiovascular disease. JI have made no attempt to decide for myself any question of gross or micro- scopic pathology but have gratefully accepted and tried to utilize the decisions of those who did the work. On the clinical side I have studied and have had abstracted the ward records of 1906 cases decisively diagnosed post-mortem. Starting from the post-mortem diagnoses I have worked back into the clinical records corresponding. A good many of these clinical records depict the sufferings of patients who were under my charge in the wards and in a fair number I wrote the record of the cardiovascular examination and clearly recall the patients. In the great majority of instances however, the patients were cared for by other members of our staff and I am confined to a study and interpretation of other men’s work. Iam indebted to Drs. Paul D. White, Hugh Cabot, Edward L. Young Jr., William H. Smith, William D. Smith and Maurice Fremont-Smith for some of the printed discussion of cases. In abstracting the clinical and pathological records many have assisted me. Dr. Harry Taylor, now in China, Dr. J. H. Newburgh of Ann Arbor, Michigan, Dr. Byron C. Darling of New York, Dr. Mary W. Lawson of New London, Conn., Dr. James H. Young, Dr. E. H. Heath and Dr. W. R. Redden of Boston, Mr. John M. Porter of the Harvard Medical School and, above all, my secretaries, Miss Alice G. O’Gorman and Miss Florence Painter, have gathered and arranged material for me. My own task has been to put ane and edit this material, since no one else appeared anxious to undertake so prosaic and time-consuming a task. 9 614079 IO PREFACE I appreciate clearly that the data here gathered together would have been far more valuable in many ways had they represented throughout the observations of one man. But had this been so, one set of preconceptions and leading ideas would have guided and per- haps to some extent marred the observations. There is some advan- tage as well as a considerable disadvantage in the fact that most of the observations on which I rest were made without any idea of the use to which they might later be put. To all of those whose names are mentioned above, as well as to the staff of the Massachusetts General Hospital, I acknowledge my gratitude and indebtedness. I trust that this book may to some extent carry out their interests as well as mine. Especially to Dr. Oscar Richardson I am indebted, not only as one of those by whose daily labors I have profited, but for the time and pains he has taken in re-reading and interpreting pathological records and sometimes in re-examining old specimens to clinch or expunge a diagnosis. The book differs from all those previously written on heart disease (so far as I know) in basing its conclusion wholly on the study of cases which came in the end to necropsy. The chapter on syphilitic aortitis, for example, was written by abstracting all the necropsies from 1897 to 1919 in which this lesion occurred and then finding what was recorded and remembered about them on the clinical side. It is true that the pathologist may have overlooked something or mistakenly identified some lesion. But considering the care with which the necropsies were made and the systematic and detailed records that were dictated from them at the time, I believe the percentage of error is small. If anyone reads and compares the statistical tables, he may be puzzled to see that the total number of cases of a particular disease as given in the early tables differs from the same total given in later tables. This is due to the incompleteness of our records. In relation to age and sex, for instance, we may be able to prepare a table based on complete data from 1oo% of the necropsies of that disease. Yet in relation to the examination of the heart we may be able to study only 75% of these. Hence the totals of the latter table will be smaller. Obviously there is very little about treatment in these pages. Most of the little that I know on that subject is to be found in the records or discussions of some of the illustrative cases. PREFACE 1 a Very few people should even try to read the whole of this book. I should advise most readers to read the opening and the closing chapters, and the summaries at the end of each section, and then to look over as many of the illustrative cases as seem interesting. RICHARD C. CABOT. CAMBRIDGE, MaAss., February, 1926. CONTENTS CHAPTER I PAGE REVIEW OF 4143 LESIONS IN 1906 CASES OF CARDIAC DISEASE. TABLES OF PREQUENCY:./§. .. 17 I. In Examining a Patient enced to trays Heart Disense What are the Diagnostic Expectations Which Experience Justifies?. . . . .... #17 dieeeiew a terial rere ptudietiawt aie uu ei ero ae ee AY be ARE, fh o9 III. Manifest Cardiovascular Lesions. . . . i ORS Ree IV. Relative Frequency of the Different Garlioumentrs Tesncs eee 26 V. Variations of Necropsy Diagnoses at Different Periods. ....... 28 CHAPTER II RUSUMATICE HEART DISEASE. “KATA CHOREA.. 8 oie si, le es ep gO PERIL ENOSS cr UTS ANG COMPUCOLCUC UO On htc te bs (eee Rane wes, eels. 3a IML ieay dave: eSIONG oy Nag nen Ai carton sone ys Pa og’ te ae OIAR EEC AImari CAOLLIC LCN Osia man ee aoe tel Strat dr Mee ie ae Soe ue My TAL iopremecmbinediLesiOnsmeren a etka ean ek el oe Te, peg Aortic Stenosis and Remeeention: eRe cat mis Ts encase Nighy ica ta a aOS Pure Aorticukeguroitationiwithout stenosis tc. ei eee 3. B52 WittrAleheQrvilation we mes ee ee ah Ae aa we ot Pe eee) oe 280 SERRE ORGA ci, 7, os, 1 age mem gan eli oe Need wb eae We ok an ae chee AGES CHAPTER III SECRET TIGR LLEART IISEASE tent i ILS EN Sel Se cad RNID Maa.) 322 Sypnilizic: Aortitis.- .-2 . us ORE autee >. ht ida eos a cee: Ame 322 Diagnosis of the Disease in Life. . .. . Ste Ween ee Reber meee uk hae: 26 Cardiac Hypertrophy in Syphilitic ernie: TAR Me eae) at) Cate’ 330 General Cardiac Symptoms of Dac AOTUUSH en Attn) oR Lame 331 Cause of Death. .... 1 SOR OE WO CN OPER S Sea ane FE Special Symptoms of ears ROR, Fe rn ew nan Mae Vi awe keno gin® 333 Dee MACTOSISUOr AN CULISMat, siemtr nme de Nc clea tot let kein wee te 3A Serv aaculats Om PuCALIONS tamminnr se hen ho bourne) ay Sealy as. 5) 330 SOOT SHI GaN (Ste FY Ok: OA a ME A el ena LE Mey Ue. singe) ek w Ae uk 3390 DDG k Meek el ee cee ne EE le | ety (av faa, ws 402 Dissecting nen rar El ee eh FASS Pe oh a) Se Nice al ste. 4 E2 Septic or Mycotic Aneurism ....... ea Re Sheer AL2 CHAPTER IV HYPERTENSIVE HEART DISEASE ..... hi PETE Tey 7028 Uae AUG ae eee Tey bo) I. Definition. . . . Pe meaner eee mee ive Pee, ATO II. Hypertensive (urdinacniar aban Ce a nate’. ae ALO III. Latent vs. Manifest Cases of Hypertensive Heart Tee ae ar Pie: ees ASO TV The Etiology.of Cardiac Enlargementio0) eo. ie he whe) s 42T 13 14 CONTENTS PAGE . Hypertrophied and Dilated Heaits Occurring in Young Persons Without Nephritis or Arteriosclerosis . . 428 VI. The Largest Hearts. . 429 VII. Degrees of Cardiac Fe entrnts in ipiffereat Lesions. 5 Age VIII. Cardiac Failure in Hypertrophy and Dilatation... .. ? nea EX. Physical Signgy eee eer : . 444 X. Blood-pressure and other Data in Ween ; . 445 XT. Diagnosis Actually made in these Cases. . Re XII. Summary and Conclusions. » 452 GHAPTER®: V MYOCARDITIS 340) eae ey wae Salted tla cian . 404 I. Chronic Fibrous Manet Ge ER A AS - 404 Il; Myocardial Iniarction.y-e) 14. pasta IH. Myocardial Abscess. . .~. . . mA: IV. Cardiac Aneurism . s yet V. Rupture of the Heart. . 546 CHAPTER VI ANGINA PECTORIS . ; . 548 Angina and Myocarditis, Son Blood-pressure and Angina. ...... Ree The Cessation of Angina with the Advent of General Paachte Contestina 5g Rae Coronary Thrombosis and Acute Blocking of the Coronary. ....... Son CHAPTER VII ACUTE AND SUBACUTE ENDOCARDITIS. ... . Star Definition and Terminology . YomenOr Dy. PBOx Types of Acute and Subacute Madecarditis Fein, ol: it S568 Age and Sex. ED ee eI I Oh gts og . 563 Valve Affected. : . 564 Nature of the Inflammatory Pieces ; . 566 Clinical Manifestations . . . . ye. Symptoms on the Part of the crcnltion ie Sa Weight of HeartataNecropsy sy 9.9: 7am, <> . 578 Bacteriology. , S878 Associated Lesions . . . ay A, Duration . 2 Sex Summaryos. 2 tees . 582 CHAPTER VIII CHRONIC NON-DEFORMING VALVULAR SCLEROSIS OR ENDOCARDITIS . . 628 Euology. 92 ie . 629 Conclusions . . . . 634 CHAPTER IX ACUTE. PERICARDITIS): Ss 4a4t Sc Oss Age and Sex. = 035 Associated Lesions . . . . 636 CONTENTS Fever and Leucocytosis . Diagnosis . Septic Heart F milurs iad Diopey UGpronie Hanctee Convention) Acute or Chronic Passive Congestion . . . Pericardial Effusion Bacteriology. Murmurs in Acute Berea ME eh ering Cardiac Hypertrophy in Acute Beprerditie SF Re Summary . CHAPTER X CHRONIC PERICARDITIS . . EEPyatre Chronic Vestigial Becodiie Sore ha eee Primary Rheumatic Group. .... . Secondary Rheumatic Group. “Age and Sex. Diagnosis . Diagnostic ierpiote CHAPTER XE THYROCARDIAC DISEASE. é See; I. The Over- ationstte Heat ce ae, II. Early Congestive Heart Failure in Miro Disease! lil. Toxic Death. IV. Late Congestive Failure in Pitas. insane ond Teophttahnic Gotan CHAPTER XII GONGENITAL- HEART DISEASE |. 3 >? DUMMABY OF THE BOOKS isha. caer: I. As Regards Heart Disease as a euhole. II. As Regards Rheumatic Valvular Disease . III. Aortic Stenosis. IV. Syphilitic Heart Die V. Hypertensive Heart Disease. VI. Myocarditis . 5. Pea ae VII. Acute and Subacute Bndoetniie Smee S eae soe VIII. Acute Pericarditis . IX. Chronic Pericarditis. X. Thyrocardiac Disease. XI. Angina Pectoris and Cardiac Tntarcts T5 PAGE . 636 7,020 . 037 . 638 . 638 . 640 . 640 . 643 a .OA5 ae ae ‘aay, | FACTS ON THE HEART CHAPDER SL REVIEW OF 4143 LESIONS IN 1906 CASES OF CARDIAC DISEASE. TABLES OF FREQUENCY I, IN EXAMINING A PATIENT SUPPOSED TO HAVE HEART DISEASE, WHAT ARE THE DIAGNOSTIC EXPECTATIONS WHICH EXPERIENCE JUSTIFIES? The first point on which this book hopes to shed light is this: when a physician is called to attend a patient who seems to be suffer- ing from cardiovascular disease, what are the important probabilities and the more remote possibilities which he should consider? If we have some basic knowledge about what is rare and what is common, it may give us valuable clues. The first and in some ways the most important point of all is to know that Most “Heart Disease” is imaginary. Those who think or fear that they have heart disease usually turn out on careful examination to be free from it. Nearly 10% of Harvard freshmen in one of the classes examined by Dr. Roger I. Lee and his assistants believed themselves to have a ‘‘weak heart” orsome more definite heart disease. 14 out of 18 successive patients sent to me by their physicians quite recently for supposed heart disease, had, in my opinion, perfectly sound hearts. The patient with ‘‘effort syndrome,”’ complaining of his dyspnea, cardiac pain and palpitation, yet with a normal heart, is not the commonest type. More often it is a patient who has fainted or been dizzy or had a little precordial pain and whose physician has heard a (quite harmless) systolic murmur somewhere in the precordia. That such cases are more numerous than those with organic heart disease is difficult to prove, though strongly suggested by the experience of anyone who has examined many college students and middle-aged women. But whether or not this pseudo-heart disease, this groundless fear of heart disease, is as common as I believe it to be, | it is certainly common enough to make the thought of it an essential 2 17 18 FACTS ON THE HEART part of our mental furniture whenever we begin the examination of a supposedly cardiovascular case. For the needless sufferings and sacrifices of such patients are often very great. To my knowledge boys have given up their chosen life work, girls their prospect of marriage, business men their favorite projects because of a false. diagnosis of heart disease. The fears, disappointments and ailments resulting from such a diagnosis may be enough to render a person’s life miserable. And all this one can sweep away by a clear and positive reassurance based on a thorough examination.’ I know few greater services that a physician can perform, few that give him livelier satisfaction. Narrowing the Field.—Next to this fundamental knowledge of the frequency of supposed but unreal heart disease, one is helped by a narrowing of the field of possibilities. That we do not need any longer to consider and search for fatty degeneration of the heart, fatty overgrowth upon the heart, brown atrophy, myocarditis, the senile heart, etc., simplifies our work and makes us more apt to make a correct diagnosis. The Commonest Lesions.—This series of 1906 necropsied cases, (see Table 1) covering all the cardio-vascular material in the 4000 necropsies done at the Massachusetts General Hospital between 1896 and 1919 is enough, I think, to constitute a fair sample and give a fairly accurate picture of heart disease as one may expect to find it in most parts of the United States. Certain districts where syphilis or endemic goiter are especially prevalent will have a higher incidence of syphilitic or thyrotoxic heart disease, but in most parts of the country the proportion of the different types will be found, I think, to be about the same as in New England.” (a) For example our conclusion that 77% of all heart disease is due to simple hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart (or hyper- tensive cardiovascular disease) without valve lesions wil!, I believe, be found to represent approximately the facts in any large series of necropsies made in the United States and Canada. Further results of this study are: * Of course no comparisons are of value except on the basis of necropsy statistics, which so far as I know do not exist in this country. SUMMARY OF MATERIAL IQ TABLE I1.—SUMMARY OF MATERIAL A. Total cardiovascular lesions, 4143 in 1906 persons, (out of 4000 necrop- sied from 1896 to 1919). B. All cases showing cardiac hypertrophy and dilatation.............. 1209 cases Adlecasesa without ypertrophoy and dilatation | 3. 5 «<0 ste «cela» sielets 697 cases CLOTS ee me eeveret FO ele, wrt Myoihtu afta MEM Sie, RAS etek ensia a, rl eid ert eaten s euthekere 1906 cases { with other lesions 1053 1200 cases . 2 * ie Hvpeciropnyy alld CiUAtatiONi is Wt cpa Rea eae ee 644 TWO JOSIOMS 2e bsp) 0 abe ans fon cl Supra SIRS aur ge ane 625 “Three lesions sor cee nies mele c Saeed ae oe ee ee 379 Four lesions...04 es fe su besten ek 0k he eee ae ae 157 Five, lesions ¢ Wai. tbo aig Lo Dae aes eo eae ee 36 Six-Lesions i oie on G sk sacks Sees a eo eis wale eh hee ae 5 1846 The chronic infections (rheumatic and syphilitic) affected 665 persons. The acute infections (endocarditis, pericarditis, myocardial abscess) affected 358 persons. The chronic degenerative changes (arteriosclerosis, hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart, myocarditis) affected 809 persons. The congenital deformities cut very little figure. There was a hypoplastic aorta in 19 cases; Io occurring as the only cardiac lesion and g with other lesions; the other congenital lesions of the heart occurred alone in only four cases (10 cases in all had congenital lesions).* So that the infections, acute and chronic and the degenerative-reparative lesions divide the whole material into three main groups: (1) {Chronic infection (rheumatism, syphilis).... 665—36% (2) Acute infection (pericarditis, endocarditis).... 358—19% (3) Degenerations (hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart, arteriosclerosis, myocarditis)...... 809—44.3% (4) Congenital lesions occurring alone (29 in all) 14—7% 1846 100% * 29 congenital lesions in all or 1% including 19 of hypoplastic aorta and 5 of harmless valve anomalies. + I have included here the cases of chronic pericarditis and chronic non-deforming endocarditis. ee — —_—— — MANIFEST CARDIOVASCULAR LESIONS 23 II. MANIFEST CARDIOVASCULAR LESIONS But though all but a few of the lesions here listed doubtless had some effect on the heart’s powers, we get another and probably a fairer view of cardiac disease as a whole if we confine ourselves to manifest lesions, i.e., those in which there is at necropsy and in life definite evidence of deficient heart power as shown in dropsy of the TABLE 2.—No. oF CASES AND PERCENTAGES OF HYPERTROPHY AND DILATATION AND oF CHRONIC PASSIVE CONGESTION IN ALL LESIONS & ode H. & D:* ge C.P.CF ota eee ingle cases cause Remarks No. | % No.| % Mitral Stenosis: ......... Mitral & aortic stenosis. Combined valve lesion... Aortic stenosis.......... 28 23|82 Nephritis, chronic.......] 198 107|54 Nephritis, subacute ..... 66 Nephritis, acute......... ae Nephritis, amyloid...... 21 I Pericarditis, chronic.....] 112 34/30 (Several with valve or other les- ions such as to make C.P.C.) OTe Patt k eee Sees 10 5/50 PGCE II ae ety ar che (td. 9 4 Pernicious anemia....... 23 12150 Endocarditis, acute ..... 180 80/56 (In many, the C.P.C. was ac- ; counted for by other lesions. ) Pericarditis, acute.......| 186 67/36 (31 accounted for by other les- ions, the rest unexplained) Endocarditis chronic non- Cerormtne aes eee |. 6237 67/28 Arteriosclerotic kidney..| 175 6 Arteriosclerosis.......... IO5I Wy OCATOIES: 6 cise cetue sents: OL 56/63 (Many had other causes for H. & D. and for C.P.C. present) Syphilitic aortitis....... 92 26|27 Congenital heart........ 10 1/10 Pure mitral regurgitation 10 5|50 Pure aortic regurgitation 13 11| 8 H. & D. with other dis- eases (a) With Artscl....... 343 (b) Without Artscl....] 164 230/45 Odds and ends _ | ‘TDiupericarditis: ; is... 2 2 Pulmonary artscl...... 2 2 Amyloid degen. kidney 2 . ‘ j . Artscl. degen. kidney.. 2 ||(without arteriosclerosis elsewhere) Hypoplasia of aorta... 19 8 |42 | * Hypertrophy-and-dilatation. + Chronic passive congestion. 24 FACTS ON THE HEART serous. cavities and in general chronic passive congestion. From Table 2* we can separate out the cases with chronic passive conges- tion in each group, giving the results shown in Table 3a. Among the degenerations referred to on page 22. I have bracketed together arteriosclerosis, myocarditis and hypertrophy, with dilatation because it seems to me probable that most of them belong to a single group, namely, hypertensive heart disease—with enlarged but finally failing heart, the acute infections being terminal events and the other lesions historical landmarks of no significance in weakening the heart. In some of the cases of extensive myocarditis this may not be true, but the number of these exceptions is small. TABLE 3a.—CAUSES OF MANIFEST HEART DISEASE WITH CHRONIC PASSIVE CONGES- TION Valvular heart disease (including luetic aortic regurgitation) Chronic pericarditis Acute endocarditis (with hypertrophy and dilatation and probably with hypertension) Acute pericarditis (ditto) Chronic non-deforming endocarditis (ditto) Myocarditis (ditto) Hypertrophy and dilatation (with and without nephritis; ““ hyper- tensive heart disease’’) *T have omitted here 12 cases of Pernicious Anemia, 4 of Leukemia, and 5 of Thyroid disease. all of which showed passive congestion at necropsy. I am not sure how these should be classified, TABLE 3b.—PREDOMINATING LESION IN 465 CASES OF MANIFEST HEART DISEASE Cardiac hypertrophy and dilatation Valvular lesions Chronic pericarditis Acute endocarditis Acute pericarditis Myocarditis * Although for Table 1 we have included all the cases catalogued in the path- ological records, in Table 2 and in the subsequent chapters which elaborate the different items of this table we have often analyzed in detail a number smaller than the total as given in Table 1. MANIFEST CARDIOVASCULAR LESIONS 25 Of our 1906 cardiovascular cases, then, only 465, or one-quarter, produced heart failure. The /atency of many cases of heart disease is apparent in all the types. (See Table 2.) For example, out of 262* cases of valvular disease as found post mortem, only 169—or 63%— had produced heart failure, as shown in chronic passive congestion. Out of 112 cases of chronic pericarditis only 34—or 30%—were manifested in dropsy. Only in a minority of the cases that I am here referring to did any single lesion, such as rheumatic valvular disease or chronic pericardi- tis—occur alone. ‘There are 207 different combinations and over- lappings in numbers mentioned on p. 22. In view of this difficulty the 465 cases of manifest heart disease just referred to have been divided up according to what seemed to be the dominating lesion when several were present. In the production of death from chronic passive congestion, the following lesions predominated in the proportion expressed by the figures in Table 3a. Acute endocarditis and acute pericarditis are here put down because they were the only anatomical lesion present after death in the cardiovascular system in association with 18 cases and to cases, respectively, dying a congestive death. In these, as in others of the smaller items in this table, there may well have been an earlier hypertension producing the cardiac hypertrophy and leading to the final breakdown. But dropsy is of course an extreme, sometimes terminal, manifesta- tion of heart disease. Let us take hypertrophy and dilatation as evidence that extra work has in some way been thrown upon the heart. 1209 cases out of 1906, or 63%, showed hypertrophy and dilatation, the causes for which will be discussed in detail later. Here one may merely note that of these 1209 cases of hypertrophy and dilatation only 184 are due to valvular disease and 88 to chronic pericarditis. The vast majority (34 of all) are cases of ‘‘simple cardiac hypertrophy” associated with nephritis and with arterio- sclerosis, often combined with acute terminal lesions like acute endocarditis and acute pericarditis, or with historical landmarks like myocarditis and the non-deforming valve scars. Still, it is hard to get a fair picture of heart disease from these figures, because there are so many combinations and interweavings of the different lesions. When a patient dies with valvular disease, chronic nephritis and chronic pericarditis, with which of these three * 220 cases of rheumatic valvular disease,-plus 42 of syphilitic aortitis with aortic regurgitation. 26 FACTS ON THE HEART are we to class it when we come to separate the different types of cardiac trouble? In view of these difficulties, we have separated out the uncomplicated cases in which we can deal with single lesions. The results appear in Table 4. Here again simple cardiac hyper- trophy, with or without arterio-sclerosis and nephritis, is vastly the . commonest lesion. It makes up 469 cases out of 656 or 71% of the whole. Rheumatic valvular disease comes next with 69 cases. These two items together amount to 538—or 82%—of the 654 cases in which these single lesions had produced hypertrophy and dilata- tion as evidence of interference with the heart’s action. Among the other 116 cases serious enough to produce hypertrophy and dilatation chronic pericarditis (16) and syphilitic aortitis (20) are the important items, though they only amount to 2%-+ each of the whole. In most of the remaining 78 cases the diagnoses represent terminal or vestigial lesions, the real cause of the trouble being probably the same as that producing the 469 cases of enlarged heart without local lesions to explain it,—1.e., ypertension, the great cardiac malady. TABLE 4.—1145 SINGLE LESIONS (WITH AND wiTHouT H. & D.) Without With Arteriosclerosis Chronic non-deforming endocarditis Acute endocarditis Valve lesions Acute pericarditis Chronic*pericarditisye.. arma stare ar, et Arteriosclerotic degeneration, kidney...... ....... Luetic aortitis Myocarditis (with abscess and infarct)............ Hypoplastic aorta Pernicious anemia Leukemia Goitre Nephritis Hypertrophy and dilatation alone IV. RELATIVE FREQUENCY OF THE DIFFERENT CARDIOVASCULAR LESIONS Haven Emerson* found that among 4566 patients treated for heart disease in nine New York hospitalst during 1920 or 1921 (twelve months) the diagnoses of the primary condition stood: * “The Nation’s Health,”’ Vol. V, No. 6, June, 1923. + Bellevue, King’s County, Metropolitan, City, Neurological, New York, Presby- terian, St. Luke’s, and Mt. Sinai. lit te « DIFFERENT CARDIOVASCULAR LESIONS 27 Lesions as diagnosed in New York hospitals Valvular disease Myocarditis Endocarditis Cardiac hypertrophy Arrhythmia Pericarditis * Not mentioned among ‘‘complications,’’ hence this number 28 appears to represent all the cases so diagnosed. Comparing these with our findings in 465 cases of manifest heart disease (i.e., those with chronic passive congestion post-mortem) there were: Lesions (Manifest Heart Disease) as found at necropsy Valvular disease Myocarditis Hypertrophy and dilatation (hypertensive heart disease). ... Chronic pericarditis Acute endocarditis Acute pericarditis Others Taking our cases, manifest and latent (1230), we find the results not very different: Valvular disease (including 42 syphilitic, 220 rheumatic)............... 262 or 21% Dee Ltt ren, OR et, MPR ec Meee rn, US SoD MR ae wy a aiden 89 or 7% Hypertrophy and dilatation (with chronic nephritis, acute endocarditis, acute pericarditis, chronic pericarditis, chronic non-deforming endo- Parent LeLioscierosis and COMbINALIGNSs.... ccs. 65 1s P perce ea see 879* or 71% And since myocarditis is not a clinical entity we may say that 77-+-% of heart disease is non-valvular and 22+% is valvular. The forty-one aneurisms in our 1906 cases is in marked contrast with Dr. Emerson’s thirty-eight aneurisms in 4566 cases, as is also the 186 cases of acute and 114 of chronic pericarditis in our 1906 cases, minus Syphilitic disease with H. & D. 63 minus Myocardial disease with H. & D. 83 * 1209 cases of hypertrophy and dilatation minus Valve disease with H. & D. ‘sf 879. 3390 e 28 FACTS ON THE HEART while in the 4566 New York diagnoses of cardiovascular disease, there are only forty-six cases of pericarditis (presumably acute in the vast majority of cases). Our percentage of acute pericarditis (10%) is ten times as great as theirs, which apparently (like ours) does not include any that were treated only as out-patients and is therefore comparable. Some years ago I found that at the Massachusetts General Hospital we recognized one case in five. In New York they apparently recog- nize about one in ten. Of aneurisms we recognized twenty-five out of forty-one or 60%. In New York if the same percentage held, our forty-one aneurisms in 1230 cases, (3%) would correspond to 137 aneurisms of which 38 were recognized, or 28%. Myocarditis was recognized six times as often as it was present, valvular disease twice as often. V. VARIATIONS OF NECROPSY DIAGNOSES AT DIFFERENT PERIODS In Table 5 I have separated the post-mortem diagnoses into four groups, taking each thousand necropsies by itself so that we can exam- ine the variations in our recognition of the different lesions during the four periods, 1896-1903, 1903-1907, 1907-1912, and 1912-1919. The figures show a falling off in the cases of rheumatic valvular disease after 1907. This is not to be accounted for by any known change in the types of patients received at the hospital or coming to necropsy. The same pathologists have applied the same diagnostic criteria to this part of the necropsied material throughout the whole period from 1896 to 1919. ‘Therefore these statistics show that in this group of cases there has been a diminution in the amount of fatal rheumatic heart disease during these twenty-three years. So far as I know, this group of cases may be taken as a fair sample, at any rate for the north-eastern part of the United States. It is notable that the diagnoses of aortic stenosis have noé decreased in number, while those of mitral stenosis, and of mitral- and aortic stenosis combined ave fallen from forty-six (in the period 1903-1907) to twenty, or less than half, in the period from 1912-19109. On the other hand there is no falling off in the amount of pericarditis which is ordinarily included with the valvular stenoses as a “‘rheumatic”’ lesion. The sudden drop in the number of cases of ‘‘non-deforming endocarditis” in the last thousand necropsies is I believe of no significance and represents merely a change in the pathologist’s views as to the term “endocarditis.”” Slight thickenings of the DIFFERENT CARDIOVASCULAR LESIONS 29 valves, especially in elderly persons, are now not called endocarditis or noted in our anatomical diagnosis. The apparent increase in fibrous myocarditis is also not significant, and represents probably a slightly altered terminology. The diagnoses of syphilitic aortitis in the cases belonging to the earlier years were made by re-examining old specimens after the pathologists had come to recognize this lesion. Naturally the cases thus identified are relatively few, so that the increase in the later years means an increase not in the cases of syphilitic aortitis but in the diagnoses of this lesion. TABLE 5.—NECROPSY DIAGNOSES IN EACH 1000 AUTOPSIES TAKEN CONSECUTIVELY FROM 1896 TO 1916 1896 to | 1903 to | 1907 to | I9g12 to 1903 1907 IQI2 I9QIQ Disease Nears Necropsy| Necropsy|Necropsy| Total PSY) number | number | number number roor- | 2001- | 3o001- I-I000 2000 3000 4000 Pure mitral disease (stenosis) . . . 16 Mitral and aortic (stenosis) .... Combined valve lesions Aortic stenosis Acute pericarditis Chronic pericarditis Acute endocarditis............. Chronic non-deforming endocar- Fibrous myocarditis Myocardial abscess............ Myocardial infarct Pure aortic regurgitation (rheu- Syphilitic aortitis......... * In the text two more cases from another series have been used. + In the text one more case has been used from another series. CHAPTER II RHEUMATIC HEART DISEASE. FATAL CHOREA The Material Used.—In all cases I have started from the demon- strated post-mortem lesions and worked back to the clinical findings corresponding. I have paid no special attention to the clinical diagnosis in deciding which cases to include under each group, but have based all classifications and statistics on the measurements and descriptions of the necropsy records. A valve has been considered obstructed or stenosed when its circumference was found to be markedly diminished either by the rigid end results of chronic endocarditis, by soft vegetations, or by the combination of both. When soft vegetations were not in such a position or of such a size as to produce obstruction the case has been studied not as a valve lesion but in the chapter on “Acute and Subacute Endocarditis.” Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart has been judged and classified (like the valve lesions) wholly on the post-mortem data,— the weight of the heart, the thickness of its walls, and the size of its cavities all considered in relation to the size of the individual. A big man has a big heart. ‘The same cardiac dimensions if existing in a small woman or in a child would be considered evidence of hypertrophy. Terms.—1. When the mitral valve alone was found at necropsy to be diseased, or when the disease of other valves was so slight as apparently not to interfere with the opening and closing of the valve, I have called the cases “ pure mtiral”’ or simply “‘ mztral.” 2. When there are important deformities both in the mitral and in the aortic valves I have called the cases ‘‘mitral-and-aortic,” emphasizing by the two hyphens the fact that I am not here referring to two separate groups of cases but to one set of combined lesions. The cases grouped as “‘pure mitral’? number 107 and those called ‘‘mitral-and-aortic”’ come to 4o. 3. Isolated disease of the aortic valve is called “‘ pure aortic,”’— 28 cases. 4. The cases in which the mitral-aortic-and-tricus pid valves were all involved, (23 examples), those with lesions in mitral-aortic-tri- 30 RHEUMATIC HEART DISEASE 31 cus pid-and-pulmonary valves (2 cases), the combination of mitral-and tricuspid disease (6 cases), and of pulmonary-and-tricus pid (2 cases) have here been all lumped together under the term ‘“‘OTHER COMBINATIONS.” In all the cases classed under these four groups—208 in total— sienosis was the lesion anatomically demonstrated post-mortem. This is all that the necropsy can demonstrate. But from the half- open position in which the diseased valves were rigidly fixed, it seems clear that there must have been some regurgitation as well as some obstruction of the blood stream. A valve fixed half open will not open fully, but neither will it shut. A valve lesion, single or combined, means therefore in the following section, a deformity believed to have caused stenosis and regurgitation although it may sometimes be called simply a “‘lesion,”’ a ‘‘disease”’ or a ‘‘stenosis.” The rare cases of regurgitation alone, due to rheumatic endocar- ditis will be discussed separately. They make up only 23 cases in all. By the terms ‘“‘rheumatism”’ and “‘rheumatic”’ I mean a disease believed to originate as a general septicemia (point of entrance unknown), which may “‘settle”’ in the joints (‘‘rheumatic fever’’) in the subcutaneous tissues (‘rheumatic nodules’’) or in the tonsils (tonsillitis), may cause brain symptoms (Sydenham’s chorea) or may be implanted in the pericardium, in the myocardium or on the heart valves without any other localization. Ordinarily when the disease affects the heart it has had some earlier localization (in the joints, tonsils, or brain, sometimes in the subcutaneous tissues also). But it does not seem strictly true to say that the rheumatic joint trouble causes the endocarditis which so often follows. Both are presumably caused by the same organism—the same septicemia—which may localize its activities first in the heart and later in the joints, or in the reverse order. In case the heart lesion appeared first (as is not very rarely the case) we should not say that the heart trouble caused the joint trouble. It is as incorrect, I think, to say that acute polyarthritis causes endocarditis. Both manifest a single cause. The proof of a septicemia is not yet to be obtained. No “‘arthritis”’ has been considered “‘rheumatic”’ in the analysis of these cases unless it involved many joints, produced marked prostration, ran a short course and left the joints sound in the end. The chronic, stiffening, apparently afebrile lesions often called rheumatism, especially in elderly people, have received no considera- tion here. 32 FACTS ON THE HEART The Type of Endocarditis Found Post-mortem in 208 Cases.—- I include here under ‘‘Rheumatic Valvular Heart Disease”’ as the subject of this chapter (see Table 6), any valvular obstruction, whether produced by a soft, acute, vegetative process (ten cases in 208), by the chronic deforming end-result of an earlier acute endocarditis, or by the combination of both.* I have included these acute cases in part because in 53 out of 208 cases, or 25%, the chronic process was overlaid at the time of death by a fresh endocarditis. In some cases (see Table 48) this acute septic process, involving in its effects the myocardium and all the organs of the body, may be assumed to be the immediate cause of death as, in earlier stages of the disease, similar acute exacerbations are believed to produce many of the decompensations formerly explained by mechanical overstrains. f Valvular lesions (such as mitral obstruction) are here conceived to be produced (a) (as is usually the case) by the hardened, shrunken, adherent end-results of an acute endocarditis; (b) by acute soft inflammatory vegetations: (c) by a combination of both. TABLE 6.—TyYPE OF ENDOCARDITIS ce M-A | M-A-T| M-T | Aortic | P-T |4 valves] Total Since there appear to be all possible transitions between the various types, and all sorts of combinations of them, it seems best to include them all under a single heading, “rheumatic valvular heart disease.’ Very probably there are differences, at the extremes quite marked differences, both in the type of micro-organism and in the clinical course of acute cases as contrasted with chronic. But the *Tt is often impossible to decide the chronicity of the so-called verrucose endo- carditis. Sometimes the character of the minute masses, such as softness, reddening, and fragility, is apparent, and the process is of course acute. But frequently this is wanting, and they appear as firm, grayish to gray-red, warty granules apparently organized, and in these instances are chronic in nature, but of more recent origin than the usual accompanying, underlying chronic endocarditis. (Note by Dr. Oscar Richardson.) {See Breaks in compensation from Endocarditis: Charles Hunter Dunn, Jour. } Amer. Med. Assoc., Feb. 9, 1907. MITRAL STENOSIS, PURE AND COMPLICATED 33 border-line cases are so many that I doubt the wisdom of separating them. MITRAL STENOSIS, PURE AND COMPLICATED Age of Onset.—In Table 7 I have endeavored to estimate the age at which the cardiac lesion started in this group of necropsied cases. This estimate is made by assuming that the first attack of rheumatism or chorea known to the individual or his parents coin- cided with the beginning of the endocarditis; or, when no history of rheumatism or chorea could be obtained, by dating the cardiac disease from the onset of cardiac symptoms. Obviously this last measure is misleading since there is in most if not in all cases a latent or symptomless period, often lasting for years. The frequency with which (especially in women) we find mitral stenosis in the course of a routine physical examination undertaken by reason of complaints unconnected with the heart proves the existence of this latent period in many cases, perhaps in all except the acute vegetative types of endocarditis. Taking the figures of Table 7 as they stand, with all the errors inherent in them, it appears in 42 out of 63 cases, or 67% that the heart disease began before the thirtieth year (‘‘pure-mitral’’ cases). When the mitral stenosis was complicated by stenosis at other valves the disease began before the thirtieth year in 77%. Taking all the well-studied cases in one group, 73% of them began before thirty. Compare these figures with the estimates in 239 similar ambulant cases examined by me. There 104 out of 130 well studied “‘pure- mitral’ cases or 80% began apparently before the 30th year. Of the mitral-and-aortic cases 85% began before the 30th year. Although the diagnosis in these cases was not verified by necropsy the histories are probably better than those in the necropsied series. So that I am inclined to believe that the true percentage of mitral cases beginning before 30 is nearer 82% than 73%. Sex in Relation to the A ge of Onset.—In males the disease apparently begins earlier than in females if the indication of my rather scanty figures 1s borne out by larger statistics. Thus in Table 7, 90% of the males with mitral-and-aortic disease and 70% of the “pure mitral’ cases began before the thirtieth year, while in women only 60% of the pure mitrals and 71% of the mitral-and-aortic cases began before thirty. Combining all groups we find: LOU Meer ete eoe Moers St en, sc a ature less 77% before 30 Tt rennet ter mrt. Meyer. Sls, 68% before 30 34 FACTS ON THE HEART In the ambulant cases examined by me in life but not at necropsy, 88% of the men and only 76% of the women were under the 3oth year. This correspondence with the figures in necropsied cases is striking. TABLE 7.—NECROPSIES. AGE OF ONSET Mitral | petra Other comb. and Aortic TABLE 8.—LIvING CASES. AGE OF ONSET IN 239 CASES OF RHEUMATIC HEART DISEASE, EXAMINED IN OutT-PATIENT DEPARTMENT FOR THE YEARS I9Q1Q, 720, ’21, ’22 Mitral Mitral and Aortic Total Age Male | Female} Male | Female| Male Female Oo 9 13 15 14 10-19 16 27 Zs 20-29 12 21 30-39 3 15 40-49 4 50-59 60-69 Unknown DURATION OF LIFE Out of 36 pure-mitral necropsied cases, 27 (or over 24) are esti- mated as having lived ten years or more since the onset of the disease. Six lived apparently 25-35 years with their stenoses. The term of life in the mitral-and-aortic cases is strikingly shorter. In more than half the cases, the disease appeared to have killed the patient in one year. The average duration in the 31 cases is three DURATION OF LIFE 35 years as compared with 15 years in the pure mitral cases. Only one lived more than ro years. In the other ‘‘combined lesions” (with fewer cases involving the aortic valve) the prognosis seems to be better than in the mitral-and- aortic cases, though worse than in the pure-mitral cases. Nine out of 28 lived ro years or more, only two of 28 succumbed within the first year and the average duration of the disease was Io years. Average duration in pure-mitral cases = 15 years Average duration in mitral-and-aortic = 3 years Average duration in combined lesions = 10 years In the living cases the figures are of course not compared. (See Table ro.) TABLE 9.—ESTIMATED DURATION OF LIFE IN 95 CASES OF RHEUMATIC HEART DISEASE EnpING MosTLy By PASSIVE CONGESTION Years | Mitral | Mitral and aortic Other comb. | Total 16 | I WwW HH O HH H 3 fo) fe) fo) 2 I 2 3 4 2 fo) I 2 I 2 ° I I I I I 2 fo) ° WiO GeO Orta: OFM O50. 0° 0 o> O00 0. O- 02 08080 0/008 Om Om Om Hay Om On Olen Hi OMOMISs OF OL MeN § OR HLH. Weir miles wW io 36 FACTS ON THE HEART The lesion dated supposedly from a rheumatic attack in seventy- two, and from a choreic attack in six cases. The estimated duration of the lesion was as in Table 9. This group of cases with a known cause appears to occur in younger people than the group in which no cause is clear (see below). The average age of the thirty-six patients with “‘pure-mitral” dis- ease is thirty-five years, and the average duration of the lesion 15 years. Most of these cases died from passive congestion (‘‘con- gestive death’’). TABLE 10.—LIVING CASES. ESTIMATED DURATION OF LIFE IN 239 CASES OF RHEUMATIC HEART DisEASE EXAMINED BY ME IN THE OUT-PATIENT DEPARTMENT IN THE YEARS I91Q, 1920, I92I, 1922 Mitral Mitral and aortic Total is = = M F 2 VOATS Mee) Lik PC ee ae ee ee APVCATS 025 HE ha ote dea ey ae ee SEATS. | aah Ber cose ee O VEAaTSi is. cigs so tee eee eee AT OATS coe certs ode ee oe ee SO: Vears ce vay, 9 years LO V eats ee TTUVCATS yh. 2. RUS pee ee EA yearsie sae ee a eet IZVVCATS Aan Oke ee ee EALY CATS) uk Leon eae ee TORyears oes tele aes teers eee TO VCATS? AG shes eee da ne eee 17 years EO *VEAIS SS, Via ee eae TO “VEaTS /" eet (pie ae eee ea DO: VEATSi7 tua ape ce ae ae eae 25 years 20 VeaTSia% os moet a ees et BR ALY CATS Muveron REA SCs. Staats Ben SRV eATS te oa ieee H # HH O DD BH AH OW HH HH OO HW dN W PW HB CON NY DS CC Or (Oe ie Oe O AO -- 0) OOS et 0 Se Sei RG ONO (bs WON OVO Se He eH OFF 69 700-0 Go Fe Bt O91 et G1 00 "06 Us OH O RH O HK HR OO OO H HR HR HR RW AB RR RW OO HW HR Re DD Many years Unknown DURATION OF LIFE 37 Age and Length of Life in Rheumatic Heart Disease.—1. Age. The figures in Table 7 show that rheumatic valvular heart disease (defined as above) occurs at every age, lasts till old age, and is compatible with long life. In the 10% ‘‘pure-mitral’”’ cases, 33 or 30% were over fifty years of age at the time of death; while of the 40 mitral-and-aortic cases 14 or 35% had survived the fiftieth year. From the point of view of prognosis in youthful cardiac sufferers these facts are somewhat reassuring, though the majority (in ‘‘pure- mitral’ cases 70%) die before fifty. The worst decade for mitral cases is that between thirty and forty, while the danger-point for mitral-and-aortic is fifty to sixty. Males with ‘“‘pure-mitral”’ stenosis and combinations of this with pulmonary and tricuspid disease die usually before forty; only one- fourth survive the fiftieth year. But if they have both mitral and aortic stenosis they are slightly older at death than with mitral alone. Aortic stenosis is the longest-lived lesion of the rheumatic group. 76% of the cases lived beyond forty, and almost 50% survived the fiftieth year. Ji zs a lesion of elderly men, but when women have it (which is rare) they live even longer than men. 2. Duration of Disease—(a) The actual number of years occupied in each case by the disease before death and the causes of death (congestive or non-congestive) are shown in Table 9 and Table 48. The first of these points—the duration of the disease—can be settled only with an approximation to accuracy. We may surmise that the disease began at the date of the first (often the only) attack of acute rheumatism or chorea, a date which can be fixed with approxi- mate accuracy in 86 of our cases. Assuming this to be true we can say that 35, or 40%, of our cases lived ten years or more. (b) The table of ages at the time of death in necropsied cases (Table II) represents the only certain data that I have. But it is of some interest to compare with this the ages of 315 cases diagnosed as rheumatic heart disease by me in out-patient practice or in private practice (see Table 12). These ages given at the time the patient was first seen, are to be taken as representing a point near the time at which symptoms first appeared. In this group (see Table 12) the decade from ten to nineteen is the most important one. It is striking that only 17 or 5% fall within the first decade of life while 87 or nearly 27% come for advice within the next ten years, and 173 or 55% before the thirtieth year. 38 FACTS ON THE HEART TABLE 1t.—AGE (AT THE TIME OF DEATH) AND SEX Mitral M-A M-A-T M-T Aortic Poly 4 valves Total SCH OH NOW O SCOnR N COB HO OO AO UOMO ne. 0 5 3 6 6 4 I 2 27 Set leSetha eae ee tislkctar cose weotS Ail en eae Chl Nee nl uw HAM NT DN OW H Bell oweree Cees si [ets es a es ee ress ak dat otter ee ae H n Females.... Returning now to the necropsied cases (Table 11) we see that the end of the disease comes most often in the years from thirty to thirty-nine. Its earliest symptoms (if the ante-mortem diagnoses of Table 8 are correct) come twenty years earlier. I refrain from concluding that the average length of the disease is twenty years. The two sets of figures cannot legitimately be combined in this way. Moreover, only in the death-age figures are we certain of the diagnosis. 3. Sex.—It has usually been stated that mitral stenosis (pure or combined with other lesions) is commoner in women than in men. In this series of 180 proved mitral cases (‘‘pure” and combined) there were 84 males to 96 females. But as in our necropsies from all sources males make up 65.4% these figures certainly show a consider- able excess of females. Women do not come into our wards as often as men do. The difference in the number of autopsied cases may well be accounted for by women’s greater unwillingness to trust themselves to a hospital, or by their relatives’ greater unwill- ingness to grant necropsy in the case of a female than in that of a male.* *The actual number of deaths from heart disease of all sorts is about the same in women and in men. See for example the Statistical Bulletin of the Metropolitan Life Insurance Co., June, 1925 (Vol. VI, No. 6). DURATION OF LIFE 39 TABLE 12.~~LIVING PATIENTS Age and Sex Age at first consultation Mitral private cases Mitral Aortic Males | Females} Males | Females} Males | Females| Males | Females Males... Females. Comparing these figures with those obtained in out-patient work and in private practice, we find that (see Table 12) in the living out- patient and private cases there is a considerable excess of females, 181 to 134 males, even though among all the patients coming for all causes to our Out-Patient Department there are but fifty-eight women to every seventy-one men. Hence this excess of women with mitral stenosis is greater than the’figures show. Taking now the Out-Patient Department figures of heart disease, chorea, and rheumatism in children up to sixteen, we find that 59% of those treated as ‘‘rheumatic cardiac disease” in 1921 and 61% of those treated either as rheumatic heart disease, as chorea, or as rheumatism, were girls. 49 FACTS ON THE HEART TABLE 13.—SOURCE OF CASES Mitral | M + A | Aortic | Total (a) Out-Patient Department (for years 1910, TO2O; 21,522) See ee eee ee Bean (b) Private practice In the ‘“‘pure-mitral”’ cases of all ages the females are more than twice as numerous (149 to 68) so long as we confine our attention to living (and therefore doubtful) cases. In the necropsied cases of ‘‘pure mitral” disease there were sixty-two females to forty-five males. But as already said this gives too slight an impression of the excess of females, since our necropsied series is not a fair sample of the sick adult population, but contains a disproportionate number of males. Putting together all our facts: (a) as to necropsied cases in a “‘selected”’ material, (b) as to all living cases examined by me, (c) as to all out-patient cases of rheumatic heart disease, (d) as to all out-patient cases of rheumatic heart disease in children, (e) as to all out-patient cases of chorea, (f) as to all out-patient cases of acute rheumatism, we may conclude that the female sex is a strong factor in determining the incidence of mitral disease, whether ‘‘pure”’ or combined. I have already called attention to the fact that in the mitral-. and-aortic lesions the males predominate, while in the pure aortic lesions females are the exception. Relation of Sex to Duration of Diseases.—When we study the relation of sex to the age at which the fatal illness occurred, we see that males break down earlier than females. Thus in Table 11 it appears that in females only 40% (24 of 62 cases) of the pure mitral and 59% (22 of 37 cases) of those associated with other valve lesions died before their fortieth year. Combining both groups we find that in only 47% of the 96 (not counting the cases of “‘pure’’ aortic steno- sis) female cases did death occur before forty. In other words more than half of them (53%) get by the fourth decade. Of the 84 men (not counting aortic stenosis) only 40% (33) lived past forty. 60% (27 of 45 cases) of the ‘‘pure mitral” and 76% (39 of 51) of the remaining cases in men died under forty. ETIOLOGY IN MITRAL STENOSIS 41 We may surmise that this is due to the greater muscular activity called for by the men’s occupations, but for reasons stated elsewhere I doubt whether this explanation holds. I cannot explain the women’s greater tenacity of life. ETIOLOGY IN MITRAL STENOSIS The Relation of These Lesions to Rheumatism, Chorea, and Tonsillitis.—In 92 cases the records on this point are fairly complete. They show that rheumatic arthritis was a factor in 73 or 78%; that chorea was remembered in only 7 cases or 6%, while tonsillitis seemed important in 7 cases or 7%. In the remaining 7 cases none of these evidences of infection was recorded. The surprising thing to me in these cases is the small number of choreas. Perhaps chorea, even when fatal (see page 312), causes a type of endocarditis not apt to lead to serious deformities of the valves. I find that only in 7% of cases seen clinically did definite mitral stenosis follow chorea in patients without joint symptoms. Thus in rr6 living cases of “pure mitral” disease, and in 73 mitral- and-aortic disease there were but eight cases with a history of chorea without rheumatism, that is, only 7%, which corresponds closely with 6% in the necropsied cases. As to the importance of fonszllitis in these cases it is difficult to say anything definite, on account of the frequency of this infection in all sorts of people. Our records do not clearly separate the cases in which tonsillitis has been frequent and severe from those in which it was merely remembered to have occurred once or more in the individ- ual’s lifetime. Our records show only g of 174 autopsied cases and 31 of 170 clinical cases with records of tonsillitis. This is no more than would be found in any series of healthy people. Number of Attacks of Rheumatism (or Chorea).—An attempt was made to ascertain how many attacks of rheumatism or chorea had occurred during the lifetime of these patients. The memory of such events is notoriously faulty and the following table is therefore of very little value. 42 FACTS ON THE HEART TABLE 14.—NUMBER OF ATTACKS OF RHEUMATISM (OR CHOREA) IN MiTRAL DISEASE “PURE”? OR OCCURRING WITH OTHER LESIONS Mitral Mitral & Aortic Other combinations No. of ttack Ss y Males Females Males Females Males Females Rheum. 13 Rheum. 9 | Rheum. : Rheum. 11 | Rheum. 7 | Rheum. 46 Chorea 2 Chorea 4 Chorea I Chorea 3 | Chorea 10 Rheum. 17 Chorea I Rheum. 6 Rheum. Rheum. Rheum. Rheum. Previous Infections Other than Rheumatism.—In Table 15 are listed the infections remembered by the individual, or in the case of children by the parents, as having occurred in the course of his pre- vious life. It seems to me apparent from these figures that no infec- tion other than that manifested in rheumatism and chorea can as yet be definitely correlated as an etiological factor in mitraldisease. The histories of any 173 people with the same age and sex distribution would contain, I think, at least this number of pneumonias, scarlet fevers, etc. Doubtless some cases of scarlet fever complicated by streptococcus infection may be the precursors of some types of heart disease. But for scarlet fever alone these figures show no connection to endocarditis. Pneumonia in fatal cases shows a fair percentage of acute endocardi- tis, especially when the streptococcus is present (as in the ‘‘influenza”’ pneumonias). But on the whole when we consider the great fre- quency of pneumonia and the relative rarity of mitral disease at all ages, it is difficult to put down pneumonia as an etiological factor, even a minor one. Equally groundless in these cases is the theory that syphilis or arteriosclerosis can produce the peculiar lesions of mitral stenosis. Lesions of syphilis recognizable post-mortem were not found in a single case, and the percentage of known syphilitic infections was notably below the figures to be found by questioning hospital patients in general. (See R. C. Cabot: Relative Frequency of the Different Diseases Prevalent in Boston and its Vicinity; Shattuck Lecture, Mass. Medical Society, June 13,1911.) A calcified column (“‘bone’’) was found at the root of the mitral valve in three cases and seemed ll ETIOLOGY IN MITRAL STENOSIS 43 like a lesion which might be explained by arteriosclerosis. But these calcified masses caused no stenosis. (See page 204.) TABLE 15.—PREvIOUS INFECTIONS OTHER THAN RHEUMATISM IN 173 CASES OF RHEU- MATIC HEART DISEASE Other Mi itral M+A ine Scarlet fever M easl@s. Pneumonia........ Typhoid Smallpox Diphtheria ePOPPUGRIS . Sec hy Oxts= Bee to Ls Ca ON POOH WBW ON WW BA O= O°. OF. O.42O.8N. CO Dw Onsite TABLE 16.—TUBERCULOSIS, ACTIVE OR OBSOLETE Mitral Mitral and Aortic Other comb. The idea fathered by some French writers that tubercu- losis 1s an etiological factor in rheumatic heart disease finds no support in these figures. Moreover there is but one case in which an active phthisis has accompanied or complicated rheumatic heart disease. 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In thirty-four cases, or over half, dyspnea appeared alone, was the earliest symptom, and often persisted for years before any other symptoms were noticed. In the mitral-and-aortic cases, twenty-three out of twenty-seven had dyspnea alone or in combination as their first symptom, while in the other combined stenoses 18 of 21 began in the same way. In the total group of 109 carefully questioned patients, 94 began with dyspnea, alone or accompanied. Earliest Symptoms (Out-Patient Cases).—In the living cases (Table 18) dyspnea was the first complaint in sixty-one out of eighty- five carefully questioned “‘pure mitral’’ cases, and in thirty out of forty-seven “mitral-and-aortic” cases, i.e. in about three-quarters of all cases. Palpitation was noticed first in ten out of thirty-three “‘pure mitral’’ cases and in ten out of twenty-six ‘mitral and aortic,” i.e. in one-third of the total cases. Cough was the earliest symptom in eleven out of twenty-seven ‘‘pure mitral’’ and five out of twelve ‘“‘mitral and aortic,” i.e. in about one-third. Precordial pain of some sort was the earliest complaint in eight out of twenty-five ‘‘pure mitral’ and sixteen out of twenty-seven “mitral and aortic.’’ The mitral-and-aortic cases show a higher percent of pain,—over one-half. Edema was the first point noticed in four ‘‘mitral” cases out of twenty-one, and five ‘mitral and aortic” out of fifteen. TABLE 18.—TABULATION OF THE EARLIEST CARDIAC SYMPTOM Living Cases Symptom Mitral M+A Dyspnea BITECOLGLAL Wal vrei oi. se Nake ke Rents ee 160 cases 46 FACTS ON THE HEART Taking all symptoms noted, whether early or late, their relative frequency in this whole group of living mitral cases. with or with- out aortic disease, was as follows: Dyspneat chew eas oo ls ae 132 Palpitations os Metviteecc Oats. os a ae a 59 Precordial pathic... its. 0.08. le ee 52 1 (6 (e100 F: Snead ar 36 In contrast with the necropsied cases most of which were studied only at the end of life, these relatively early cases (though their diag- nosis is never quite certain) seem to show a much greater frequency of pain as a complaint (especially in the “‘mitral-and-aortic”’ cases). The relation of pain to dyspnea is as fifty-two to one hundred and thirty-two in the early (living) cases, while it is only as twenty-one to one hundred and twelve in the late (necropsied) cases. Palpitation and dyspnea were noted together at the onset of twenty-three cases or about one-fourth. In most respects these tables show no notable differences of symptomatology as between the “‘pure-mitral” and the mitral-and- aortic cases. The percentage of patients who noticed edema at some time before hospitalization is 12 out of 40 in the mitral-and-aortic series, as compared with 43 out of 107 in the mitral series and 17 out of 33 in the other combinations,—1.e. the mitral and aortic cases showed early edema in 30%, the pure mitral in 40%, and the other combinations in 51%. Symptoms in General.—The figures of Table 19 refer to the patient’s complaints before entering the hospital, not to the terminal sufferings. The familiar symptoms of cardiac patients here occur in very much their familiar order. It is perhaps significant that in the mitral-and-aortic cases dyspnea is relatively more frequent (75%) than in the mitral (50%). The “‘combined”’ stenoses give the high- est of all (82%). | The fact that only 55 out of 107 “‘pure-mitral’’ patients are known to have had any dyspnea at all before entering the hospital is surpris- ing, indeed almost incredible. But if it represents the truth it goes toward explaining why the diagnosis was altogether missed in about the same percentage of cases. Examining this similarity more closely we find that 7m 40 out of 52 of the undiagnosed cases dyspnea was absent. Under these conditions the cardiac histories may well have been less searchingly taken. SYMPTOMS OF MITRAL STENOSIS 47 Palpitation; Early or Never.—Another notable fact is that palpi- tation (often, perhaps usually, equivalent to auricular fibrillation) appears either early or not at all. It was noticed in only eighteen ‘pure mitral”’ cases but in 12 of these it was noticed as early as any sympiom. In seven out of eleven mitral-and-aortic cases the same “early or never’”’ tendency appears, while in the remaining ‘‘com- bined stenoses” palpitation came early or never in five of the 9 _ recorded cases. So that (combining the three groups) we may say: In mitral disease (with or without other valve lesions) palpitation is recorded only 38 times among 180 cases, but in 24 of these 38 or 63%, this palpitation appeared either as the earliest symptom or with the earliest symptoms. [These data do not agree with those of the Out- Patient Department series wherein only one-third of those with pal- pitation manifested it as a ‘‘first complaint.”’] These figures as to palpitation may be compared with our rather scanty data on the pulse as recorded during the patients’ stay in the hospital. Of the mitral cases 41 out of 67 cases with definitely recorded pulse observations showed arrhythmia. In all but three of these the arrhythmia is so described as to make it highly probable that auricular fibrillation was present. But it is certainly surprising that only 41 out of 67, or approximately 61%, should have manifested this obvious change in any such degree as to get it into our hospital records. Arrhythmia has been, throughout the years covered by this series of cases, one of the points most clearly expected and looked for by physicians and internes in sick patients of all types, especially, but not only, in those believed to have heart disease. It is not usu- ally difficult to recognize the existence of some arrhythmia when one feels the pulse as often as is the routine practice of physicians, internes and nurses at the Massachusetts General Hospital. In the “mitral-and-aortic”’ cases, 24 had regular and to irregular pulses while in the other “combined stenoses”? 15 were regular and 12 irregular. Combining the three groups, we have 63 of 127 or almost exactly 50% with irregular pulses. The greater part of these I believe (knowing the conditions of observation, and the character- istics of internes and nurses at the Massachusetts General Hospital) would not have been recorded as “irregular”? unless an absolute arrhythmia or auricular fibrillation were present. Hence I think we may conclude that 50% of arrhythmias (mostly fibrillations) is not far from the correct figure in hospitalized cases of mitral disease. But we must realize that a large number of these cases were hospi- talized not for heart disease but for all sorts of medical and surgical 48 FACTS ON THE HEART re TABLE 19.—FREQUENCY OF CERTAIN SyMPTOMS IN RHEUMATIC HEART DISEASE Necropsied Cases ; ; Comb. Symptoms Mitral M+A lestae Total Cos ON Sy oo nv Palpitahom.s . 2.5 ae. se oe I Noirecord. Of place 22.74. west: sents sk tn ae te eee 32g Thrill felt. during presystolie period... ..: 0.45. Gee 67 Thrill felt-durine systole alone... .>..: ..am(s5 ee te 6 Thrill felt“during ‘diastolealones.< ).c.c.te. oe ee ete ee 6 ING TECOTALOTAMIMEN ts caa cacy wre eicsh itn: Shige ARE ieee T42.%03 In 89 ambulatory mitral-and-aortic cases twenty-six showed thrill: CASES a rill felttine Renee 0 Soe 1A a eee 24 Doublerthrill felines sscex hine fae eis ae ee 2 226 Systolic and: presystolic at apexss:.\. cues oe eee I Systolicrat Apex cic. seers tea cba hs kya Mines I PresystohiGatia pex mecat tyxctuest GS $0. ka eae Gee sip he 8 Presystolicat apex, systolic at.aortic areas:.: 2.00. «eee ee Diastolee rata pex: ty sie mte Lsciee say, i aie lant ge ee eee 2 Diastolic at pulmonic area. 07.5. 2 oa ne amen es I Diastolic no*record of ‘place, 20.0... 2 eaeort ad I Systolic teortic cm. sence ceo wel « aise 1 uses OR de 9 Systohcing Tecords0l/ Placa. -auinn t) totus a oe ee ee “2 rm Thus in 119 out of 272 ambulatory cases the diagnosis rested in part on the presence of a purring thrill palpable after exertion or at rest. Ina few cases (fifteen) this thrill was not confined to the apex region but could also be felt at the base of the heart. I suppose this variation depends chiefly on how violent the vibrations are. The Pulse.—Out of 107 necropsied ‘‘pure mitral”’ cases our records are of some value in sixty-seven. Of these twenty-six showed regular pulses, most of them small in volume and of low tension* but a good many entirely normal in all respects. There is no characteristic pulse of mitral disease. Forty-one were arrhythmic, and of these thirty-eight are described so that it is probable that absolute arrhythmia, and so auricular fibrillation, was present i.e. in about 50% of the well-recorded cases. * Two are described as of high tension. " PHYSICAL SIGNS OF MITRAL STENOSIS 61 The three remaining are called “intermittent”? and may have repre- sented other types of arrhythmia. In three cases the word ‘‘Corrigan”’ is used, and twice a capillary pulse is recorded. These cases are of special interest because we know that no chronic aortic disease, no arteriosclerosis, or hyper- thyroidism was present. In one case the pulse is easily explained by the presence on the aortic valve of large fresh vegetations which probably caused regurgitation. In another chronic pericarditis, that universal confuser of all circulatory signs, was present. The third case was not accounted for. Comparing the pulses in the two groups of cases in Table 31, it seems that arrhythmia ts nearly twice as common in the pure-mitral cases as in the mitral-and-aortic. Why this is so I have no idea. In the mitral-and-aortic cases the regular pulses greatly out-number the irregular by 2 to 1; in the “other combinations” also the regular pulses are slightly but definitely in the majority. It would seem to follow, if these figures are correct, that “‘pure mitral”’ disease is more apt to be associated with arrhythmia than any of the more com- plicated lesions. The Corrigan Pulse in the mitral-and-aortic series was noticed only ten times or 22%. ‘This figure is of considerable interest. It shows (if the clinical records are correct) that when we are in doubt whether or not an aortic lesion is present beside the recognized mitral lesion, we cannot often count on the Corrigan pulse as an indication of aortic disease. In four-fifths of the cases the associated stenosis at the mitral (and usually at the aortic) valves prevents the pulse from jerking and collapsing. TABLE 20-2 HE PULSE - Necropsies Other Mitral M+A combi- nations Regular BELAY eee ee ev os rig sk Once eas ea be ISS: hea ees on oe gre 5 a Capillary High tension PEP ATUENSION® oy ates fd eo eke Fair tension RereNEACA LOTISION A, GaN haces a Oo Rae 62 FACTS ON THE HEART TABLE 32.—LIVING CASES Pure-Mitral and Mitral-and-Aortic* Corrigan Capillary Pistol shot Durdziers: 5.0. eee ee Waterhammer....%.;..... Normalior n0-tecord 4504. 3ee TABLE 33.—CONDITION OF THE ARTERIES Necropsied cases Mitral Palpable Thickened, brachials tortuous Palpable and sclerosed Not palpable Bounding, not palpable No record Blood Pressure.—Nothing definite or characteristic can be made out. It is noteworthy, however, that the presence of mitral stenosis does not prevent very high pressures in cases complicated by chronic nephritis. Thus in Case 3283 (complicated by glomerulonephritis TABLE 34.—BLOOD PRESSURE Living Cases Mitral (59 measured). Highest diastolic pressures: 155, 120 (2), 115, 110 (2), 105 (3), 100.... 10 Cases Highest systolic pressures: 210 (2), 195, 185, 180 (2) 6 cases Highest pulse pressures: 105, go. Mitral-and-aortic (45 cases measured). Systolic blood pressure 100-120 14 cases Systolic blood pressure 120-130 13 cases Systolic blood pressure 130-140 g cases Systolic blood pressure 140-150 2 cases Systolic blood pressure 150-160 6 cases Brachial *1 20/36, popliteal 100/20. wn: Ws; Bee eye atte sao ie oe PHYSICAL SIGNS OF MITRAL STENOSIS 63 in a patient of twenty-three) pressures of 210/130, 220/130, 280/110, and 210/140 were recorded during the twelve days of his life in the hospital. The mitral orifice measured eight cm. and showed a well . marked stenosing deformity. In another mitral stenotic patient dying at sixty-four of a cerebral hemorrhage with complicating pneumonia, the systolic pressure reached 175. In thirty other valve lesions there were only six records of systolic blood pressure ranging from 105 to 180, with three records of diastolic pressure, 50, 65, and 80. The living patients illustrate the same point. Hoarseness and Aphonia.—Only one of the cases here analyzed necropsy 3422 showed during life either of these symptoms, though Dr. Paul D. White* has shown them to be not infrequent clinically in mitral cases which did not happen to come to necropsy. Probably poor observation accounts for this discrepancy. TABLE 35.—PoST-MORTEM EVIDENCES OF PASSIVE CONGESTION 107 cases 40 cases 33 Cases 180 cases + Present | PA bent Mitral Other comb. Total + + ByANOSIS..... 80555 MIME, la ate a ops WetaSaTCAs sm. «'s Hydropericardium Pav TOUIOTAX. 1. 3... 6). Ascites OTHER Mitra. M+ A Comes. Torta us lahitebdoysotong: beh bal deh hese 5. a eter lrg rr ery 6 Six nC eCart 8 3 3 14 PMI TOLMOTAK a lent ame. Wyeast ecsud ist silos oj areicledebee ebeus eve setae 6 2 2 Io iva roohOrax maOUDlE raat a Matters cs a ntete eeLMebe oes 30 14 8 52 Reerornoras, Nidca Nos stated)... cn. sy Coen Meads pen > 3 3 79 cases. * Paralysis of the left recurrent laryngeal nerve associated with mitral stenosis, Paul D. White, M.D. and Joseph Garland, M.D., Archives of Int. Med., Sept., 1920, Vol, 26, p. 343. 64 FACTS ON THE HEART Evidences of Passive Congestion at Necropsy.—Anasarca was recorded twenty-two times in the 107 pure mitral cases and four times in the 40 mitral-and-aortic cases. Hydropericardium was recorded twenty-seven times in ing 107 mitral cases. In the other cases we have no record. Hydrothorax forty-five times in the 107 mitral cases and 19 times in the 40 mitral and aortic. Thus the two series show no significant difference in the % occurrence of this symptom. Aortic disease when added to mitral disease neither increases nor diminishes the amount of terminal pulmonary congestion produced by mitral disease alone. What seems most surprising in these figures is that 56% of the cases Show no hydrothorax at all! In the positive cases the fluid was confined, or largely confined to the right chest in fourteen cases and to the left in ten cases—a discrepancy favoring the right side less than clinical observation would lead us to suppose. In nineteen out of forty cases the hydrothorax was not recognized in life. Part of this error may be due to a reluctance to disturb dying patients in order to establish a fact which is of little or no use to prog- nosis or treatment. Twice hydrothorax was diagnosed in life but not found at necropsy. Four times we found it in life only on the right side while the pathologist found it on both sides. Ascites was also rather surprisingly infrequent in both mitral and mitral-and-aortic cases. It was present in thirty-five of 107 mitral cases and 17 of 40 mitral-and-aortic cases,—practically identi- cal fractions, each representing about one-third of the group. In the ‘‘combined lesions’”’ it was twice as frequent (20 of 33). In two-thirds of all cases the ascites was recognized in life. In the remainder we missed it. In four cases we “‘found”’ ascites when it was not there. The spleen was firm and elastic at necropsy in 68 cases, soft in 33 out of a total of ror cases in which a definite observation is recorded. Thus two-thirds show passive congestion and one-third suggest infection. In life the spleen was felt but five times in 144 cases. In one of these five, infarction was found at necropsy. These cases seem to show that as a rule death does not occur in mitral disease by means of decompensation and passive congestion. When “pure mitral” disease is itself the cause of death, decom- pensation is usually present. But mitral disease is often present not as a cause of death but as an historical landmark, harmless so far as we know, to the individual. In our series this was the case PHYSICAL SIGNS OF MITRAL STENOSIS 65 in 60 cases out of 107— or nearly three-fifths—an astonishing result. (Further analysis of the non-congestive deaths is given on page 77). How Explain the Cases without Dropsy.—Sixty of 107—or 36 of the pure mitral cases died without any hydrothorax and with little or no dropsy elsewhere. In most cases this fact is explained by the fact that compensation was good to the last, the patients dying of embolism and thrombosis (ten), pneumonia (five), sepsis (five), acute endocarditis (four), general peritonitis (four), cancer (four), apoplexy (three), meningitis (two), leukemia, uremia, and hemorrhage, each one. In four cases death was unexplained. In the 40 Mitral-and-Aortic cases, 21 or over half showed no hydrothorax; among the “‘combined lesions,” 18 of 33 were also free of hydrothorax. TABLE 36.—CONDITION OF THE LIVER IN LIFE 107 cases 40 237 Comps 180 mitral M+A lesions total Liver enlarged (felt below ribs) 14 19 Setetetitcss alsO. 11)... . 42.) sees ce 2 (9) (8) Not demonstrably enlarged 17 10 0 Tete) ss [o's I 9 4 TABLE 37.—CONDITION OF THE SPLEEN *AFTER DEATH 107 40 33 comb. mitral M+A lesions Beemer. TUDDEry) (sf. ass 4" RESO Leer teri Pts yn so 5. Peyote. Bers reASLOT INA Lge aed wy he ars, eS Bae TIVETST PEC aie fete eit arated Vo was Spleen not recorded Condition of the Liver.—The figures in Table 36 seem to show that during life hepatic enlargement is obvious in slightly under one-half of the pure mitral cases, over one-half of the mitral-and-aortic cases and nearly 24 of the ‘‘other combinations.”’ The decompensating power of multiple valve lesionsis very slightly greater than that of mitral stenosis alone. This is only what we should expect and bears out what is shown in the post-mortem records of passive congestion (Table 35). There we see that hydrothorax is produced by pure mitral disease in 42% of cases, by mitral and 5 66 FACTS ON THE HEART aortic disease in 47.5%, and by the ‘‘other combinations” in 45%. Ascites occurred in 33% of pure mitral cases, in 42.5% of mitral-and- aortic cases, in 40% of “‘other combinations.” The records of hydro pericardium are incomplete. The Spleen.—The necropsy record of a firm and ‘‘rubbery”’ spleen represents passive congestion. Enlargement is mentioned in only six cases and is relatively slight, especially in length and breadth, although the organ is often plumper than normal. Its lack of longi- tudinal enlargement accounts for the fact that in heart disease we can so rarely feel its tip during life unless an infarct is lodged there. The soft spleens are usually associated with acute endocarditis or other septic complications. Urinalysis.—The cases showing definite glomerulonephritis and those associated with renal infarcts are collated in Tables 42 and 45 which show that about 14 of all cases of mitral disease (‘“‘pure” or complicated) are associated with nephritis of some type. In 4o uncomplicated cases eight showed normal urine and thirty-two showed albumin and casts. In only four of these thirty-two was the albumin or the casts in unusual amount, i.e., more than the traces of albumin and the few hyalin and granular casts to be expected as a result of passive congestion. ‘These four cases showed the following: TABLE 38.—URINE IN PASSIVE CONGESTION DUE TO MITRAL DISEASE Pathological state Albumin Casts Simple passive congestion Large trace | Many Simple passive congestion Many Meningitis as complication Many General peritonitis as complication Slight trace | Many Comments —Considering these cases in connection with those complicated by definite nephritis, it is obvious that urinary examina- tion does not enable us to distinguish nephritis from the conditions accompanying (a) passive congestion of the kidney, (b) acute infec- tious diseases with cloudy swelling of the kidney. This conclusion I proved many years ago* but until recent years it was been unfash- ionable in medical circles to admit it. * Cabot, R. C.: The Diagnosis of Renal Functions, N. Y. Med. Journ., May 12, 1906. PHYSICAL SIGNS OF, MITRAL STENOSIS 67 Fever.—Fever was present (continued or remittent) during most or all of the hospital stay of seventy-six out of 180 patients (see Table 39). The probable explanation in 55 cases was as follows: Peetcormolicating pHeuUmMonia...22..c0.-- yess ss s.. OT DPPPETITRONCOCAPCILIS: 6.0 ele Piece eves oa vas ro (or possibly rr) MUIR CLS tae Opts Bees SY chatter hehite wits Bohs 4 BPEL AI SOD SIS Weta) aide «AS cect toed x toe Sida 12 MME MeT LIS. pdt yee ne oi ere Sauit beth ew Des 3 6. General peritonitis, arthritis, leukemia, uremia, PURO CACM PONG weit boku es oe ei i: 55 Thrombus—F ever. —In addition to these there remains an interest- ing group of thirteen cases in which nothing was found post-mortem to explain fever except thrombz, embolt, fresh infarcts and their results. In six of these the thrombi were confined to one or both auricular appendages (the left in five). This association of thrombi with fever may not be a causal one. Certainly thrombi are sometimes associated with bacteria. In other cases the disintegration of a clot might cause a protein fever. On the whole it seems not improbable that ball thrombi or other clots in the auricles are part of a process which not infrequently causes fever. TABLE 39.— TEMPERATURE Temperature Mitral M+A Subnormal Dorma. (under 00). isi ih. eek. ETLONLOS 22h n.d: RLTARLOA Witte afi ek NAY Fs Fe Yon Peeree Not, Tecorded........5..%... Ordinarily when an unexplained fever arises in a case of valvular heart disease we begin to speculate on the possibility of acute endo- carditis, and regard this possibility as strong if embolic phenomena subsequently appear. But from this series of cases it appears that unexplained fever in cardiac cases is associated as often post-mortem ——— 68 _ FACTS ON THE HEART with intracardiac clots or visceral infarcts as it is with fresh valvular endocarditis. Leucocytosis.—Leucocytosis usually accompanied these fevers of all types. There was nothing of special interest about it in these cases except that in eight out of twenty-one “‘acute”’ cases of endo- carditis leucocytosis was absent. TABLE 40.—LEUCOCYTE COUNT Leucocytes Mitral M+A One Total comb. O- 5,000 6,000— 7,000 8,000- 9,000 10,000-I 1,000 I 2,000—1 3,000 14,000-I 5,000 16,000-1 7,000 18,000—-19,000 20,000- 21,000 2 2,000-30,000 31,000-50,000 Slight leucocytosis Moderate leucocytosis............. Marked leucocytosis 2. 2 I oo 2 4 Zz, I 3 4 2 3 3 I 2 3 TABLE 4I Mitral M+A Total scases an ethe cat oe tres eee 83 135 Of these there was leucocytosis in 66 105 or 80% No cause for leucocytosis outside the heart in : 13 89 or 85% _ Comments.—t1. In terminal stages, from two-thirds to four-fifths of the cases in each group showed fever. 2. In one-fifth of the cases this fever might be explained by the acute endocarditis found post-mortem. Other common causes are pneumonia and general sepsis. PHYSICAL SIGNS OF MITRAL STENOSIS 69 3. In the remainder thrombosis occurred thirteen times, leaving two cases with fever quite unexplained. Thrombosis thus appears to be associated with most of the “unexplained”’ fevers of mitral disease. 4. Nearly four-fifths of all cases showed a leucocytosis, particu- larly marked in the “combined lesions.” The cause of this -leucocytosis was usually within the heart (clot or endocarditis). Infarction of the Kidneys, Lungs, and Spleen.—Whatever the precise cause of infarcts, however they are related to embolism, to thrombosis, or to simple passive congestion, the data of these necrop- sies regarding them may well be presented here (Table 42). TABLE 42.—INFARCTS Infarcts in the Mitral M+A 39 33 23 Total no. of cases with infarctions in 7 19 20 96 these organs. (of 107) (of 40) (of 33) (of 180) From these figures it is clear that: (1) In 57 out of 107 cases infarctions were present, ordinarily of the lungs, kidneys, spleen or liver. 43 of this 57 were in uncom- pensated cases with general dropsy and congestion. Only 14 occurred in well compensated, non-congestive cases. (2) Infarcts occur in 19 out of 4o or about 1% the “mitral-and- aortic cases and in 20 of 33 or 43% of the “‘other combinations.” (3) Infarcts are slightly commoner in the kidneys than elsewhere, perhaps because they are easier to see in this organ than in the lungs. The Diagnosis of Infarctions Pulmonary infarction one may recognize clinically in about one- third of the cases, those namely in which it leads to an hemoptysis not otherwise explained. This was the case in nine out of the thirty- three well-studied “‘pure mitral’’ cases. In one of the cases there was also sharp pain in the right side of the chest at a point corresponding 7O FACTS ON THE HEART with the position of the infarct. In the other twenty-four the infarcts were not and probably could not have been recognized. Infarct of the kidney was known to be associated in one case out of thirty-nine with a sharp pain in the right hypochondrium, which led to a guess that infarction had occurred. ‘The urinary findings in the cases Showing infarction post-mortem were in no way characteristic or suggestive. Four cases showed only the “slightest possible trace”? of albumin, four others a “slight trace”? with casts, one a “large trace” alone, and one a large trace with casts, but this latter case had also a general peritonitis. It is entirely reasonable that the urinary findings should not be characteristic, for the infarcts found post-mortem were of all ages. Only a fresh infarct could be expected to produce hematuria and that for a brief period alone. Splenic infarct was suspected in two cases out of the 42 in which it was found post-mortem. In one of these there occurred on three occasions a sharp sudden pain in the splenic region without any other assignable cause. In the presence of decompensated valvular disease such pain might naturally suggest infarct. TABLE 43.—EMBOLIC AND THROMBOTIC LESIONS AT NECROPSY IN 180 CASES Embolism and Thrombosis in Mitral | M+A mite Total comb. 1. Heart. Left-auriculan appendage, swe. ne ae a5 4 2 ay Both appendages: ances Fel cn ee f ° fe) 5 Ball thrombus, left auricle..... 4 ° ° 4 Other thrombi deit-sunclies ye ee. ee ae 2 I ° 3 Right auricular appendage... ....«:.<% 4. - 2 fe) 2 - Place\not stated’ orem. tera” . ee 3 3 Left) ventricle; te clatter ee ° fe) fo) fe) Total carhacthrombinn eaves. ane. ae, ye 28 5 8 41 2 PULINOUGTY BESSELS et eres tye a ee A 9 I ° 9 5.2 Ore DEEP AL CCS SCS enema Relies lo, 2, «ecu: 7 2 fe) 9 A Cerebral pessels 2 oir intern. Whe ote! ise eee I 2 I 4 5. Kidney vessels....... I I fe) 2 ON SD PlCeh MOSSES), Wee Thee Cea eae taste is ae I I fe) Rie 7. J LVUCT VESSELS ci Gk Re EE Oe tis eRe fo) I ° I SS (nsestinal: Bessclse aw es es ee Os ahah See I fe) fe) I O.-Lnnaminale very oe pete arte. ade. ee I | | | | Total lesions 733 ste ea et ae ft \O — i) Ke) Ov \O PHYSICAL SIGNS OF MITRAL STENOSIS 71 In a third case, a spleen which turned out to contain an infarct was palpable during life, but no suspicion of the infarct was aroused, nor should it have been suspected, since infarcts often do not enlarge the spleen and other causes of splenic enlargement could not here be excluded. But it has been my experience with necropsied cases not included in this series that when a spleen has been observed during life to grow notably larger within a few days, the diagnosis post-mortem is always infarct. Leukemic and “infectious” spleens grow more slowly. Comment.—The well known tendency for thrombi to form in the left auricle when its outlet is blocked by mitral stenosis and its current _ is slowed by auricular fibrillation, receives abundant illustration in these necropsies. In the presence of an advanced case of mitral stenosis with fibrillation, we must realize that the chances of intracardiac thrombosis are one in four and that in over go% of these cases this thrombus will be in the left auricle. The danger of detaching this clot when we stir up the previously passive and fibrillating auricle with quinidine has been recently emphasized by Paul D. White and others. Cerebral embolism and death have been thus produced. Next to the heart, the lungs, the brain and the peripheral vessels are oftenest involved. Clinical Evidences of Embolism or Thrombosis.—1. Cerebral (13 cases).* In eleven of the 104 “pure mitral” cases, and in two of the “‘mitral and aortic” cases there were signs and symptoms point- ing to a focal brain lesion. In ten of these 13 cases a sudden hemiplegia was the central fact. This affected the right side of the body in six cases, the left in two cases, while in one case the right arm and the left side of the face are recorded as paralyzed. In the tenth case the side is not stated in the record. Four cases showed signs of “‘apoplexy”’ or cerebral hemorrhage, but without hemiplegia. These cases do not bring out the clinically familiar fact that the embolic hemiplegias of mitral stenosis give a relatively good progno- sis when compared with hemiplegias associated with hypertension and arteriosclerosis. But neither do they contradict it. 2. Pulmonary.—The recognizable cases have already been referred to with pulmonary infarct. 3. Peripheral—(See Table 50.) * This does not contradict Table 43 where only 4 cases are listed as showing cerebral lesions at necropsy. Permission to examine the brain is often, indeed usually, refused in our cases. 72 FACTS ON THE HEART Auricular Thrombi and Arrhythmia.—In 23 cases out of thirty- seven, clots in the left or right auricles were associated with an extreme irregularity of the pulse so described (in most cases) as to warrant the inference that auricular fibrillation was present. In three cases similar clots occurred apparently without any fibrillation during the period of observation. Fibrillation without clots occurred in only four cases. In two other cases the records were not clear. From these figures it appears that intracardiac clots are usually preceded by fibrillation. TABLE 44.—INFECTIOUS PULMONARY COMPLICATIONS FoUND AT NECROPSY Pulmonary lesion Mitral | M-+A One Total comb. Lobar pneumonia Bronchopneumonia Organizing. pheumonia. omc a oer aie 2 tne Résolyingopm euinonia yee snes tie at tant. Pulmonary abscess Comment.—1. Twenty-seven in 180 cases, or about one-seventh of the whole ‘“‘rheumatic”’ group showed a definite pulmonary disease other than passive congestion, edema, hydrothorax, or “‘hypostatic pneumonia.” ‘These twenty-seven cases were all of pneumonia or its results. 2. There were 4 pulmonary abscesses 3 of which occurred in cases showing a partially organized pneumonia. Abscess and organization were doubtless aspects of the same process. 3. From the frequency of these complicating pneumonias we may suppose, therefore, that the pulmonary congestion due to mitral disease favors inflammation of the lung though it certainly does not favor tuberculosis. The Occurrence of Nephritis and Other Renal Complications in Mitral Disease.— Nephritis, acute or chronic, was found post-mortem in 18 of 107 mitral cases (17%), in 12 out of 40 mitral-and-aortic cases (30%), and in 4 of the 33 “‘other combinations.”’ Whether there is any significance in the fact that nephritis was twice as com- mon in the mitral-and-aortic as in the simple mitral cases I cannot say. The outstanding fact is that late in the course of mitral disease we may expect the presence of glomerulonephritis in one-fifth of all EEE eS PHYSICAL SIGNS OF MITRAL STENOSIS fee cases (35 in 180). Doubtless a similar nephritis occurs and heals in the earlier stages of many more cases. Only six of these 35 cases of glomerulonephritis were suspected in life. Here suspicion was aroused usually by the condition of the urine, sometimes by high blood pressure, edema, or uremic symptoms in addition to the urinary abnormalities. In the remaining 29 cases the urine showed nothing suspicious. Of the 16 cases of acute glomerulonephritis proved post-mortem, one showed a normal urine; one showed a slight trace of albumin and many casts; one showed a trace of albumin, many casts, blood and pus. In the rest there was nothing pointing to nephritis. Of 7 cases of subacute glomerulonephritis, four were recognized by the presence of albumin in considerable quantities wae many casts and other clinical manifestations. One case of chronic glomerulonephritis showed only a slight trace of albumin and many casts. TABLE 45.—NEPHRITIS WITH VALVE LESIONS Com- Mitral | M+ reath and felt because of voice sounds rigidity. normal, Flatness. Absent tactile fremitus. Distant bronchial breathing. Occasional rales Edema. Fic. 10. maxillary glands. The apex impulse of the heart was seen and felt in the sixth space 12 cm. to the left in the anterior axillary line; also seen in the fourth and fifth spaces, diffuse and heaving, The borders of percussion dullness were 13 cm. to the left, 5.5. cm. outside the nipple line, 4 cm. to the right; the supracardiac dullness 5 cm.. At the apex was a loud blowing systolic murmur transmitted to the axilla and back, obscuring the first sound. The second sound was not made out. A low-pitched rumbling diastolic murmur was heard over a small area at the apex. Over the whole base a well marked systolic thrill was felt. There was a loud rough systolic murmur at the base filling all of systole. The second sound was not heard. There was an early diastolic murmur, loudest to the left of the ster- num, of different character from that at the apex. There was abso- lute irregularity of rhythm and force. The action was not very rapid (95). The pulses were absolutely irregular, of poor quality, plateau type. The highest systolic blood pressure was 115, the usual 105, the diastolic 85.' The lung signs were as shown in Fig. 19. The abdomen was slightly distended, tympanitic except in the flanks. 152 FACTS ON THE HEART (See diagram.) There was moderate edema over the sacrum and marked edema of the feet and ankles extending halfway to the knees. The pupils reacted sluggishly to light. The reflexes were normal. The temperature and pulse were as shown in Fig. 20. The respirations were g to 29. The amount of urine is not recorded except 31 ounces September 8. The specific gravity was 1.026 to 1.028. The urine was cloudy at one of two examinations and showed a slight trace of albumin and leucocytes at both, fine granular and hyalin casts at the first. The hemoglobin was m= 1. 11 70%. There were 8000 to 11,000 leucocytes, —— te 70% polynuclears, 4,800,000 reds, slight achromia. ~»{ { | | || The platelets were normal. A Wassermann was oft 4 negative. A chest tap September 8 in the right TLE] posterior axillary line and below the tip of the ott | | | | scapula gave 20 ounces of beet-colored clear fluid mE an which coagulated quickly; specific gravity 1.012, LLIALL] 2 3 leucocytes, 2410 red blood cells, no organisms; faoPlort tlt | culture negative. 200 oot ay | | : : 100] loos f-N-E afk The patient showed no improvement. He had Ltt constant nocturnal orthopnea, failure and irration- io ed ES ality. The edema increased. September 9g the sot +t 11 | lungs were full of wet rales, with fluid at both es Ee bases. September 11 he died. : ro OT a ES EB Clinical Diagnosis (from Hospital Record) — Rh ic h i ith mitral is and Delon PTA eum aa eart disease with mitral stenosis an be TAY I | «regurgitation. c Aortic stenosis with regurgitation. Pasta | Auricular fibrillation pS itp ee 6a] ie uricular 10N. Congestive failure. =is So S&S PULSE o Fic. 20 Chronic passive congestion of lungs and liver. Hydrothorax. Bronchopneumonia. Dr. Richard C. Cabot’s Diagnosis ——Chronic endocarditis of the aortic and mitral valves. Aortic stenosis and regurgitation. Mitral stenosis and regurgitation. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Chronic passive congestion. Hydrothorax. Ascites. Pneumonia? ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. MITRAL STENOSIS AND AORTIC STENOSIS 153 Anatomical Diagnosis —Chronic endocarditis of the aortic and mitral valves (stenosis). Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Chronic passive congestion, general. Hydrothorax. Edema of the legs and feet. Meckel’s diverticulum. Obsolete tuberculosis of the mesenteric glands. Dr. RICHARDSON: Clinically do you find a large heart with aortic stenosis if it is a real stenosis? Dr. CasorT: Yes, certainly. Dr. RICHARDSON: We were not permitted to examine the head. The legs and feet were slightly swollen pitted on pressure. The sub- cutaneous tissues were moist but not wet. There were a few c.c. of thin pale fluid in the peritoneal cavity. The esophagus, stomach, and intestine showed well marked chronic passive congestion,—red- dened, velvety, juicy mucosa oozing thin bloody fluid. Two of the mesenteric glands were transformed into stony fibro- calcareous material, obsolete tuberculosis. The right pleural cavity was half full of clear fluid; on the left there was 200 c.c.—hydrothorax, more marked on the right, and some compression atelectasis. The lungs showed frank chronic passive congestion, but I could not find any pneumonia. That does not mean to say absolutely there is no pneumonia in those lungs. It means that I could not find any definite pneumonia. If we took the lung from the apex to the base and cut up every part of it there might be found in it some bronchopneumonia. I was unable to find any- thing from the culture in the heart blood. So that so far as our evidence goes there was nothing in the way of terminal infection. The trachea and bronchi showed congestion of the mucosa. The pericardium was negative. The heart weighed 685 grams, markedly enlarged, with a thick myocardium of good consistence, pale brown-red. The left auricular wall showed some thickening, measur- ing 15 mm., the right three to four mm. That is a thick heart, the kind of heart we expect with aortic stenosis. The left cavities showed considerable dilatation, the right slight dilatation. The cavi- ties were all distended with currant-jelly-like blood clot,—apparently death in diastole. There was a small adherent thrombotic mass in the left auricular appendix. The mitral valve measured seven cm., the orifice of the aortic valve was represented by a slit-like opening 114 cm. by one cm.—a fairly well marked stenosis in the mitral and 154 FACTS ON THE HEART a classical picture of stenosis of the aortic. Of course that connotes a fibrocalcareous fusion of the cusps of the aortic valve and marked fibrocalcareous thickening and deformity of the mitral. There was no evidence on either of these valves of acute endocarditis. The tricuspid valve showed increase of circumference but was otherwise negative. The pulmonary valve was negative. The coronaries were free, capacious and showed only a slight amount of fibrous sclerosis. There was also a slight amount of fibrous sclerosis in the first portion of the aorta and elsewhere. The liver showed the typical nutmeg markings of chronic passive congestion. The gall-bladder, bile ducts, pancreas were out of the picture. The spleen did not weigh so much, 115 grams, but was chunky, thick, elastic and dark brown-red,—chronic passive conges- tion. The adrenals were negative. The kidneys showed chronic passive congestion, otherwise frankly out of the picture. The microscopical examination of the kidneys corroborates what I have said about them. In this case there was a Meckel’s diverticulum, but it was perfectly free and negative. Dr. Cazsot: I think the fever must be laid to the thrombosis. Necropsy 3827 An American clerk of forty-eight entered April 1. His maternal grandparents died of tuberculosis, one brother of epilepsy. In child- hood he had scarlet and typhoid fevers, and strained his back by carrying too heavy weight, ‘with resulting prominence of the shoulder blades and lack of chest development.’’ He had urinated once at night and had had dull fronta] headaches once in two or three weeks “fall his life,” especially brought on by overwork. At thirteen he had what he believed to be epidemic cerebrospinal meningitis, though no lumbar puncture was done. He made a complete recovery. For thirty years he had suffered from gas eructations beginning two hours after meals and lasting one or two hours, somewhat relieved ~ by hot water. At sixteen, twenty-five, and thirty he had attacks of ‘“‘muscular rheumatism,’—painful, tender but not swollen joints, especially the elbows and knees, and muscles of the calves and arms, lasting about two months. Four years ago he was ill in bed with ‘“‘grippe’’ for five weeks, and ever since this had had attacks of dysp- nea on exertion with pain in both sides of the chest in front and pal- pitation. He had to sleep on two pillows. He urinated six times a day and once or twice at night. Three years before admission he had epithelioma of the left cheek, curetted at a hospital. Twelve years ss ILLUSTRATIVE CASES. MITRAL STENOSIS AND AORTIC STENOSIS 155 before admission he weighed 155 pounds, his best weight. His usual weight was 148. In the past year it had fallen ta rgo. | His illness was the third of a series of similar attacks, the first of which followed his “‘grippe”’ four years.ago. The second kept him from work for two months the year before admission. March 29 he had a third attack of dizziness lasting half a day, followed by weakness and dyspnea on even very slight exertion. He had since this required three pillows at night. Examination showed a poorly Est anyiteal and nourished man in distress with dizziness and faintness when sitting up. The mucous membranes were slightly cyanotic. The anterior-posterior diameter of the chest was greater than the lateral diameter. There was slight bulging over the precordia. The apex impulse of the heart was in the fifth space 9 cm. from midsternum and 3 cm. inside the nipple line, corresponding with the left border of dullness. The right border was 6.5 cm. to the right, the supracardiac dullness 9 cm. The pulmonic second sound was accentuated. The sounds were of poor quality. At the apex they were obliterated by loud murmurs, systolic and diastolic in time. The systolic was heard over the precordia. The pulses were thready and of poor volume and tension. The artery walls were palpable. The blood pressure was 85/50. The lungs were normal. The abdomen was retracted. There was tenderness over the liver. The liver dullness extended from the _ fourth rib to 8.5 cm. below the costal margin in the midclavicular line, 9 cm. below in the parasternal, and 5 cm. below the xiphoid. The liver pulsated. The edge was felt. The genitals and extremities showed nothing of importance. The pupils were irregular, but equal and reacted. The knee-jerks were not obtained. There was a suggestion of a bilateral Babinski; no Kernig. The temperature was 100° by mouth to 105.4° by rectum, the pulse 91 to 135, the respiration 18 to 32. The amount of urine is not recorded. The specific gravity was 1.025 to 1.010. There was the slightest possible trace to a trace of albumin at both of two examina- tions, a question of diacetic acid at the first, many leucocytes at the second. The hemoglobin was 80%. There were 21,600 to 26,000 leucocytes. Blood cultures showed staphylococcus albus. The blood urea nitrogen was 24 mgm. per 100 c.c. of blood. A Wasser- mann was negative. The stools were negative. A lumbar puncture April 2 gave 15 c.c. of clear fluid under 180 mm. pressure, showing 244 cells per cu. mm., 42% polynuclears, 58% mononuclears. Alcohol was slightly positive, Nonne questionable, Wassermann negative. 150 | FACTS ON THE HEART There was a small fibrin clot in one-half hour in a stained specimen of which no organisms could be demonstrated. A culture showed staphylococcus albus. A lumbar puncture April 3 gave 30C.c. of cloudy fluid under 140.mm. pressure, showing 840 cells, 59% polynuclears, 41% lymphocytes... Another puncture the same day gave 30 c.c. of cloudy fluid under 200 mm. pressure, cell count 1100, 64% polynuclears, 36% lymphocytes. eu ee as (Actual size.) Aortic stenosis in a man Fic. 48.—‘‘ Fish-mouth”’ aortic valve. (Photograph by Lewis S. Brown. Dr. of sixty-eight. No history of rheumatism. Oscar Richardson.) Epididymitis. Dr. William H. Smith's Diagnosis Probably arteriosclerosis involving the arch. Hypertrophy of the heart. 3 Passive congestion of the liver and kidneys. , : AORTIC STENOSIS. ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 251 Arteriosclerotic degeneration of the kidneys. Dilatation of the bladder. Anatomical Diagnosis.—Chronic endocarditis of the aortic valve. Stenosis. Arteriosclerosis. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Slight chronic interstitial myocarditis. Slight chronic passive congestion, general. Hydrothorax, slight. Hydropericardium, slight. Focal pneumonia, lower lobe of the left lung, with small abscess. Serofibrinous pleuritis, left. Suppurative nephritis. Infarcts of the spleen. Abscess of the left epididymis. Obsolete tuberculosis, apices of lungs. Slight chronic pleuritis. Dr. RicHARDSON: This is a perfectly typical case of aortic stenosis, the result of an infection a great many years ago. ‘The arteriosclero- sis and aortic stenosis have caused the hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. The heart weighed 456 grams, (normally 200-300); in other words, it was considerably enlarged for a man of his size. The valve circumferences were interesting in this case. The aortic was a small slit. The mitral measured 10 cm., the tricuspid 13, and the pulmonary 7 cm.; all three were negative. There was some arteriosclerosis of the coronary arteries, and a few small scattered areas of myocarditis. By myocarditis we do not mean myocardial weakness, but the definite replacement of heart muscle by fibrous tissue. The aorta and the great branches showed arteriosclerosis. We have, then, the old infectious process ending in stenosis, and the added arteriosclerotic process. There was moderate dilatation of the left ventricle and slight of the left. auricle. The right ventricle was negative and the right auricle slightly dilated. The aortic orifice presented as a small crevice-like slit with irregular margins, about 214 cm. long, what I call the fish-mouth valve. (See illustration.) The spleen showed a few infarcts. How did these get there? They seemed rather recent. I think that they were septic. The kidneys were infected. Unfortunately our culture in this case was contaminated. With suppurative processes in the kidneys we are more inclined to think of the staphylococcus aureus as being the organism, but sometimes the abscesses are produced by organisms 252 FACTS ON THE HEART belonging to the streptococcus-pneumococcus group or the colon group. In arteriosclerotic conditions the kidneys, as a rule, are apt to be rather large, and there may be more or less arteriosclerotic nephritis. As a matter of fact it is often astonishing in examining the kidneys of elderly men to find how good they are. The kidneys in this case had fair cortex and good tissue generally, but scattered through them were the abscesses which probably caused the low renal function. In the prostate, in the region of the so-called middle lobe, there was a small nodule-of prostatic tissue which obstructed the urethra slightly. The epididymis showed an abscess which was a part of the expression of the infection. In the region of the apex of each lung was an area of obsolete tuberculosis. There was nothing in the bronchial lymphatic glands. It is more common perhaps to find these obsolete areas of tuberculosis in the glands than at the apices. Sometimes you find them in both places, and again you find them scattered through the lungs, but as a rule the preferred seat is in the bronchial lymphatic glands. The right lung showed some chronic passive congestion, the area of obso- lete tuberculosis, and nothing else. In the left lung the focus of pheumonia was situated in the region of the lower third of the lower lobe, and in one place showed a small abscess. The pleura over the focus of pneumonia showed sero-fibrinous pleuritis. This case shows very well indeed the end results of acute infections occurring years ago and a terminal infection finding expression in the lung, spleen, kidneys and epididymis. PURE AORTIC REGURGITATION WITHOUT STENOSIS (RHEUMATIC TYPE) The rheumatic form of aortic disease ordinarily produces adhe- sions of the cusps in such a form that s/enosts as well as insufficiency is the result. This has been the case in the forty cases of combined mitral-and-aortic disease and in the twenty-eight cases of pure aortic disease already analyzed in Chapter II. On the other hand, syphilis (in forty-four cases analyzed under Chapter III) produces aortic regurgitation without stenosis, although there were also three cases in that series of ninety-two in which syphilitic aortitis and aortic ~ stenosis coexisted, and in which the stenosis may have been due to the syphilis, though as I there point out, it is quite possible that syphilitic aortitis might be engrafted upon an earlier rheumatic lesion of the aortic valve, or that the reverse sequence might take PURE AORTIC REGURGITATION WITHOUT STENOSIS 253 place. But at any rate, in the overwhelming majority of cases, the rule is: Syphilis Produces Pure Aortic Regurgitation While Endocarditis Produces Stenosis and Regurgitation at the Aortic Valve.—This statement is contradicted by 11 cases in this series (see Table 72). Seven of these are essentially of the ulcerative, acute, destructive type. In only six of them a rheumatic history is clear. But as I have been unable to make a clear separation between the rheumatic group and the other types of infection of heart valves, there does not seem any good reason for insisting upon this distinction here. All that can be said is that the rule already formulated: ‘“‘rheumatism produces combined aortic stenosis and regurgitation, syphilis gives regurgitation alone” is contradicted by only 6 cases out of 93 in this series, if we confine our attention to cases of chronic valve lesions. It is chiefly when acute endocarditis 1s present that there has been an exception to this rule in our series. Even including the ‘‘acute”’ cases it remains true that in 87 cases out of 93, or 93%, the recogni- tion of an aortic regurgitation supposedly due to endocarditis has meant that we should assume the presence of stenosis as well as regurgitation, whether we have the physical signs of the former or not. The eleven exceptional cases I give below in detail. These. cases do not differ in clinical essentials from the twenty- eight cases of pure aortic stenosis and regurgitation just discussed. There we found twenty-five men to three women. Here we find eleven men and no women at all. Half of the cases in each group (five of eleven and fifteen of twenty-eight) are beyond the fiftieth year. There is one very large heart among the eleven (1205 grams), the hypertrophy produced chiefly, I believe, by the associated chronic pericarditis. One other heart in this group is also much enlarged (778 grams), and all show some hypertrophy. Ten out of eleven died a congestive death, associated with sepsis in six and with angina in two. Angina was the sole cause of death in another case free from passive congestion. A diastolic murmur was recognized in every case but one, a presystolic also in three. Systolic murmurs were invariably present. Corrigan’s pulse was recorded in six cases, diminution or absence of the aortic second in seven. 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CONCLUSIONS 1. So far as our studies go, cardiac syphilis means a syphilitic aortitis which is usually confined to the arch of the aorta. 2. This is often, perhaps usually, harmless, a mere post-mortem finding. 3. It becomes serious (a) when it produces aneurism, (b) when it deforms the aortic valves and makes them leak, and (c) when it obstructs the coronary orifices in the aorta so as to produce angina or cardiac infarction. 4. It is recognized (a) by the presence of aneurism, (b) by evidence of aortic regurgitation appearing usually in a middle-aged man with a syphilitic history. 5. It issix times ascommon in menas in women, and usually makes itself felt between the 35th and the 5oth year. The aneurismal type appears later in life than the type manifested by aortic regurgitation. 6. The disease appears from fifteen to twenty years after the original syphilitic infection. 7. When symptoms finally appear they usually lead to death within two years. 8. Enlarged heart is found only when the aortic valves are incom- petent or when some complication (such as chronic nephritis) is present. Aneurism does not produce cardiac hypertrophy. 9g. Rheumatic valve lesions rarely accompany syphilitic aortitis. ILLUSTRATIVE CASE OF SYPHILITIC AORTITIS 337 ro. An isolated aortic regurgitant lesion in a man under the forty- fifth year is usually syphilitic. Only eleven of our 41 cases of ‘‘pure”’ non-syphilitic aortic disease were in persons under forty-five years old, while only 18 of 41 cases of syphilitic disease in the aortic valves occurred after the forty-fifth year. 1. Pain suggesting angina pectoris in a young or middle-aged man (i.e. under forty-five) is often evidence of syphilitic aortitis. Severe epigastric pain (perhaps of the anginoid or infarction type) is a feature of some cases. 12. Death in the cases with aortic regurgitation is usually from passive congestion. In the aneurismal cases only 14% died from rupture of the sac, and only in 24% (including the cases of rupture) was the aneurism the main cause of death. 13. Among the physical signs of aneurism abnormal percussion dullness is more often of value than any other single sign. Abnor- mal pulsation or bulging is next in value, and recurrens paralysis next. 14. X-ray evidence is in some cases our best help towards diag- nosis, yet in five cases the radiological diagnosis was mediastinal tumor, and in one case the aneurism was missed altogether. 15. Chronic aneurismal ‘‘asthma”’ may be due to compression of a primary bronchus or of the trachea by an aneurism. POINTS OF SPECIAL INTEREST TO THE WRITER 1. The frequency of syphilitic aortitis in a wholly latent and apparently harmless form. 2. The infrequent association of syphilitic with rheumatic heart disease. 3. The long interval between the syphilitic infection and the appearance of aortic symptoms. 4. The fact that aneurism does not cause cardiac enlargement. 5. Isolated aortic disease or angina pectoris under the forty- _ fifth year is generally syphilitic. ILLUSTRATIVE CASE OF SYPHILITIC AORTITIS Necropsy 4734 A Canadian railway engineer of thirty-nine entered September 3 complaining of nervousness, loss of speech and pain in the stomach. His memory was very defective, especially for symptoms relating to the central nervous system. ‘The story given in the wards differed in most respects from that given in the Out-Patient Department. 22 338 FACTS ON THE HEART One brother died of kidney disease. The patient’s past history was negative except for some dyspnea and pain across the chest upon exertion. For six years he had had running of the nose. At one time he gave this as his chief complaint, though he said he was not troubled with head colds. For eight months he had had attacks of motor aphasia every week or two lasting one or two days. For three or four months he had been growing weaker. His dyspnea and chest pain on*exertion had increased. For six months he had had colic with each stool. For three months the pain in the stomach had been getting worse. It was continuous and partially relieved by food. He was becoming more nervous and irritable. His sister reported temporary amnesia. ‘The day before admission he was dizzy for the first time. During the illness he had gained weight. In the Out-Patient Department June 3 his blood pressure was found to be 128/84. The abdominal reflexes were present but slug- gish, especially the cremasterics. The deep reflexes of the upper extremities and the knee and ankle reflexes were normal. Babinski was present both sides. Oppenheim, Chaddock and Gordon were also present. There was no ankle clonus. Finger ‘counting was awkwardly done. He did not recognize the smell of acetic acid, alcohol or ammonia. The skin and mucous membranes were pale. The right pupil was greater than the left and did not react to light. The left reacted poorly. Both reacted normally to distance. The fundi were normal. August 30 the red blood corpuscles num- bered 2,080,000, the polynuclears 74%, the hemoglobin 50%, the platelets were somewhat decreased. There were some microcytes and occasional macrocytes, not much change in the shape of the cells, which were often well laden with hemoglobin. There was striking sallowness and pallor of the mucousmembranes. The tongue showed slight atrophy of the marginal papillae. : Examination showed a well nourished, anemic looking man whose mind functioned rather slowly. All the mucous membranes were pale. Pus was expressed from the root of one incisor. The tonsils were moderately enlarged on the left. The heart sounds were of fair quality. The action was normal. ‘The apex impulse was 8 cm. from midsternum in the midclavicular line, the left border of dull- ness one cm. outside the midclavicular line. There was no other enlargement topercussion. Thesounds were of fair quality, the action normal. There were no murmurs. The blood pressure was 105/72. The lungs were norma]. The abdomen showed voluntary spasm. ae =". ILLUSTRATIVE CASES OF SYPHILITIC AORTITIS 339 A possible liver edge was felt 744 cm. below the costal margin. The bladder dullness was two finger-breadths above the symphysis. The genitals and rectal examination are not recorded. The extremi- ties were normal. The pupils were unequal, the right greater than the left. The right reacted to distance but not to light. The right knee-jerk was greater than the left. There was inconstant Oppen- heim. The gait was that of a weak man rather than anything else. Rectal examination showed a sphincter which seemed to have lost some of its strength. The fundi showed slight arteriosclerosis. The right disc showed a vein extending a short distance into it on the temporal side and then seeming to disappear. The temperature was I01.9° to 102.5° at entrance, then 98.1° to 100.3° until September 8, when it rose to 103.5°; afterwards not remarkable until a terminal rise beginning September 17 and reach- ing 107.8°. The pulse was 78 to 104, with a terminal rise to 161. The respirations were normal except for a terminal rise to 44. The amount of urine is not recorded. ‘The specific gravity was 1.008 to 1.018. There was the slightest possible trace of albumin at both of two examination, leucocytes at both, one or two red blood corpuscles per high power field at the second. September 4 he was catheterized. The residual urine was 32 ounces. The hemoglobin was 60 to 55%. There were 6500 to 10,600 leucocytes, 75% polynuclears, 2,720,000 to 1,929,000 reds, some polychromatophilia and variation in size, with a tendency to large cells, slight variation in shape, occasional achromic cells at one of three examinations, reticulated cells 2% at -another. A Wassermann in the Out-Patient Department three days before admission was strongly positive. Three Wassermanns in the ward were strongly positive. The bleeding time was 2 minutes, coagulation time 12 minutes. Retraction was normal in one hour and marked in three hours. The serum dilution was 1:20; this wasa surprise. The non-protein nitrogen was 40 mgm. September 5 the fasting contents of the stomach were 30 c.c. of slightly blood tinged white material showing no free HCl, total acid 3 c.c._ A test meal gave 50 c.c. of blood tinged white material, total acid 9 c.c. Both showed fresh blood and a very strongly positive guaiac. Lumbar puncture September 4 showed an initial pressure of 180, oscilla- tion normal, jugular compression 260, respiration 170. After with- drawal of 5 c.c. the pressure was 150, after withdrawal of 5 more c.c. 140. There were 6 cells. Alcohol and ammonium sulphate were positive, the total protein 63, goldsol 5555553110, Wassermann strongly positive. September 17 the initial pressure was 270, after 340 FACTS ON THE HEART withdrawal of 5 c.c. 210, after withdrawal of 5 c.c. more 150. The jugular compression is notrecorded. There were 7 cells. Ammonium sulphate and alcohol were positive, Wassermann strongly positive, total protein 55, goldsol 5555542000. X-ray September 6 showed the frontal sinuses practically absent; no anatomical variation. The antra showed no definite evidence of pathological change, although the plates were not very satisfactory. The calvarium was normal in outline. ‘The sella showed no abnormalities in size or shape. ‘There Fic. 55.—Area of diminished density in midportion of stomach suggesting a mass nearly as large as the palm arising from the wall of the stomach, freely movable with the stomach. was little calcification in the region of the pineal, which was normal. A plate of the chest was not entirely satisfactory. There was no definite evidence of pathological change; no evidence of periostitis of the clavicles. Another examination September 12 confirmed the previous findings. There was an area of diminished density in the midportion of the stomach suggesting a mass arising from the wall of the stomach nearly as large as the palm, freely movable with the stom- ach. (See Fig. 55.) There was no peristalsis over this region. The shadow was constant on repeated examinations. ‘There was a ILLUSTRATIVE CASES OF SYPHILITIC AORTITIS 341 small six-hour residue. The first portion of the duodenum, the pyloric sphincter, and the colon were not remarkable. During the first two nights in the hospital the patient was dis- oriented and laughed easily. He looked myxedematous. He made no general improvement until the gth, when he was mentally a little clearer, although still disoriented as to time and place in the immediate past. He was very restless, with poor insight. The morning of September 17 he suddenly saw double and had complete disassociation of the eyes, one moving upward, the other downward. The left eye showed a lateral nystagmus with quick component to the right. There was no ptosis. Vomiting soon started, but was not projectile in type. The vomitus contained brown changed blood at first, one pint three times, and later bright red blood in the stomach fluid, one pint twice. Donors were collected and large doses of morphia given. The vomiting stopped and counts were found to be normal, the pulse steady. The eyes were bandaged. They were widely divergent and moving ceaselessly, even while he was deeply asleep. The blood pressure was 140/75 all that day and evening. The temperature, which had been practically normal for a week, began to rise, reaching 107.7° the evening of the 18th. The pulse rose to 162, the respirations to 44. Examination on the 18th showed no evident paralysis, although the left arm was found spastic the night before. His whole body was now flaccid. The arm reflexes were active, the knee-jerk very active on the right, normal on the left. . There was marked Babinski on both sides, not present the night before. No clonus. The eyes were now divergent and the right pupil greater than the left. The heart was very rapid. The lungs were clear except for fine crackling rales in the right back between the angle of the scapula and the spine. ‘The patient was in mild shock, unconscious. The breathing was Cheyne-Stokes. He con- tinued in coma. The left pupil was pinpoint, the right dilated. The right fundus showed dilatation of the veins but no choking of the discs. The eyeballs continued divergent. On the roth there was edema of both bases. Bubbling rales were heard well up to both angles of the scapulae. The temperature rose steadily. The breath- ing was very shallow, rapid and stertorous and continued Cheyne- Stokes. The breath was foul. The pulse was rapid and thready. The patient sweated profusely. A soft short systolic murmur was heard at the apex and the base. A: was greater than Py. The right side of the heart was slightly enlarged to percussion, possibly dilata- tion. The abdomen was slightly distended with gas, not relieved by 342 FACTS ON THE HEART an enema. The patient was catheterized. The Babinski persisted. There was no Kernig. September 1g he died. X-ray Interpretation September 12.—Findings probably represent new growth in the wall of the stomach. Clinical Diagnosis (from Hospital Record).—Syphilis and malig- nancy of stomach. Cerebral hemorrhage? Syphilis, tertiary stage? Dr. Richard C. Cabot’s Diagnosis.—Syphilis of the central nervous system. Gastric, tumor, probably benign, with hemorrhage. Secondary anemia. Anatomical Diagnosis——Embolism of the basilar artery. Anemic infarction of the pons. Adenomatous polypi and adenocarcinoma of the stomach. Embolism of a minute branch of the left coronary artery. Infarcts of the spleen and kidneys. A few areas of bronchopneumonia, right. Wet brain. Slight chronic pleuritis, right. Luetic aortitis with small aneurism and mural thrombus. Dr. RICHARDSON: This was a very unusual case. The pia was wet, infiltrated with thin pale clear fluid. The vessels of Willis showed a very slight amount of sclerosis in places, nothing remarkable. The basilar artery was occluded at its distal portion by a frank embolic columnar mass which was prolonged a little into the branches at its bifurcation. (See Fig. 56.) Practically the entire pontine tissue was softened, pasty, pale and homogeneous,—frank anemic infarction. ‘The brain tissue generally was a little wet. The esophagus was negative. Hanging off from the anterior wall of the stomach midway was a large adenomatous-like mass, as seen in Fig. 57. Macroscopically it looked like an adenoma. ‘There were several hemorrhagic areas in the peripheral portion of the mass, and areas of ecchymosis in the mucosa of the stomach. Microscopic examination showed at one place in this adenomatous tissue a slight invasion of the wall of the stomach. That would make it of course cancerous in that portion. So we have a mass the greater portion of | which is adenomatous but at one place an area of cancerous degeneration. The intestines were negative save that they contained a little bloody mucus and blood-like material. ILLUSTRATIVE CASES OF SYPHILITIC AORTITIS 343 The lungs were negative except that on the right side at one place there were a few small areas of bronchopneumonia. The heart weighed 370 grams, a little large, a little dilated. The aorta in the region of the ascending thoracic was the seat of a definite luetic aortitis. (See Fig. 58.) One of the areas of luetic aortitis was capped by frank thrombotic material. Across from this larger area were two or three smaller ones capped with thrombotic material. Fic. 56.—Embolism of the basilar artery. <3. (Photograph, with enlargement, by Louis M. Adams. Dr. Oscar Richardson.) The spleen showed two or three infarcts and the kidneys showed several infarcts. Microscopic examination of the aorta showed luetic aortitis. Every once in a while we find mural thrombi on the aorta. Some- times we find infarcts associated with them. Dr. Casot: How big was the pedicle of the stomach tumor? Dr. RicHARDSON: The pedicle ran along the base of the mass without much thickening of the wall underneath, and it was only at that one point microscopically that it showed carcinoma. ‘The mass was 7cm. X 414 cm. X 3)4 cm. 344 FACTS ON THE HEART Dr. Casor: It was not a papillary mass not like a papilloma of the bladder? Dr. RicHAarpson: No. It did not have a small pedicle, but a pedicle running all along the base of the mass. Fic. 57.—Adenomatous polyp of the stomach. .(Photograph by Louis M. Adams. Dr. Oscar Richardson.) These adenomatous masses along the gastrointestinal tract are not uncommon. Ihave seen a stomach that was practically covered with them, like the knotted fringe of a shawl. The large intestine of one of our former cases presented in the upper portion of the descending colon adenomatous masses while in the lower part of the same colon there was frank cancer. ILLUSTRATIVE CASES OF SYPHILITIC AORTITIS 345 Dr. Casort: Is adenoma the ordinary benign tumor of the stom- ach? Dr. RIcHARDSON: Adenoma, fibroma, fibrolipoma—I should say adenoma is probably the commonest. * Fic. 58.—Syphilitic aortitis with small aneurisms. Aortic valves stretched close to aortic wall so as to be incompetent. (Photograph by Lewis S. Brown. Dr. Oscar Richardson.) The anatomy of the heart is beautifully shown in Fig. 58. There was but little if any decrease in the orifices of the coronary arteries. In the first portion of the aorta, just above the aortic cusps, which were not invaded by the luetic process, the thrombotic caps are well 346 FACTS ON THE HEART shown. One cap was about one and a half cm. across and consisted of brown soft thrombotic material. The other smaller caps are apparent. The black shadow is a small aneurism. Along the aorta we can see irregular streaks and areas of thickening and elevation and thinning and depression, longitudinal striation, etc., characteristic of luetic aortitis. A PuysicrtAn: Do you ever find evidence of the presence of the spirochetes? Dr. RICHARDSON: Once in a while. When the process is old we do not find them. But if the material was all cut up in serial sections we might find a few. A PuysiciAn: We might conclude from that that the spirochel at times are floating in the blood? Dr. RICHARDSON: Yes. It is or was a septicemia. In this case then a bit of that material from the mural thrombus of the aorta was swept up into the basilar artery, shut if off, and pro- duced anemic infarction of the pons. Then bits were swept down into the splenic and renal arteries and produced the infarcts of the spleen and kidneys. In addition to that, in speaking of the heart I forgot to mention that a very minute branch of the coronary artery was also occluded by a very minute embolus. Dr. Lincotn Davis: I should like to ask a question. Don’t you think it is extraordinary that an embolus can occlude the basilar artery? The basilar artery is larger than the two arteries that make it up. Dr. RicHarpson: No. The basilar artery is larger than the vertebral arteries, but the basilar artery gives off branches and at its distal end bifurcates into two smaller arteries, and so anatomically this distal portion of the basilar is well arranged for the lodgement of an embolus, as in this case. Dr. Davis: Have you ever had an embolus of the basilar artery before? Dr. RicHarpson: I do not remember at the moment a case like this one. There are those cases where there is marked arteriosclero- sis of the vessel with arteriosclerotic thrombotic occlusion at the site. We.must remember that this embolus in the plate looks huge; it was of course roughly only twelve and a half mm. long, two mm. in diameter. Dr. Cazot: I should interpret this man as having syphilis of the nervous system. I do not think Dr. Richardson would in any way contradict that. He did not examine the cord, and the changes SYPHILITIC AORTITIS WITH AORTIC REGURGITATION 347 in the cerebral arteries in a man of thirty-nine are such as we think of with syphilis. ‘There is nothing in any of the findings post-mortem which would account for a spinal fluid such as was found in life. The tumor in the stomach seems to be partly benign and partly malignant, so I think we did pretty well on that. Dr. Holmes said malignant, I said benign. Did you look at the marrow? He had a great anemia and I discussed and excluded pernicious anemia. Dr. RicHARDSON: The vertebral marrow was negative macro- scopically. Dr. Casot: I do not believe there was any pernicious to it. SYPHILITIC AORTITIS WITH AORTIC REGURGITATION. ILLUSTRATIVE CASES Necropsy 3912 An unoccupied negro of thirty-six entered December 27 for relief of sleeplessness and nausea. His mother died of heart trouble. His health had been fair. At eighteen he had typhoid fever. For five years he had had hemorrhoids. At thirty-two he had acute pain in the right lower quadrant. Forsixmonthshe had been very thirsty. His bowels were constipated. For the past week they had been mov- - ing hourly as a result of catharsis. He had a little cough with dark colored sputum and occasionally hemoptysis. His best weight was 145, his usual weight 135. Four months before admission he became dyspneic and had increasing edema of the ankles and sleeplessness. Soon afterward he began to sweat at night. In order to rest at all he required three pillows. After slight exertion he had attacks of boring precordial pain sometimes lasting three or four hours. For two months he had been taking veronal every third night with no appreciable relief. For three weeks he had had nausea and vomiting, caused he thought by his medicine. He now had continual nausea, partially relieved by vomiting. For ten days there had been pain localized at the umbilicus. Examination showed a well nourished man. The apex impulse of the heart was seen and felt in the fifth space 14 cm. to the left of midsternum. The action was rapid, the sounds of fair quality. The aortic second sound was accentuated. There was a diastolic murmur at the aortic area and a systolic at the apex, transmitted to the axilla. The murmurs were heard in the left back. There were loud sounds over the vessels in the neck. The pulses were of high 348 FACTS ON THE HEART tension, the artery walls palpable, the brachials tortuous. The blood pressure was 165/55. There was a sound over the brachial with no pressure. The lungs were normal. The abdomen was — tympanitic except in the right upper quadrant. The liver dullness extended from the fifth space to 5 cm. below the costal margin, where the edge was felt. There was slight bilateral costovertebral tender- ness. ‘The genitals were negative. The legs showed edema up to the knees. ‘The pupils and reflexes were normal. The temperature was 95.3° to 98.7°, the pulse 80 to 85, the res- piration 20 to 49. The amount of urine is not recorded until Decem- ber 30, when it was 24 ounces. The specific gravity was 1.010 to 1.018. ‘There was the slightest possible trace to a slight trace of albumin at four examinations, rare pus cells at one, occasional to many hyalin casts at the last two. The renal function was 15%. The hemoglobin was 90%. There were 10,000 leucocytes, 75% polynuclears. The urea nitrogen was 40 mgm. per 100 c.c. of blood. A Wassermann was strongly positive The patient was much troubled with dyspnea and epigastric dis- tress and slept little. The night of December 31 the pulse began to be slower and he complained of difficulty in breathing. About twelve o’clock the heart rate was 50 per minute, later 40-42 per minute, although still regular There appeared to be a 1-2 heart block. Within two hours he died. Discussion by Dr. Richard C. Cabot.——Sleeplessness and nausea are not a usual combination in the cases coming into this hospital. Very few, I should say, come in for those symptoms, and they have so many causes that I do not think it is worth while to discuss them at any length. Sleeplessness and nausea are caused by alcoholism, general peritonitis, uremia, and psychoneurosis. But I think it is unlikely that we can hit the cause in this case in our preliminary consideration. , Apparently the pain in the right lower quadrant was not serious, for no further account of it is given. . Dyspnea and edema look like cardiac trouble. We get no idea from the past history as to why he had this present group of symptoms. The history of the present illness points strongly to cardiac or renal trouble, and a good deal more on the whole to cardiac than to renal. In cardiac trouble in a negro of thirty-six one’s snap diag- nosis is syphilitic aortitis. Seeing a large number of autopsies on negroes as I have in the past two years, I can say that syphilitic aorti- SYPHILITIC AORTITIS WITH AORTIC REGURGITATION 349 tis in the American negro seemed to be almost invariable, and almost every negro had a positive Wassermann. The vomiting and the pain that this patient had I have seen a number of times in connection with syphilitic aortitis. We must remember that the coronary artery goes off just above the aortic valve, and that syphilitic aortitis usually begins within an inch of that artery. Oscar, Richardson.) gummatous processes arise in the aortic wall on which as a basis the gross anatomic conditions found in the aorta rest. Fig. 70. We see here a low-power microphotograph of the wall of the aorta in Fig. 69. It shows a section of the thickened syphilitic wall of the aorta with the cellular infiltration in full tide. Fig 71 is a high-power microphotograph of the spirochetes in the aortic wall shown in Fig. 70, and is taken from the original section in which they were first found. 374 FACTS ON THE HEART Syphilitic aortitis is usually confined to the first portion and the arch of the aorta, fading out in the region of the thoracic portion. It is to be noted, however, that it is present in the abdominal portion at times, and is seen in cases of abdominal aneurisms. In all probability the smaller arteries of the body may at times be the seat of syphilitic arteritis. We have one case in which sections from the vessels of Willis show this condition. A Puysictan: Then death from syphilitic aortitis is purely mechanical? Dr. RicHarpson: Death in syphilitic aortitis is commonly due to the following conditions: Fic. 72.—Pulmonary artery in Case 4122. G-gummatous focus. Areas of cellular infiltration are well shown at C, C. Cellular infiltration about a blood vessel at V. (1) The luetic process extends down and around the openings of the coronary arteries and finally occludes them. (2) Aneurism with rupture and hemorrhage. (3) Aortic regurgitation, hypertrophy and dilatation of se heart, myocardial insufficiency. In (x) and (2) death is usually sudden in character. Of course all of this excepts any intercurrent cause of death. It is worthy of note that patients with well-established cases of syphilitic aortitis usually die before fifty years of age Thirty-five to forty-five 1 is probably the decade in which death is most common. A PuysictAn: In what percentage of cases do you find spirochetes? ti ILLUSTRATIVE CASES . 375 Dr. RICHARDSON: Only in a small percentage of the cases, but it is probably true that if we made serial sections of the lesions the percentage would be larger. A PuysicrAn: Is there any particular location in which you find the spirochetes? Dr. RICHARDSON: Usually in the region of or nearby the areas of necrosis and cellular infiltration. Fig. 72 shows a low-power microphotograph of a section of the first portion of the pulmonary artery. The areas of cellular infiltra- tion and the gummatous focus are well indicated. Fig. 73. Here we see an almost perfect picture of the gumma in the heart muscle. Fic. 73.—Heart muscle in Case 4122. G-gumma. Long before the discovery of the spirochete of syphilis the asso- ciation of peculiar lesions in the circulatory apparatus in cases of syphilis had been noted. The discovery of the spirochete, however, and the finding of spirochetes in the lesions settled the question, just as the discovery of the tubercle bacillus and the finding of tubercle bacilli in tuberculous tissue gave an etiological basis for tuberculosis. So although the necropsy in this case was made in 1897, some time before the spirochetes were found in the lesions, yet from the charac- ter of the lesions and the clinical history the anatomic diagnosis was written as given. The pathologic work herein set forth is due to my association with Dr. James Homer Wright, the Director of the Pathological Labora- tory at the Massachusetts General Hospital. 376 FACTS ON THE HEART Clinical Diagnosis (from Hospital Records).—Syphilitic aortitis. Decompensated heart. Aortic stenosis. Insufficiency. Aneurism of the aortic arch. Anatomical Diagnosis. Syphilitic endoaortitis. Gummata of the heart and pulmonary artery. Obliteration of the opening of one coronary artery. Heart thrombi. d Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Chronic passive congestion, general. Syphilitic scars on the penis and groin. Case CV An army man thirty-three years of age came to Boston, went to a. hotel, and for a week went about his affairs, was well liked, and made no complaints. At the end of a week he came in about 5:45 p.m., spoke to the hotel clerk as usual and went upstairs to his room. He had been there only about five or ten minutes when the chambermaid came down and said that he had called for a glass of water, said that he was ‘‘feeling pretty bad,” and asked her to call a doctor. They tried to get the doctor, but he was not in. Then they called in a police officer, who went with the clerk up to the guest’s room. They found him dead on the bed. The whole thing happened within fifteen minutes. The dead body lay on its back, completely clothed except for the jacket. It showed full rigor mortis, but otherwise was negative. He was a well set-up man weighing about 135 pounds. The landlord said the only unusual things that he had noticed about the man were that when he hired the room he said he wanted one where there was plenty of air, and that he seemed to be what is called a ‘‘hard breather.” This man from time to time had been subjected to physical examinations by physicians. Dr. William H. Snuth’s Diagnosis ——FProbably syphilitic aortitis, with coronary sclerosis and occlusion. Anatomical Diagnosis.—Luetic aortitis. Aneurism of the aorta with rupture into the pericardium. Hemorrhage into the pericardial cavity. ILLUSTRATIVE CASES AT] Dr. RicHarDsoN: There was some hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart, not very marked however. The valves were negative. The coronary arteries were negative. The aorta itself was the seat of an extensive aneurism which extended up into the region of the arch, involving it to a certain extent. At s (see Fig. 74) you will note that the aneurism gave off a little pocket-like sac and that this sac pressed on the wall of the trachea. The man was a “hard breather.” 5 } Fic. 74.—Aneurism showing sac at s. Photograph by L. S. Brown. (Dr. Oscar Richardson. ) A seemingly insignificant point like that in a history may be of great aid in diagnosis. The capacity of his trachea had been reduced one- half from the pressure of this aneurism upon it. (See s, Fig. 75). The sac was wadded around with thrombus. Of course that made a good buttress, and it would have taken a long time before the aneurism would break into the trachea. What it did do was to 378 FACTS ON THE HEART break through a thinned-out area in its wall and to rupture into the pericardium, which was found full of fluid blood with a thick layer of blood clot enveloping the heart. ‘There was about 500 c.c. of fluid blood. The lesion itself, judging from its situation and from its character, is due to syphilis. Itis syphilitic aortitis with an aneurism in the situation of the first portion of the aorta and the arch with rupture of the wall and hemorrhage into the pericardium. bes | Pe Fic. 75.—Trachea partially occluded by pressure of aneurismal sac at s. Photograph by L. S. Brown. (Dr. Oscar Richardson.) These aortitis cases present a variety of pictures. The classical one is where the aortitis attacks the first portion of the aorta for varying distances above the aortic valve, and from that position extends down along the posterior walls of the sinuses of Valsalva and about the orifices of the coronary arteries, and involves the aortic ar : ai iy ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 379 valve. The process may be extensive enough to close either one or the other of the arteries, and may cause sudden death. Less com- monly, as in this case, an aneurism is produced and there may be rupture of the aneurism with sudden death due to hemorrhage. We have had cases of small and large aneurisms, but I have never seen a case with the development of an aneurism at this age and of this character with pressure on the trachea. We know syphilis is a septicemia, because Dr. Hartwell in this laboratory has taken rabbits, inoculated the testes with the blood of syphilitic patients, and later has found syphilis of the testes and still later syphilis of the eyes, keratitis, with recovery of the spirochetes from these lesions. That establishes the septicemia beyond all question. The portal of entrance of the infection isin some cases not known. For some reason in cases like this one the infection is located in the first portion of the aorta. Whether the spirochetes lurk in those minute vascular caverns, the vasa vasorum, or whether the attack is begun on the intimal side is uncertain. I am inclined to think that they locate in the vasa vasorum and that the tissue reaction begins there. This reaction is practically a gumma-like process ending in fibrosis. This accounts for the presence in the aortic wall of the variations between areas of great thickening of the coats and areas of excessive thinning. That makes in the wall points of weak resistance, all of which would favor the production of an aneurism. ‘This is what _happened in this case. These areas of thickening and fibrous thin- ning and longitudinal striation give to the aorta on its intimal aspect a gristly and scar-like aspect which is peculiar to syphilitic aortitis, and which no other form of sclerosis of the arteries seems to present. Of the sudden deaths we have had in aortitis cases I think this is the first one at this age associated with an aneurism. We had one sudden death last year in a young man twenty-one years of age, who was supposed to have been poisoned; but that was a case of occlusion of the orifices of the coronary arteries. The only thing in the history of that case which was important as a single factor was chest pain. In this case the important thing was airhunger. You may, of course, have an aortitis with hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart, marked aortic regurgitation, with death probably due to heart exhaustion, but those cases do not present this picture of everything happening in a few minutes. The production of the aortic regurgitation is interesting. ‘The fibrosis extends down usually into the region of the contiguous margins of the cusps and forms a thick band, with more or less 380 FACTS ON THE HEART extension on to the cusps themselves. This causes a narrowing of the width of the cusps and a pinning back of the margins so that you have more or less marked regurgitative conditions in the aortic valve without any great increase in its circumference. The cusps cannot come together and so form a base for the column of blood. In this way you get a drop of the column of blood equal to the size of the space due to the lack of closure. I found great numbers of spirochetes in the sections of the aorta in the case last year, but so far few, if any, in the sections from this case. They have always interested us here, and it was in this laboratory that they were first found in the wall of the aorta. In some cases they are more or less numerous, but in others none are found. The older the process the less likely you are to find them. A PuysictAn: Is it common for people suffering wits angina to have attacks while lying perfectly still in bed? Dr. SmitH: Such attacks are uncommon. They do occur, however. Clinically one of the earliest manifestations of a beginning myocardial weakness may be angina pectoris. If you examine the patient you may be able to demonstrate no cardiac enlargement, you may have a pulse rate of go, a soft systolic murmur, but you will always find a slight tendency to dyspnea on exertion which has come on in the last six months or year. Let us say you have a patient fifty years of age who begins to feel dyspneic on exertion. Now you must realize that that man’s heart is becoming senile, in other words, there is arteriosclerosis and not sufficient blood supply to the muscle. That heart has got to hypertrophy in order to enable the man to go through the same exercises that he has gone through for years without discomfort. Take that patient and prohibit all exercise. Put him on digitalis in the appropriate amounts, not large doses but moderate ones, limit his exercise and watch his heart over a period of six months, and you will find increase in the left ventricle with disappearance of symptoms. If you do not do that, and do not put him on digitalis, but give him nitroglycerin, the next step will be that he will have more frequency of dyspnea on exertion and will get into the anginoid state. He will have attacks constantly. You can oftentimes relieve angina by establishing hypertrophy through rest and digitalis. After establishing hypertrophy I have known patients to go for years never having recurrent attacks of angina and with a perfectly competent heart unless forced by unusual exertion. They can do it because their heart has been made a 400-500 gram heart. —~ ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 381 Case LIV A colored waiter of forty-two entered November 4, 1913, for the relief of pain in the left back and chest. He had had no illnesses except ‘‘grippe”’ at twenty-one. He smoked ten cigars a day and drank three glasses of whiskey until two years before admission. He had used practically none in two years. He had chancre five years before admission. His best and usual weight was 175, his present weight 15114. ‘The loss had occurred during the past year. Two years and a half before admission he began to have inter- mittent pains in the left back and flank, usually between one and seven in the morning. For the past two years the pain had become continuous in the left back, side and chest, never on the right. The pain was not sharp, but dull, like hard pressure, and “throbbing.” His throat felt obstructed. Since September 20, when he caught ‘““a cold’’ which had persisted, he had been having dyspnea accom- panied by wheezing on inspiration and expiration. He had no palpitation. He coughed a great deal and raised considerable sputum, at first green and thick, during the past week streaked with blood three or four times, usually at night. The Out-Patient Department record, November 19, 1912, notes: “Tmpulse 5th space, 119 cm. outside the nipple line; right border 4 cm. outside the midline. Right pulse stronger than left. Lungs negative except that tactile and vocal fremitus were slightly greater on the right.” January 7, 1913, he had been in a hospital two weeks. ‘Pain worse at discharge. Examination as above.” Examination showed a well-nourished negro breathing with slight distress and with an occasional coarse tracheal cough. The skin showed dark macules over the upper back and upper legs. The mucosae were slightly cyanotic. A definite pulsation was seen and felt in the left second and third spaces near the sternum. By very light percussion there was dullness over this area. The apex impulse _ 9%? __Ist. space 3 | 7¥2_ 2nd space 534 1244 Fic. 76. was faintly felt in the fifth space. The percussion measurements are shown in Fig. 76. ‘The sounds were regular, of only fair quality. A very soft systolic murmur, loudest at the apex, was faintly heard 382 FACTS ON THE HEART over the precordia, but not in the axilla or neck. No diastolic was heard. The pulmonic second sound was slightly increased. The pulses were unequal, otherwise normal. ‘The artery walls were plainly palpable, but not tortuous. The blood pressure was, right, 150/70- 120/45; left, 130/80-110/50. There was tracheal tug. The chest was somewhat barrel-shaped. Air did not enter the left lung as well as the right. The breathing was obscured throughout by coarse guttural sounds, probably from the trachea. Both inspiration and expiration were prolonged, but seemed of fairly normal quality. A few fine rales were heard at both bases. In the left back was an area of doubtful dullness near the midscapula. The abdomen was Fic. 77.—Aneurism of aortic arch. held rigid. The liver dullness extended from the fifth rib to 3-cm. below the costal margin, where the edge was indefinitely felt. There was a Slightly thickened scar on the penis shaft. The extremities and reflexes were normal. The pupils were slightly irregular, equal. Their reactions were questionable. The temperature was 98° to g9.5°, rising to 100.4° November 24. The pulse was 65 to 93, the respiration normal. The urine was nor- mal. The hemoglobin was 76%. There were 10,000 leucocytes, 84% polynuclears. The reds were normal. One Wassermann was negative, two later suspicious after provocative salvarsan. X-ray ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 383 (Fig. 77) showed a large mass in the upper mediastinum continuous with the aorta, more prominent posteriorly than anteriorly. No definite pulsation was made out. The patient had at times a very deep, ringing cough, raising a little yellow-green sputum. When the head was tipped back the trachea ‘could be seen to move to the right with each pulsation. 0.15 grams of neosalvarsan was given intravenously November tro. November 16 the breathing over the left lung was found to be distinctly less loud than over the right, but vesicular; air was thought possibly to enter slowly. Hehadlesscough. November 17 0.3 grams of neosalvarsan was given intravenously. The next day the diminished breathing all over the left lung was more marked than before and a few scattered moist rales were to be heard over this side of the chest. He complained of a feeling of constriction in the throat, but had no pain during his entire stay. November 23 a visitor, Dr. Wilder Tileston, pointed out a fine, slight pulsation in the back near the spine of the scapula. The next day 0.45 grams of neosal- varsan was given, and a third Wassermann was _ suspicious. November 27 and 28 the cough was more troublesom2. November 29 the heart measurements were as shown in Fig. 78. 0.6 grams of neosalvarsan was given. November 30 the patient was discharged slightly relieved. 534 1114 r4 FIG 78) Clinical Diagnosis —Aneurism of descending aorta. Laier Notes from the Out-Patient Record.—April 9, 1914.—Systolic blood pressure, right 160, left 150. Wassermann negative. April 11.—Wheezing and shortness of breath on exertion, and cramping but not agonizing pain under the left clavicle over an area about 7 cm. in diameter. Is often troubled at night by similar pain in left shoulder and arm, extending even to fingers. This pain comes on gradually, and may last several hours. Thinks he is improving. Examination: Right clavicle more prominent than left. Visible bilateral subclavian pulsation, and strong epigastric pulsa- tion over wide area. No pulsation or bulging in the back. Apex impulse not visible but barely palpable in 6th space 11.7 cm. to left 384 FACTS ON THE HEART of mid-sternal line. Fairly loud, rough systolic murmur at apex, faintly transmitted to axilla. No basal murmurs heard. Ag is greater than Py. Lungs:—Back, dullness between and over scapulae seems more than normal. April 13.—X-ray. Greatest transverse diameter of arch 9.5 cm.; oblique diameter of arch 9.5 cm. July 14.—Has been working full time right along. Had a little trouble at first; now has no dyspnea. Has had no pain atall! Has taken no medicine. Comes for a “‘cold in the head”’ taken a week ago. Causes a wheezing cough. Present weight 174. Examination: Nose and throat clear, not injected: tonsils not enlarged. Vocal cords seem normal. Heart as in previous record. Lungs:—Tactile fremitus and voice decreased over the left back at angle of scapula. Aug. 25.—Cough bothers. Stopped work a few days ago on account of it. No pain, edema or weakness. No diastolic murmur. Squeaking rales scattered in lungs, more on left. Outcome.—Feb. 25, 1915, the patient writes, “I am glad to inform you that I have been working since May 15 up to the present time. The pains in chest and back are gone, and with the exception of a slight weakness in the left shoulder I am feeling better than I have for years.” March 2. 1916, he writes, “‘I am glad to say I am enjoying good health and have had no symptoms of past trouble, which seems to have left me altogether.” A friend adds the information that the patient says he never felt better in his life, and has gained sixty pounds since he was in the hospital. Necropsy 3908 A Canadian-American housewife of twenty-five entered August 29, 1891. She had always been delicate, with much weakness and stomach trouble. For nine months she had had debility and cough with sputum; of late increasing pain and tenderness in the stomach. Examination was negative except for pregnancy of nine months. She weighed 90 pounds. The temperature was 98.6° to 1o1°, the urine and sputum negative. September 11 she was discharged much improved. November 4, 1910, she returned complaining of substernal tight- ness and cough following a severe “‘cold”’ of three weeks’ duration, with general malaise. In a few months her weight had fallen from 165 to 110. — ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 385 Examination was negative except for pyorrhea and redness of the throat. | The temperature was 96.4° to 99.3°, the pulse 113 to 73, the respiration normal, the leucocyte count 10,000. No Wassermann was done. ‘The urine, sputum and stools were negative. November 12 she was discharged. December 7, 1918, she returned for relief of shortness of breath. She now gave a history of scarlet fever and measles in childhood. In 1906 she had a plastic operation on the uterus. She had had many sore throats for years, but none since a second attack of diphtheria in 1909. For many years she had been troubled by cough with at times a little tenacious sputum. She had palpitation on excitement and frequent dyspnea on exertion, sometimes at night. For a year she had urinated sixteen times by day and four at night, with marked polyuria. Her best weight was 165, her usual and present weight TIO. i For six years she had been treated for asthmatic bronchitis manifested by dry cough with dyspnea. In March, 1918, she began to have attacks of acute dyspnea and ‘‘choking spasms.”” From that time her breathing became more difficult. She had continual unpro- ductive cough, difficulty in swallowing, and several attacks of dysp- nea daily, particularly likely to occur just after eating, and lasting five to twenty minutes. The ‘choking spasms” left her practically unconscious from asphyxia. ‘They never occurred more than once daily until the night before admission, when she had two attacks of great severity. She lived in such continual dread of sudden death that her nights were practically sleepless. Examination showed a poorly developed and nourished woman. The sclerae and throat were slightly injected. The thyroid was enlarged. The chest was poorly developed. The superficial veins were rather marked over the left chest in front. The breathing was nearly all diaphragmatic, with very little chest expansion. The throat and tracheal sounds were transmitted down both lungs. There was stridor of maximum intensity over the substernal part of the trachea. The apex impulse of the heart is not recorded. The left border of dullness was 10.5 cm. to the left of midsternum, 0.5 cm. outside the nipple line. The right border was 4.5 cm. to the right, the substernal dullness 7 cm. and slightly increased in degree. There was a soft diastolic murmur, loudest in the third left interspace next to the sternum. The pulses and artery walls were normal. The blood pressure was 120/80; right and left the same. The pupils 25 386 FACTS ON THE HEART were regular. They reacted very sluggishly. The right was greater than the left. The abdomen, extremities and reflexes were normal. The uterus and ovaries had apparently been removed. The temperature was 97.4° to 101.6°, the pulse 89 to 155, the respiration 14 to 36. The urine was normal except for a trace of albumin at the second of two examinations. ‘The renal function was 50%. The hemoglobin was 80%. ‘There were 10,800 leucocytes, Fic. 79.—The diaphragm is low on both sides; the respiratory movements some=- what limited. General thickening of the markings throughout both chests and many calcified glands at the roots, also thickening of the larger bronchi. ‘There is moderate scoliosis. The heart shadow appears considerably to the left of the spine. The aortic arch is prominent. There is also a dense round shadow lying in the region of or behind the upper segment of the sternum, possibly a mass of mediastinal glands. The heart is within normal limits. (Apparently the radiologist did not consider this aneurism.) 59% polynuclears. The platelets were increased. The reds showed slight variation in size, some achromia, and a rare stippled cell. A Wassermann was strongly positive. The sputum showed Gram- positive diplococci and long and short Gram-negative bacilli. X-ray showed the shadows pictured in Fig. 79. A throat consultant reported, ‘Paralysis of the left cord. Obstruction to respiration is intrathoracic.”’ The patient had marked respiratory distress and a typical mediastinal cough. ‘There was steady falling off in the character of ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 387 the pulse. December 11 she had a period of apnea in which for a few seconds she appeared to be dead. After this she coughed more and became completely aphonic. The periods of cyanosis became more frequent and severe. Oxygen had been used with benefit, but the patient was afraid to breathe it and lost the psychological advantage of it. Caffein seemed to relax the spasm. The distress was well controlled by morphia. An intubation set was kept at hand, but there seemed to be no one acute respiratory spasm. It was thought that the pressure was too low down for intubing to do any good. It was also thought any manipulation within the trachea would be dangerous. December 13 the patient died. | Clinical Diagnosis (from Hospital Record)—Cardiac weakness. Aneurism of the aortic arch. Dr. Richard C. Cabot’s Diagnosis —Syphilitic aortitis. Aneurism of the arch of the aorta. Anatomical Diagnosis.—Syphilitic aortitis. Aneurism of the arch of the aorta with pressure on the trachea, the primary bronchi and the great vessels. Purulent bronchitis. Bronchopneumonia, lower lobe, left lung. : Fibrinopurulent pleuritis, left. Congestion of the liver and kidneys. Slight chronic pleuritis, right. Slight chronic perisplenitis. Dr. RicHArDsON: This case, from an anatomical standpoint, is a very important one in regard to differential diagnosis. Practically all the questions I think can be answered. The heart weighed 220 grams (normally 200-300) and there was nothing the matter with the valves. The coronary arteries were negative. Beginning a short distance above the cusps there was a frank luetic process extending up the first portion of the aorta to the region of the arch. In the region of the arch there was a definite aneurism containing a thrombotic mass. ‘This sac pressed upon the trachea and the left bronchus. ‘That decreased their circumferences, their capacity, and in time bronchitis and bronchopneumonia developed. The bronchopneumonia and the bronchitis in the main were on the left side, where the greatest amount of pressure was. In addition, and in line with the question, What did she die of? On the wall of the bronchus was’a very thin area which had not quite 388 FACTS ON THE HEART broken through. If she had lived a little longer it would have been broken through. The lungs were out of the picture except for what we have said. The bronchial glands were negative. A PuysictiaAn: What were the shadows the X-ray man told about? Dr. RicHARpDsoNn: I think they were shadows. The circulatory apparatus elsewhere was negative. The diagnosis of luetic aortitis was confirmed by microscopical examina- tion, and the case is a typical one, showing irregularities of the sur- face of the intima presenting as fibrous plaques varying in size, with intermingling areas of depression, so that the intima of the aorta looked gristly and scarred. With such a condition scattered along the wall of a vessel which is under constant tension it is easy enough to understand how an aneurism would arise. [ think the pressure on the great vessels by the aneurismal mass was the cause for the congestion of the liver and kidneys that was noted. This brings out the point that when the luetic aortitis does not extend to the aortic valve the anatomical basis for an aortic regurgi- tation is not present, and regurgitation ought not to be found clinically. The kidneys were negative. In a word, this case anatomically was a distinct and clear-cut case of luetic aortitis with aneurism of the arch, pressure on the great * vessels and the trachea and bronchi, no involvement of the heart at all, and with freedom of the coronary arteries. From the pressure resulted the bronchitis and bronchopneumonia. A Puysictan: Why was there no pain? Dr. RICHARDSON: That isaquestion. It may be from the peculiar situation of the aneurism. It came off postero-laterally to the left of the arch, and it might not in that particular place and for a time have involved the nerves. The laryngeal trouble came late. A PuysictaAn: How large was the aneurism? Dr. RIicHARDSON: It was about 7 X 6 X 4 cm. A PuysiciAn: Why do you think she had no chest pain when she was first admitted ? Dr. Caport: That was in 1891—a very long time ago. A PuysictAn: Why the diastolic murmur? Dr. Casot: I cannot explain it. Ido not believe we should have heard it. Dr. RicHARDSON: The last thing was the infection, that is, the immediate cause of death was the terminal bronchitis and pneumonia. ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 389 This case is not so very unusual. I think at the same time we had two other cases just like it. When the process begins out of reach of the valve then the picture is entirely non-cardiac. It lacks all the things that give aortic regurgitation. Dr. CasorT: It should be noticed that although we can say that this all came down to one thing—the spirocheta pallida got into that person’s blood and was deposited in the arch—still when we come to read the necropsy protocol what a number of things there are in it, what a number of things a person dies of! That is the experience of to the average post-mortem diagnosis. A complete diagnosis should contain many items, and I think one should aim at getting in all there is in a case. For instance, the pneumonia was not recognized in this case, perhaps could not have been. They could not have treated it, but the length of life and the prognosis might have been affected by the pneumonia and their knowledge of it. — The arch of the aorta saddles the left primary bronchus. It is in very much closer relation to the left primary bronchus than to the right. It is for that reason that when we get pressure symptoms on the lung in aneurism they are almost always on the left lung, as it was here. By pressing on the bronchus the aneurism prevents the secre- tions from coming out, and so we have retention of the secretions and sO pneumonia. Dr. RicHARDSON: The cutaneous vessels were notably enlarged on the left and not on the right. A PuysictAn: If this patient had had pain where would it have been? Dr. CaBor: Usually pain comes when the aneurism is pressing outward toward the front with pressure upon the sternum. In the rarer cases where it goes backward toward the lungs it causes pain in the back radiating around the chest. Dr. Hotmes: In the X-ray examination a more careful localiza- tion of the tumor in the antero-posterior plane and an observation as to whether or not the tumor pulsated would have helped consider- ably in interpretation. The presence of the lateral scoliosis in the upper spine produced a shadow which was confusing. Necropsy 3656 An American police officer of forty-five entered October 8, 1915, for relief of pain in the chest and dyspnea. His mother died of “shock” at seventy-nine. His wife had had two miscarriages. 390 FACTS ON THE HEART One child died of “‘indigestion’’ at seven months. The patient had scarlet fever at eight, typhoid fever at fourteen, gonorrhea and chancre at eighteen. For years he had had belching of gas after meals and constipated bowels, moving only every other day with laxatives. For years he had urinated once at night. Eight months before admission he had external hemorrhoids for three days. In 1912 he weighed 205 pounds, his best weight. His usual weight was 180, his present weight 172. He drank two or three glasses of whiskey and smoked four or five cigarettes a day. Four years before admission he noticed a swelling at the right sterno-calvicular articulation. This gradually increased in size, but gave no other symptoms for two years. Then he began to have dyspnea and slight difficulty in swallowing, so that if he lay on his back he became choked up. At the same time he began to have dull burning pain in the region of the tumor and several daily attacks of sharp boring pain lasting a few seconds, like a “red hot poker being thrust through to his back,’ also radiating as a dull ache down the right arm as far as the elbow. ‘The pain was worse when he lay on the right side, relieved by lying on the left side and by belching gas. It had been constant since the onset, but had not noticeably increased 19 Fic. 80. in severity. The tumor had increased in size since the onset, though at times he thought it got smaller. He often felt a beating over it. He was told by a physician he had pleurisy. Seven months ago he caught “‘grippe”’ and became “‘all choked up” and dyspneic. The chest pain was worse. His doctor now said that he had rheumatism. Examination showed a well-nourished man with tracheal tug. There were dilated venules over the lower margin of the thorax in front. The apex impulse of the heart was in the sixth space 13 cm. to the left of midsternum, 1 cm. outside the nipple line. In the left lateral position the apex shifted 6 cm. The right border of dull- ness was 6 cm. to the right. The substernal dullness was 17 cm. at | the second rib, rr cm. to the right, 6 cm. to the left. (See Fig. 80.) X-ray showed the measurements as in Fig. 81. The sounds were of fair quality. There was an occasional premature beat. The aortic second sound was accentuated and palpable. At the apex in the ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 301 left lateral position was heard a blowing systolic and a long, harsh high-pitched diastolic. There was a systolic at the aortic area, not loud, transmitted upward, with a short diastolic blow. There was a rough low-pitched systolic over the pulsating tumor. The blood pressure was 140/80 left, 120/80 right. The tumor and lung signs Fic. 81.—Seven-foot plate showing heart shadow below and aneurismal sac above. Syphilitic aortitis with aneurism filling the mediastinum, compressing esophagus, trachea, and bronchi. were as Shown in Fig. 82. There were many dilated venules over the shins. The abdomen, pupils and reflexes were normal. The temperature was 96.4° to 99.3°, the pulse 66 to 102, the respiration normal. The output of urine was 32 to 70 ounces, the specific gravity 1.012 to 1.020. There was a slight trace of albumin Pulsation visible andi palpable Tumor, elevated 223 a Za ksi a aN DISS T ON \ li ow EW ened respiratory sounds Slightly dull, with sharp- and increased fremitus MiGaas2e at one of three examinations. The hemoglobin was 80%. There were 12,800 to 7600 leucocytes, 79% polynuclears. A Wassermann was strongly positive. A throat consultant reported, “Slight chronic laryngitis. The vocal cords have normal excursion in phonation and respiration.”” A syphilis consultant reported, “Salvarsan is a dan- 392 FACTS ON THE HEART gerous drug for this man. I should use potassium iodid in preference at first. If that does no good I think it proper to give salvarsan in repeated very small doses, not over o.1 gram.”’ The patient was given antisyphilitic treatment. His condition was explained to him. He was discharged unrelieved October 19 with the understanding that he would get very light occupation. The South Medical (Syphilis) Out-Patient Department record notes November 15 that the patient was doing desk work and was very much better. December 21 he reported that he had entered strenuous duty again and was having pain in the nght chest. Febru- ary 15 he was again at desk work, but was having dyspnea and increas- ing pain of greater frequency and longer duration. A year later, November 13, 1916, he reported that he felt almost well, gained weight, and was able to do his work until July, when his wife was in the hospital ten days with her third miscarriage. During her absence he worked strenuously to keep up both home and office duties. As a result he had a “breakdown” and had not felt well since. One night in August he fell asleep in a chair near an open window and awoke a few hours later covered with “cold perspira- tion.’ Since that time he had had cough with a little sputum, a choking sensation due to the mucus which he could not raise, hoarse- ness, wheeziness, and increasing dyspnea, orthopnea, edema, palpita- tion and insomnia. Since August he had had frequency with incontinence every two hours day and night. Examination showed him only fairly well nourished. He spoke only in a hoarse whisper. ‘The mucous membranes and hands were cyanotic, especially the left hand, which was colder than the right. No tracheal tug was felt. The heart measurements by percussion were practically as before except that the right border was 7 cm. to the right. At the apex the sounds were regular, somewhat rapid, not forceful, and there was a low systolic murmur. In the aortic area was a faint systolic roll followed by an impure second sound. The pulmonic second sound was not heard. A faint systolic was heard along the right sternal border. The pulses were of poor volume and tension, not Corrigan or pistol-shot. The radials were not felt. The blood pressure was 115/80. The lung signs were as shown in Fig. 83. There was dullness at the right isthmus in front. The temperature was 97.2° to 98.8°, the pulse 81 to 100, the res- piration 31 to 17. The amount of urine was normal when recorded. The urine was cloudy at one of two examinations. The. specific gravity was 1.000 to 1.o1c. There was a very slight trace of albumin ™ ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 393 at one of two examinations. The hemoglobin was 80%. There. were 10,400 to 10,600 leucocytes, 71% polynuclears. A Wassermann was moderately positive. X-ray showed a large area of diminished radiance in the region of the great vessels, more to the right than to the left. The heart shadow was enlarged and lay horizontally in the chest. The night of November 14 the patient was very restless and com- plained of difficulty in getting his breath. Next morning he was more cyanotic. During the ward rounds he suddenly became very cyanotic, with labored breathing, and soon afterward became unconscious. He remained in this condition until his death at midnight. Inspiration loud, rough} accompanied by squeaks and groans. Expiration quiet and prolonged. Clinical Diagnosis (from Hospital Record).—Tertiary lues. Aneurism of the aortic arch. Cardiac failure. Dr. William H. Smith’s Diagnosis.—Syphilitic aortitis. Aneurism. - Anatomical Diagnosis.—Syphilitic aortitis. Aneurism of the arch of the aorta with pressure on the neighboring structures. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Chronic passive congestion of the liver, spleen, stomach, kidneys, and intestines. Focal necrosis of the pancreas with hemorrhage. Emphysema of the lungs. Chronic pleuritis. Slight chronic perihepatitis, and splenitis. Dr. RicHARDSON: There was a large aneurism given off at the arch of the aorta filling the mediastinum, pressing slightly on the esophagus and markedly on the trachea, the bronchi, and the great vessels running to and from the heart. The chronic passive conges- tion mentioned in the anatomical diagnosis was largely due to the pressure inside the chest from the aneurismal sac. The coronary arteries were out of the picture, the aneurism springing from the 394 FACTS ON THE HEART arch, although the first portion of the arch showed lesions many of which were syphilitic in appearance. The kidneys showed some acute degeneration of the tubular epithelium, but were otherwise negative. The microscopic appearances of the aortic wall and the region of the aneurism were those of syphilitic aortitis. The case anatomically was clear and formed a basis for the clinical picture. Dr. SmiTH: There was not much regurgitation through the aortic valve, was there? Dr. RicHARDSON: None. The heart was moderately hyper- trophied; the dilatation was the predominant characteristic. It is very common, of course, in syphilitic aortitis to have the orifices of the coronary arteries encroached upon. In this particular case, however, although the syphilitic lesions in the aorta extended along the first portion, they did not extend around the coronary orifices so as to produce any effect on the arteries. They were free, fairly capacious, and showed a moderate amount of fibrous sclerosis. The whole picture was due to marked pressure of the aneurismal sac on the great structures in the chest, trachea, bronchi, and the great vessels to and from the heart. Dr. Situ: Dr. Richardson’s discussion brings out the point I mentioned, that angina pectoris may be due to a stretching of the aortic plexus, in view of the fact that here the coronary arteries were not involved. Necropsy 4388 An Irish laborer of fifty-three entered August 11, 1922, complain- ing of cough and pain in the back and chest. He had measles, chickenpox, whooping cough in childhood, and malaria for two winters in Georgia. He once had ‘‘rheumatism” for a year and a half— swelling, lameness and redness of the knees and hands, with no fever. Six years before admission he had a violent cough like the present one lasting two months. In the Philippines he had dhobie itch— white blisters around the genitals and armpits. His wife had one miscarriage after the birth of two healthy children. For four years his left eye had been more prominent than the right and the pupil larger. His bowels required physic often. He took two or three glasses of whiskey on Saturday nights. Six months before admission he began to have spasms of violent dry cough for five to twenty-four hours, each attack leaving him feel- ing short of breath and stifled. For five months he had had dyspnea. ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 395 He was more comfortable lying on the left side, but if he lay on it too long he had pain from his left shoulder to his ear. He thought he had had a swelling off and on in the left side of the neck for four months, and thought it was associated with the pain. Four months ago he lost consciousness in church for about five minutes. Three months ago the attacks of cough became more frequent, and he began to raise a good deal of watery frothy sputum. For three months he had had pain under thesternum and in the back between the shoulders. Sometimes, for instance when he moved quickly, it was like a knife stabbing from front to back. If he lay still fifteen or twenty minutes he had dull pain under the sternum and in the back. When he kept moving he did not notice this. ‘Twomonthsago he began to be hoarse, and the cough became wheezing. Twice he lost his voice altogether for half an hour, and at the same time lost power in his right hand, with complete recovery. A week ago he coughed up half a teaspoon- ful of bright blood. He now slept very little. At admission he could climb a flight of stairs only with difficulty. His best weight was 180 pounds, ten years ago. For five months he had been losing weight, in all thirty-five pounds. His present weight was 140. Examination showed a well nourished man with suffused cyanotic face and neck. The external jugulars were distended. The teeth were very carious, several missing. ‘There was marked pyorrhea. The apex impulse of the heart was not seen or felt. The sounds were not heard. ‘The supracardiac dullness was g.5 cm., the right border 6 cm., the left border 1014 cm., the midclavicular line 11 cm. The left pulse was not felt. The blood pressure in the right arm was 128/60, in the left arm 65/55. There was questionable tracheal tug, palpable episternal pulsation. The lungs were clear except for questionable dullness at the right isthmus. Palpation of the abdo- men was rendered unsatisfactory by what appeared to be voluntary spasm. The left pupil was greater than the mght. Both were regular. ‘Their reactions and the other reflexes were normal. The temperature was 98.8° to 101.5°, the pulse 112 to 88, the respirations not remarkable. The output of urine was 38 ounces when recorded, the specific gravity 1.018. The urine was cloudy and alkaline at the single examination. ‘There were three to four leuco- cytes to a high power field. The hemoglobin was 70%, the leuco- cytes 39,300 to 12,300, the polynuclears 80 to 64%, the reds 5,220,000; slight achromia August 11, reds normal August 12. No Wassermann ‘was done. The stools were strongly positive to guaiac August 12. X-ray August 14 showed a large fusiform shadow in the upper and 306 FACTS ON THE HEART medial portions of the chest obliterating the posterior mediastinal space. (See Fig. 84.) No pulsation was visible in the shadow. The day after admission the right apex was dull, possibly the left apex also. The breath sounds at the apices were almost amphoric, more so on the right. At five o’clock the evening of August 13 the patient suddenly fainted, became very pale and pulseless, and broke into a profuse cold sweat. He regained consciousness in a few minutes, although he remained pulseless, pale and very weak. He coughed up about an Fic. 84.—Necropsy 4388. Aneurism of the aorta. Syphilitic aortitis. A large fusiform shadow occupies the medial and upper portions of the chest, its borders curved and sharply defined. It is about the size of the heart shadow and extends from above the sternal notch down over the upper portion of the aortic arch. The shadow T, T on the right may very well be a much displaced trachea. The left lung is held up by adhesions. Its diminished radiability is no doubt due to limitation of the diaphragm excursion. (Roentgenological Department, Massachusetts General Hospital.) ounce of bright frothy blood, and a few minutes later had a stool that was mostly fecal material mixed with bright blood. He remained conscious for about an hour, then went into coma which continued to his death at four o’clock the next morning. Clinical Diagnosis.—Aneurism of the aorta. Dr. Richard C. Cabot’s Diagnosis —Aneurism of the aorta, with rupture. . , Anatomical Diagnosis ——Aneurism of the aorta with rupture into. the esophagus. ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 3907 Luetic aortitis. Hemorrhage into the gastrointestinal tract. Anemia. Soft spleen. Chronic pleuritis, left. Chronic perisplenitis. Slightly defective closure of the foramen ovale. Dr. Oscar RICHARDSON: We were not permitted to examine the head. The skin and mucous membranes were very pale. The peri- toneal cavity and appendix were out of the picture. The glands were negative. There was no fluid in the pleural cavities, and no adhe- sions on the right, but many on the left. There was a little blood and blood clot in the trachea and bronchi; they were otherwise out of the picture except for a point to be mentioned later. The pericardium was negative. The heart weighed 333 grams. It was a good looking heart, with good valves, a little dilatation on the right, but otherwise out of the picture. , The liver, gall-bladder, bile ducts, pancreas, duct of Wirsung, and the spleen, the adrenals, kidneys and genito-urinary apparatus were out of the picture, except that the spleen was a little soft. The esophagus contained a small amount of bloody fluid and presented an opening in its wall which we shall speak about in a moment. The stomach contained a blood clot weighing 1260 grams —that is nearly as large as a liver—and besides that 200 c.c. of bloody fluid. The mucosa and the pylorus were frankly negative. The intestines contained a large amount of fluid blood and many blood clots, but their walls were negative. The only thing left is the aorta. The aorta showed an aneurism and this aneurism was luetic in its nature. The luetic process began above the aortic valve and the coronary orifices were free, so the heart was out of the picture anatomically. But from that point up there was syphilitic aortitis, and in the situation of the arch there was a large sac, nine cm. in diameter,—a frank aneurism. This of course contained the usual concentric layers of thrombotic material, and on the posterior wall where it was against the anterior surface of the vertebra the wall was very thin and there was erosion of the surfaces of the vertebrae. On the left lateral aspect the wall of the aneurism was adherent to the apex of the lung on its mesial aspect. We note however that there was nothing the matter with the lungs; the apices were negative. This aneurism had pushed the trachea away over to the right but had perforated, not the trachea, but the 398 FACTS ON THE HEART esophagus. So the death was due to hemorrhage from rupture of the aneurism through the wall of the esophagus, and the man bled to death into his stomach. Dr. Casot: Isn’t that in your experience an unusual way? Dr. RicHarpson: Yes, it is very unusual. Somewhere recently I saw an article reporting such a case because the writer thought per- foration of the esophagus was so rare. Dr. Casor: Looking at the X-ray in connection with your report of the adhesions, would those match up with the appearances at the left base? Dr. RicHARDSON: It might be. The left lung was bound down by adhesions of years, on the right none. Dr. Casot: When we know a fact like these adhesions on the left it is always good to go back to the X-ray to see if there is any more density of the left lung, any less radiance on the left than in the right. Dr. Richardson has just told us there are adhesions all through the left chest. Dr. MEAns: I do not think I should be willing to say that the plate is abnormal. Dr. Capsot: No; but there is a question whether the chest does not look on the whole a little less radiant on the left and is not on the whole a little smaller. Dr. MEAns: The diaphragm is higher. Dr. Casot: It seems as if the rays went through more easily on the right. Of course, I am not pretending that I made the diagnosis before I knew the adhesions were there. Dr. RICHARDSON: This aneurism instead of going laterally in its main trend went directly back against the vertebra; the picture shows that. Dr. Cazot: Yes, it is right in the middle. Dr. Means: We have another man in the wards who has a trachea pushed to one side, who has amphoric breathing, breathing that would make one think of a cavity. But there was no cavity. { think that where there is tracheal stenosis we get extraordinary breathing of all kinds. A PuysicIAn: How big was the opening? Dr. RicHARDSON: The area of perforation was three cm. above the bifurcation of the trachea and measured three by two cm. Dr. Caspot: With even a large eroded area outside, a bulge on the chest as large as one’s fist, the probability is that it will erode through some internal structure before it does through the skin. ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 399 I think that is a very important fact. If we can say to the friends especially, and perhaps to the patient himself if he is the right type, “You won’t have this terrible tragedy of an external rupture,” I think that is of some reassurance. I cannot remember ever having seen an aneurism which ruptured externally, and I have seen cases where the skin looked like paper, where one was afraid to touch it. A PuysiciAn: I had an instructor once who said he had seen one rupture on the outside. That is the only one I ever heard of. A PuysiciAn: I cannot understand why he lived so long if he had that opening into the gullet. Dr. RicHARDsoN: The pressure around the opening did not allow the blood to run out very fast. Dr. Casot: Also, the bleeding lowered his blood pressure so much that the heart did not pump out more blood. Note by Dr. A. S. Merrill.—In Fig. 84 the left diaphragm is held up, evidently by the adhesions. The left lung is a little less radiable than the right, no doubt because of diminished expansion due to the limitation of the diaphragm excursion, not because of the condition of the lung itself. The shadow T, T on the right may very well be a much displaced trachea. Necropsy 1280 An Insh iron worker of forty-three entered November 25, 1904. His past history was negative except for measles in childhood and erysipelas at twenty-one. He drank one to two dozen bottles of ale a week and an occasional glass of whiskey. Two months and a half before admission he began to have sharp pain in the right breast, constant, worse at times, and increased by exertion. .Once it was so severe that he almost fainted. It extended . across the breast and sometimes down the left arm. He had a good deal of dyspnea and some palpitation. For four weeks he had had some cough, especially in the morning, and considerable yellow spu- tum. He had occasional headache and rare nosebleed. His appetite was poor. He had distress and gas after meals. Sometimes his bowels were constipated. He sometimes urinated three or four times at night, but usually after drinking the evening before. Except for advice he would have gone to work instead of coming to the hospital. Examination showed a well nourished man. The mucous mem- branes were cyanotic, the conjunctivae slightly injected, the throat reddened. The apex impulse of the heart was in the sixth space 400 FACTS ON THE HEART seven inches to the left of the median line. The borders of dullness were 814 inches to the left, 114 inches to the right of the median line. The action was regular, the sounds of fair quality, the pulmonic second sound accentuated. Systolic and presystolic murmurs were heard at the apex, the systolic transmitted into the left axilla, nearly replacing the first sound. A harsh systolic murmur, loudest in the pulmonic area, was transmitted into the neck. There was a dias- tolic murmur, loudest at the fourth left interspace, heard over the precordia. (See Fig. 85.) There was marked tenderness in the fourth left interspace near the sternum. The pulse was Corrigan. The artery walls were palpable. There was a suggestion of capillary pulse in the lips. The lungs showed dullness, diminished breath sounds and numerous fine moist rales below the angle of the scapula in the right back and two inches below the angle of the : scapula on the left. The fremitus was slightly diminished on the right. The expiration was somewhat prolonged throughout both backs. The liver dullness extended from the sixth rib to the costal margin. The edge was felt. ee Eee eee There were a few medium sized glands in the ee aT ee groins and axillae. There was very slight edema of theankles. The pupilsand plantars were normal, the knee-jerks slight. The temperature at entrance was 99.6°, afterwards normal, the pulse 105 to 92, the respirations 28 to 21. The output of urine was 22 to 111 ounces, neutral, specific gravity, 1.025, the slightest possible trace of albumin, no sugar, rare hyalin and finely granular casts, occasional blood corpuscles. The hemoglobin was 95%, the leuco- cyte count 16,200. The patient was very comfortable except for a dry harsh cough which distressed him a good deal, especially at night. He also had thoracic pain. The heart’s action was good. Fluoroscopic examina- tion of the chest failed to disclose any enlargement of the aorta. A throat consultant found no paralysis of the cords or signs of obstruc- tion in the trachea, but the bifurcation was not seen. November 30 another X-ray examination showed increase of the shadow in the posi- tion of the thoracic aorta with a pulsating shadow just above and to the left of the heart. The morning of December 1 while he was dressing the patient fell to the floor in a slight convulsion, became very pale, and m a few moments died. ‘There was no marked cyanosis. ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 401 Clinical Diagnosis (from Hospital Record).—Acute cardiac dila- tation. Coronary obstruction. Thoracic aneurism with relative aortic and mitral regurgitation. Dr Richard C. Cabot’s Diagnosis.—Syphilitic aortitis with aortic regurgitation, and blocking of the coronary arteries. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Chronic passive congestion. Anatomical Diagnosis.—Aneurism of the ascending portion of the aorta with rupture into the pericardium. Syphilitic aortitis. Arteriosclerosis of the aorta. Anthracosis of the lungs. Dr. RicHarpson: This case occurred before the man who made the post-mortem knew definitely that he was presented with syphi- litic aortitis. In going back over it years afterwards I find that the case was syphilitic aortitis. The death was due to a ruptured aneu- rism of the aorta. The peritoneal cavity, including the liver, spleen, kidneys, etc., was out of the picture. There was some congestion of the kidneys. The heart was not especially hypertrophied. The reason is apparent when we see that the main lesion was an aneurism. The amount of sclerosis in the aorta was slight, not sufficient to produce much hypertrophy and dilatation. There was slight fibrosis of the aortic cusps. Just above the aortic cusps was a frank aneurism which had ruptured into the pericardium. The aneurism, as stated in my record, was somewhere between the size of a hen’s egg and a goose egg. We made the diagnosis here in after years from the description written at the time, which shows good work on the part of the man who did it. It is perfectly apparent from the gross description, whether we have the microscopic or not, that we are dealing with an aneurism of the aorta in that particular spot where syphilitic aortitis is usually located. Aneurism itself produces no definite hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart, but syphilitic aortitis may extend down and involve the aortic cusps and produce aortic regurgitation. The cusps were slightly affected in this case. Another point of interest in this case is arteriosclerosis. At forty-three there is usually some arteriosclerosis, and we cannot always dissociate aortitis and arteriosclerosis even after death. But the aortitis was well marked, and farther down in the aorta 26 402 FACTS ON THE HEART there was some typical arteriosclerosis, but not in any great amount. This man was an iron worker, and he had what is anatomically called anthracosis of the lungs. There was increase of interstitial tissue, and there was no tuberculosis. The other day we had a very marked case of pneumoconiosis in which again we were unable to find any evidence of tuberculosis. All of which goes to show that there is some argument for the group of men who feel that excessive irri- tation from dusts of various sorts can produce chronic pneumonitis without the aid of tuberculosis. Dr. Casot: This was all coal dust, no iron or stone in it? Dr. RicHARDSON: There would probably be a mixture. The lungs generally were blackish in color. The posterior and inferior lobes showed sulcus-like furrows more or less outlining the lobules at the pleural surface. This was most marked in the inferior lobe of the right lung. These portions of the lung were tough and leathery to the touch. What better description do we want of chronic pneu- monitis? On section the lung tissue generally showed an excessive amount of blackish pigmentation. In the posterior portions of the inferior lobes the lung tissue on section was tough and showed ill defined streaks and areas of a homogeneous smooth somewhat shining opaque black appearance, the typical picture of anthra- cosis, and extensive enough so that it was perfectly apparent macroscopically. Dr. Casot: We got the main points in this case right, and I think if I had not switched off we should have put in the aneurism. [I for- got about the question of aneurism. Butit seems to me that second X-ray report, if we made the diagnosis of syphilis, as we did, should naturally be taken as aneurism. In the present series we find that every aneurismal tumor is syphilitic. There is only one cause. So if we can made a diagnosis of aneurism we have to make a diagnosis of syphilis. We do not confuse that with the compensatory harmless aortic enlargement which comes on in arteriosclerosis. But aneu- rism as such, a definite pocket-like dilatation, means syphilis and nothing else. We have had no cases of any other type, and I have seen no competent account of any other type. The other point is the one that Dr. Richardson brought out in the condition of the lungs. In Barre, Vermont, where there is a great deal of granite cutting, careful study has been made in recent years of this question of stone dust in the lungs,—not coal dust. I think, on the basis of what they have done there, and what we have ie. bs) i. ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 403 seen here, studying it partly with the stimulus of their interest, that the question is clearly settled now. We can perfectly well have anthracosis without tuberculosis, and pneumoconiosis, the more general word for dust in the lung, without tuberculosis. We had here a very marked case in which the man died from the results of his stone-cutter’s lung disease with no other important trouble. Mr. Frederick L. Hoffman, a statistician formerly with the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, who studied the disease from a statistical point of view at Barre, gave me the other day a very interesting piece of information which has also been published. He went at the ques- tion of tuberculosis or non-tuberculosis in these stone-cutters who died of lung trouble in a very interesting way. We believe of course that tuberculosis is contagious. If then we had a lot of men dying of tuberculosis, we should have a lot of evidence that their wives and families also caught tuberculosis. He went through at great length the cases of stone-cutters who had died of lung trouble, to find out ‘what the wives died of, and he found no evidence that the wives died of tuberculosis any more than anybody else’s wives. That was a very important piece of evidence, covering a great number of cases. And he is very definite in his belief that stone-cutters’ lung is not tuberculosis. This last case shows the effects, which I did not realize at all, of another dust, coal dust. Coal dust, so far as I know, does not ever bring about death, and Dr. Richardson did not suggest in any way that the injury to this man’s lungs from the coal dust shortened his life. It is a pneumonitis with interstitial increase. But so far as we can see it did the patient no harm. That is the rule. Coal- miners seem to have tuberculosis less than other people. Perhaps they get injury from the dust, but it is not proved. On the other hand people who get steel into their lungs, from scissor grinding and quartz from granite cutting, certainly do often die of the effects of this dust in the lung. Do you remember any other cases in which anthracosis caused a real pneumonitis? Dr. RicHarDson: Ido not remember. They are not very many. We had some in which we found what we believed to be tuberculosis. Dr. Cabot: This is a debated question. I am on the side of those who believe that pneumoconiosis is not tuberculosis though it may be complicated in the end by tuberculosis. A PuysiciaAn: I wonder if the dust is protective in some way. Dr. CaBor: That is what has been often claimed about coal-dust, that if there were a few tubercle bacilli in the lung they were sealed 404 FACTS ON THE HEART in by this connective tissue reaction to the coal dust, so that they became harmless. | Necropsy 4539 A Swedish engineer of thirty-nine entered June 11, 1923. No past history was obtained except a positive one of luetic infection. The history of the present illness was given in part by the patient’s physician. A year and a half before admission the patient first complained of precordial pain radiating into his back with very slight dyspnea. He went to the South in the winter for two years. He felt much more comfortable when warm, and even slept in the fur- nace room when working in New Hampshire. He had two stays ina hospital in Boston, one in 1922, another in 1923, about two months each time. A year before admission his left side became suddenly paralyzed. This wore off gradually in three months. About the same time he began to have pain under the upper sternum, slightly more on the right, not throbbing but steady, sharp and fairly severe, coming in attacks lasting two hours or so, induced by lifting, exertion Prolonged high- pitched sonorous inspiration and expiration. Ines 6. and excitement. The attacks ofthis pain continued until eight or nine months ago, when he began to have thumping pain under the upper sternum. For three months he had not been able to walk across the floor because of dyspnea. He also had severe pain over the precordia, brassy cough, and hoarseness. During the past two months he had had difficulty in breathing and swallowing. Examination showed a fairly well developed and nourished man with a very distressed expression, breathing with slow stertorous inspirations and expirations. The face had a reddish cyanotic tinge. The skin was moist; during periods of extreme respiratory difficulty it was dripping with perspiraton. The cervical, epitrochlear, axil- lary and inguinal glands were slightly enlarged. The throat was slightly reddened. There was definite tracheal tug. The chest expansion was slightly greater on the left. The lung signs were as shown in Fig. 86. The apex impulse of the heart was in the fifth space 10 cm. to the left, 1 cm. outside the midclavicular line. The > , = ' ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 405 right border of dullness was 4.5 cm., the supraclavicular dullness 13.5 cm. The sounds and action were normal. There was a very soft short systolic murmur heard to the right of the sternum in the first interspace. No thrill was felt, although there was a palpable pulsa- tion in the first and second right and left interspaces and above the left clavicle. The pulses were somewhat prolonged in tension. There was slight sclerosis of the radials, temporals and brachials. The blood pressure was 135/85. The liver was palpable, the tip of the spleen barely palpable. Both external inguinal rings admitted the tip of the little finger. There was a small depressed penile scar. The shins were slightly roughened. The pupils and reflexes were normal. The temperature was 98.1° to 100°, the pulse 80 to 127, the res- pirations g to 29. The urine was normal in amount, the specific gravity 1.022. There was a slight trace of albumin at the single examination, a very slight trace of bile and leucocytes. The hemo- globin was 70% to 85%, the leucocytes 16,000 to 24,000, the poly- nuclears 80%, the reds and platelets normal. A Wassermann was moderately positive. The non-protein nitrogen was 37.5 mgm. The patient complained of very severe pain running through the upper chest and particularly localized in the back in the region of the third and fifth thoracic vertebrae. His respiratory distress was constant and alleviated only by frequent doses of codeia. It was thought that the general problem was to keep him comfortable, there- fore antiluetic therapy was not pushed. Late in the afternoon June 13 the character of the heart sounds-was poor. In the early evening he lapsed into unconsciousness. The blood pressure dropped and the heart sounds became more rapid and forcible. That evening he died. Clinical Diagnosis (from Hospital Record).—Late syphilis. Aortic aneurism. Syphilitic heart disease. Dr. Richard C. Cabot’s Diagnosis.—Syphilitic aortitis. Aneurism of the aortic arch with compression of the trachea and possibly erosion of the vertebrae. General arteriosclerosis. Anatomical Diagnosis.—Luetic aortitis. Aneurisms of the arch of the aorta with pressure on ihe trachea, bronchi, and the great vessels running to and from the heart, with extensive erosion of the thoracic vertebrae. Slight hemorrhage into the periesophageal tissues. Gumma or old infarct of lung. 406 FACTS ON THE HEART Congestion of the liver, spleen and kidneys. Chronic pleuritis. Dr. RICHARDSON: The examination of the brain was negative. _ The pleural cavities showed only a few c.c. of thin pale clear fluid. There were only a few old pleural adhesions on the left. In the region of the lower part of the trachea an aneurism, to be described later, pressed upon the left lateral wall, bulging it inward rather markedly, with considerable decrease of its lumen. The pressure of the aneu- rism shut off to a great extent the left primary bronchus. The right primary bronchus was not definitely pressed upon. There was a small collection of reddish semi-fluid mucous material in the region of the distal end of the left primary bronchus andits branches. The bronchial glands were negative. The tissue of the right lung was generally spongy pale red and yielded a small amount of reddish frothy fluid. In the region of the apex of the left lung the aneurism was bound by old adhesions to the upper lobe. The tissue of the upper lobe was dark reddish, a little leathery, and yielded a small amount of dark reddish fluid. The tissue of the lower lobe was pale red, a little leathery, and yielded a small amount of thin reddish frothy fluid. In the region of the upper part of the lower lobe just beneath the pleura there was a rather discrete mass about 3 cm. by 2 cm. On section it showed dirty brownish boggy to resistant tissue, a little disintegrated in its central portions. Along the region of the lower margin of this lobe there was a round firm rim about 9 cm. long and 7 mm. across. Its sections showed tissue like that in the mass just mentioned. The question that arises of course is whether it wasa syphilitic lesion or not. Further examination of the tissue under the microscope showed necrotic material in the midst of chronic inflammatory tissue, but there was no good evidence of plasma cells or lymphocytic infiltra- tion. Altogether the process suggested a syphilitic one, but we were not able definitely to state that it was. The heart weighed 321 grams. The myocardium, valves and cavities were negative. The coronary arteries were free and negative. The circumference of the aorta in the region of the sinus was 10 cm., in the region of the junction of the ascending thoracic and the arch 1114 cm. The ascending thoracic showed only a few slight areas of fibrous sclerosis in its first portion, but beginning at a point about 5 cm. above the aortic cusps, the ascending thoracic all along up to the arch showed much fibrous change, consisting of intermingling plaques and areas of depression and thinning, but with little thickening of — ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 407 the aortic wall in general. In the region of the middle portion of the arch the process ended in a fibrous rounded ridge margining the opening of a sac about 11 cm. in length and 20 cm. in circumference. In the region of the junction of the arch and descending thoracic the sac ended in a fibrous rounded ridge margining the junction. The wall of the aneurism was generally fibrous and from very thin to 244 mm. in thickness. On its inner aspect the wall of the aneu- rism was lined with laminated pinkish gray-brown thrombotic material to which in turn more recent thrombotic material was adherent, and to this in turn blood clot was adherent. The wall of the aneurism rested on the spine from the second to the seventh thoracic vertebrae and eroded their bodies. In places the wall . of the sac was very thin, slightly disintegrated, and through it there was infiltration of blood in moderate amount along and in the peri- esophageal tissues for a distance of 12cm. The esophageal wall was intact. The pulmonary artery, veins and venae cavae were negative except that from its situation the aneurism pressed on the trachea and the great vessels running to and from the heart. The process described in the aorta faded out as the abdominal region was reached. The great branches were negative. The portal vein and radicles were negative. You will note that this syphilitic process in the aorta began some distance above the aortic valve, so that there was no anatomical basis for an aortic regurgitation. Case 4494 An unmarried American girl of nineteen entered March 14, 1923, complaining of difficult respiration with loss of weight and appetite. She had measles, whooping coughand scarlet fever (?) when young. Since these illnesses she had always been well. During the past winter she had occasional sore throats. Recently she had had occasional sharp pains on the right side in the breast region, and considerable gas. Two months before admission she lost appetite. Fourteen months before admission she began to have “neuritic”’ pain in the right scapular region and later in the right arm, coming on especially at night. It was relieved by electrical treatment. At the same time she noticed a gland in the right supraclavicular region. A physician had X-rays taken which showed a mass in the right chest. She was sent to a hospital, where X-rays of the chest Jan- uary I9, 1922, showed a large mass in the region of the right hilus nearly four inches up and three inches out into the lung. It had the appearance of an encapsulated gland. There was some 408 FACTS ON THE HEART fibrosis throughout the lung adjacent to this. The gland involved the mediastinum so that the heart was pushed slightly to the left. The diaphragm was high’on this side and the lung not well aerated. (See Fig. 87.) There was a cervical rib on the left side. She was given five radium treatments averaging 3000 millicurie hours each. August 9 the plates still showed the definite mass in the right lung without much change from the previous observation. Since the radium treatment she had coughed, feeling something in her throat. Three sputum examinations were negative. She could no longer raise sputum. November 1 the small nodule had disappeared, but there was no other apparent change. She was given an appointment Fic. 87.—Malignant lymphoma involving the right lung, the right pleura, the pericardium, the wall of the right auricle and the superior vena cava. February 20, 1922. Shows essentially the same findings described January 19. The mass in the right hilus region has the appearance of an encapsulated gland, and involves the medi- astinum so that the heart is pushed slightly to the left. There is some fibrosis through- out the lung adjacent to this. The diaphragm is high on the right and the lung not well aerated. for deep X-ray therapy, but did not keep it. During her stay at the hospital her leucocyte count varied from gooo to 15,000. The differ- ential count averaged polynuclears 70%, small lymphocytes 22%, mononuclears 6%; red cells showed considerable anisocytosis and achromia. The patient entered another hospital, where she was tapped. She had some chills and moderate cough. During nine weeks she was given one X-ray treatment. She was discharged four weeks before she came to the Massachusetts General Hospital. She had been “‘all right”’ until March 4, when she began having difficulty ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 409 with breathing beginning by her losing her breath completely and becoming semiconscious. At first she was thought to be dying. After this she continued to have difficulty in breathing, especially at night. She had lost thirty-five or forty pounds. Physical examination showed a poorly developed and nourished girl, breathing rapidly. A few small supraclavicular nodes on both sides, more marked on the right. Heart: Apex impulse and meas- urements not recorded. No apparent displacement. No murmurs or thrills. Beats forceful. Soundsloud. Rate rapid. Blood pres- xe Fic. 88.—The same, March 16, 1923. Right side of the chest completely dull. Outline of the heart and diaphragm obscured and heart shadow considerably displaced in the opposite direction. Findings probably represent a large quantity of fluid in the right pleural cavity, obscuring the condition of the lung. sure 124/83. Chest: Left lung expanded a little more than the right, which lagged a little. Entire right lung flat to percussion. Left hyperresonant. ‘Tactile fremitus decreased on the right. Bronchial breathing in right chest anteriorly and above angle of scapula poste- riorly. Breathing exaggerated at right base posteriorly. Egophony over root of right lung posteriorly. A metallic note to percussion in this area. No rales heard anywhere. Vocal fremitus increased over entire right lung. Temperature 98.1°—103°. Pulse 84-150. Respiration 21-41. Amount of urine not recorded. Sp. gr. 1.030. A slight trace of 410 FACTS ON THE HEART albumin, a few pus cells and occasional red cells. Blood. MHgb. 85%, leucocytes 21,g00-26,500, polynuclears 80%. reds 4,056,000. Wassermann negative. Medical consultation March 16. Signs of fluid at the right base with possible cavity or localized pneumo- thorax. Extensive pathology in therght lung . . . Possibly fluid; may be purulent. X-ray March 16. See Fig. 88. The patient had a great deal of respiratory difficulty, particularly at night, relieved by morphia and atropin. March 16 she felt worse than at any other time. Lying on the right side seemed to increase the dyspnea and to cause engorgement of vessels in the neck. March 19 the attacks were more severe. The next morning there was a very severe attack of dyspnea lasting twenty minutes with consider- able cyanosis and difficulty of expiration. March 21 in a very severe attack of dyspnea the patient became cyanotic and died. Clinical Diagnosis —Tumor of right chest. Empyema? Dr. Richard C. Cabot’s Diagnosis —Tumors of right lung, proba- bly lymphoma. Empyema. Anatomical Diagnosis ——Malignant lymphoma (scirrhous type) involving at the right lung, right pleura, pericardium, wall of right auricle, superior vena cava, and tracheal lymph glands. Occlusion of superior vena cava. Compression of trachea, bronchi and great eect Bronchiectasis, right. Empyema, right. Congestion of liver, spleen and kidneys. Dr. RicHarpson: There was a large mass involving the upper two-thirds of the right lung, also a mass between the upper portion of the lung and the trachea and bronchi. Of course the whole thing pressed on the trachea and bronchi and on the great vessels running to and from the heart. The mass pushed the heart over so that the bulk of the heart rested in the left pleural cavity. The pericardium was distended with fluid, 250 c.c. or more. Whether that had anything to do with the X-ray picture or not I do not know. Dr. A.S. MERRILL: An observation of pulsation in the mass would have been of some value. : Dr. Ricuarpson: The left lung was normal, and there was only a little fluid in the left pleural cavity. On the right side however there was much fibrinopurulent material. There was pus here, empyema. ILLUSTRATIVE CASES ALS The greater curvature of the stomach was within 5 cm. of the pubes. The cecum rested over in the region of the left lower quad- rant, bringing the appendix there. The congestion of the liver, spleen and kidneys was probably due to the pressure on the great vessels to and from the heart. We were not permitted to examine the head. APPENDIX 1. DISSECTING ANEURISM Utterly different from syphilitic aneurism both in etiology and in > clinical development is the so-called dissecting aneurism, a complica- tion of arteriosclerosis in the aorta, whereby a split occurs in the wall of the aorta allowing the blood to seep in and gradually to dissect off or peel off an inner layer, until finally the aorta may be trans- formed into a double tube. This is to be regarded as a rare, and from a clinical point of view quite unimportant complication of arteriosclerosis in the aorta. In our series there were five cases of this lesion, which I have not included in the 1846 cases studied in detail for this book. Clinically the lesion produces few recognizable symptoms or physical signs, though in case 3681, which follows hereafter, the X-ray picture shows a widening of the aortic shadow presumably due to the dissecting aneurism which was found at necropsy in this case. 2. SEPTIC OR MYCOTIC ANEURISM I have not studied in detail and have not included in this series of cases, the three examples of septic or mycotic aneurism complicat- ing an acute or subacute endocarditis on the aortic valves. This also has little or no clinical importance as it cannot be recognized in life. Itis of course entirely separate from syphilitic aneurism both in etiology and course. None of our cases went so far as to rupture the aorta. Necropsy 3681. Dissecting Aneurism - A Cape Breton cook of sixty-two entered in 1911 for a fracture of the right external malleolus. With firm bandaging she made an uneventful recovery. The heart at this time was normal. October 4, 1916, she returned, very ill, complaining of sharp pains in the back coming through to the chest. Because of her condition and a very poor memory the history is unreliable. One brother died of cancer of the stomach, one sister of tuberculosis. She had measles at twelve years, pneumonia at an unknown age. At thirty-two she had a child stillborn. At this time she had an operation, and developed a ‘‘milk leg” on the right. The leg had 412 SEPTIC OR MYCOTIC ANEURISM 413 remained swollen. She had had no other children. For forty years she had had attacks of bronchitis with cough every winter lasting from a week toa month. With these she had sore throat of three to four days’ duration. She passed the menopause at fifty-five. In 1906 her memory began to be poor, and in rogrtr it “left her entirely.”’ At that time she had dull precordial pain localized over the heart, with palpitation, dyspnea on exertion, and orthopnea. For four years she had urinated at night. In 1911 she weighed 200 pounds, her best weight. Her usual weight was 130-170. The evening before admission she was seized with sharp stabbing pains in the midscapular region radiating straight through to the lower part of the sternum, not to the arm, and lasting for five minutes atintervals of anhour. Dull constant aching followed these attacks. During the night the attacks became more frequent and severe, forcing her to sit up to get her breath and leaving her very dyspneic. They kept her awake all night. The morning of admission she vomited all the food eaten the day before. Examination showed an obese woman. The apex impulse of the heart was not found. The dimensions by percussion and by X-ray are shown in Figs. 89 and go. The action was slow and irregular. The sounds were of fair quality. The aortic second sound was accentuated. There was a presystolic roll at the apex. The 8 cm. 5 cm. 11 cm. 16 cm. Fic. 89.—Measurements by percussion. arterial walls were palpable. The blood pressure was 260/140 to 150/100. There was a few coarse moist rales at the base of the left lung posteriorly, and a possible pleural rub. The abdomen was negative. There was slight edema over the shins. The pupils were irregular and did not react to light. The other reflexes were normal. The temperature was 97.1° to 100.8°, the pulse 50 to 120, the respirations 20 to 40. There was a normal amount of urine. The specific gravity was 1.016 to 1.006 There were slight traces of albu- min at five of nine examinations, leucocytes at eight, granular — or hyalin casts at four. Catheter specimens October 23: left ureter, sediment and culture negative; right ureter, sediment shows a rare polynuclear; no organisms; culture negative. Renal function tests AIA FACTS ON THE HEART October 4 and 9 gave no specimens. October 5 in one hour a single specimen showed 20%. October 13 one specimen at the end of two hours showed 10%. = 436 FACTS ON THE HEART trophy of the heart and the arterial changes as parallel compensatory lesions. It is noteworthy that in twenty cases of arteriosclerosis (see Table 94) confined to the aorta* and slight even there in four cases, the average heart weight was 463 grams, or greater than in the “ gener- alized”’ cases with sclerosis extending beyond the aorta. Among these twenty cases were hearts weighing 844, 711, 556, and 500 grams, and another called ‘‘very large” but not weighed. How can anyone suppose that the arteriosclerosis was an important cause of cardiac enlargement in these cases? But if not in these, then why should we pay attention to it when it is associated with smaller hearts in its generalized form? All these patients may have had hyperten- sion before we saw them in their terminal hospital weeks. The cardiac enlargement may perfectly well have been due to that, the arteriosclerosis being due also to the hypertension or to some unknown cause. | It would be natural that slight arteriosclerosis should go with slight cardiac hypertrophy and extensive arteriosclerosis with exten- sive hypertrophy if the possibly causative hypertension had lasted but a short time in the first group and a longer time in the second. VIII. CARDIAC FAILURE IN HYPERTROPHY AND DILATATION For unknown reasons a hypertrophied and dilated heart of the type that I have been describing is prone sooner or later to fail—more prone, that is, than hearts of normal size. Just why this failure ~ occurs I do not know. It used to be said that the hypertrophied heart was as strong as the normal heart or stronger, but that when dilatation supervened, the stretched, thinned organ naturally became ineficient. Dilatation used to be regarded as a late untoward mechanical complication of the benign process which began with simple hypertrophy. But there is in most cases, so far as I know, no reason to believe this. Hypertrophy and dilatation are ordinarily associated together, and this not merely in the late and incompetent states of the disease, but in the very early and mild cases. Nor has myocar- ditis any demonstrable part in producing the failure of enlarged hearts. Most of them show no myocarditis. THE ASSOCIATION OF HYPERTROPHY WITH DILATATION In 4000 necropsies hypertrophy and dilatation together occurred 1088 times as the records stand. * And in a few extending to the cerebral or iliac arteries. CARDIAC FAILURE IN HYPERTROPHY AND DILATATION 437 In 4000 necropsies hypertrophy alone occurred 121 times.* In 4000 necropsies dilatation alone occurred 118 times. As soon as we canrecognize the one we usually find the other. Moreover there is just as much reason for supposing that dilatation is a compensatory and helpful change as there is for such a belief regarding hypertrophy. Probably without dilatation compensation never could be established or maintained. All that we know is that very large hearts (without valve lesions or péricarditis) are apt to fail, perhaps from chronic effort against hypertension. Cuzrculatory failure in the absence of considerable cardiac enlargement is not common except in connection with some quite obvious cause such as surgical operation, hemorrhage, infection, or poisoning. But the greatly enlarged heart may become incompetent without any special “cause” and without our having any considerable warning that it ts failing. In many cases it seems clear that infection, intoxication, or operative insult is the exciting cause of circulatory heart failure (see statistics in Table 95). But there seems no doubt that these causes act much more strongly on hearts already hyper- trophied and dilated as a result of some previous agency, known or unknown. It is true that a heart of normal size, wholly free from anatomical defect or disease, may in a few days become seriously or fatally weakened as the result of an infection such as pneumonia or typhoid fever, or of a toxemia such as acidosis. Much less common are the instances of circulatory failure following operation upon a patient whose heart was sound at the beginning of the operation. But although these facts are well established there is no question that these three dangerous influences—infection, inioxication, and operative insult—are more often followed by death when the heart is already hypertrophied and dilated. Mode of Death in 230 Cases with Congestive Heart Failure among 599 Cases of Cardiac Hypertrophy and Dilation ‘with and without Nephritis 1. Of these the death seemed due wholly to chronic passive con- gestion in 95 cases. 2. In the other 135 cases, although there was chronic passive con- gestion post-mortem, it was not obvious in life or of exclusive influence in producing death as judged post-mortem, the picture being over- shadowed by *This is the number as it stands in the pathological records. But it is too large for Dr Richardson tells me that the record often says “hypertrophy” when it means “hypertrophy and dilatation.” 438 FACTS ON THE HEART TABLE 95 CASES Uremia SS oat. coe to ao Ga es ee a 24 Uremia plus Sepsisn.t co tas. A. ta eine 21 63 Sepsis 30.245 So alent ete gh Seah ec hee te ee i 18* Apoplexy,.2 2905 ee tae tense dus een pace ine ee ‘5 ae 7 Operative insult. sn Cad tain ee nae 3 Cancer? avin pee bo ast RG ote ty ese 4 Prewmoma (sg 5 feat eee a en ee 7 Périicious Anemia oy. os icre uk Neco on oe ene ea oe 6 LéuGemid ts. ees Sec Lente len ee Oe te oa eee Phthisis 2? ee eS. Se ee ee 4 Cirkhosis: (53 sean tere Sai ute, sale os, Meee has eee 3 Cirrhosis pis ‘Sepsis.;t2 ese a nia ne eee ke a 3 efSitlash-Ups'.. vac vise 5. tease cee Geen Teen eee 3 Diabetes: and Sepsis was wana. on ese oa 3 ANBINaY! 5 Sari ais SH Aig sea Fe oe aie eee 2 Eclampsia, Status lymphaticus, Stokes-Adamssyndrome,eachr 3 Doubtful seks Saks ho ance a ke oats cS eal eas ne er 17 Total anc tic tees ine Vs SEE « CR ate a 135 *Sepsis in all combinations totals 47 cases excluding the consumptives, whose condition may have been essentially sepsis also. In many of these latter cases the finding of an enlarged heart and chronic passive congestion at necropsy was a total surprise. The other lesions seemed in life the only ones of importance. Yet the presence of the chronic passive congestion is sufficient, I take it, to show that the cardiac hypertrophy and dilatation played some part in the patient’s death. There is little if any evidence for believing that sepsis or any infectious disease can in and of itself produce chronic passive conges- tion in the absence of hypertrophy and dilatation or any other heart lesion. Among the twenty-five cases of extreme general septicemia with secondary acute endocarditis studied in Chapter VII there was not one which showed any chronic passive congestion post-mortem. The same is true of the eighteen cases of chronic nephritis without cardiac hypertrophy. But doubtless the infections (especially strep- tococcus sepsis, pneumonia and tuberculosis), the toxemias (uremic, diabetic, neoplastic, hepatic and eclamptic), and the mechanical inju- ries (operative, traumatic, apoplectic), as well as the anemias and angina pectoris, may join in the attack upon the body’s resources and cooperate with chronic passive congestion to cause death. 3. The heart weight in the 95 ‘‘pure”’ cases* averaged 548 grams. In 24 cases dying with a chiefly uremic clinical picture (though show- ing chronic passive congestion and hypertrophy and dilatation of * T.e. cases dying with enlarged heart and general dropsy but without other known cause for death. CARDIAC FAILURE IN HYPERTROPHY AND DILATATION 439 the heart at necropsy) the average heart weight was 501 grams; in the 18 showing chiefly sepsis the average heart weight was 487 grams. Apparently then the hearts of about 550 grams weight have reached the danger point even if no infection or kidney trouble complicates the situation. 4. The ages in 93* of the ‘‘pure cases averaged fifty-two, and the sex (in 95) 64 men to 31 women, i.e. two to one. 5. The duration of known symptoms or complaints averages nine months in 87 ‘‘pure” cases in which it could be fairly well estimated. This is calculated from the duration of dyspnea and edema, which were the standard complaints. If, from this 87 cases, 16 long ones are subtracted (averaging two and a half years’ duration) the 71 remaining cases averaged five months; so that we can say that in four-fifths of the cases the average duration of complaints is five months. 6. In a group of 192 cases showing no passive congestion after death, 136 had no circulatory symptoms at any time; 56 had some complaints which might have some relation to the circulation, though in many of these the complicating uremia or pneumonia which finally produced death may well have been the cause of ali the symptoms. There was, however, a small but definite percentage in which the ante- mortem symptoms led us to expect that chronic passive congestion would be found after death, though in fact no such congestion was found. These cases number nineteen. ‘This figure, which is 5% of our cases, may be taken as the error inherent in the principle of division which I have here adopted between active and latent cases of heart disease. In 95% of cases of cardiacenlargement, inactive yet with some symptoms apparently of circulatory origin during life, we may consider that ure- mia, pneumonia or some other factor not primarily circulatory caused these symptoms and the patient’s death. These complications, how- ever, in the inactive cases extended over more than a year in half the cases; in the rest they lasted three months or less. Hence it appears that about 5% of cases of cardiac enlargement may be associated with chronic circulatory symptoms not demon- strable as chronic passive congestion after death. In this degree the classification here adopted (‘‘Active”’ or ‘‘Inactive’’) is incorrect. Age and Sex in Relation to Latency or Congestion.—Allowing however for this error, it appears that while men suffer two or three times as much as women from cardiac disease of the hypertensive type, the disease when it does affect women is oftener of a more serious type _ than when it affects men. For women made up 32% of the serious * Age not recorded in two cases. 440 FACTS ON THE HEART or active cases and only 21% of the inactive cases. The discrepancy | is not striking but probably has some significance. The age difference, as one contrasts the two groups of cardiac cases, latent and manifest, has no interest. The difference between fifty- three years, the average age of the latent cases, and fifty-two, the average for those dying of passive congestion as shown at necropsy, has no significance. | 7. Arteriosclerosis (post-mortem) was present in 78, absent in 17 patients dying of hypertensive heart disease without complications, i.e., arteriosclerosis is the rule. The heart-weight in sixteen of the seventeen cases without arteriosclerosis averaged 455 (in one the weight was not recorded). The general average of the 95 cases was 548 grams. But the ages of these sixteen non-sclerotic cases averaged forty-one years as against fifty in the whole group. So that these figures prove nothing so far,as I see. 8. Blood pressure was recorded in 82 cases. TABLE 96 Systolic blood pressure 120 or less in 15 cases Systolic blood pressure 130-139 in 5 cases 7 30 Systolic blood pressure 140-159 in Io cases . { Systolic blood pressure 160-180 in 13 cases Systolic blood pressure 181-200 _ in 13 cases Systolic blood pressure 201-220 in 13 Cases | 52 Systolic blood pressure 221-240 in 6 cases Systolic blood pressure 241-280 in 6 cases Systolic blood pressure 300 in 1 case i.e., hypertension was usually present even at the end of life. In my belief it had always been present earlier in life and was the cause of the cardiac enlargement and weakening. g. Diastolic pressure was recorded in 49 cases. TABLE 97 Diastolic blood pressure 48 in 1 case Diastolic blood pressure 60-75 in 6 cases Diastolic blood pressure - 80-95 in II cases Diastolic blood pressure 110-125 in 11 cases Diastolic blood pressure 130-f50 in IO cases Diastolic blood pressure 165-188 in 5 cases Diastolic blood pressure 100-105 in 4 cases | Diastolic blood pressure 220 in’ I case | CARDIAC FAILURE IN HYPERTROPHY AND DILATATION 10. Pulse Pressures in 49 cases. TABLE 93 Pulse pressure 15-25 in 5 cases Pulse pressure 30-40 in 6 cases + 22 Pulse pressure 45-55 in 11 Cases | Pulse pressure 58-60 in 4 cases Pulse pressure 70-75 in 7 cases Pulse pressure 80-95 in Io cases /[ 27 Pulse pressure 100 in 4 cases | Pulse pressure 120 in 2 cases 441 11. Nephritis (subacute or chronic), was present in 33 of 95 ‘‘pure”’ cases dying a cardiac death with chronic passive congestion. In the whole 230 cases-with-some-chronic-passive-congestion there were 112 cases of nephritis subacute or chronic, and three of acute, = I15 or just one half. That this nephritis itself chemically contributed to the chronic passive congestion, aside from any mechanical hypertrophy and dilata- tion with weakening, is of course possible, but of this there is, as I have said above, no evidence. 12. The largest hearts among the 230 cases of manifest or dropsical hypertensive heart disease are listed in Table go. TABLE 99 (a) Chronic Nephritis with Arteriosclerosis...............+. (b) Chronic Nephritis without Arteriosclerosis. .. PM rATLETIOSCICTOBIS ALONG. o.ta.n tthe es Deke cagta es eNGe ease wy pitever >. 0 he coed heh. oak mr) na. 780 grams 750 grams 740 grams 720 grams 705 grams 700 grams 700 grams . 750 grams 870 grams 710 grams gIo grams 793 grams 775 grams 750 grams 711 grams 13. Murmurs.—Systolic murmurs, usually loudest at the apex, were heard in most cases, if carefully looked for.* They were defi- nitely noted as absent in only 20%. Diastolic murmurs were also noted in 24% of the cases despite normal aortic valves. * Some of the patients died in surgical wards, where little attention was paid to the minutiae of cardiac examination. | 442 FACTS ON THE HEART Relation of Systolic Murmurs to the Size of Valve Orifices.—Select- ing five cases characterized by especially loud apical systolic mur- murs widely transmitted (axilla and back) we find the valve measurements post-mortem as follows: TABLE I00 Necropsy No. Mitral valve Tricuspid valve Average Compare with these a set of six cases in which the absence of murmurs 1s definitely recorded. TABLE -5OT Necropsy No. Mitral valve Tricuspid valve Average Obviously one can make no prediction of an enlarged valve orifice (‘‘relative insufficiency’’) on the basis of loud systolic murmurs in life. The orifices are no larger (actually a trifle smaller) in the cases with systolic murmurs than in those free from murmurs. CARDIAC FAILURE IN HYPERTROPHY AND DILATATION 443 With diastolic murmurs the case is not so clear. The following table lists seven cases of hypertensive heart disease with diastolic murmur loudest along the left sternal margin but without valve lesions at necropsy. TABLE 102 Necropsy No. Aortic valve Average This shows a slight increase in the aortic ring circumference, whether enough to be significant I cannot say. Cerebral Symptoms.—In contrast with rheumatic and syphilitic types of heart disease the patient of the hypertensive group (mostly elderly) presented as a rule some cerebral disturbances—usually delirium in the last weeks of life. Apoplexy is of course the terminal event in many cases largely similar to the 230 here analyzed. But these apoplectic cases are not here considered as I am isolating the cases with death by congestive heart failure. False Pericardial ‘‘Friction.””— Eight of these cases were supposed to have an acute pericarditis because of “friction sounds” heard along the left sternal edge; but no pericarditis was found at necropsy in these cases.* Possibly the dryness of the pericardial surfaces in some dying patients of this type may account for these sounds. Diagnosis.— Most of these cases of Hypertensive Heart Disease were called ‘‘Mitral Regurgitation” or ‘‘Myocarditis” in life. * Though in 102 other cases acute pericarditis was associated with hypertrophy (see Acute Pericarditis). 444 FACTS ON THE HEART ‘Aortic Regurgitaion”’is also a not infrequent diagnosis and ‘‘ Cardio- renal”’ appears occasionally. In some heart disease was not sus- pected at all. The true diagnosis was seldom made. IX. PHYSICAL SIGNS The only reliable evidences of this type of heart disease during life are, hypertension and demonstrable cardiac enlargement. Only in the minority of the cases here analyzed was blood pres- sure measured, as a large number of them date from a period when blood pressure measurements were not a routine of our records. The results of the measurements recorded as shown in Tables 103k, 104), and 106. In some of these cases doubtless the pressure was low because thé patients of this series were seen only near the close of life. But experience in office practice and out-patient work with patients seemingly of this type leads me to believe that in cases of this type hypertension is almost invariably present for months or years before compensation fails. That is to say, we almost never see enlarged hearts in clinical work without evidence of valve lesions or pericarditis, unless there is a definite chronic hypertension. In a minority of cases there is elevation of systolic blood pressure — without any considerable change in the diastolic. But many of these I believe represent the later stages of cases which (if seen earlier) would have shown a higher diastolic pressure as well. When nephri- tis was present the diastolic as well as the systolic was usually ele- vated. When no nephritis could be found elevation of systolic blood pressure alone was not uncommon. As regards the evidence of cardiac enlargemeni there is little to be added to what any textbook on physical diagnosis teaches, but a good deal to be subtracted. X-ray is of course the most reliable agent for proving whether the heart is or is not enlarged. This was available in only a small minority of our cases, but often brought to light enlargements which would have escaped us otherwise. Indeed in this group of cases the usual methods of physical diagnosis yield little evidence of value as to size of the heart, because in elderly persons (such as form the great bulk of those in this type) the costal cartilages are often ossified and the whole thorax enlarged into the shape designated as the “barrel chest.’’ With this change in the shape of the chest there comes the general hyperresonance on percus- sion (long falsely supposed to point to pulmonary emphysema) BLOOD-PRESSURE AND OTHER DATA 445 which makes it difficult or impossible to outline the cardiac dullness by percussion. The same change in the shape of the chest often makes it impossible for us to identify the position of the cardiac apex by palpation. In many, possibly the majority of these cases no cardiac impulse whatever can be found. Hence previous to the introduction of X-ray plates and blood pressure measurements we were helpless in the attempt to diagnose most of these cases, unable to decide whether a cardiac hypertrophy was or was not present. But now the presence of hypertension allows us to conclude with only a negligible percentage of error that the heart is enlarged, even when by percussion and palpation we get no such evidence. As for the degree of enlargement we must rely on the X-ray or guess at it. : None of the auscultatory signs of cardiac enlargement proved of much value in patients of this series, probably because they were seen as bed patients, shortly before death rather than in the early stages of their malady. Accentuation of the aortic second sound, for instance, was present in only 14 of the cases. Asarule both second sounds were feeble, the aortic especially so. Change in the quality of the sound (the so-called ‘‘metallic” or “‘ringing”’ second) was occa- sionally noted but was usually absent. Arrhythmia, alternation, defects of conduction may be absent until near the close of life in these cases. Murmurs and heart sounds give us no information of value. Hence the discovery of the disease prior to the terminal stage rests wholly on our ability to recognize hypertension and cardiac enlargement. Without X-ray the latter is often impossible to be sure of. Thus the essential diagnostic data are reduced to one,—blood pressure measurement—the most impor- tant fact to know about the majority of all heart cases, since hyper- tensive heart disease is commoner than any other type. X. BLOOD-PRESSURE AND OTHER DATA IN THE GROUP OF 179 CASES OF CHRONIC, 15 OF SUBACUTE AND 13 OF ACUTE NEPHRI- TIS ASSOCIATED WITH HYPERTROPHY AND DILATATION AND WITHOUT VALVE LESIONS OR PERICARDIAL ADHESIONS In chronic nephritis, 179 cases, we have 112 with arteriosclerosis and 67 without it. The statistics of blood pressure and other data are shown in the following tables. ~ oWe te hag * tf py FACTS ON THE HEART SCLEROSIS—112 CASES (a) Age 21-30 2 31-40 19 41-50 oY 51-60 30 61-70 24 71-80 12 81-90 112 (b) Duration QE VCATS xc sean eka Mes Gakic oe, Ae eee Ree a SOMERVERTS S12 os aces aa 8 cy ey eka I POL VETS hy 5 oe ok te Bee: Oe aa eae 2 © Veare Sos bore he aie eels ee on ee ee Tie a BW CATS a. sco Ae ita tl Oe eke ce ete er a 4 ms years, 1 a 50 VCaTS 4%. Ge ech eye his iN ee ee cee 5 B VOATS Ss Mites ite aetna AE eee ep ees 2 Bi Stea Es. Pash te un ta oe ea ee 7 ¢I-3 years, 20 cases TB VEATS dhe. Pe th pe ca ae Cr ene II TL. MODS | eee le Fer Ree ae one ee I TO’ Months fa. 2) Wh eae, Pea ea he eee eee 2 O months..0 Sant on ere ee ee ee eee I (4-12 mos. IO cases S monthsaa--s a rasehiesce et rath ee ee ee I | 4-5 Months 28.25, ota tO eh es ee 4 MODUS heath he 7 8 ie ea ae ee 2 2 Months Mile wera Ce Ot eile ce een une 4 T<3 MONS Mog oo de how eer ce ee ie eae 8 ; 2-12 weeks, 17 cases 3 WEEKS eae che siete oe alt te, Meee a I 4 DING COKE clei aa MR eee eine ee a.h: ea ere Ie eas 22 TWEE Kare tt kites MUR, Fn iy eee Ae, Ene Under a week, 7 Tay taut Gay wat race ane ee ee eee en cases Unknown ies. bcp gece eyes are ete 44 112 (c) Sex Malet ons 5 hte: on sete Marca oe rN er 81 Be male ere caring Rey + vediglac ss acing he elie ete ca acne one ese 31 (d) Type of Nephritis Chronic (unspetified)+).¢. 4m. ete ote Pe ee 10 Chronic diffuse P98 P24 bn. wwe ate ene 5 Chronicwlomerular. fils 1% te Aiuleaee ee ee 20 Chronic interstitials Ri. oe ee ea ee ee a ae Chronic; arteriosclerotic.1< s.r. 4..gsen west ots ioe oe ae 45 Subacute glomerular. v4 .« Sou. Soe acer ete cee ee I 112 BLOOD-PRESSURE AND OTHER DATA AA (f) ANALYSIS OF 42 NECROPSIES WITH WitTHOoUT CHRONIC CHRONIC (e) Heart Weight iy sea tide SRR Bee SOON eas vn is wn I oe aes Nat Ce om I Bp eS hecar god te 8 COR ee eee ee eee 4 ue Ge ee eee I5 ;51 ~ lop Se Os ie ae 2 att reer 13 LP as ae WA tee hE 5 Re ROC gee te egy ha he 14 Bee Sng BN eA, 5 2 1.2 fed ot ae 22 | fe eee eh ae 3 4 a OOOO Carer eee 12 Ppa ae ae ee I Uy Sona Ras BST ae ee 9 ” i Phris gan et et I EES eo 8 ee res ae 8 Te CNA COUR aE AR eg ° 716) Covet eT aeons Ss 6 DEE, ord dg ais: at eR fo) Tah, ise ROL Pee wea I OBS cy Ne Poe a ° Sale telve I re See Daeg I Pipes etree ee fo) SVR OOO ge Wo Ton, ines 2 ——— = — 25 17 112 Average heart weight—508 grams. (g) Chronic Passive Congestion PEPE ePOGUSIIOLLOL. Satie Been eee tenn. ie uk cee ¢ 48 or 42% cise GLNTTS aac Ral RE CORN ae EN end oer oe ee 77 0r 6% Reis Ls OME ere OE AAR, Sod, OL Se She as ee ag is eee 14 or 12% Ce eA et eri Ly he ane Mik, Ay ee Oe eee har Eh ie Ss 43 or 39% LIZ ROR OL CMEC Man rine cuciey Mi phe RO tls Saad Ad shes scary a Eee Ey MENT aR eis, Mr Dat eid aR NR it Bae ete s Yh ah TC CRM Omreer mis Stee Maat ov tReet I es CaM anes hats chs 3 TEE ie RA ee re ee A ck ge ST ae 83 Le Cee Mee Te, Mirek SEAL, Te ning ARR LA MA ke MOT eal es 9 Pa tar AC OTea Le Dra Clee etch fh amrud at care an ark Ae Leer Sea! chy ae Whe 13 Pty Pearle VesselstOl VLG. og Gol aa) AR tat cme Ren Otay yk ay 2 3 ere SCAT OLODATICS him Aa: (teh crue he ett s ign Wr tie cies grote | 6 _SURYAUE Sag) J OM BR gree a aan Scotts AE ape. en 2 RerROTIAL Yate ic 5.05, de eh esha any cern Meet ORM TEMS coy tg ATID Oia I Sent Except COLOnaries. .. fobs. oan Er, BR eet RO ee I PRUE OTL ere hes tei bs 52% RGR AP Nar can NAS Pai ANDRE MAME 9, aoe Oe 4 I err aTOTS WC IiisWat.r aete oth ies @ . cetiies Wee me dient 2 Rae Ging d I Aorta, Coronaries, vessels of Willis, branches................... I 112 * 821 (aortic 8), 2256 (aortic 8), 2270 (aortic 7), 2689 (aortic 7.5), 3364 (aortic 7), 448 FACTS ON THE HEART (j) Type of Death Uremia. . 2005 Gala} een et i lcg oe 52 Sepsis. 22455 yah te win ava S Nee Ue ees aie ae cn ee 18 Passive congestion s..6y ool 4).- 28 «4s we ee A ee II Post-operative eet toe eee ey ee 8 Cerebral lesions (apoplexy)... 42.02... 25. feck* oe 4 Pneumonia, oe er ca sw oat ak he at en oe Pe. Coma. of doubtful ofiginsts4.<, 2a ee ee 2 Angina pectovis.< ocak. cy eee eee te Se 9 eee ee ae I Heart: block vireo ett < Saeel e s S ece I Hemorrhage 2.0 oct Abs 00s ste bes eta ee a ae . Cancer, oi says Bis ct ala at mene cge ee Me ne I Eclampsia 4. :a.58 sc0ts roids eee seis bee ai me rein Oath oie I Girrhosis. ss cio.) SRR oh 8 eke byl tlagetg ho nade Canvey eee ee 4 Coronary: thrombus? 2.7.02 “le. S26 okies eats ee I Fracture of fémur.4 so0..% fas ies, os San ps ete oe 2 ree ee re Oe AAR Se Na Ge 2 173 (k) Systolic Blood Pressure Recorded in 63 of 112 cases 2EOM ZOO! Gora ys cea el aa ee ike) TOO=2 4.055 LL sie / cade, Seng nena ie eee ee 33 L7ORLOON: e087 ono shee ee eee ee 14 TSO7T6G.0 6 Ly ais Mie cl eee nee ee at Under tsi chit eee tee 3 63 t had Blood Pressure 300/220 with heart of 384 grams 1 had Blood Pressure 220/160 with heart of 303 grams 1 had Blood Pressure 220/188 with heart of 4or grams 1 had Blood Pressure 160/155 with heart of 664 grams t had Blood Pressure 115/100 with heart of 780 grams t had Blood Pressure 98/68 with heart of 390 grams TABLE 104.—CARDIAC HYPERTROPHY AND DILATATION WITH CHRONIC NEPHRITIS, BUT WITHOUT ARTERIOSCLEROSIS—67 CASES Average age 36 years (a) Sex Increased Oy ale Ei aa ee ake cated ee 3 BBO 3 OC os wha Act yn ht ee en ce I POO=OAQs.« ulitis Sooty ait sacec ene a ore mee II ; TSOSTOO Lf vo. € Shain ee Mae oF! EOOATAO TH. 5.0 dks his Sar eues oie Nios couee Onan ae 5 Wourecorde sh. SS) ea ieee 2 a 39 67 * + had blood pressure 160/130. BLOOD-PRESSURE AND OTHER DATA (c) Heart Sounds SUITES OR Ter) 1, har Ge, Aen vet ing tele sm Go tord ate ale Sik Be ahs bce, we | CAEP TICULA CEC ss) ovteew wrt eee in MEM Vd ged RT aay oes 4 ae 8s 31 AECL, ee er oh eh one SE Sede MeL le wt Ay oa, 4 MTT teats cs tae ie Oy nee te ee deere ch eho /d oe 14 PELCCCSS GUAPO te Sts ie er ee Moraes Wea etter i eievk, Palievele 4 II 67 (d) Chronic Passive Congestion ITEM TISteE SCs VILOTLOIN a cicact ae ws 2 ssn aurea PEE oe et oe aie e's" s 39 | Lf Ug ole S00 Ne Mg TE og ae ee AGN 8 ta Mc 6 p45 are VAN eh ey Au) SEEN, 4. Sa ie eaten eee se ee: 14 aE RULES CTL) Woy ae ad tinh Shek re Ot, eRe Ela al es cia ae Mules 4 of Cees aa th ikke ip eR, 9g Ae at Aaa. AC ope, Nira. RAR Mn eee Sh ee aCe 4 67 (e) Heart Weight SRE at er ee Neo ae ae Aha cet dg of eRe Gea ate ae 470 (f) Heart Enlarged in Life OEPMIUL AATEC Chiccey S.ciies. Wet Ghee aes, ae! NN Ls aan BAG bs 23 cof gate othe Aen Gin Abas Sener Re Se EA, SER UE eae An Meee MPa Ya 23 | SOP TES AETV A A Pa CA ie RA PR a SOR is has a Pe a 13 ¢40 TREE RIB be te a oe Sa ey Ar Am gen eae ell Ue aad nt ee 4 REE OCA CUM NR oe OMe Ae ete ee are th Re he aint a ces, SRM NEC Ot 4 67 (g) Type of Nephritis nrc Come UC ETS tit la | on eam a ce aoe amelie Nate Paha veh bi clcls ne i Sag 12 SMES ac) Sg ED ag ire ba Ae Ee aay Se alee ea Ie tie 10 BIRT ML TLMSESGCLIIOC Sehr rice steaks nem mE AT AS tr hls Leas cya ecee rg Boe 36 SUMMMAS LCE CHIC MING [SN I4C1S «Sk feo yh tule Men Pre i naveag es 2 allay Ghee gi 6 3 I CeIn ct. ik ict. eg Nat Oat RG peyoh fast eS Ue ous Bebo ae Wee core 4 Beeclopepnrosis and pyelonephritis). veces oe sac es ete e ae we lel I OSU Coys Bore da at ig Se ae) oN A ara 2 pa gn nMnene coke! ates) aha AZ 07 (h) Murmurs ICR fail ts. ade 37 (1 musical and loud.) * Systolic and diastolic.. 6 (2 with friction) mone....... Ene at oC 6 Presystolic...... 2 67 Thrill(Systolic) ...... 3 (i) Arrhythmia ROTI LER ree aR: Shir, Ove es hc d ok Pema ree Le Bina hte Tend we Be Late de 7 RCE PENEYE le TEE Dlg in, SPs Sy Lyon ath ears cee eR, Be ta tigen SST Ut 44 SURREETOAT Ween 35k, a, hie Pa rh Ded bee MRI Thc ars Ae eae! apes a. inkess 3 16 67 (7) Palpitation US STN "a2 i So RR pg conieite Ul aN AS) iL a RP 6 MALT TONMTOCOT Us nih canis se OR ee Benetelc in ee aly & huey & 61 67 FENG OT Osu bo ek. SeieattlO.ken eos bee 2071056 29 450 FACTS ON THE HEART TABLE 105.—HYPERTROPHY AND DILATATION WITH SUBACUTE NEPHRITIS, * 15 Ca ES y WITH GEN- P WITHOUT ERAL i ARTERIO- ARTERIO- SCLEROSIS SCLEROSIS — G (a) Age -- 20-29 2 ji 39-39 5 I 40-49 i I 50-59 I I 60-69 fe) I 70-70 ae) I 9 6 ‘ (b) Sex Malas’.\ oder: cas, Gna eee 6 3 Fomales’) 1.4. cqee eek ee 3 3 (c) Duration OMN0S- tary tee eee reer I ° A WOAOS Scan! 3 ea oA ee I 2 Bi MNOS ining. Oh, cnc AMM RAR a ed fe) 2 DINOS ots tos aes ee ee ° I 6 weeks. I ° 4 weeks. fo) 3 weeks. I ° T—2>WeeeSs, 2. . fe) er T-Webkiss Neos pote aula. on eee toe ° Unknown2..,0 “see ee 3 ° 9 6 (d) Chronic Passive Congestion Ante and Post-Mortem...... 6 5 Post-Mortents sce aerate ee er 2 i INO TECOIG Avee ohne eee eee I fe) 9 6 (e) Murmurs SyStolichtc nate Ma ee ees a 4 Diastolich wt he hee eee I ° Doubler nt 22s eer ee I I INONGS« jor Sate DER hes Ra eee ° ts NOSTECOLd. ais ate eee gee 4 ° 9 6 (f) Heart Weight 700-750 I ° 551-600 2 2 451-500. 2 ° 401-450 I 2 351-400 2 a 250-300 I I ee a R ais 6 4 * All subacute glomerulonephritis, (1 capsular, 1 diffuse, I intracapillary. 1 intracapillary and capsular.) a DIAGNOSIS ACTUALLY MADE IN THESE CASES 451 TABLE 106.—HYPERTROPHY AND DILATATION WITH ACUTE NEPHRITIS, 13 CASES WITHOUT WITH WirHoUT WITH ARTERIO- ARTERIO- ARTERIO- ARTERIO- SCLEROSIS SCLEROSIS SCLEROSIS SCLEROSIS (a) Age | (g) Type of Nephritis o-9 I o * Chronic and acute. . 2 ° 10-19 I o Acute glomerular. . 6 3 20-29 4 o Acute intersterial. . I ° 30-39 2 o Papillary mycotic.. I ° 50-59 2 I ae rr 60-69 fo) I Io 3 72-79 ) I 10 3 (b) Sex (h) Blood Pressure 5 records only. pe er 4 2 180/100, 150/?, 125/70, ee eas es 6 I 100/70, 100/60 (c) Duration (Four records only) I yr. 4 weeks 17 days 4 days No further data. (d) Chronic Passive Congestion Ante and Post-Mortem..... I I (ao a BR Ea ed 2 PEECEOPO Ag hk 2 Fi e555 ia 0 2 Oo 10 G; (e) Murmurs 0k A ee | O° NITE esas id evs) dps chinese fe) I 1 8 2S ae er 2 EE as cs 82 fo) IO 3 (f) Heart Weight 551-600 fo) I 451-500 vt O 351-400 fe) I 301-350 a I 251-300 4 fe) 201-250 7 ° Under 200 I ° IO a XI. DIAGNOSIS ACTUALLY MADE IN THESE CASES In the first ten or fifteen years of the period covered by the cases of this group the diagnosis standing on the hospital record was usually “myocarditis” or “‘mitral regurgitation.”” Only within the last 452 FACTS ON THE HEART ten years has it been recognized at the Massachusetts General Hos- pital that neither of these diagnoses is ever justified before death as a statement of the main cause of death. Facing the same facts as those once called myocarditis or mitral regurgitation, we now call these cases ‘‘hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart” or ‘‘ hypertensive cardiovascular disease,” 77 case we are able to recognize cardiac disease at all. 369 out of 599 had no suggestion of a cardiac diagnosis. The old diagnosis of mitral regurgitation rested on the presence of a systolic murmur, often loudest at the apex but not infrequently loudest at the base of the heart. Even this murmur was not audible in most of the cases of our series, though 62 cases showed it. The mistaken use of the term ‘‘myocarditis”’ in our records rests on the evidence of arrhythmia in an elderly patient without clear signs of valvular disease. Of most interest is the occasional occurrence of diastolic or pre- systolic murmurs without any lesions of the aortic or mitral valve. The interpretation of these murmurs is wholly a matter of speculation. Some prefer to believe that they are due to a relative insufficiency of the aortic or of the pulmonary valve due to high blood pressure above the valve, or to dilatation of its ring. Others are inclined to suppose, as an explanation, some disturbed function at the mitral orifice or in the mitral leaflets. All this however is mere uncontrolled specu- lation. The solid fact is that in any markedly enlarged heart, dias- tolic or presystolic murmurs may be heard in the region of the cardiac apex, without there being also any reason to believe that a valvular lesion is present. I have long been accustomed to teach that when the heart is much enlarged, especially in an elderly man, we can rarely draw any conclusions from murmurs heard in the vicinity of the apex. Neither systolic, diastolic nor presystolic murmurs under these condi- tions have any particular significance. Out of 599 cases of this group examined we have found only 230, or 39%, to be of the active or manifest type. This may be contrasted with 62% of-the rheumatic type, 27% of the syphilitic, and 30% of chronic pericarditis, which are the figures for the proportion of active or manifest disease in those lesions (see above, Table 2). XII. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS 1. Hypertensive heart disease means an enlarged and often incom- petent heart without valve lesions or pericarditis. The cause, though not established in all the cases of this series, is probably hyper- . tension however produced. yh SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS 453 2. The relation of nephritis and of arteriosclerosis to hypertensive heart disease is not clear. Certain it is however that the disease often exists for years without evidence of either renal or arterial disease. But the longer it exists the more apt are we to find nephritis or arterio- sclerosis at the necropsy, whether as results or complications or concomitant symptoms of some cause underlying both them and the hypertension, we do not know. 3. The disease is much commoner than any other cardiac malady. In this series it is commoner than all the other types of heart disease put together, whether we consider all cases or only those showing decompensation before and after death. It is often wrongly diag- nosed as myocarditis, mitral regurgitation, “‘cardiorenal disease,”’ ‘senile heart”’ etc. 4. It is more than twice as common in men and appears usually about the fiftieth year, though cases occur in every decade except the first. 5. There is little or no evidence that muscular work or alcohol can produce any cardiac hypertrophy. 6. Hypertensive heart disease is to be per emened from the cardiac enlargement associated with pernicious anemia and with leukemia, in both of which blood pressure is normal or low. 7. The degree of cardiac hypertrophy in hypertensive heart disease is, in early cases, slight; and even in long-standing and decom- pensated cases is never of the extreme grade caused by chronic peri- carditis (with or without valve lesions). No hearts in this series are enlarged beyond gio grams as a result of hypertensive heart disease. Most of them are much smaller. Comparing averages they are smaller than those associated with syphilitic aortic regurgitation, rheumatic aortic stenosis (with regurgitation), and the multiple valve lesions. But hypertensive heart disease enlarges the heart more on the average than uncomplicated mitral stenosis does. 8. Hypertensive. heart disease in its earlier and milder stages — lasts for years without producing any considerable discomforts and _ limitations of the individual’s activity. The patient is not aware of it unless he chances to undergo, while in full health, a physical exami- nation, e.g. for life insurance or as a protective hygienic measure. Increased blood pressure is then found and perhaps a slight cardiac enlargement detected, though without X-ray measurements this is often impossible. g. As the disease progresses its effects show themselves in a slight dyspnea on exertion, in a “‘pounding” in the arteries of the neck, 454 FACTS ON THE HEART or an awareness of the cardiac impulse. Or it may contribute its influence to prostrate the patient when infection, toxemia, accident, or surgical operation bring an unusual strain upon him. to. Less often—in only about one-third of our cases—are cardiac decompensation and stasis the cause of the patient’s death, without cerebral hemorrhage, surgical operation, infection or toxemia. In 46 of the cases the duration of the patient’s complaints is extra- ordinarily brief, averaging 5 months in our series. tz. In such cases the physical signs are those of a failing heart— arrhythmia, tachycardia, general passive congestion—usually with hypertension persisting, less often with low or normal blood pressure. Systolic (and occasionally diastolic) murmurs are present but are of no diagnostic value. The same is true of an accented aortic second sound. Diagnosis rests on the hypertension, the cardiac enlargement, and the lack of evidence pointing to valvular disease or pericarditis. HYPERTENSIVE HEART DISEASE—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES Necropsy 4769 A Finnish grocer of fifty-six came to the Emergency Ward Decem- ber 17 for relief of generalized edema of a week’s duration. A frag- mentary history was obtained from his wife. He had been married over twenty years. Hiswife had had no children and no miscarriages. She knew of no illnesses of his before the present one. Twenty years ago he weighed 160 pounds. He had gradually gained weight until four months ago he weighed 260 pounds and two weeks ago 280 pounds. He became disinclined to work, but maintained an appetite. For three years he had not seemed well, had been dyspneic, had seemed sleepy day and night, and frequently dozed off during a conversa- tion. During the naps he talked to himself a good deal. In the past few years he had developed frequent nosebleeds which grew pro- gressively worse until the past summer, but had decreased in fre- quency and severity during the past few weeks. For four months his feet had been swollen. Four months ago he became noticeably dysp- neic, and during the past. month still more so. For six weeks he had been unable to sleep in a reclining position because of orthopnea and cyanosis; he sat up in a chair or walked about most of the night. On some days during the past week he had raised a tablespoonful of blood. For two weeks he had had generalized edema. He had com- plained but little of pain, and that over the precordium. HYPERTENSIVE HEART DISEASE—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 455 Examination showed an obese, water-logged, cyanotic man with Cheyne-Stokes respiration. The skin showed diffuse erythema over the lower abdomen and legs, many excoriations on the legs, and two ulcers on the right knee. The mucous membranes were cyanotic. There was moderate pyorrhea. The heart did not seem enlarged. The sounds were faint. (The chest wall was very thick.) A soft systolic murmur was heard over the whole precordia. The blood pressure was 170/100. The lungs were clear except for a few coarse bronchial rales in the left upper back and the right upper chest in front. The abdomen was enormously distended, tense, dull to per- cussion except high in the midline. There was fluid wave. Over the lower portion was induration. Palpation of masses was impossible. There was pitting and massive edema of the genitals and legs and moderate edema of the hands, arms; and back. The left pupil was greater than the right and irregular; both reacted normally. The reflexes could not be obtained because of edema. The temperature was 98~—100.8°, rectal, the pulse 112-58, the respirations 23-32. The amount of urine is not recorded. The specific gravity was 1.016. ‘There was the slightest possible trace of albumin at one of two examinations. The sediment was loaded with pus and showed five to ten red blood cells at both examinations, two trichomonas were seen in motion at one. The hemoglobin was 90%, the leucocytes 8000, the polynuclears 71%, the reds 6,496,000, with moderate stippling and polychromatophilia. The non-protein nitrogen was 46 mgm. A Wassermann was negative. An abdom- inal tap gave 2500 c,c. of opaque yellow fluid, specific gravity 1.012, leucocytes 1700, polynuclears 13%, lymphocytes 79%, large mono- nuclears 8%, 2500 red blood cells, no organisms. Culture was negative. The orders were as follows. December 17, salt free low protein diet, magnesium sulphate § iin the morning. December 18, digi- folin ampules vi intramuscularly at once, digitalis gr. vi by mouth at once and gr. iii 4 i.d., morphia gr. 1 s.c. at once and gr. 16 s.c. every three hours p.r.n., limit fluids to 3 50. December 18, caffein sodium salicylate gr. x intramuscularly at once and gr. xv intramuscu- larly p.r.n. for marked cyanosis or collapse; digifolin ampules iv. December 109, caffein sodium salicylate gr. xv. December 18 the patient became very cyanotic and the Cheyne- Stokes respiration was marked. Caffein and oxygen were tried. He had in all thirty-three grains of digitalis. At three o’clock the morning of December 19 he died. 456 - FACTS ON THE HEART Clinical Diagnosis —Hypertensive heart disease with congestive failure. Hypertension. Anasarca. Obesity. Dr. ‘Richard C. Cabot’s Diagnosis——Hypertension, ‘primary.” Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Arteriosclerosis. Chronic passive congestion. Terminal infection? Anatomical Diagnosis —(Hypertension. ) Great hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. (No Arteriosclerosis) General chronic passive congestion. Hydropericardium. Beginning hydrothorax. Ascites. Anasarca. Chronic pleuritis. Lymphoma of the mesenteric and retroperitoneal lymph glands. Slightly defective closure of the foramen ovale. (Not abnormal). Dr. RicHarDsoN: An enormously stout man. We were not per- mitted to examine*the head. There was massive edema of the lower extremities and genitals. The abdomen was distended, but the wall was not rigid. There was also edema of the upper extremities and the dependent portions of the trunk. The face and ears were purplish. I go into this a little more in detail because it is a classical picture of hypertension. The muscles were large. The subcutaneous tissues were wet. The peritoneal cavity contained at least 2000 c.c. of thin pale clear fluid. The peritoneum and appendix were negative. The mucosa of the esophagus was pale bluish red, otherwise negative. The stomach and intestines showed a very striking picture of chronic passive congestion,—the purplish red velvety mucosa oozing thin bloody fluid. This was even better marked in certain portions of the small intestine than in the stomach, but was extraordinarily well marked all along the tract. The right pleural cavity contained a small amount of fluid, the left 300 c.c.—beginnings of hydrothorax. The diaphragm on the right was at the fifth rib, on the left at the seventh. There were no pleural adhesions at the apex, but some i HYPERTENSIVE HEART DISEASE—_ILLUSTRATIVE CASES Ase posteriorly to the diaphragm and some to the pericardium on the right. On the left side there were scattered adhesions to the dia- phragm and the pericardium. L Fic. 91.—Necropsy 4769.—Hypertensive heart disease with great hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Heart weighed 960 grams. No nephritis. No arterio- sclerosis. Valves negative. (Photograph by Lewis M. Adams. Dr. Oscar Richardson.) The mucosa of the trachea and bronchi was brownish red. They contained much thin bloody frothy fluid. The bronchial glands were plump, brown-red and juicy. The lung tissue was spongy to slightly 458 FACTS ON THE HEART leathery, brown-red, and yielded a moderate amount of brownish- red frothy fluid,—chronic passive congestion. The pericardium contained 300 c.c. of thin pale fluid,—hydro- pericardium. The heart weighed 960 grams,—greatly enlarged. (See Figure 91.) The myocardium was generally thick, of good consist- ence, pale brown-red. The right ventricle was five to six mm., the left sixteen mm. The columnae carneae were large and _ thick. There was slight dilatation on the left, marked dilatation on the right. The cavities contained much blood and blood clot, in greatest amount on the right. The valve circumferences were: mitral 11.5, aortic 7.5, tricuspid 13.5, pulmonary 8.5 cm. The valves were frankly negative. The auricular appendices were free. There was a slightly defective closure of the foramen ovale. The aorta and great branches showed only a very slight amount of fibrous sclerosis. Coronaries, capacious, free, and the circulatory apparatus elsewhere negative. The liver weighed 2307 grams, and showed chronic passive con- gestion. The gall-bladder, except for a little edema of the wall, was negative. The spleen weighed 430 grams,—moderately enlarged, the tissue plump, elastic, brown-red, bloody,—chronic passive congestion. The kidneys weighed 427 grams; the capsules stripped readily, the surfaces were bluish-brown-red and smooth, the tissue of good consistence, plump, wet. The vessels were engorged, the pelves and ureters negative,—chronic passive congestion. There was a slight hydrocele on each side. The inguinal rings were large but free and there was no definite pouching of the peritoneum. The mesenteric and retroperitoneal glands generally were markedly enlarged up to 414 cm.,—lymphoma. A Puysictan: You did not find any reason why the urine should be loaded with pus? ~ Dr. Ricuarpson: No. Dr. Casort: I think syoebodiat here present should remember the looks of this heart and this history, because it fixes certain things once for all: that we can have a huge heart due to hypertension so far as we know, with no nephritis, no arteriosclerosis, no valve lesion,— nothing. Isitrare? No. Isuppose itis the commonest of all types of heart disease. It is the commonest of all heart disease. In my opinion the nephritis or arteriosclerosis which often goes with it is not the important thing, and no one knows what causes the hypertension which, therefore, is called “‘essential.’’ ‘= ag HYPERTENSIVE HEART DISEASE—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 459 A PuysiciAn: I think that is a fact that is very little appreciated by the general profession. What details would you require added to the picture to make a. diagnosis of arteriosclerosis? Dr. Casot: None. As I said, I expected to find some arterio- sclerosis. If we looked in the retina and saw it, or if we felt it in the brachial, we should say he had arteriosclerosis there but we should not know that it was present elsewhere or in any important degree. We have no diagnostic signs of generalized arteriosclerosis. A PuysicraNn: Does that mean that the diagnosis of arteriosclero- sis is apt to be in fact this condition? Dr. CaABorT: Yes. Necropsy 960 A railway engineer of forty-eight was brought to the Accident Room uneonscious. A policeman said the patient suddenly dropped while at work in the dynamo room of the railway and was picked up in the same condition as at entrance. Later a friend said that the patient had been working all the time for twenty years and had always been well. He drank a little ale and beer. After dinner the day of admission he had some discomfort. Examination showed a very obese man with cyanotic face and noisy, labored, jerky respiration. There was some blood on his lips and mouth. His tongue was bitten in two places. His breath smelt alcoholic. A few coarse rales were heard in the lungs in front. The back was not examined. The apex impulse of the heart was not recorded. The left border of dullness was about at the nipple line. There was no enlargement to the nght. A systolic murmur was heard all over the precordia. The aortic second sound was accentu- ated. The pulses were regular, very full volume, very high tension. The artery walls were sclerosed. The pupils were small, equal, and did not react. The other reflexes were normal. Supraorbital pressure was negative. There was no edema. The temperature, pulse and respirations were not recorded. While the examination was being made the breathing stopped. It was soon restored by artificial respiration and oxygen. About fif- teen minutes later it again ceased. The patient vomited several times, brownish material with the odor of beer. He was catheterized, bled about a pint, and infused with normal saline while the bleeding was being done. His condition grew steadily worse, he became very cyanotic, and died in less than two hours after his admission. 460 FACTS ON THE HEART Clinical Diagnosis —Chronic diffuse nephritis. Uremia. Hypertrophied heart. Anatomical Diagnosis —Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Chronic passive congestion of the lungs. Soft spleen. Hypernephroma of the right kidney. Cholelithiasis. Foci of fat necrosis in pancreas. The heart weighed 694 grams. The cavities generally were large. The wall of the left ventricle opposite the base of a papillary muscle was about 17 mm. thick, the wall of the right ventricle 6 mm. thick. There was no arteriosclerosis or nephritis. The hypernephroma did not diminish the amount of secreting renal tissue. Necropsy 1854 An American weaver of thirty-nine entered December 31. Two of his brothers died of consumption. He had measles in childhood and frequent sick headaches in his youth. At twenty-five he had gonorrhea and at thirty-one typhoid fever. Since that illness he had never been strong, and his headaches had been more severe. For eight years his eyes had been prominent. At thirty-six he had ‘‘malaria,’’—fever without chills for six weeks. He took a glass of whiskey a week and an occasional glass of beer. Three months before admission he began to have severe constant generalized headache with some nausea. He vomited every other day and felt weak and played out. He gave up work and was in bed off and on for a day or two at a time. At the end of a month the headache left him, but the vomiting continued. He lost weight and strength. Four weeks before admission the vomiting became more severe. Since that time he had vomited nearly everything taken. His bowels were constipated,.not moving for four days. He urinated three or four times at night. Two weeks before admission he began to have dyspnea, which had grown steadily worse. Six days before admission he began to have edema of the feet and legs which increased rapidly for three days, then subsided somewhat. For two weeks he had had a considerable nosebleed every two or three days. Examination showed a very round shouldered, fairly well nour- ished man looking haggard and sick. His skin was dark, his mucous membranes pale. The teeth were poor, many missing. The throat HYPERTENSIVE HEART DISEASE—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 461 showed three small ecchymoses on the uvula and the posterior pharyn- geal wall. The apex impulse of the heart was seen and felt in the fifth space 414 inches to the left of the midsternum, half an inch out- side the nipple line, coinciding with the left border of dullness. The right border of dullness was an inch and a quarter to the right of midsternum. The action was regular, the sounds rather loud, the aortic second sound sharp and ringing. A rather hissing early sys- tolic murmur was heard slightly over the whole precordia, best at the apex, and transmitted a short distance into the axilla. The pulses were normal. The systolic blood pressure was 210. The lungs showed a few fine moist rales at both bases behind. The liver dullness extended to the iliac crest. An indistinct edge was felt. There was much tenderness over the liver. There was marked soft edema of the feet. The pupils reacted very slightly. The other reflexes were normal. The temperature was 97° to 98.3° with a terminal rise to 102°. The pulse was 97 tor1ro. ‘The respirations were 9 to 31. . The output of urine was normal, the specific gravity 1.007-1.800. There was a slight trace of albumin at both of two examinations. ‘The sediment _ showed pus at one. The hemoglobin was 55%, the leucocytes 8600, the polynuclears 90%, the reds 2,972,000, with no marked achromia, poikilocytosis or polychromatophilia and no stippling. The patient was unable to lie down, slept very poorly even with opiates, and grew rapidly worse. He vomited several times. The edema diminished. His respirations slowed down to six or eight a minute with no opiates. Unless roused he lay with his eyes rolled up and lids half closed. When roused, however, the respiration improved and he looked bright. The night of January 3 he became very delirious and sank rapidly. The morning of January 4 he quietly died. Clinical Diagnosis.—Chronic nephritis. Uremia. Myocarditis. Arteriosclerosis. Dr. Cabot’s Diagnosis —Chronic nephritis. Uremia. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Chronic passive congestion. Terminal infection. Anatomical Diagnosis —Chronic arteriosclerotic nephritis. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. 462 FACTS ON THE HEART Septicemia, streptococcus. Pneumonia. Soft hyperplastic spleen. Foci of obsolete tuberculosis of the lungs. Dr. RicHARDSON: The head was not examined in this case. There was a slight amount of fluid in the peritoneal cavity. The liver at the time of necropsy was only three fingers down in the right mammil- lary line. It makes a difference where the line is that is taken when the liver is measured. The distance between the lower margin of the right lobe of the liver in the anterior axillary line and the crest of the ilium is pretty short. But if taken in the right mammillary line the liver might have been much farther up. Dr. Cazot: We have noticed over a long period of time a great many observations in which clinically we got a very big liver and post mortem you got only passive congestion, no enlargement. Are the anatomical conditions such that you can easily imagine a liver greatly engorged in life and collapsing after death? | Dr. RicHArRDSON: Yes, to a certain extent, but not so marked as in this case. Dr. Casot: Have you ever tried the experiment of injecting the liver to see if it can be made to reach this size? Dr. RicHARDSON: No. Dr. Casort: It is always in this type of case that these discrepan- cies come. They do not come in leukemia, where we have a tough firm liver. It is always in the circulatory cases that we differ from the post-mortem findings. Dr. RicHarpson: The diaphragm on the right was at the fifth rib, on the left at the fifth interspace. That is about right, although with these levels the pleural cavities were full of fluid,—hydrothorax. The pleura was coated with fibrinous exudate in places, and the lungs showed here and there small focal areas of frank pneumonia, other- wise some congestion. There was moderate hydropericardium. The heart weighed 740 grams. ‘That is a pretty large heart. The myocardium was pale, opaque. Some question was raised at the time about the myocar- dium. We madea histological examination. There was no increase of interstitial tissue, but a note was made that the individual fibers seemed to be enlarged. The cavities were increased in size. The mitral valve measured twelve cm., the aortic eight, the tricuspid thirteen and a half. But there were no lesions of the valves, nothing within the heart to account for its size. HYPERTENSIVE HEART DISEASE—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 463 The aorta was fairly smooth; no definite amount of arteriosclero- sis except that in the renal arteries there was some, not very marked. I mean by that, the artery that runs from the aorta to the kidney and the first branches where it breaks up into kidney substance. As a matter of fact we found later that there was considerable sclerosis of the arteries in the: kidney substance. The liver weighed 2190 grams. That is a large liver, but still only three fingers down. The tissue was slightly doughy and cin- namon brown in color. The spleen weighed 240 grams, slightly soft, the follicles and trabeculae visible; some congestion and some softness from the infec- tion present, a streptococcus septicemia. The combined weight of the kidneys was 200 grams. That is 740 grams of heart against 200 grams of kidney. Even with small kidneys that is a markedly hypertrophied heart. The question from the anatomical standpoint is raised whether there may have been an earlier “essential”? hypertension. The capsules came off fairly easily, leaving granular surfaces generally. The tissue was tough, the mark- ings indistinct, the cortex varying from two to four mm., the cut ends of the vessels prominent. On the whole, macroscopically an arterio- sclerotic nephritis, and the histological examination bore that out. There was no evidence of any glomerulonephritis. The gastro-intestinal tract showed a velvety mucosa, dull red- dish, juicy,—passive congestion. Case 3971 An Irish stationary engineer of sixty-four entered July 28. Two days before admission he was seized with acute pain in the epigas- trium. He was nauseated, and after a while began to vomit a green watery fluid. He continued to vomit frequently all the next day. The pain became localized in the right lower quadrant. He had no appetite, and no movement of the bowels in spite of five soap-suds enemata. During the day his abdomen became slightly distended and ‘“‘sore all over.”” The morning of admission he awoke feeling nauseated, but did not vomit. He had never had a similar attack. Upon examination he was well nourished. The lungs were normal. The heart was moderately enlarged to percussion. The aortic second sound was accentuated. A systolic murmur was heard at the apex, a systolic and a diastolic at the base. The radial arteries were palpable, the brachials tortuous. The systolic blood pressure was 174, the diastolic 122. The abdomen was somewhat distended, 464 FACTS ON THE HEART very tympanitic, with questionable shifting dullness; no liver tym- pany. The right side of the abdomen was spastic. There was slight tenderness throughout, decidedly more marked in the right lower quadrant. The genitals and extremities were negative. The rectum was ballooned, the prostate slightly enlarged. The pupillary reac- tions and the other reflexes were normal. Before operation the temperature was 99.6°, the pulse 85; the respirations are not recorded. The leucocyte count was 18,000. No specimen of urine could be obtained. Operation was done at once. The abdomen was found filled with a large amount of dark, old blood, mostly liquid. The appendix was normal. Stones were felt in the gall-bladder, but the gall-bladder felt normal. The condition of the pancreas could not be definitely determined, but was thought to be the cause of tne trouble. There was no evidence of obstruction, malignant disease, or active hemorrhage. The patient returned to the ward apparently little worse for the operation. Considerable staining persisted; also draining of bile. July 30 there was more distension. No peristalsis was heard with the stethoscope. The patient grew rapidly worse and died that day. Clinical Diagnosis (from Hospital Record) —Acute pancreatitis. Dr. Hugh Cabot’s Diagnosis —Mesenteric thrombosis? Acute hemorrhagic pancreatitis? Intestinal obstruction? Arteriosclerosis. Cholelithiasis. Cholecystitis with necrosis Anatomical Diagnosis.—1. Pri- and perforation of the blad- mary fatal lesions. der wall. Hemorrhages into the gall- bladder and the peritoneal cavity. Acute peritonitis. Arteriosclerosis. 2. Secondary or terminal lesions. ;Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Hemorrhagic edema of the lungs. [Slight scoliosis. Operation wound, explora- tory laparotomy. ————_____, 3. Historical landmarks. a? HYPERTENSIVE HEART DISEASE—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 465 The heart weighed 520 grams. The myocardium was pale brown- red and of fair consistence. ‘The right ventricle wall was 3 mm. thick, the left ventricle wall 11 mm. Here is a case of purely latent or inactive hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart, with hypertension probably chronic. Wehave no evidence that the heart was even a minor contributary factor in his death. Autopsy 3034 An English blacksmith of fifty-four entered March 18. Except for the diseases of childhood the patient had been well until the pres- ent illness. His wife had had one miscarriage and lost one child an hour after birth. For a year he had noticed occasional dyspnea on heavy exertion. The attacks seemed to be related to cold, disagree- able weather. For two months he had had increase of dyspnea on exertion and excitement. Walking up hill or in the face of the wind seemed to affect him more than heavy work. He had some palpita- tion and slight dry cough, occasionally at night raising white phlegm. Within two weeks he had had to increase to two pillows. He stopped work May 8 on account of dyspnea. He had made little or no improvement, had lost appetite, and had epigastric distress relieved by considerable eructations of gas. Examination showed a well nourished, strong man. The mucosae were slightly cyanotic. The teeth were decayed. There was marked pyorrhea. The apex impulse of the heart was faintly felt in the fifth space 11 cm. to the left of midsternum and a centimeter and a half outside the nipple line, coinciding with the left border of dull- ness. The right border was 3 cm, to the nght of midsternum. - The action was occasionally irregular. There was a strong sugges- tion of gallop rhythm, and occasional reduplication of the second sounds at the base. The sounds were distant and varied in intensity. The pulmonic second sound was accentuated. A soft systolic mur- mur was heard over the lower precordia; transmitted to the axilla. The pulses were of poor volume and fair tension. The vessel walls were slightly thickened. The blood pressure was 115/95; 130(?)/95. There was prominence of the second ribs and upper sternum, with moderate lower sternal retraction. There was dull tympanitic reso- nance throughout, except at the right base posteriorly and in the right axilla, where it shaded off into dullness. Expiration through- out was prolonged and roughened. There were occasional rales throughout at the end of inspiration, a few moist sticky rales at the 30 466 FACTS ON THE HEART right base with both inspiration and expiration. The abdomen was held slightly rigid, especially in the epigastrium, where there was some protuberance, with dull tympany. The liver dullness extended from the fifth rib to 1.5 cm. below the costal margin. The edge was not felt. The genitals were normal except for a small right varico- cele. ‘There was moderate edema of both upper and lower legs, very little at the ankles or over the feet. The pupils were irregular, other- wise normal, as were the reflexes. ) The temperature was 95.3° to 98° until March 3, then rising rapidly to 105.8°.. The pulse was 88 to 120. The respirations were 20 to 48; until March 3 not remarkable. The output of urine was 3 to 28 ounces, the specific gravity 1.026-1.030. ‘There was a slight trace of albumin at the last of five examinations, the slightest possi- ble trace of bile, leucocytes and hyalin and granular casts at the last two. The hemoglobin was 75%, the leucocyte count 19,600- 8000-27,600, the polynuclears 74%. A Wassermann was negative. The fundi were normal. March 21 the edema was gone, but the patient still felt very weak and ill. Digipuratum was not well borne; the heart became more irregular, the stomach upset. After three days the digitalis was omitted. A surgical consultant declined to make a diagnosis, but agreed to operate if the condition warranted it later. March 30 the left border of dullness was four centimeters outside the nipple. The patient had occasional attacks of great weakness, precordial distress, belching of gas and labored breathing lasting five to thirty minutes, relieved by morphia or nitroglycerin. By April 3 these attacks were occurring twice to four times during the twenty-four hours, chiefly at night. He became jaundiced, the liver enlarged and very tender. Nothing was found in the lungs. April 9 he died. Clinical Diagnosis (from Hospital Record).—Arteriosclerosis. Coronary sclerosis. Myocarditis. Decompensation. Terminal pneumonia. Dr. Richard C. Cabot’s Diagnosis —Arteriosclerosis. Coronary sclerosis. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Chronic passive congestion. Cholangitis. Cholecystitis. Anatomical Diagnosis. HYPERTENSIVE HEART DISEASE—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 467 1. Main cause of death.—Streptococcus sepsis. Slight arteriosclerosis. 2. Secondary or terminal lesions. | Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Chronic passive congestion, general. [Slight icterus. Slight chronic perihepatitis and splenitis. 3. Historical landmarks. Chronic pleuritis. Meckel’s diverticulum. Horseshoe kidney. The heart weighed 699 grams. The organ was considerably enlarged and the chambers were distended with blood clot. On section the myocardium generally was rather lax, pale brownish red and slightly cloudy. In the region of the upper part of the posterior wall of the left ventricle Bok were two areas of eh wee one of which measured 314 by 114 cm. and the other 4 by 214 cm., which showed through the een In ue posterior oa ef, the right ventricle there was an area about 214 by 114 cm. similar to the others. These areas showed in their “eas portions a narrow irregular dirty pinkish brownish yellow margin with pale brownish yellow central portions. The kidney structure appeared normal. Note by Dr. Cabot.—In view of the anatomical findings, his chronic dyspnea probably depends on hypertension and its results. The amount of arteriosclerosis present does not account for so much hypertrophy and weakening of the heart. The icterus is probably to be explained as a manifestation of septicemia. The surgical consultant showed good judgment in refusing to operate. Necropsy 3865 [The following case though not one of hypertensive heart disease is included here because I do not know where else to put it. The enlarged heart certainly seemed a factor in bringing about the patient’s death. It was not enlarged by mechanical obstruction or leak. The blood pressure was low throughout his illness. The case presents a challenging problem.| An American teamster of thirty-two entered June 14, 1913, five years before his final] admission, for relief of vomiting, anorexia, weakness and dyspnea. He had had gonorrhea at fourteen. At twenty-eight he was ill two weeks with “typhoid malaria.”’ For the past two or three years he had had stomach trouble with occa- sional vomiting and diarrhea. He became pale and yellowish. His stools were sometimes black. Six weeks before admission he began to have stomach trouble, vomited nearly every day, and had sore gums, dizziness and palpitation. He grew pale and weak, lost about forty pounds in weight, and at entrance was unable to walk fifty feet. Examination showed a very pale man. The heart sounds were irregular and rapid. There was a loud blowing systolic murmur over the pulmonic area, not SENSED Se The temperature was 99° to 102.2° for the first four weeks, then normal. The pulse was 80to120. Therespirations are not recorded. The hemoglobin was 10% to 65%, the leucocytes 4500 to 8800, the polynuclears 49% to 60%, the reds 700,000 to 1,700,000. The smear showed great variation in size, shape and staining, much stippling and polychromatophilia. The platelets were rare. The patient made marked improvement while taking Fowler’s solution, gained thirty-two pounds in weight, and was discharged relieved August 3. . After leaving the hospital he felt much better for four weeks. From September to December and from March to July he had had attacks similar to the previous ones. The following autumn he grew progressively weaker and more dyspneic. December 21, 1914, he returned. During his stay in the hospital he grew progressively worse. January 5 he was transfused with 600 c.c. of blood. Splenectomy was done, with uneventful recovery. The red count was 2,300,000 at entrance, 1,700,000 at discharge. After leaving the hospital he felt well until May; then he was weak and vomited until August, when he began to improve. In December he went to work in a shop, weighing 206 pounds, his best weight. After six weeks he again began to lose weight and strength. May 28 he had fainting attacks, with a burning sensation in his chest, lasting about fifteen minutes. June 1, 1916, hereentered the hospital. June 11 he received 600 c.c. of blood by transfusion. For the next three days he suffered from hallucinations, and while demented tried to injure a neighbor and to kill himself. The hemoglobin rose from 12% at entrance to 56 % at discharge. The leucocyte count was 4000 to 16,200. The reds were 792,000 to 2,128,000. The smear at entrance showed marked achromia, poly- chromatophilia, 3 normoblasts and one megaloblast in too cells. The platelets were much decreased. At discharge, June 18, there was tendency to macrocytosis of reds. No blasts were seen. 468 FACTS ON THE HEART HYPERTENSIVE HEART DISEASE—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES ‘469 After leaving the hospital he gained a pound a day for twenty days. He worked out-cf-doors during the summer. Four weeks before readmission he began to grow weaker and had a great deal of gas from the stomach. At readmission, October 16, 1916, he could barely walk. During his stay in the ward he continued to fail until October 11, when transfusion was done. October 29 a second transfusion was done. The second seemed to have a little effect, but the bone mar- row did not respond as on previous occasions. The reds rose from 1,228,000 to 1,628,000 at discharge, the hemoglobin from 34% to 35% at discharge, the leucocytes from 7400 to 6600 at discharge. The smear showed seven blasts per too cells. November 5 he was discharged. For two weeks after leaving the hospital he felt well. Then he had severe gas pain for four or five hours every day without much relation to meals. In the late autumn he felt very weak and had increasing numbness of the hands and feet. December 8 he was hysterical. December g he entered the hospital for the fifth time. At entrance the hemoglobin was 20%, the leucocytes 3600, the reds 1,200,000. ‘Transfusion of 600 c.c. was done December 21. At discharge December 24 the hemoglobin was 33%, leucocytes 8400, reds 1,500,000. The smear at entrance showed marked variation in size and shape, moderate numbers of Jolly bodies, two blasts; at discharge there was more stippling, Jolly bodies increased, , polychromatophilia, five blasts. March 6, 1917, he entered a sixth time, having felt fairly well and gained ten pounds since his discharge. Ten days before read- mission he began to fail rapidly, to have much flatulence and dyspnea and to be very weak. March 3 transfusion of 600 c.c. of blood was done. He was dis- charged relieved March rt. September 11, 1918, he came to the Emergency Ward to be trans- fused, very pale and in a state of collapse. He died before he reached . the ward. Discussion by Richard C. Cabot.—The history of the first entry gives undoubtedly a diagnosis of pernicious anemia. It isa clear and typical history. The remarkable thing about it is that the signs of pernicious anemi€appeared about seven years before his death. That is a longer course than most of the cases run. The intermission between the first and second entries is a little more than usual. There is no question, however, about the diagnosis. The post- 470 FACTS ON THE HEART mortem examination ought to show fatty degeneration of the organs, a slightly enlarged heart, very possibly fatty degeneration in it, and hyperplastic marrow. Clinical Diagnosis (from Hospital Record).—Pernicious anemia. Dr. Richard C. Cabot’s Diagnosis —Pernicious anemia. Fatty degeneration of the organs. Slight hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Possibly fatty degeneration of the heart. Hyperplastic bone marrow. Anatomical Diagnosis —1. Pri- mary fatal lesion. Pernicious anemia. Hyperplasia of the bone mar- row. Fatty degeneration of the myocardium. Hypertrophy and dilatation | of the heart. Edema of the lungs. Slight hydropericardium. Very slight hydrothorax. ites slight anasarca. [Scar of old operation wound, | splenectomy. | Slight chronic pleuritis, left. — hrniesians of the liver. Dr. RicHARDSON: A point which has been brought out at this - necropsy table for some years is the association of hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart with pernicious anemia. Here we havea very remarkable instance. The heart weighed 710 grams. The aorta, its great branches and the valves were negative, and there was nothing in the kidneys to account for the marked hypertrophy of the heart. ‘The myocardium showed well marked fatty degeneration, © -but no evidence of myocarditis. This was the largest heart I have ever seen associated with pernicious anemia, and with no other basis of hypertrophy. The kidneys were large, weighing 532 grams (normally 200-400), with a wide cortex; but microscopically they showed nothing remarkable. The hyperplastic marrow was typical of this disease,—meaty, dark raspberry red, and the microscopical examination showed numerous megaloblasts. 2. Secondary or termina! lesions, 3. Historical landmarks. HYPERTENSIVE HEART DISEASE—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 471 The hydropericardium, hydrothorax and anasarca indicate that the heart had become a little decompensated. The lesions as tabulated in the anatomical diagnosis present a typical anatomical picture of pernicious anemia. Dr. CaBot: We had more hope in the combination of splenec- tomy and transfusion four or five years ago than we havenow. After splenectomy the transfusion holds them a little longer than if trans- fusion were done without splenectomy. If there is some one at hand who is accustomed to doing splenectomy, it does not add any consid- erable risk to have it done. My feeling is that if I had pernicious anemia I should have my spleen taken out, although it would not be brilliant therapeutics. I do not believe this man would have lived so long if he had not had splenectomy. | | This man’s age is a notable fact. The average age for pernicious anemia is between forty and fifty; rarely anywhere near thirty. It is a fact of some interest that we have almost never made a wrong diagnosis of this disease in this hospital. Some years ago I figured up the percentage of failure in diagnosis here,“ from 16 % of right diagnoses in acute nephritis up to practically 100% of right diagnoses in this disease, in typhoid fever (92%) and diabetes (95%). That is of importance. We ought to realize just where we are strong | and where we are weak. | A PuysicIAN: How about splenectomy in cases of leukemia? Dr. Casort: I do not see the benefit of splenectomy in leukemia; at least up to date I do not know ofany. Iregret that the operation has been popularized by the example of the Mayo clinic. Necropsy 3845 An American tanner of fifty-eight entered May 17 for relief of dyspnea and palpitation. His father died of heart trouble, his mother of kidney trouble. He had all the diseases of childhood, including scarlet fever and diphtheria. He had occasional attacks of sick headache when a boy. He had gonorrhea at twenty-one and again at twenty-two. He denied syphilis. His wife had four or five miscarriages before the birth of two children who were living and well. His general health had been excellent until the present illness. He had been on a good many drinking parties, but never was a steady heavy drinker. He smoked a great deal until the present illness, and chewed one plug a day, He drank more than a gallon of coffee *R. C, Cabot, Diagnostic Pitfalls Identified During A Study of 3000 Autopsies. Jour. Am. Med. Assoc., Dec. 28, 1912, Vol. LIX, pp. 2295-2208. 472 FACTS ON THE HEART a day until a year before admission. For a year he had taken none. Until the present illness he used a great deal of salt. A year and a half before admission he began to feel his heart beating, and was short of breath on any exertion. These symptoms gradually grew worse, and forced him a year ago to give up his work. For a year he had urinated two or three times at night. For the same period he had been taking digitalis in various amounts. Exertion brought on occasional attacks of shortness of breath with some dizzi- ness. With them was some pain in the stomach region, not severe. These attacks became more frequent until they sometimes came on without exertion. In the intervals the dyspnea and palpitation grew gradually worse. At times he noticed some puffiness about the eyes. Six months before admission he suddenly began to have blurring in front of the right eye. Since that time he had been on a low-protein salt-free diet and had taken an occasional purge. His condition how- ever grew gradually worse. His weight two years ago was 240 pounds; six months ago, 170 pounds. . Examination showed a fairly well nourished man with slight exophthalmos. The skin was dry. There was much pyorrhea with sordes. The apex impulse of the heart was felt in the sixth space 15 cm. to the left of midsternum and 6.5 cm. outside the nipple line, coin- ciding with the left border of dullness. The right border was one cm, to the right, the supracardiac dullness 5 cm. ‘There was no shift in the left lateral position. The action was irregular, with occasiona] premature beats. The sounds were of good quality. Both the pul- monic and the aortic second sounds were loud and ringing, the pul- monic accentuated. There was a blowing systolic murmur at the apex and a systolic at the base. The artery walls were markedly palpable, the brachials very tortuous. The lungs, abdomen genitals, extremities, pupils and reflexes were normal. The temperature was 96.8° to 99.6° until June 19. The pulse was 100 to 59, the respiration 15 to 26. The systolic blood pressure was 200 to 230, the diastolic 100 to 140. The output of urine was 23 to 63 J till June 17, the specific gravity 1.006 to1.o14. The urine was cloudy, alkaline at one of three examinations, with a trace to a slight trace of albumin at all, rare granular casts at one, leucocytes at two. The renal function on May 20 was zero; May 22, it was 5%. The hemoglobin was 75%, the leucocyte count 5200 to 11,000, the polynuclears 88%. The urea nitrogen was 57 to 153 mgm. per too c.c. of blood. A Wassermann test was negative. The fundi showed well marked retinitis of the right eye with a few retinal hemor- T HYPERTENSIVE HEART DISEASE—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES ATS rhages, and star-shaped arrangement in the macular region. The left eye showed a few hemorrhages. The dyspnea became much less. May 25 the patient was up ina chair. After this however he was troubled with nausea and vomiting and a “‘bad taste.” There was considerable improvement after a sweat bath. Then he became weak and tired and had occasional nausea and vomiting. His mentality became cloudy. He was delirious at night. His eyes looked staring. His breath was ammo- niacal. June 19 the temperature dropped to 93.3°, the pulse to 60. He became practically comatose and bled profusely from the nose and mouth and beneath the finger nails. June 21 he died. Clinical Diagnosis (from Hospital Record) —Chronic nephritis. Arteriosclerosis. Uremia. Dr. W. H. Smith’s Diagnosis —Chronic nephritis. Uremia. Anatomical Diagnosis. —Arteriosclerosis of the aorta and its great branches. Arteriosclerosis of the vessels of Willis. Arteriosclerotic nephritis. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Edema piae. Slight chronic pleuritis, right. Obsolete tuberculosis of a bronchial lymph node. Papillary adenoma of the right kidney. Dr. Oscar RicHarpson: The background was one of arteriosclero- sis. The heart weighed 625 grams (normally 200-300). The myo- cardium was generally thick, and at the time of necropsy the cavitiés showed considerable dilatation. The valves were negative. .The coronary arteries showed a rather peculiarly arranged sclerosis. At first they seemed to be fairly capacious and free, but rather tortuous. On laying them open fibrous plaques were found scattered along the walls, then a piece which was fairly good, then plaques again. This peculiar arrangement caused tortuosity of the vessel without marked decrease in its lumen. The aorta and the great branches were capa- cious and showed marked fibrous, fibrocalcareous and atheromatous sclerosis. ‘The vessels of Willis and their remote branches showed marked arteriosclerosis. The kidneys weighed 160 grams. ‘Those, of course, were very small organs. (Normally 200-400 grams.) ‘The capsules were slightly adherent in places and the surfaces were finely granular and 474 FACTS ON THE HEART red. The kidney tissue was tough, the markings more or less indis- tinct, and there was decrease in the width of the cortex. Here and there in the section surfaces the cut ends of the arteries showed scler- osis. In the pelvis of the kidney the mucosa in a few places showed small dark red hemorrhagic areas;—a small arteriosclerotic kidney. It is in this type of nephritis that you are likely to get blood in the urine. Case 4327 An American carpenter of forty-two entered March 27, 1922, complaining of difficulty in breathing of two months’ duration. He had measles, mumps and chicken-pox in childhood, “typhoid fever and pneumonia” at sixteen, prolonged attacks of rheumatic fever at eleven years, nineteen and thirty-one. He had always uri- nated twice atnight. Hehad sick headaches until he was twenty-two. A years before admission he had a severe electric shock and was in bed ten days with symptoms like those of the present illness. Best weight 220 pounds, weight last September 195, present weight, 176. on }Q E ] | Midsternal Nipple w ie) 5 TO.Cinee* fa -cna: EIGo2: Two months before admission, after excessive work in cranking an automobile followed by a supper of oysters, he had dyspnea, somewhat relieved by lying on the right side and using two pillows. He also had palpitation and eructations of gas. During the following week he had dyspnea on exertion and at night, with gas, distress and disten- sion after eating. When he milked his two cows he had sudden attacks of sharp pain with a sense of a heavy pressure across the front of the chest radiating down the right arm, and a choking sensation lasting half an hour and associated with dyspnea. After ten days of complete remission he again ate oysters and had the same trouble as before. The symptoms had persisted except for periods of two or three days once a week. Three times he had had nausea and vomit- ing at night. He had had hacking cough at night. For five weeks he had been taking twelve digitalis pills a week. He had also taken an average of three nitroglycerin tablets a day swallowed with water for attacks of sharp pain in the chest and right arm. The pain was relieved within half an hour. For three weeks he had been in bed. HYPERTENSIVE HEART DISEASE—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 475 For two weeks he had had an external hemorrhoid. Three days before admission he had a sudden onset of dull aching in the right side of the head. The left side of the head and neck and the left arm and leg became numb. His speech was mumbling, his jaw sagged, and his pupils were dilated. He was able to move all his muscles, though his limbs felt very heavy. In six hours this passed off entirely except for the numbness under the right arm, which lasted several hours longer. He had no edema. Physical examination showed him to be well nourished. Cheeks very high colored. Skin dry. Mucosae red. Tongue showed two serpiginous white lines on the left edge. Apex impulse of the heart i Fic. 93.—Necropsy 4327. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart, primary. Weight 703 grams. Mural thrombi in the right auricular appendix and the left ven- tricle. X-ray shows the heart shadow very much enlarged, especially to the left. Region of the right auricle also somewhat prominent. Enlargement appears somewhat symmetrical and is more suggetive of dilatation than of hypertrophy. Supracardiac shadow not abnormal. *(Roentgenological Department, Massachusetts General Hospital.) felt in the 5th space g cm. to the left. Percussion measurements as shown in the diagram. Action regular, with very rare extra systoles. P, slightly accentuated. No murmurs made out after slight exercise. Pulses and arteries normal. B.P. 100/70—110/80-105/85. Electro- cardiogram showed sinoauricular tachycardia. Rate tro. Small complexes in all leads. P wave bifurcated and wide. Diphasic T. Abdomen and genitals negative. Inguinal rings enlarged. Rectal 476 FACTS ON THE HEART examination: Dilated thrombosed external hemorrhoid. Extrem- ites, pupils and reflexes showed nothing of significance. Temperature. 96.4°—-98.9° until March 30, then 98.9°— 101.9° rectal to April 6; afterwards 97.4°-100.9. Pulse, 89-120. Res- | piration, 20-36. Urine: 312-28-6 in 24 hours. Sp. gr. 1034- 1030. Cloudy at one of three examinations, alkaline at.two, the slightest possible trace to a slight trace of albumin at all. Renal function 30%-50%. Blood: Hemoglobin 80%. Leucocytes 23,400— 12,000. Polynuclears 66%. Reds and platelets normal. Wasser- mann negative. Non-protein nitrogen 33-40. mgm. Sputum blood-streaked. Few organisms. X-ray, see Fig. 93. When the patient was asleep the breathing was Cheyne-Stokes with apneic periods of from five to fifteen seconds. At midnight the night of admission he complained of very severe pain in the left leg from the knee down. It was instantly relieved by sodium bicar- bonate. Dr. Paul D. White found proto-diastolic gallop rhythm, mitral facies, prominence of the left auricle by percussion, occasional premature beats. ‘‘In the presence of the weak heart action there is no mitral diastolic murmur evident to-day. The first sound has a rumbling character.” By the 31st the patient had difficulty in breathing during the day and looked very ill. The morning of April 1 he fainted on slight exertion. He was put on the “dangerous” list. The high leucocyte count was unexplained. April 3 Dr. W. H. Smith found a suggestive Broadbent. The right leg was markedly swollen, hot and painful, the tenderness over the deep veins extending up to midthigh. April 6 the temperature was normal, but the next day rose again to 99.9. The heart sounds were weaker. ‘The mental factor was very large. He had prompt relief from bicarbonate of soda, which he thought was morphia; no benefit from codein dissolved in milk. April to he was very ill. There was gallop rhythm with a probable diastolic rumble. That day he fell over, striking his head. He became extremely cyanotic and the left arm seemed weak. His accounts showed that he did not lose consciousness, and it was believed that he complained largely to obtain sympathy. April 12 he had to be catheterized because of edema interfering with micturition. April 14 he suddenly died. Clinical Diagnosis —Mitral stenosis. Myocarditis. Phlebitis of right popliteal. Edema of the foreskin. —S HYPERTENSIVE HEART DISEASE—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 477 Acute endocarditis. Dr. Richard C. Cabot’s Diagnosis.—Chronic adhesive pericarditis. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Acute endocarditis? Passive congestion, general. Anatomical Diagnosis —Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Mural thrombi in the right auricular appendix and the left ventricle. Infarcts of the lungs. Infarct of the left kidney. Chronic passive congestion, general. Hydrothorax, right. Slight ascites. Anasarca. Chronic pleuritis, left. Small mass of persistent thymic tissue. Dr. OscaR RICHARDSON: We were not permitted to examine the head. The face and ears were dusky to purplish, the skin generally sallow with a faint yellowish tinge,—an appearance suggesting the end conditions of heart cases. The dependent portions of the trunk pitted, and the lower extremities were swollen and pitted on pressure. There were 500 c.c. of fluid in the peritoneal cavity—slight ascites. The gastro-intestinal tract was negative except for an astonishingly good picture of chronic passive congestion. That is, all the mucous membranes were dark red, velvety, oozing bloody fluid. The glands were negative. The liver was 15 cm. below the costal border. The diaphragm was at the sixth rib on the right and the sixth interspace on the left. That means something in the pleural ‘cavities. We found 2000 c.c. of fluid in the right cavity, and on the left about 50 c.c. There was a little fibrous pleuritis on the right, on the left a few old adhesions. There was a bit of the thymus gland remaining. There was nothing in the lungs except chronic passive congestion and infarcts. That means of course that although there was chronic passive congestion we should still look to see if we could find any vessels plugged. The pericardium contained 50 c.c. of fluid, and was smooth and shining. The heart weighed 703 grams,— a very large heart. The myocardium was of pretty good consistence, fair color, and I could make out no definite myocarditis whatsoever. The cavities were all markedly dilated and all contained a large amount of blood. If that indicates anything, he died in diastole. In the right auricular 478 FACTS ON THE HEART appendix there were small thrombotic masses which with the condi- tion of chronic passive congestion and emboli from them produced the infarcts in the lungs. In the apical region of the left ventricle there was a small adhering thrombotic mass. The mitral valve measured 15 cm. ‘There were no definite lesions. The aortic was 7 cm., the cusps 8 cm. ‘That means the ring where it is attached to the lower end of the aorta,—what is called the aortic ring. A peculiarity was that there were only two large cusps to the aortic valve; there are usually three. In the regions of the conjoined margins these two cusps presented a little roll of fibrous tissue which might be a little fibrous endocarditis, small, chronic, only one cm. long, two or three mm. in the other dimensions. The tricuspid valve measured 16 cm. The mitral circumference was nearly as large as the tricuspid. The pulmonic was 9 cm. The coronaries were fairly capacious, free, negative. ‘The foramen ovale was closed. The mitral and tricuspid valves except for great increase in their cir- cumferences, were negative. The ascending thoracic portion of the aorta showed a few small fibrous plaques, the arch and descending portion a slight amount of fibrosis. ‘The aorta and great branches on the whole were rather small for the size of the man. That was the only thing about this apparatus worth noting. The liver weighed 2110 grams and showed typical nutmeg mark- ings. The gall-bladder, pancreas and ducts were negative. The spleen showed chronic passive congestion. The kidneys weighed 390 grams, were bluish-brown-red, large, and showed here and there one or two infarcts. These were due of course to emboli from the throm- botic mass in the left ventricle. We put hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart first this time. Presumably the condition in his leg was due to a bit split off from the thrombus in the left ventricle passing into the vessels of the leg. This heart was one of those to which we give the name of idio- pathic hypertrophy. It is an extraordinarily good case,—a heart of seven hundred odd grams giving out with no definite cause. Dr. Casort: I was obviously wrong in supposing pericarditis as the cause of heart hypertrophy. We found no cause. The valves were all big but normal. They were part of the hypertrophy and dilatation. We have no idea why this heart gave out. It does not come into any of the classifications. Of course he may have had a hypertension. It does not show in the arteries, does not show any- where. ‘There was no evidence of it while he was here. HYPERTENSIVE HEART DISEASE—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 479 Dr. RicHARDSON: He had a low blood pressure. Dr. Casot: While here. We should have to say it was high before he came here. A PuysictaAn: What was the cause of the liver? Dr. RrcHARDSON: It was due to the chronic passive congestion, which was very great all the way through. [The assumption that hypertension had existed before this patient was examined may be false. Ifso the cause of cardiac enlargement and failure is a mystery. | Case 3742 First entry. An American schoolboy of sixteen entered March 5, two years before his final admission. His mother died of Bright’s disease. He had had mumps and a fracture of the left thigh at the age of six. A week ago he began to have involuntary purposeless movements of all his muscles, growing rapidly more violent. He was well nourished. Restless, moving his head about occasion- ally and making frequent grimaces and purposeless movements of the body, arms, and hands; only slight movements of the legs and feet. Breathing irregular. Small reddish scaling area on left side of the lower jaw. Small palpable gland on right lower jaw. Glands the size of peas in axillae. Palpable glandsin groins. Apex impulse of heart seen and felt in 5th space 10 cm. to the left of midsternal line, 2 cm. outside the nipple line, corresponding with the left border of dullness. Right border of dullness 3 cm. to the right of midsternal line in 4th space. Slight palpable thrill at the apex. Action slightly rapid. At apex first sound loud, sharp and reduplicated. With it was heard a harsh low-pitched systolic murmur faintly transmitted to the axilla. Much of the murmur was between the two first sounds. At the base was heard a loud harsh systolic murmur slightly louder in the pulmonic and transmitted to the neck. Second pulmonic sound greater than the aortic and accentuated. Pulses slightly rapid. Artery walls palpable. Lungs normal. Abdomen: Liver dullness from 6th rib to costal margin. Edge not felt. Genitals: Meatus reddened and swollen. Pupilsnormal. | Reflexes not recorded. Temperature 97.4°—100.8°. Pulse 69-95. Respirations 18-28. Urine normalamount. Sp. gr. 1013-1023. A large trace of albumin to the slightest possible trace at all of six examinations. A very rare red corpuscle at two. Blood: Hgb. 80%. Leucocytes 12,800—4200. The patient threw himself about in bed, chafing his skin so that it was necessary to pin his legs into a set of pillows and use a pneu- 480 FACTS ON THE HEART monia swathe on his chest and bandages on his arms. He was given about 40 minims of Fowler’s solution daily. March 18 the loudest. murmur at the apex was a presystolic and the first sound was no longer reduplicated. A soft systolic murmur was faintly heard at the apex, where a slight thrill was felt. There was a loud systolic murmur at the base, loudest in the pulmonic area, transmitted to theneck. Hehadafew boils. The chafing of the skin was now only slight. By March 29 there were very few involuntary movements. The excretion of urine was greater. The apex was 114 inches outside the nipple line. ‘There were thrills and systolic and presystolic mur- murs at the apex, a loud systolic murmur at the base, slightly louder in the aortic area than in the pulmonic area, heard in the neck. March 31 beside the murmurs of the apex a harsh systolic murmur was heard at the aortic area and to a less extent at the pulmonic, trans- mitted to the neck. The boils had healed, except one an inch and a half in diameter on the back of the neck. Under staphylococcus vaccine treatment this was practically healed by April 4. The urine was almost normal, and he was quite free from twitching. April 6 the apex impulse was 334 inches to the left of midsternum. There were definite double murmurs at the apex. That day he was discharged. Second entry. April 15, two years later, he returned. Since leaving the hospital! he had felt absolutely well until six weeks ago, when he began to vomit his breakfast. Five weeks ago his face became bloated. This passed off in a week. Three weeks ago he woke up so bloated that he could hardly see. In a few days his legs swelled. His abdomen became distended, and at night the edema came up out of his legs into his back and chest. He had gained considerable weight. He had been living on milk, water and other liquids. His eyes blurred at times. Physical examination as before except as noted. No glands palpable in axillae or groins. Apex impulse of heart in 5th space 12.5 cm. from midsternum, 2.5 cm. outside nipple line. Right border 4 cm. from midsternum. First sound at apex sharp and double. At the apex and transmitted toward the base with increasing inten- sity was a purring rough systolic murmur, loudest over the aortic area, heard in the neck and axilla. A, markedly accentuated. Pulses normal volume and increased tension. Abdomen full. Dullness in flanks and over pubes shifting with change of position. Fluid wave. - Liver dullness 5th space to costal border. Edge not felt. Genitals: Penis and scrotum greatly swollen. Prepuce could not be retracted. HYPERTENSIVE HEART DISEASE—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 481 Very marked swelling of face, arms, hands, and very great soft edema of thighs and legs. Considerable edema of back and over abdominal and chest walls. Temperature 96.5°—-100°, with one rise to 1o1° May 24. Pulse 6o-101.. Respirations 11-31. Systolic blood pressure 135-210, diastolic 100. Urine: 3 5-48. Sp. gr. ro14—1027. Smoky, cloudy or turbid at all of thirty examinations. Albumin at all. Guaiac questionably positive at five, red blood corpuscles at fifteen others. Hyalin, granular and fatty casts. Stool: Guaiac strongly positive (estimated 14-14 blood). Fundi apparently normal. The patient sweat profusely in hot air baths and seemed to enjoy them. The amount of albumin in the urine fell from 1% to .4% by April 22. The edema slowly became less, though by May 4 the face was still puffy and there was a thick pad of edema over the lumbar region. The circumference of the abdomen was 78 cm., 7 cm. less than at entrance. May 6 the temperature jumped to 100° and con- tinued 99.8° for the next two days. The patient was very active and delirious. Digipuratum was given. ‘The amount of urine rose from 23 to 35 ounces. A little free blood now appeared in the urine for the first time. It was very hard to keep the bowels moving. He vomited a good deal. May 12 he was considerably better. The chest showed less edema than ever before, but the amount of urine was lower. The abdomen now measured 72.5 cm. He was somno- lent and mentally confused. May 16 the amount of urine was increased and he was much brighter. His face was more puffy, perhaps because of the forcing of fluids. The twenty-four-hour amount of urine remained about 3 xxx. Nevertheless he was gradu- ally getting more and more edematous. Hot air baths were resumed. May 24 the temperature rose to 1ror° in the morning, but was 99° by night. The abdomen measured 78 cm. He gradually became more somnolent. Four days later the twenty-four-hour amount had fallen to 3 23. ‘There was a marked systolic murmur at the base. On the 29th the abdomen was 71cm. ‘That day be became semicoma- tose and quite noisy. His blood pressure rose to 210 and he seemed to be going downhill. Venesection was done, 3 xvi of blood removed and 400 c.c. of salt solution given intravenously. He began to rally slowly. As his breathing became labored and he wheezed a good deal, a tracheotomy layout was kept by hisbed. The urinary output now averaged 3 20. June 5 the hot air baths were omitted because they exhausted him. June 11 he vomited. June 13 the amount of urine had jumped from § 15, where it had been for a week, to 3 30. 31 482 FACTS ON THE HEART The blood pressure was now 145. June 14 he vomited again. By June 17 he had gained a pound and a half in ten days and seemed much stronger. The blood pressure had risen to 155. The specific gravity of the urine was 1016. ‘The patient was brighter than he had been for weeks, but looked bloated and pasty. During the next week he gained weight rapidly and his face and tongue became greatly swollen. After a hot air bath June 25 he had a convulsion which was followed by greatly increased respiration accompanied by loud stertorous dyspnea. He was unconscious and the dyspnea rapidly increased. Tracheotomy was done, relieving the dyspnea. In a short time he recovered consciousness. Later he breathed well through his mouth and no air came through the tube. He seemed very uncomfortable at night and at midnight began suddenly to be very dyspneic. He was resuscitated with difficulty, and the dyspnea was again relieved, but only for a few moments. Then he became very dyspneic and the wound leaked blood into the tube and trachea. The tube was removed but he could not breathe even with the trachea and wound wide open. A larger tube was inserted and through it an attempt was made to swab out the trachea, but without avail. He ceased to attempt to breathe. After fruitless attempts at artificial respiration he died of asphyxiation. Clinical Diagnosis —Chronic glomerulo-nephritis. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Acute mitral and aortic endocarditis. Dr. Richard C. Cabot’s Diagnosis —Chronic mers nephritis with acute exacerbation. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Mitral stenosis. Possibly aortic stenosis. Passive congestion, general. Ascites. Hydrothorax. Hydropericardium. Possibly terminal infection, with acute endocarditis. Terminal acidosis. Anatomical Diagnosis —Chronic glomerulo-nephritis. Chronic fibrous endocarditis of the aortic valve. Verrucose endocarditis of the aortic valve. Slight verrucose endocarditis of the mitral valve. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Chronic passive congestion, general. HYPERTENSIVE HEART DISEASE—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 483 Anasarca. Septicemia, staphylococcus, terminal. Chronic pleuritis. Dr. Cazot: Was there any acute endocarditis? Dr. RicHarpson: It does not seem to me so. The process was a chronic one, involving the aortic valve mainly. The heart weighed 305 grams, showing considerable hypertrophy and dilatation for him. The lungs showed frank passive congestion. Fic. 94.—Chronic glomerulo-nephritis with hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Both kidneys are placed in the left ventricle. (Photograph by Lewis S. Brown. Dr. Oscar Richardson.) There was no fluid in the plural cavities, but considerable in the lungs. Our best picture of chronic glomerulo-nephritis and hyper- trophied heart is this one (Fig. 94), showing the contracted kidneys easily resting within the left ventricle of the hypertrophied heart. The stomach mucosa was thick, red and velvety, exuding thin bloody fluid—a good example of chronic passive congestion. 484 FACTS ON THE HEART Dr. Casot: Was the blood shown by the guaiac test from that? Dr. RicHArpson: I think so. Case 4312 A Canadian barber of sixty-five entered February 18, 1922, com- plaining of pain and blueness of the right leg of eight weeks’ duration. His father and one brother died of ‘‘shock.” His general health had been good. At fourteen he had a severe fever of unknown cause. The same year a stone weighing six or seven hundred pounds fell on his right leg and foot, leaving a bruise which persisted for six months and pain lasting four months. He had a recurrent abscess in the right ear for several years in his youth. For many years he had had an attack of bronchitis of two or three weeks’ duration nearly every winter. His teeth were soft and poor. His bowels were slightly constipated for many years; now moved regularly with cascara. Five years ago he had pneumonia. He had once had piles, which hadnow disappeared. Occasionally he urinated once at night. He denied venereal disease, though he admitted frequent exposure. Average weight for the past ten years 170 pounds, before that 140 pounds. He thought he had lost a little weight on account of insomnia during the past three weeks. He formerly took whiskey to excess at long intervals. He had been an excessive pipe smoker all his life. Eight weeks ago on stepping out of bed he felt a dull pain in the lower right leg and noticed the foot was white. He felt no more pain for three days. Ever since then he had had intermittent dull : aching pain in the lower two-thirds of the leg and severe shooting pain in the region of the great toe. The right leg and foot had been purplish since a few days after the onset. The pain had been getting worse week by week, although some days he was entirely free from it. It was increased by cold and alleviated by warmth. The foot was cold, numb and tingling all the time. During the past three weeks the symptoms had grown very severe, so that he had been in bed, unable to set the foot on the floor or to sleep at night, and had had to take tablets to induce sleep and deaden the pain, during the past three weeks as many as twenty-five tablets a day. During this time his hands, feet and face had grown increasingly bluish. He had had no treatment except that he had rubbed the leg and foot witha liniment and later with mustard oil with only temporary relief. The skin had been inflamed ever since this treatment. HYPERTENSIVE HEART DISEASE—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 485 A poorly nourished man, dyspneic. Face and extremities slaty gray. Mucous membranes reddish-gray. Sclerae slightly injected. Teeth all missing. Chest slightly ‘““emphysematous.” Lung signs as shown in the diagram. Motility of the spine limited. Apex impulse of the heart not found. Measurements by percussion: midclavicular line 9 cm., left border of dullness 8 cm., right border 4 cm., supracar- diac dullness 5:cm. Actionnormal. Soundsdistant. Slight systolic murmur at the apex in the left lateral position. Pulses poor volume and tension. Artery walls palpable, brachials tortuous. Slightly dull. Expiration pro- longed, Voice increased. Breathing emphysematous Nerisdeete throughout, prolonged. Old fracture, FIG. 95. Blood pressure 150/90. Abdomen distended, tympanitic. Genital. and rectal examination negative. Extremities. Slight fine tremors Finger markedly clubbed. Right foot blue gray and cold up to six inches below the knee. Particulary intense blue in the foot, which was very cold. Right dorsalis pedis not palpable. Skin scaling, with several reddish-blue spots in the lower part of the shins. Veins of both feet distended. Pupils and reflexes normal. Before operation temperature 96.6°-100°, pulse 80-111, respira- tion 20-31. Urine—norma] amount, sp. gr. 1028-1022, cloudy at one of three examinations. Renal function 30%. Blood: Hgb. by Tallqvist method chocolate colored. (See below.) No estimate made. Leucocytes 13,400-22,800. Polynuclears 84%. Reds and platelets normal. Wassermann negative. Non-protein nitrogen 61.8 mgm. Bleeding time 214 minutes. Clotting time 4 minutes. Two throat cultures negative. February 22 the patient felt considerably better. The foot was kept warm and was much less painful. His physician reported that he had given him not more than twenty-four tablets of ‘‘sel codeia’”’ which may have contained acetanilid. Tests for methemoglobin and spectroscopic examination negative. The 24th and 25th the pains in the foot were very severe. ‘The foot became increasingly blue, and by the 27th was very blue from toes to midshin. February 28 amputation was done. The next day the heart action was somewhat irregular. March 4 there was some slight distension. The wound was surprisingly clean considering that there was practically no bleeding at the time of operation. 486 FACTS ON THE HEART Dr. Hugh Cabot’s Pre-operative Diagnosis —Thrombosis of pop- liteal artery from arteriosclerosis. Pre-operative Diagnosis —Gangrene of the foot. Operation—Spinal anesthesia. Amputation of the right leg through mid-thigh for thrombosis. Anterior and posterior flaps with muscle flaps. No bleeding from stump after tourniquet was -removed. Femoral artery thrombosed as high as it could be traced. Wound closed loosely with continuous catgut. Pathological Report—The poplteal artery contains a solid throm- bus. There is no necrosis of the toes or foot. | Microscopic examination shows degeneration of the wall of the artery with small round cell infiltration and thrombus formation. Arteriosclerosis. Thrombosis. March 9g the patient had sudden right-sided paralysis involving the face on the same side. He was semiconscious, but unable to speak. He had clonic convulsions involving the whole right side and left arm in very slow, deliberate movements. Any stimulation of the right limbs resulted in slow contraction of the whole muscula- ture, usually flexion. The pulse ranged from 92 to 120. March 12 he seemed improved. He was still unable to talk, but smiled and seemed to understand what was said. ‘The facial involvement was less, though the right-sided paralysis was still complete. March 16 the temperature rose to 101.2°. He grew gradually worse, showed evidence of pain, March 18 became comatose, and March 1g died. Clinical Diagnosis —Arteriosclerosis. Embolisms of right leg. Amputation of right leg, mid-thigh. Dr. Hugh Cabot’s Diagnosis.—Arteriosclerotic gangrene (leg). Arteriosclerosis. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Cerebral embolism. Anatomical Diagnosis —Arteriosclerosis. Mural thrombus of the aorta. Thrombosis of right femoral artery. Thrombosis of the right iliac and femoral veins. Embolism of splenic, hepatic and renal arteries. Infarcts of brain. Infarction of spleen and left kidney. Infarcts of right kidney. Focal pneumonia. HYPERTENSIVE HEART DISEASE—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 487 Wet brain. Recent amputation of left thigh. Chronic pleuritis. Obsolete tuberculosis, apices of lungs. Emphysema of left lung. The autopsy is interesting as showing the extent to which thrombi and emboli may go and yet life continue. There was nothing about Fic. 96.—Heart and aorta from case 4312. P, point of attachment of a pennant-shaped mural thrombus of the aorta. the condition of the urine to lead one to suspect the extent of the interference with the circulation. I do not see that they have anywhere accounted for the clubbed fingers, and wonder whether it was a faulty observation. Clearly he had enough things to die of, and it is surprising that he had not done so before. Necropsy 4251 First entry. An unmarried Irish laundress of twenty-seven entered February 27, 1914, for relief of pain in the back. 488 FACTS ON THE HEART Her past history was negative except for frequent sore throats and a run down condition in 1905. Record of the Out-Patient Department, December, 1905. Com- plaint, abdominal pain for two months, with headache and water brash. Cheeks puffy in the morning with swelling of hands and legs. Physical examination showed the eyelids puffy, but no edema of the legs. Heart not enlarged. No murmurs. Slight dullness at the right apex front and back. Urine negative. She did not stop work, and was better after a few weeks. Eight years later, a year before admission she began to have occip- ital headache radiating to the orbital region, coming on early in the morning and lasting all day, accompanied by frequent vomiting and confining her to bed. ‘The attacks came about once a month, without relation to catamenia. About this time she had swelling of the feet and puffiness of the eyelids, which had increased. Four months ago she was so much worse that she gave up her cooking because of weakness, but chiefly because of pain in the left sacroiliac region on walking. A week ago she gave up work altogether. She had had dyspnea on much exertion for a long time, but worse recently. For a few days she had had cough without sputum. Her bowels moved only with medicine. She passed less urine than usual. She had lost an unknown amount of weight. She was well nourished, slightly pale. Palatal arch rather high and narrowed. Teeth much decayed. Some pyorrhea. Tonsils slightly enlarged. Heart: no enlargement made out. Apex impulse forceful. Sounds of good quality. P2 accentuated. A soft systolic murmur accompanied the first sound, heard best at the pul- monic area, slightly at the apex. Pulses fair volume, good tension. Right slightly greater than left. Walls not felt. Blood pressure 125/90. Abdomen normal. Edema of the sacrum and marked edema of the lower legs and dependent portions of the thighs. Pupils normal except that the right was slightly irregular. Reflexes. Left knee-jerk somewhat sluggish. Right obtained only on reenforce- ment. Plantars normal. Temperature 97.2°-99°. Pulse61-80. Respiration 17-29. Urine: 3 17-32. Sp. gr. 1014-1024. Cloudy at one of six examinations, a very slight trace to a trace of albumin at all, red blood cells and many. leucocytes at all. Renal function 40%. Blood: Hgb. 80%. Leucocytes 5200, polynuclears 79%. Wassermann negative. X-ray of kidneys negative. Left antrum looked opaque, but there was a good deal of distortion. HYPERTENSIVE HEART DISEASE—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 489 By March 14 there was no edema. The other symptoms had improved markedly, and she was up and felt strong. The urine remained unchanged. She was discharged that day with advice as to diet. Records of the Out-Patient Department show a visit in March, t9g15, to the Orthopedic Room, where her feet were strapped, and one to the Throat Room in April 1918, for acute tonsillitis, strepto- coccus. March 5, 1920, she came for headache, vomiting, and edema of the face, the legs and perhaps also the abdomen. The urine was cloudy, sp. gr. 1o1o, a large trace of albumin. Heart slightly enlarged. Blood pressure 180/134. Second entry, March 25, 1920. Her father died of kidney trouble. She had sore throats all her life until fourteen years ago; rarely since then. Her bowels were always costive. Six years ago she had considerable bilateral greenish discharge from the nose. Five years ago she had a right earache and discharging ear. The ear had been slightly deaf ever since. A year ago she had influenza. That year she had occasional metrorrhagia for one or two days, never more than twice a month. A few months ago while costive she noticed a few specks of bright red blood in the stool. For five weeks she had had frequency of urination. Occasional scalding. Her weight gradually increased from 122 to 130 pounds, her present and best weight. Habits. Good. She now gave a history of five months’ treatment at another Bos- ton hospital in 1913 and three weeks in 1916 for the same complaint treated here in 1914. In 1915 she was well. Three years ago she came to the Out-Patient Department of this hospital with the same complaint and was given a diet, but had never followed it. Since that time she had been in the other hospital once and in the Out- Patient Department several times. She had been fairly well for a year until five weeks before admission, when she began to see specks everywhere before her eyes. Her face, abdomen and legs began to swell. She had been nauseated much of the time, and had vomited once. She was getting a little dyspneic, had some palpitation on exertion, and had used two pillows at night. Five weeks ago and again at admission her urine was red. She had some scalding and frequent urination in the day and dull ache in the lower abdomen after eating, relieved by hot drinks and by passing gas by rectum. She was occasionally dizzy and had a flushing sensation over the 490 FACTS ON THE HEART TABLE 107 Schlayer test, March 27 Nit Volume S eres Sodium Time | of urine : gm. per in c:¢, a ea Total liter liter Chloride .98 36 : Breakfast 8 a.m. -73 Dinner 12 m. Supper 6 p.m. Night.... Wotaleres Intake... head and neck. She had taken MgSO, at home every morning for five weeks, during which period she had had practically constant occipital headache. She was well nourished. Slight edema of the face. Mucosae slightly pale. Slight deafness of both ears. Pus pocket at roots of lower incisors. No pyorrhea. Tonsils large, crypts prominent. Lungs clear. Heart not enlarged.* A» accentuated. Pe. double. A soft blowing systolic murmur heard all over the precordia, loudest at the base. Blood pressure 190/120-150/100. Abdomen. Shift- ing dullness in the flanks. Slight tenderness in the right upper quadrant. Slight right costovertebral tenderness. Right kidney questionably palpable. Extremities. Slight edema of the feet, legs, thighs and lower back. Pupils and fundi normal. Knee-jerks sluggish. Temperature and respiration not remarkable. Pulse 65-95. Urine: ward record 3 11-72. Cloudy at all of four examinations. Neutral at one. Sp. gr. 1008-1024. A trace to a slight trace of albumin at all. Loaded with red blood corpuscles at three exami- nations, rare at the fourth, leucocytes at all. (No catheter specimen.) Note on Schlayer test by Dr. Reginald Fitz. ‘‘Test appar- = ently shows inability of kidney to excrete water and nitrogen. Chlo- ride reactions show good concentrative powers of kidney and that *The measurements were: midclavicular line 8 cm., left border of dullness 9.5 cm., right border of dullness 3.5 cm., supracardiac dullness 5.5 cm. HYPERTENSIVE HEART DISEASE—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 4QI total output approaches intake.’’ Renal function. March 25 25%, April 5 15%. X-ray. Pus pocket at root of an incisor. Left antrum hazy, also both frontal sinuses. Heart as shown in the illustration. Orders.. Salt free low protein diet. Limit fluids to 1200 c.c. MgSO, 5 iss. By April 4 the patient was much better, the edema was gone, and there was no headache or visual disturbance. The urine and ie ee Fic. 97.—Necropsy 4251. Chronic glomerulo-nephritis with hypertrophy of the heart and subacute pericarditis. X-ray shows the heart apparently slightly enlarged. There is unusual angulation in the border of the left ventricle; otherwise the shape of the heart is not abnormal. Supracardiac dullness abnormally wide, and aortic area shows generalized increase in size, suggesting a diffuse dilatation. (Roentgenological _ Department, Massachusetts General Hospital.) blood chemistry, however, were worse than at admission. She was put upon the regular hospital diet and began to gain two poundsa day. In four days edema appeared over the shins. Nevertheless she insisted upon going home, and April g did so. Third entry, September 13, 1921. She had been married two years. Since leaving the hospital she. had had slight edema of the ankles nearly every day, disappearing at night, and headaches as often as once a week. She had not kept to any diet or taken any medicine A year ago she had blurring of vision, equal in both eyes, with gradual recovery. She considered AQ2 FACTS ON THE HEART them nearly normal at present. Five weeks ago she began to have smothering sensations, worse at night and on exertion, preventing her from lying flat, and gradually increasing in severity and frequency. The nocturnal frequency increased to every hour or half hour until her doctor gave her some green liquid for her heart two weeks ago, since when it had decreased to four times anight. The dyspnea had remained the same. A week ago she had a slight nosebleed. About this time she caught cold and had had slight cough ever since. For four nights she had had very severe attacks of breathlessness accom- panied by a sensation of great constriction in the chest and some shoot- ing pains over the heart. During the attacks she thought she was going to die. At the end she found that her hands and feet were moving in an uncontrollable way. In two months she had lost twenty-two pounds. | Physical examination. A poorly nourished, pale, thin woman sitting upright in some respiratory distress. Skin dry, icteric. Mucous membranes pale. Sclerae injected. Chest expansion and diaphragm excursion slightly greater on the left. Slight dullness at both bases, more on the left. A few moist crackling rales at both bases. Marked pulsation above the clavicle. Spine tender over lumbo-sacral region. Heart action rapid (100). Sounds of good quality. A» greater than Po, both accentuated. A» sharp and ringing. Soft systolic murmur at the apex and over the precordia. Pulses of poor volume and tension. Artery walls normal. Blood pressure 220/140-170/110. Abdomen. Liver dullness from sixth rib to costal margin. Edge not felt. Extremities. Slight edema of shins and sacrum. Pupils slightly irregular, otherwise normal. Fundi not abnormal except for greatly dilated veins. Reflexes. Knee-jerks not obtained. Temperature 98.5°—96.3° (by mouth); after September 26 96.5°— 99.6° (rectal.) Pulse 101-60. Respirations 31-9. Urine: § 18-6 (?). Sp. gr. roo6-1o12. Cloudy at four of six examinations, pink at one, alkaline at all, a trace to a large trace of albumin at all. Red blood corpuscles at one, leucocytes at one. Renal function O (two tests). Blood: Hgb. 50%-40%. Leucocytes 24,000-11,800. Poly- nuclears 71%. Reds 2,224,000-2,640,000. Smear and platelets normal. Two Wassermanns negative. Non-protein nitrogen September 13 95.1 mgm., September 20 133.2, and September 26 333 mgm. Bleeding time 2:10 minutes. Clotting time 6:45-8:45. By September 15 the patient was vomiting practically all the food © ingested. She was too ill for a Schlayer test. Two days later she HYPERTENSIVE HEART DISEASE—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 493 was very weak and not clear mentally. Rectal taps were not well retained. The night of the 17th there was pain in the upper half of the left chest in front on deep breathing, and a definite pleural fric- tion rub heard just to the left of the arch of the aorta. She grew steadily more stuporous. By the 23rd there was edema of the left hand and both feet. Morphia in 1@ gr. doses was used to control the vomiting. There was some blood in the vomitus. Another fundus examination showed a small hemorrhage in the left eye. Sep- tember 26 the heart sounds were exaggerated. There was a friction rub over the apex, which the following day was unusually loud and grating all over the precordia, obscuring the heart sounds. Elec- trocardiogram Sept. 29, showed arrhythmia, brady cardia, rate 55-80; probably due to variation in site of pace maker; sometimes auricular with upright P wave; sometimes auricular-ventricular or ventricular escape with absence of auricular activity. Left ventricular pre- ponderance. High T wave. Against all expectations the patient lived in stupor until October 1, suffering some pain. | Clinical Diagnosis —Chronic glomerulonephritis. Uremia. Hypertension. Pericarditis. Dr. Richard C. Cabot’s Diagnosis ——Chronic glomerulonephritis. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Acute pericarditis. Secondary anemia. Chronic passive congestion. Anatomical Diagnosis —Chronic glomerulonephritis. Hypertrophy of the heart. Chronic passive congestion of the spleen. Subacute pericarditis. Ascites. Edema of the ankles. Dr. Oscar RicHARrDSON: The ankles pitted slightly on pressure. Unfortunately the incision in this case was restricted to a six-inch cut in the midline, but they found that the kidneys were small,—215 grams—and that the condition was chronic glomerulonephritis macro- scopically and microscopically. Evidently there was some trouble in getting the heart, but enough was seen to establish the hypertrophy, —a hypertrophy of the left side. The wall of the left ventricle was fifteen mm. thick, indicating hypertrophy of the wall of the left ventricle. There was fibrinous pericarditis. CHAPTER V MYOCARDITIS 1. CHRONIC FIBROUS MYOCARDITIS Few terms have undergone so many vicissitudes or have been used in more different senses within a century. In the years 1890-1910 we frequently heard the term used as a diagnosis to explain cardiac weakness and arrhythmia in elderly people without evidence of val- vular disease. When post-mortem examinations became more fre- quent and their results were more often correlated with the clinical findings, the term began to be abandoned, since, as I showed many years ago,“ most clinical diagnoses of fibrous myocarditis made at that time were demonstrably wrong post-mortem, and most of the actual fibrous myocarditis discovered post-mortem had not been suspected during life. I have therefore maintained for many years that the diagnosis of myocarditis is impossible during life. Against this it was for years contended, partly on the authority of Krehl, that one could find myocarditis in most failing hearts if one searched all parts of the heart muscle by microscopic examination. Since this is rarely done the contention is difficult to refute. But even if it were true it would not prove that such microscopic foci of fibrous tissue caused any functional weakness of the heart. As a matter of fact it can be demonstrated, as I shall show below, that even gross, easily recognized patches of fibrous myocarditis in its extremest form, may exist unassociated with any chronic passive congestion demonstrable after death. In view of these facts, the use by H. A. Christianf and others, of the term ‘‘myocarditis”’ when there is clinical evidence simply of an enlarged and weakened heart, seems to me unjustifiable. Any other muscle in the body may become hypertrophied and then if over- * A Study of Mistaken Diagnoses, Journal of the American Medical Assn., Oct. 15, 1910, Vol. LV. + Chronic Myocarditis (Clinic). Med. Clinics of North America, January, 1918, Vol. I, 813. Chronic Myocarditis: A Clinical Study. Jour. Am. Med. Assoc., 1918, Vol. LXX,. 1909. Chronic Myocarditis and Its Management. Southern Med. Jour., 1921, Vol. XIV, 587. 404 THE MATERIAL HERE ANALYZED 495 worked may give out and cease to function. We call this giving out “fatigue,” although its physics and chemistry are not yet clear. Why should we not suppose that the muscle of an overworked heart gives out from chronic and excessive “fatigue?” In such a heart there may or may not be patches of fibrous myocarditis. But neither their presence nor their absence is necessarily of any importance so far as the work of the heart is concerned. Of recent years, since the electrocardiograph has added so much to our knowledge of cardiac physiology, there has been a tendency to return to the practice of making clinical diagnoses of myocarditis, now supposedly based on electrocardiographic findings. But it has never been proved to my satisfaction that the presence of alter- nation, or of heart block in any of its varieties, or of any other defect demonstrable by the electrocardiograph, gives us no good grounds for predicting that fibrous myocarditis will be found post-mortem. Exception may perhaps be made of certain cases of complete heart block. Nevertheless it still seems to me true that myocarditis has little if any standing as a recognizable clinical syndrome. It remains, I think, essentially an item of post-mortem anatomy. THE MATERIAL HERE ANALYZED Among the g1 necropsies which form the basis of this chapter, there are two distinguishable groups, (a) those of acute cardiac infarc- tion, making up 25 cases out of the total of 91, and (b) those of chronic fibrous myocarditis, which in its pure, unmixed form, is exemplified in 66 cases. Infarction and fibrous myocarditis were present together in 18 cases. It is because of this latter association, and also because of their anatomy that I have discussed the two seemingly different entities together. It certainly appears to be the fact that, in some cases, chronic fibrous myocarditis is an end result of acute or subacute infarction. A coronary artery, usually the descending branch of the left coronary, becomes narrowed or alto- gether occluded, either by arteriosclerosis alone, by a thrombus, or by a combination of both. The area of heart wall supplied by this vessel becomes anemic, necrotic, and then is gradually replaced by scar tissue. In some hearts different phases or stages of this process can be found side by side. In others the acute infarction maims the heart so seriously that death follows at once before any fibrous change takes place. I am well aware that this series of events will not account for all cases of fibrous myocarditis. In 38 cases out of my series of g1 496 FACTS ON THE HEART there was no actual coronary obstruction or marked narrowing, either at the mouth of the vessel (syphilitic aortitis) or in its course (arteriosclerosis or thrombus). Most of these 38 cases have some coronary sclerosis but no considerable narrowing of the vessels. The origin of the fibrous myocarditis in these cases is obscure. They appear, however, to be relatively common. Warthin’s belief that most of them are due to syphilis may well be correct. The cases of fibrous myocarditis may be further subdivided into those which are diffuse and those which are limited to a small portion of the heart, most often the left ventricle near its apex (18 cases out of o1). These cases have no clinical peculiarities to distinguish them from the rest of the series. The same may be said of our six cases of cardiac aneurism. One case in this series may be described separately under the heading. SYPHILITIC MYOCARDITIS An ill-nourished male infant of four weeks lived one day in our wards, with dyspnea, a bloody nasal discharge and a normal tempera- ture. Post-mortem examination showed the lesions of congenital syphilis (Necropsy 3346). On the posterior wall of the left ventricle and the anterior wall of the right ventricle there were areas of increased resistance and marked pallor. Inthese areas the heart’s wall was about one anda half times as thick asin other parts of the ventricle. The tissue was firm, homogeneous, and glistening, yellowish-gray in color, like the uncooked white meat of chicken. The coronary arter- ies appeared smaller than normal. ‘The heart weighed twelve grams. In one other case of our series a single isolated area of necrosis in the heart wall suggested gumma to the pathologist; and it may well be that among the cases of fibrous myocarditis unassociated with coronary disease, syphilitic lesions may have preceded the scar forma- tion. The work of Warthin suggests this. (See also p. 424.) ETIOLOGY OF FIBROUS MYOCARDITIS Fibrous myocarditisis adiseaseofoldmen. 7omenout of 89 cases in which the sex is known were above the fiftieth year at the time of death, and only two were under thirty. In these eighty-nine cases there were only nineteen females. It may be maintained with some plausibility that the sex incidence argues in favor of a syphilitic etiology. On the other hand, the duration of life argues somewhat against this, unless we are to maintain that all coronary disease is syphilitic in origin, whether we find any lesions of syphilis or not. ETIOLOGY OF FIBROUS MYOCARDITIS 497 The average age in this group is notably greater than in the cases of syphilitic aortitis, or indeed in any other group of heart lesions known to me. Certainly in the majority of cases, those associated with coronary sclerosis, it seems safer to say that the cause of most cases of chronic myocarditis, and of many if not most acute cardiac infarc- tions, is arteriosclerosis, whatever further etiological mysteries may be hidden behind this familiar term. That infectious disease has any particular connection with fibrous myocarditis, except in so far as infection may be supposed to favor the development of arteriosclerosis, we have no evidence. There was no special frequency of typhoid fever or of any other infection, or of all infections taken together, in the histories of these patients. They were not notably alcoholic or in any other respect different from the old men dying of other causes at the Massachusetts General Hospital. The znfarct group contains acute infectious cases with coronary thrombosis, due to acute endocardial vegetations. Cardiac hypertrophy was present in almost every case. Indeed there were but five cases without some demonstrable enlargement of the heart post-mortem. But since, as shown in Chapter I, myo- carditis is usually associated with other lesions producing cardiac enlargement, we cannot reasonably say that cardiac hypertrophy is itself the cause or the result of myocarditis. Only in six cases was hypertrophy linked with myocarditis alone in the absence of other lesions suspected at least of being causes of hypertrophy. The figures follow: Myocarditis without cardiac hypertrophy.......... 5 Myocarditis with cardiac hypertrophy............ 86 Among these 86 cases we find but six in which myocarditis was the only lesion. In the remaining eighty the associated lesions were as follows: TABLE 108 Chronic non-deforming endocarditis in... 0.0.00. 0.0... oe es oe (I 2 CASES OR CI) ENS Ethie ea eg aan NMRA aA ae Nee et men 24 Cases EST ae Cie | lr SSG gee ae Pea BA al oe ii) Ot ae a I5 cases Prrerigsoicroric derenerationiof Kidneys. 517 cena oitacisie oh Ao“ 4 cases BeriE OUMCHOCEILATULES 3h eet eas ote Ac eee hana gla Beat Ee A EN 6 cases BREECH CEI) INS Pea tee Ui ce Beet hea, gee A OM MATA hs, eke sae 8 cases UMULUNS UTICA ICs Mone yt Sein Ae ae gees oe ene wie hears 6 cases ete eo met Set ek es ia ke. amie esa es Vi od SN, I case CATE CEN SRT ca db Spee Rs AR Tea TEAR, OY Or Si me Dae I case SUNT ATEDE gS OFEP aD a a ae A UR) Se Rh Ne I case Sea et garth le a ear aie Meet Weel ig EAL EE or Oe 2 cases 80 cases 408 FACTS ON THE HEART The five largest hearts of the series show the following data: TABLE I09 Age Necropsy | Heart R k Sex No. weight amis. 2603 No congestion. Anginoid death. Aortic stenosis. Narrowed coronaries. Mitral stenosis. Chronic nephritis, uremic. Cardiac infarct. Left coronary descendens blocked. Passive congestion. Chronic passive congestion. Acute dila- tation at end. Prostatism. Chronic nephritis. B.P. 200/— 105. Chronic passive congestion. Chronic passive congestion. Left coronary blocked. B.P. 230/175. In all these cases and in most of those in Table 108 we may reasonably suppose that the hypertrophy is due to hypertension. — There is no reason to believe that myocarditis causes cardiac hyper-_ trophy. A truer statement seems to be that a small percentage of enlarged hearts (86 out of 1209) get myocarditis. It seems to me therefore that we may sum up the etiology of myocarditis, so far as this series is concerned, as: coronary sclerosis in most cases (five-ninths), syphilis (demonstrable) in a few. The cases of suppuration in the heart wall, and of acute embolic myocardial inflammation as a part of malignant endocarditis, are dealt with on pages 512, 527. DIAGNOSIS OF MYOCARDITIS Only in the infarctive subgroup of cases can the diagnosis be often reasonably suspected during life. Some such suspicion may arise in any case of angina pectoris, expecially when it occurs in elderly men. ‘This suspicion is justified, as has already been shown, because we know that angina pectoris may be associated with obstruction of the coronary arteries, either at their orifices or in their further course, and that such obstruction often leads to myocarditis. But on the other hand angina is often not connected with coronary disease DIAGNOSIS OF MYOCARDITIS 499 and this often fails to produce myocarditis; so that the surmise is ill founded at best. Angina was present in twenty-seven of our cases, and in this group, therefore, some slight suspicion of myocarditis was justified. But one can hardly say that our diagnostic right extends beyond a vague suspicion. For, in the first place, there is the group of cases on which great stress has been laid by Sir T. Clifford Allbutt, in which angina pectoris is not associated with any form of coronary obstruc- tion. Eleven necropsies in this series illustrate this. (See Chapter VI.) Moreover, very marked narrowing of the coronary arteries, amounting sometimes to a practical obstruction, may exist without any myocarditis. Nevertheless the association of angina pectoris, coronary obstruction, and fibrous myocarditis is sufficiently fre- quent to justify some degree of diagnostic suspicion, under the condi- tions mentioned, especially if there are signs of peripheral embolism, of cardiac infarct or of acute pericarditis (see below). Aside from the presence of angina and the favoring conditions of age and sex, we have almost no clues to the diagnosis of fibrous myo- carditis. Arrhythmia, which used to lead straight to a diagnosis of myocarditis when the irregularity was present in an old man suffer- ing from decompensated heart disease and without evidence of valve lesion, was noted in only 23 out of g1 cases. Cardiac hypertrophy, as has been already said, was present in 86 out of gi cases. The blood pressure was measured in only 43 cases. It was high in 17 and notably low in six, the remainder being approximately normal. (See Tables 110, 111, and 112.) TABLE 1I10.—SyYSTOLIC BLOOD PRESSURE Not high tiger (ae ye NEDA MET Y PE BRE a LR Oe A Ree oo S TOT BLO. FGA ees. oe ieee ke tem a As Wee eTA Oy Se he PE RCE tee ted cee CATH OSs OE ce hoe ae FGLET SO oe Wa ia ieee ce a aa Nae st 181—200 J 1a ag 4 Le, on de eee CO ee ah Tae! 59 Be Ra 92T=2AO) ws a 500 FACTS ON THE HEART TABLE I11.—PULSE PRESSURE 6 weeks (syphilitic) 20-30 years 31-40 years 41-50 years SI=00 YearSsa: ae Ae eee ere 22 |. Males... fs2%.2)0) ee 61-70 years Females 71-80 years Sex unknown 1.45... .05 eee SI=O0 "Vy GaSe a! seth ee endl ree i ae “Elderly” Unknown Thrombi adherent to the ventricular endocardium were present in thirty-two or about one-third of the cases. They are formed pre- sumably on a patch of ill-nourished endocardium, this malnutrition being due to the underlying myocarditis, especially when this is of the acute or subacute type, closely related to infarct. Hence, if during life we get evidences of embolism or peripheral infarct, we may suspect that these are due to detached portions of an intracardiac thrombus, and so if we are rash we may argue from this the presence of a myocarditis beneath that thrombus. Occasionally such a guess may come out right. But (1) the other sources of peripheral embol- ism or infarct and (2) the cases of intracardiac thrombus without myocarditis, are so many that unless there were associated evidence of angina, cardiac infarct or pericarditis (due to the infarct) the guess at a diagnosis of myocarditis would be largely unfounded. be DIAGNOSIS OF MYOCARDITIS 501 TABLE 114.—10 CASES OF EXTREME DIFFUSE FIBROUS MyocarDITIS Chronic Necropsy | Heart |passive| Blood No. weight | conges-| pressure tion Age—sex Remarks + I yr. ago dysp. and cyan. 3 wks. Last 2 mos. dysp. and cyan. Died with acute dilatation. Palpit. r yr. ago. Signs as of mitral stenosis. 3 weeks dys- pnea now. Syph. aortitis obliterating one coronary orifice. Died in attack of angina. Aortic regurgitation. 5 yrs. gradual decompensation. Infarction at end. Senile gangrene. Chronic neph- ritis. No cardiac symptoms. 2 weeks epigastric pain (infarct?) 2 weeks orthopnea. 160/120 | 3 yrs. dyspnea. Renal stone. 2 mos. orthopnea. Died on way to cystoscope room. too/70 | 3 yrs. angina. Actinomycosis of lung. No decompensation. Cancer of stomach. No cardiac symptoms. 200/120 | Dyspnea 4 mos. (since pneumonia). Angina. In Table 114 I have separated out ten cases in which the fibrous myocarditis was of the extremest grade, diffused throughout the whole heart. The table shows that this group does not differ in any important essential from the remaining 81 cases. One of the most remarkable features about it is that in four of the ten cases there was no discoverable passive congestion post-mortem, which means that relatively good cardiac function must have been carried on to the end of life, despite a very extensive replacement of muscle tissue by fibrous 502 FACTS ON THE HEART tissue in the walls of the heart. Evidently it is not this replace- ment alone or in itself that makes the disease serious tolife. Patients, even with extreme grades of fibrous myocarditis may have no cardiac symptoms and may die (as in this group) of cancer or nephritis. With this I have contrasted, in Table'115, a small group of seven cases in which the amount of fibrous myocarditis was very notably slight, only a few patches here and there. In this group one might expect that the passive congestion would have been very slight, and indeed this seems to be somewhere near the truth, since in four out of seven cases no such congestion could be demonstrated. This gives us some contrast with the whole group, in which passive con- gestion was demonstrated post-mortem in 41 out of 66, or two-thirds of the cases of uncomplicated fibrous myocarditis. Nevertheless the difference is not very striking. The weight of these seven hearts averaged distinctly less than that of the ten serious cases of Table 114, averaging 477 grams in the slight cases as against 554 in the extreme cases. TABLE 115.—7 CASES OF NOTABLY SLIGHT FIBROUS MyYocarDITIS Chronic passive Necropsy No. | Heart weight ‘ congestion Blood pressure MODE OF DEATH In only a few cases, mostly of the infarct group, was the weaken- ing of the heart wall itself apparently the cause of death. If we separate out the cases in which neither angina pectoris nor the infarct syndrome was present during life, we find (see Table 116) that death resulted from chronic passive congestion in only three cases, in other words, that death usually has very liitle to do with the myocarditis. MODE OF DEATH 503 Chronic nephritis was apparently the main factor in the fatal result in twelve cases, streptococcus sepsis in eight, pneumonia in four, valvular disease in five. Arteriosclerotic gangrene and its results brought about the fatal issue in at least three cases, gastro-intestinal cancer in two, prostatic disease, pernicious anemia, cerebral hemor- rhage, delirium tremens and cirrhosis of the liver were apparently the chief factors in other cases. Only in three out of forty-eight cases could one say that the myocarditis may well have been an important cause of death. In these three cases the heart weights were 413, 545, and 807 grams respectively, and as the lightest of these belonged to a wizened old woman it, like the rest, was considered to be hyper- trophied. But all these cases may well belong to the hypertensive group and their deaths may be attributed primarily to hypertension and its results, one of which, for all I know,.may be myocarditis. I have already referred above to the very considerable hypertro- phy which was present in almost all the hearts of this group. In the five largest hearts, nephritis was apparently a factor in four. The remaining case presumably represented one of those examples of hypertrophy associated with a hypertension of unknown cause. From these as from the whole group one gets the impression that these patients have acquired an enlargement of the heart from the usual causes which lead to arteriosclerosis as well as from chronic nephritis or from hypertension of unknown origin; that in the course of this disease they have acquired also a certain amount of fibrous myocarditis; but that, in the absence of coronary disease and espe- cially of coronary infarct, this myocarditis has been of very little clinical importance. TABLE 116.—Main Factor IN DEATH IN 48 CASES WITHOUT ANGINA OR CARDIAC INFARCT ECOMI Ce NCONIILIS: px acid 3 aexsheet. Great eee Peers GNA i wake aah a? bk she 12 Benuicentia, OF acute endocarditis ce muee mt meee a, eet ete eee ey ane ee 8 ME ELA RM IGCASE SR, yaa DIT a LRM Amd ct), salem clit too e ee ieled ce 5 Eelam ne reed ee iyo re PR aR etl ie een ciel Wachtel e dixie Sa 4 Peariprane, Omer tretaity yc as fain | A Rate ees out ny Menai eve e 3 Beer Rt ONGESOI Ste rhs Or eichate is vadiad «tie kein Aol ahd oti Sony eats 3 Ae els aie a a et By Td: oat SS nae URE ns Hk ant a 2 Sg CART Degen Cog Se gD PRE ty gh RE co. Pd ih ea MRE Ne Rea cet 2 PUREE LUSEITS tai tia dak he ots a kee Eins Crk he Rls rahe aime 2 COT TST ST ee tome aia hie he MRR er anal ticbe a coats pamerht hs aie aed 7 Necropsy No. 2291 is unique in our series in that it showed an extreme degree of fibrous myocarditis in a boy of twenty years, 504 FACTS ON THE HEART without important previous illness. A year before his death, he had his first attack of dyspnea and cyanosis and went to bed for three weeks. Two months before death dyspnea, cyanosis and edema of the face reappeared and continued. They were severe for the last _ three days, preventing sleep and accompanied by vomiting. ‘There was also edema of the legs and ascites with intense cyanosis of the face, hands, and feet. The heart’s impulse was in the fifth interspace, two and a halt inches outside the nipple. The right border of dullness extended three inches to the right of midsternum, and there was a moderate increase of the supracardiac dullness. The heart was irregular and rapid, its sounds often obscured by noisy respiration. No murmurs. The pulses were equal, synchronous, irregular, of fair volume and low tension. The pulmonic second was sharply accentuated. He collapsed on his way to the ward and was bled three ounces, apparently with good effect, but attacks of tremendous cyanosis and extreme dyspnea continued. The outlines of cardiac percussion suggested pericardial effusion but the action of the heart was forcible and the dullness did not extend beyond the impulse to the left. He died in one and a half hours. 7 Necropsy showed a huge, gristly, fibrous heart weighing 807 grams. On cutting through the myocardium of the left ventricle great resistance was offered by the tissues which were everywhere tough and gristly to the touch, though more so in some places than in others. Section surfaces showed replacement of the muscle by gray-white homogeneous, apparently fibrous tissue in larger or smaller confluent areas. Microscopic examination confirmed these impressions. The coronaries were free and smooth. The left ventricle was twelve mm. thick, the right eight. The valves were normal. The other organs were normal save for chronic passive congestion. No evidences of nephritis or syphilis. Here was a tremendous hypertrophy and dilatation quite unex- plained and in a boy of twenty without any history to throw light on it. Wasthe myocarditis here a cause forhypertrophy? What caused the myocarditis? Icannot answer. In most of our cases myocarditis was apparently only an incident in the hypertensive cardiovascular disease of arteriosclerotic old people. But here the conditions are wholly different. One suspects syphilis but no evidence of it was obtained in the necropsy. FIBROUS MYOCARDITIS—-ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 505 SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS 1. Fibrous myocarditis is an item of post-mortem anatomy, occur- ring especially in elderly men with arteriosclerosis, nephritis, and hypertension. 2. It is not clinically recognizable, though its presence may be vaguely suspected when angina pectoris is present and especially when this symptom is associated with evidence of cardiac infarction, of peripheral embolism, and of acute pericarditis. 3. It is rarely the cause of congestive heart failure. 4. Only in one case had we adequate evidence of syphilis. 5. Coronary narrowing was present in about five-ninths of our cases and is the most clearly recognizable factor in etiology. Syphilis may also play a part. 6. Fibrous myocarditis is rarely the only cardiovascular lesion present. 7. It is usually associated with cardiac hypertrophy (present in 86 out of or cases) but since such lesions as chronic nephritis, valve lesions, chronic pericarditis are also usually present, we have no evidence that the myocarditis is the cause of the hypertrophy. 8. Evidence of chronic passive congestion was found in 51 of g1 cases, but when present need rarely be attributed to the myocarditis. g. Since fibrous scars in the myocardium—even when numerous and extensive, are not always associated with evidence of heart failure in life or of passive congestion after death, there seems no suffi- cient reason to believe that they interfere with the heart’s action in any material way. There is all the more reason to suspect that fibrous myocarditis is usually harmless, because in the cases which are associated with heart failure and passive congestion causes other than the myocarditis are almost always present. 19. Myocarditis is an obvious danger to life only when it leads to cardiac aneurism or rupture (see below) or when it causes intracardiac thrombosis and acute pericarditis. FIBROUS MYOCARDITIS FOLLOWING INFARCT—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES Necropsy 2871 A Scotch engineer of sixty-five entered June 20. His father and mother both died of ‘‘heart disease,’ one brother of brain trouble. The patient had all the diseases of childhood, then vigorous health until he was fifty-seven. He had taken no alcohol for five years. Before that he had whiskey before breakfast and half a pint during 506 FACTS ON THE HEART the day. He drank to excess three or four times a year. A year before admission he was advised in the Out-Patient Department to enter the wards because of obstructing prostate. For eight years he had had occasional nausea and vomiting, usu- ally attributed to excesses in food and drink. He had occasional epigastric distress an hour or two after meals, relieved by food. On a restricted diet without meat he did well. His vomitus was never bloody or coffee-colored. Two weeks before admission he was shovel- ling coal as well as tending his engine. He felt severe general abdom- inal pain, vomited, and fainted. Distress persisted for, four days. Since this attack he had had increasing dyspnea and orthopnea. For four days his feet had been slightly swollen. His urine was scanty. He had no nycturia at entrance, though formerly he had had frequency by day and several times at night. His bowels required catharsis. Examination showed a fairly well nourished, orthopneic man with many dilated venules on the face. The mucosae were cyanotic. The apex impulse of the heart was not found. The left border was not made out. The right border was 1 cm. to the right, the upper border at the third rib. The sounds were of very poor quality, almost inaudible in the mitral and tricuspid areas, apparently normal at the base. The pulses were of fair volume and tension. The artery walls were not felt. The systolic blood pressure was 115. Both lungs showed dullness increasing toward the bases, from the fourth rib in front to a little below the scapula in the back. Breath- ing and vocal fremitus were much diminished at the bases. Many medium and*coarse moist rales were heard, most numerous in the axillae and the angles of the scapulae. The abdomen, extremities, genitals, pupils, and reflexes were normal. The temperature was normal, the pulse 80 to go, the respirations 30 to 34. The urine is not recorded. The hemoglobin was 90%, the leucocytes 16,000, the smear normal. The patient continued to have dyspnea and sat up almost all the time. June 21 just after midpight he died. Clinical Diagnosis (from Hospital Record) —Myocardial weakness. Dr. William H. Smith’s Diagnosis —Arteriosclerosis. Possibly angina pectoris with coronary occlusion and myomalacia cordis. Much less probably rupture of the aortic arch. Anatomical Diagnosis.—Arteriosclerosis. Arteriosclerotic occlusion of the coronary arteries. FIBROUS MYOCARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 507 Myomalacia cordis. Chronic interstitial myocarditis. Thrombi of the left ventricle. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Infarcts of the kidneys. Chronic passive congestion, general. Hydrothorax, double. Chronic perisplenitis. Diverticulum of the duodenum. Hypertrophy of the prostate. Hypertrophy of the trabeculae of the bladder with small diver- ticula. Cholelithiasis. Dr. RicHsrpson: There was arteriosclerois of the aorta and great . branches and marked arteriosclerosis of the coronary arteries. The sclerosis was more pronounced in the left artery than in the right, so pronounced, in fact, that it presented points of occlusion with corre- sponding areas of degeneration and softening in the myocardium. There was only a small strip of myocardium left that was fairly normal in appearance, but the greater portion of the wall of the left ventricle showed marked changes due to the sclerosis of the coro- nary artery and presented, on the whole, a typical picture of degenerative changes in the myocardium. ‘That is, it showed degeneration of the muscle tissue and replacement by areas of necrosis and fibrosis. The muscle of the right ventricle was in fairly good condition, because the lumen of the right artery was sufficient to give a fair blood supply. The thrombi in the left ventricle were erected, of course, onan endocardium which had become degenerated. Beneath it the wall showed chronic interstitial myocarditis. The heart weighed 600 grams (normally 200-300), showing con- siderable enlargement. The cavities showed considerable dilatation. The valves, with the exception of a slight increase in their circum- ferences, were negative. From middle to old age the valves of the heart usually show a certain amount of fibrosis, because they are lined with endocardium, which plays the same réle on the valve that ‘the endothelium intima plays in the blood vessels. The kidneys weighed 427 grams (normally 200-400). When a pair of kidneys weighs more than 400 grams you are suspicious of glomerulo-nephritis. There are other conditions, however, which cause increase in size of these organs. In this case the man probably 508 FACTS ON THE HEART had fairly large organs to start with. Then there is a certain amount: of chronic passive congestion which has increased the size, mainly due to edema. Sometimes edema is the only thing found in kidneys of 400 or even 500 grams. Aswe have pointed out before, the increase occurring in glomerulo-nephritis is due to the obstruction of the glomeruli and the capillaries. These kidneys were plump, were of the so-called ‘‘hog-back”’ type, and were pale to dark brown-red in color, in some places cyanotic-looking. The infarcts to the kidneys were due to small pieces from the thrombi in the left ventricle which were brought by the blood stream. With the exception of the condi- tions described, the kidneys were very good for a man of sixty-five. It is rather striking in persons over fifty years of age that the kidneys stand the wear and tear of life remarkably well, as a rule. The kidney is a very resistant organ, and works to the best of its ability whether there be much or little of it left. The kidneys usually show at this man’s age some areas of arteriosclerotic atrophy. When the condition present is sufficient to be called ‘‘arteriosclerotic nephritis” the kidneys, unless the process is very extensive, are of extra good size, in marked contrast to those affected with glomerulo-nephritis. The development of the classification of kidney diseases into these two groups has come about, within the last ten or fifteen years. There was some hypertrophy of the prostate. With this there was, of course, back pressure. The bladder worked to expel the urine, with more or less consequent hypertrophy of the trabeculae. Necropsy 2787 A Prussian lithographer of sixty-six entered December 16, 1904, He had never been ill in bed. He had taken no tobacco or alcohol for the past six months. Formerly he used both in great excess— ‘“‘used to be a high liver.”” He drank ten to fifteen cups of coffee a day. For twenty years he had had “‘indigestion,’’—gas, sour stomach and pain two to three hours after meals. The attacks at first came on only after indiscretions of diet or drinking, but for the past two weeks he had had dull pain all of the time which at intervals became much worse and crampy in character. He had never felt nauseated and had never vomited. He had lost twenty-five to thirty pounds within the past three months. His bowels, usually regular, had been constipated for four weeks. His appetite had always been good until the past month. FIBROUS MYOCARDITIS——_ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 509 Examination showed a poorly nourished man with normal heart, lungs, and abdomen except for liver dullness from the sixth rib to an inch and a half below the costal margin where the edge was felt. The reflexes were normal. There was no edema. The temperature was 98° to 99°, the pulse 64, the respirations 22, the leucocytes 5900. A test meal showed free HCl 0.06%, total acidity 0.14%. At asecond test there were no fasting contents and no residue of the test meal after an hour. The patient was discharged on January 5, 1905, with a diagnosis of neurasthenia. He was well until the middle of January, 1906, when he “‘caught cold riding horseback.’”’ Cough kept him awake, and he raised con- siderable white or yellowish sputum, sometimes blood-stained. February 3 he reentered the hospital. Examination showed a systolic murmur all over the precordia, loudest at the apex. The lungs were slightly hyperresonant, with occasional moist rales. Expiration was faint, especially in the backs. The temperature was 98° to 99°, the pulse 66, the respirations 25, the leucocytes 8800. The sputum showed no tubercle bacilli. By February 7 his cough was much better and he was discharged with a diagnosis of subacute bronchitis. After leaving the hopsital he ‘‘never felt better in his life.” But early in June, 1906, he found that he could not walk uphill or rapidly without dyspnea and a sense of oppression in the chest. June 5 he drank a glass of ale when tired and shortly afterwards had con- siderable discomfort rather than pain in the epigastrium and much nausea. He vomited for the first time in his life. He had some pain in the epigastrium relieved by sodium. phosphate and sodium car- bonate. He slept very little the next three nights. He got up five or six times anight tourinate. Hehadlostnoweight. June8at4p.m. he was suddenly seized with sharp pain in the epigastrium spreading into the chest, through to the back, down both arms, especially the left, and very marked in the precordia. At its onset “‘he burst into a cold sweat,’’ panted for breath, and had “terrible nausea”’ without vomiting. Gastric lavage did not relieve the pain. Examination at his third admission, June 8, 1906, showed the car- diac impulse and dullness in the fourth space just inside the nipple line. There was no enlargement to the right. The action was regular, the sounds distant, the aortic second sound greater than the pulmonic second. A soft systolic murmur was heard in the aortic area trans- mitted upward but not heard in the neck, a soft systolic in the mitral 510 FACTS ON THE HEART area and the axilla. The arteries were sclerosed and tortuous. The lungs showed a few rales at the bases, hyperresonance throughout, — prolonged, low pitched expiration. The liver dullness extended from the fourth space to the costal margin. The edge was felt one | inch below the costal margin. The temperature was 98° to 101.5°, the pulse 70, the respirations 20, the leucocytes 10,900. The sputum showed no tubercle bacilli. About 10 p.m. June 9 the patient had a sudden attack of cardiac weakness following a small dose of trional and sulphonal. Sub- sequently his pain did not return, his appetite returned to normal and the heart sounds improved in quality under treatment with digi- talis. June 21 he was discharged relieved. After leaving the hospital he was comparatively well. He walked seven to eight miles daily, but did nothing more violent. He had practically no ‘‘stomach trouble.” Taking care not to overdo, he had no cardiac symptoms. December 29, 1906, he caught cold in the head and thought he spat up a quart of yellow sputum. He was unable to sleep, worried considerably over financial difficulties, and lost ten pounds in ten days. January 8, 1907, he entered the hospi- tal for the fourth time. Examination showed the impulse of the heart forceful, corre- sponding with the dullness in the fifth space just inside the nipple line. ‘There was a soft systolic murmur at the apex, not transmitted. The arteries were palpable, slightly tortuous. The lungs showed scattered coarse rales. The temperature was 98.4° to 99°, the pulse 80, the respirations 24, the leucocytes 13,400. On January 14 the patient was discharged with a diagnosis of bronchitis. After leaving the hospital he had only slight dyspnea and cough. He had however some gastric distress. On January 8, 1911, he cought cold; his dyspnea and cough became worse and soon his spu- tum became bloody. He had no definite thoracic pain. January tg he was seized with severe gastric pain and vomited once. After this he felt very weak and helpless and had a good deal of abdominal pain, chiefly in the region of the stomach and the right costal margin. He had some pain in the region of the bladder, some frequency, and burning on micturition. January 20 he entered the hospital for the fifth time. Examination showed a well nourished man with Cheyne-Stokes respiration lying propped up in bed, The mucous membranes were pale. The apex impulse of the heart was seen and felt in the fifth FIBROUS MYOCARDITIS——ILLUSTRATIVE CASES She space just outside the nipple. The retrosternal dullness was slightly increased. ‘The upper border of flatness was at the third rib, the lower at the fifth space. The sounds were practically inaudible. There were no murmurs. ‘The systolic blood pressure was 140. The pulses were of very poor quality. The artery walls were tortuous and showed fibrous thickening. The lungs posteriorly showed many coarse and fine moist rales. The patient was coughing considerably and raised blood-tinged sputum. The reflexes were normal except for a double Babinski. There was no stiffness of the neck, no edema, and no paralysis. The temperature was 99° to ror°, the pulse 80, the respirations 28, the leucocytes 15,000, the polynuclears 93%. The sputum showed thin mucus with fresh blood and a few pus cells. The spe- cific gravity of the urine was 1.026 to 1.032. There was the slightest possible trace of albumin at two of four examinations. The sedi- ment showed a few coarsely and finely granular casts and an occa- sional red blood corpuscle. Following admission the pulse was very weak and the patient’s condition extremely grave. January 24 the apex of the heart was just outside the nipple line in the sixth space. The action was heav- ing and forceful. The sounds were very distant. There was gallop rhythm. No murmurs were heard. The pulmonic second sound was greater than the aortic second, not accentuated. The aortic second sound was sharp and ringing. January 29 the patient appeared somewhat improved. A systolic murmur was heard all over the precordia, loud over the aortic area, but loudest at the apex and transmitted a short distance to the axilla. The aortic second sound was greater than the pulmonic second. February 3 he became pulseless and suddenly died. Clinical Diagnoses (from Hospital Records). First entry. Dec. 1904. Neurasthenia? Second entry. Jan. 1906. Subacute bronchitis. Third entry. June 1906. Myocarditis with dilatation. Fourth entry. Jan. 1907. Arteriosclerosis. Fifth entry. Jan. 1911. Arteriosclerosis. Coronary sclerosis with thrombosis. Myomalacia cordis. Dr. Richard C. Cabot’s Diagnosis.—Arteriosclerosis. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Narrowing of the coronary arteries, very possibly with Myocarditis. Terminal infection? 512 FACTS ON THE HEART Anatomical Diagnosis.—Arteriosclerosis. Arteriosclerotic occlusion and thrombosis of the coronary arteries. Infarct of the myocardium. Chronic interstitial myocarditis with slight aneurismal dilatation of the wall of the left ventricle. Mural thrombi, left ventricle. Fibrous and fibrocalcareous endocarditis of the mitral and aortic valves. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Chronic interstitial hepatitis. Hyperplasia of the spleen. Chronic pleuritis. Obsolete tuberculosis of the lungs. Emphysema of the lungs. Dr. RicHarpson: The chronic interstitial hepatitis was not very marked. Dr. Cazsot: A point of great interest in this last case is that the symptoms pointing to coronary occlusion and cardiac infarction apparently showed themselves as much as seven years before the patient’s death. They are more definite and recognizable in the later years of his illness, but still are spaced by long intervals of very fair health e.g. between 1907 and 1911. Perhaps this case exempli- fies a group intermediate between some of those ordinarily classed as chronic fibrous myocarditis (without acute seizures) and the more acute infarction next to be described. Il. MYOCARDIAL INFARCTION Since the studies of Herrick, Wearn*, and others the clinical picture corresponding to the blocking of a coronary artery with necro- sis and infarction of the heart wall has been emerging more and more clearly. The present series contains twenty cases of acute cardiac infarction, fifteen of them with blocked coronary. ‘There were nineteen males and one female. The ages varied from thirty-five to seventy-nine but only three were under fifty, and the average age was sixty years. Considering that it is the arteriosclerotic coronary lesions which pro- duce the infarction in most cases, this age is what one would expect. The extraordinary excess of males in this as in all the various series of cases either of infarct or of angina pectoris so far reporteaaay has * Wearn: Amer. Jour. Med. Sciences, February, 1923. MYOCARDIAL INFARCTION 513 not so far as I know been satisfactorily explained. In Wearn’s nineteen autopsied cases there were but nine women. Chronic passive congestion was present in life and after death in twelve of our twenty and in eight of Wearn’s nineteen. There had been previous anginoid attacks in six of Wearn’s nineteen cases and in seven of our twenty cases. The interval between the first attack and the fatal seizure varied from two weeks to six months in five of our seven recurrent cases. But in one, the anginoid attacks began two years before death and in two others (men of seventy) there had been numerous anginoid attacks scattered through the seven years preceding death. One of these men described his sufferings as beginning in the left upper chest sometimes with ‘“‘rheumatic”’ (dull?) pain, somtimes with ‘‘twisting pain.” With this was a sense of tremendous pressure in the precordia and a feeling “as if his left arm was being torn off from his body.’’ These seizures lasted three or four hours and had no definite relation to exertion, but seemed to him connected with ‘‘catching cold” (i.e. perhaps with cough due to passive congestion?). The attacks had been increasing in intensity, so that the patient said he knew he was “‘playing with death” (often near death?). In the hospital ward December 11, 1902, he had prolonged pre- cordial distress not relieved by nitroglycerin. December 17 an acute conjunctivitis appeared. The patient had been up and about the ward until the 25th, when slight dyspnea appeared. On the 27th there came a sudden sense of suffocation without pain but with great pallor and dyspnea. The heart was slow and regular but the chest rapidly filled with rales and he died in fifteen minutes from the onset of the attack. At necropsy there was arteriosclerosis of the aorta and coronaries with thrombosis of the left descendens and some of its branches, fibrous myocarditis and an area of acute infarction in the left ven- tricle. Syphilitic hepatitis. Chronic passive congestion. The occlusion of the coronaries was in places due to calcareous material, in other places to blood clot more or less organized. The other long case which lasted from 1904 to 1911 has been described above (p. 508). Histories like this and the frequent association of chronic fibrous scars with the acute infarction, as in twelve of our twenty cases, make it reasonable to assume that some at least of the older fibrous patches are due to previous infarcts which have accompanied earlier attacks and have healed so as to make recovery possible. 33 514 FACTS ON THE HEART SITE OF PAIN A point of great importance is the epigastric localization of the initial pain in ten of our twenty cases. Such pain is rarely thought of by physicians as having any possible relation to coronary occlu- sion, but is often attributed to “acute indigestion,” especially when it begins after a meal and is associated with vomiting. Probably this explains many of the sudden deaths reported in daily papers under the diagnosis of ‘‘acute indigestion” or ‘‘ptomaine poisoning,” espe- cially when the seizure occurs at a banquet, perhaps at the end of an exhausting address. In Wearn’s series the acute epigastric pain caused several patients to be operated on with diagnosis of perforated peptic ulcer, acute pancreatitis or acute cholecystitis. Others were mistaken for pneumonia or pleurisy. Epigastric pain may be the beginning of attacks of ordinary angina pectoris without infarction. Moreover seven of the infarcted hearts in this group were associated with precordial and never with epigas- tric pain. Three were free from pain altogether, one dying after an operation for cancer of the sigmoid, the other two of diabetic coma with gangrene. In four cases the pain began in the epigastrium but was later felt in the precordia and in the left arm. In distinguishing the epigastric pain due to cardiac infarct from the pain of acute peritonitis, it is of value to note that the pain of infarction is often accompanied by sudden pulse failure and fainting which are not signs of an early acute peritonitis. Pulse failure, i.e. a sudden rapidity, irregularity, then partial or complete disappearance of the radial pulse, was noted in nine of our twenty cases. Sudden faintness with or without nausea and vomiting was recorded in four cases. There was arrhythmia, usually auricular fibrillation, noted in nine cases. The duration of the attacks of pain was for hours or for days in all our 20 cases. ‘This point together with the lack of any relation to exertion or of any considerable relief from nitrites, give us the most important clues to the exclusion of ordinary angina pectoris. The coronary arteries were arteriosclerotic in all our cases and one or more were occluded in fourteen of twenty cases. In the remaining six cases the coronaries are described as: 1. Sclerotic but not occluded (one case). 2. Sclerotic but, free (one case) 3. Sclerotic and narrowed but free (three cases). 4. Sclerotic and capacious (one case). SITE OF PAIN 515 In four cases the occlusion was due to thrombosis (as well as to arte- riosclerosis) ; in sixteen there was arterioslerosis alone. The systolic blood pressure was over 165 in three cases (highest 250), 160/100 in one, normal in seven, not recorded in nine. Hyper- trophy and dilatation of the heart was present in nineteen out of twenty cases, as would be expected from the age and the arteriosclerosis. Five of the hearts weighed 600-680 grams, eight from 500-600, two from 400 to 500, and five less than 400 grams. Intracardiac thrombi were recorded in eleven of twenty cases. Fever was present in eight cases, slight Jeucocytosis in thirteen; but neither of these was sufficiently constant or marked to be of diag- nostic value in patients so acutely and desperately ill. Syphilitic aortitis was found in three out of 20 cases (1816, 2488, 3759) and in two of these the mouths of the coronaries were obstructed by the syphilitis process though there was some sclerosis in the coronaries as well. In addition to these three there was evidence of syphilis in the liver of a fourth patient (992). The Wassermann reaction was tried for in 2 cases and was positive in neither. As to physical signs of cardiac infarction we may say that there are none. No characteristic electrocardiographic changes are present, though peculiar complexes have been noticedinsomecases. Arrhyth- mia may be present especially near the end of life but is not con- stant or characteristic. Systolic murmurs are often to be heard and never significant. In one of our cases (667) during the last seven hours of life (tortured with dyspnea and pain) there was audible over the precordia a series of short sharp sounds spaced at equal intervals and all exactly alike—apparently all first sounds. In the pulmon- ary area a faint ticklike suggestion of a second sound was to be heard after each of the first sounds. The latter corresponded in rhythm with these sounds. There was no arrhythmia. At the end the heart stopped suddenly. Necropsy showed a thrombosed right coronary (sclerotic) and an area of acute infarction in the right ventricle. The thrombus extended down from a large clotin the sinus of Valsalva. Correspond- ing with the infarcted area there was a mural thrombus inside the heart and an acute pericarditis outside. _ The patient’s symptoms had begun six weeks ago with a sudden vertigo and a ‘“‘feeling that his heart had stopped,” together with severe precordial pain unrelated to exertion. These attacks recurred several times in the next six weeks. 516 FACTS ON THE HEART This case is the only one in our series in which the right coronary alone was affected. In the other cases either the left coronary alone (9 cases) or both coronaries were affected (5 cases), or there was no actual occlusion (5 cases). » Clearly the diagnosis of coronary occlusion with infarction of the heart must depend chiefly on the history and course of the disease, not on physical examination. Hence it may be well to quote a few more of the patients’ stories. 1. ‘A week ago I got a terrible pain at the pit of my stomach and an awiul pressing in along withit. A while after I felt it in my heart and inside my left arm.”’ Two days after that on which he told us this, the patient (a man of sixty-three) woke at 2:50 a.m., suddenly sat up, gave a cry and fell back dead. Necropsy showed that the apical part of the left ventricular wall and about one-third of the ventricle above this was thinned to five or six mm. and showed much fibrous change in the midst of which there were, here and there, small dirty-yellowish homogeneous soft necrotic areas. The right coronary was free but showed much fibrous or fibro-calcareous change. The left was like a beaded pipe-stem or a solid cord, its lumen gone. In places this was owing to the sclerosis, but the vessel contained also a recent thrombus. There was an intraventricular thrombus over the site of the fresh infarction. During the last two days of his life his cardiac impulse was regular and forceful though the heart sounds were weak. No cardiac mur- murs were detected. His blood pressure was 120/85. As he had dyspnea and palpitation for seven years, we may con- jecture that the coronary thrombus originated from the intraventri- cular thrombus, though the sequence may have been in the opposite direction. 2. For seven or eight years a man of sixty-five had had occasional epigastric distress one to two hours after meals. ‘Two weeks ago he had severe abdominal pain lasting most of four days, with dyspnea, orthopnea and edema. He lived forty hours in the hospital with orthopnea and double hydrothorax. I could hear almost no heart sounds at the apex. At the base they were normal though faint. No murmurs. Pulse regular, fair volume and tension. From his usual position leaning forward over his knees he suddenly fell back against the bed-rest. The interne went to him immediately, found — SITE OF PAIN 517 him pulseless and could hear no heart sounds. Apparently his sudden death was not preceded by pain. Necropsy showed that the left coronary was practically occluded by arteriosclerosis. The right showed a moderate amount of fibrous and fibrocalcareous change and a reduction of its lumen at one point. The left ventricle was everywhere reduced in thickness except for a strip about 2.5 cm. wide where its wall measured fifteen mm. In the thinned portions it often came down to one mm. The wall (except for the strip just described) showed opaque discrete or conflu- ent dull grayish-yellow areas. Also grayish-white streaks and patches of fibrous tissue. ‘Towards the apex the wall was like thin leather. The changes extended into the region of His’s bundle. 3. A man of sixty-eight had suffered for five years with attacks of epigastric pain and faintness. For a year he had felt soreness in the precordia, worse on exertion. Ten days ago he suddenly began to have pain limited to the epigastrium, severe, non-radiating (dura- tion?). For four days he has had dull pain and “weakness” in the middorsal region. During his first two days under observation he had ‘‘three dis- tinct attacks of angina, with dyspnea and phlegm in his throat.” The heart showed no enlargement clinically, was regular and not rapid. No murmurs. For most of the time during the last days of his life his pulse was strong and regular. In some of his anginal attacks his heart continued to be regular though the sounds became weak. In other attacks it was absolutely irregular with a large pulse deficit. Blood pressure 130/90. He died in a week. Necropsy: Coronary sclerosis without occlusion. The myocar- dium of the left ventricle was reduced to one to five mm. in thickness with streaks and patches of fibrous tissue and indefinitely bounded, dull, dark brownish red, homogeneous areas. A mural thrombus in the left ventricle could only with difficulty be distinguished from the softened myocardium beneath it. The wall of the left ventricle was generally boggy and yielding. It tore easily and in places bulged (cardiac aneurism). There was subacute and also chronic pericardi- tis. The heart weighed 600 grams, though no enlargement was detected in life. Valves normal. 4. A woman of sixty-one was seized six days before she entered the hospital with very severe epigastric pain, faintness and vomiting. These symptoms recurred twenty-four hours before her entrance with 518 FACTS ON THE HEART vomiting, and did not afterward abate. The heart was moderately enlarged, rapid and regular, with a rough apical systolic murmur replacing the first sound. The pulse was barely perceptible and disappeared soon after she reached the ward. Seen by Dr. Maurice H. Richardson who wrote: ‘“‘There is a very strong indication for operation—probably to reheve pancreatic hemorrhage—but her general condition is too bad to warrant any interference.” Dr. Hugh Cabot concurred in this diagnosis. A definite mass palpable in the epigastrium lent support to the idea of pancreatitis. The leucocytes were 17,000, the temperature normal. She died on the day of her arrival at the hospital. At necropsy there was arteriosclerotic occlusion of the left coro- nary with softening and necrosis of the wall of the left ventricle. The heart weighed 307 grams, its valves normal. The epigastric mass was a congested liver. The thymus was persistent. 6. A medical army officer of fifty-two had been in excellent health and had done very strenuous work at Camp Devens in the spring of 1917. From May 3 to 13 he was prostrated with an obscure type of fever, thought to be typhoid or paratyphoid but without cardiac symptoms. (Wassermann negative, syphilis denied.) Recovery seemed complete, but June 3d and 4th he had several attacks of palpitation and irregular pulse, with belching but no pain. The attacks came soonaftereating. Electrocardiogram June 14thshowed a flat T-wave in Lead II; otherwise normal. June 24th at 8:10 he suddenly cried, ‘I can’t get my breath,” clutched the region of his heart, became very cyanotic, and died in a few minutes. At necropsy the left coronary was practically occluded by arterio- sclerosis, the right considerably narrowed. The left ventricle showed chronic fibrous myocarditis and fresh infarcts. I have allowed a good deal of space for the description of myocar- dial infarct because it is certainly not uncommon as a cause of sudden death yet is not often considered at all in the differential diagnoses attempted in life. A skillful and conscientious medical examiner tells me that about 10% of all the medico-legal cases of sudden death examined by him in the last few years have proved to be cases of coronary occlusion with infarct. We may distinguish four types: (1) Sometimes death follows the occlusion so rapidly that there is no time for the formation of aninfarct. 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Ve POT Pow ieee LA se 998 o> “hi oe W 09 e1€1 a "payoo]q suapuassap yor ‘siqiyeday orryddAs 0 ae oor a ai 1% W 04 z66 15 *snq -WOIY} [PINUI Y}IM UOTpOIEJUI OVIpIeD ‘“ATeUOIOD ZYSII poyxool_ te) + gt fe) é + W 9 L99 O SAP suo} SYIVUIOY nou ar eaa aystam ue, cress Opt as "ON SISeys JO eIpieg -29N qsieoyy proges qyorejur | veulsuy ‘aay Asdoroan | suroydurAg -OON peor) FS Dy En ae Pe ER Re ee a See eS ee TT ae (SILILUOY OLLYIIHdAS 40 € ONIGOIONT) SASVD 02 ‘anoay Loavan[—AII FIdvyE 520 FACTS ON THE HEART our series (1537, 2371, 2566, 3177). Here the clinical picture may be exactly the same as in those with infarct. For example a woman of forty-two, with syphilitic aortitis which at necropsy occluded both coronary orifices, had suffered from typical attacks of angina pectoris for six months before her death. In the first of these she fainted and was unconscious for half an hour. Her second and fatal attack of faintness came on suddenly with clutching pain in the precordia. The heart beat feebly a few times and stopped. Post-mortem there was no infarct. A second case of the same type but without evidence of syphilis occurred in a woman of sixty who had had one severe attack of angina pectoris three years previously and been dyspneic ever since then, with orthopnea for the past three weeks. Nevertheless a plastic operation on the abdominal wall was undertaken for the relief of enteroptosis then (1902) just beginning to become a fashionable diagnosis. She was cyanotic at the beginning of the operation and after it had a weak but regular pulse of 120. The heart was negative. On the second day after the operation vomiting and pulse failure suddenly supervened at 5:45 a.m. and she died in twenty minutes. _ Necropsy showed that the left ventricle was only four mm. in thickness; its muscle largely replaced by fibrous tissue. The branch of the coronary running toward this thinned portion was more or less occluded by a reddish-gray translucent thrombus. The wall of the vessel showed a yellowish discoloration. The right coronary was slightly sclerosed. There was an acute pericarditis and infarcts of the liver and spleen. The heart weighed 435 grams, valves normal. No cardiac infarct. Aortic Stenosis with Acute Vegetations Blocking the Coronary Orifices —There was extensive fibrous myocarditis but no infarct and in life no pain or other symptoms beyond those of aortic stenosis, until one hour before her death when she suddenly began to have extreme dyspnea and became pulseless. (Necropsy 2238.) (2) The second type, represented by seven cases of this series, shows acute infarction without chronic fibrous myocarditis and death follows the first coronary blocking. (3) The third or recurrent type shows post-mortem both acute infarction and chronic fibrous myocarditis. The clinical picture and the history of these cases allows us to suppose that the fibrous myocarditis (or part of it) corresponds to previous occlusion of coro- nary branches, the infarct having become organized. Later a larger MYOCARDIAL INFARCTION—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 521 branch is blocked and this results in an infarction which leads to immediate death. (4) There are also occasional infarctions without demonstrable occlusion of an artery and without clinicalsymptoms. For example: Typical Cardiac Infarct without Any Symptoms in Life (Necropsy 2183).—The patient died after an operation for diabetic gangrene and sepsis, without any particular heart symptoms and without any noticeable suddenness. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS 1. Cardiac infarction is a frequent cause of sudden death in elderly men. As the patient may vomit in his attack, such deaths are often explained as due to “‘acute indigestion.”’ 2. When death does not follow so swiftly, the severe epigastric pain often complained of may lead to an operation for pancreatitis, perforated peptic ulcer, etc. 3. An infarction may heal and another may occur months or years afterwards. 4. Sudden, severe, prolonged epigastric pain (often lasting for hours without relief by nitrites), especially if associated with faint- ness and pulse failure, should always lead us to suspect cardiac infarction. If in an elderly man there are prior, concomitant or sub- sequent “‘gastric” or anginoid attacks of the ordinary type, the diagnosis of infarct is probable. 5. Only about half the cases show any evidence of passive conges- tion before or after death. 6. Four types may be distinguished: (a) Potential infarction (blocked coronary and sudden death before an infarct has time to form.) (b) Rapidly fatal infarct. (c) Recurrent infarct with an interval of weeks months or years between the first attack and death. (d) Symptomless acute infarct. MYOCARDIAL INFARCTION—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES Case 4138 First.entry. An American factory girl of twenty-two entered November 7, 1895, for treatment of an abscess of the thigh which had discharged for seven years. Four operations had already been done. At the fifth two discharging sinuses were enlarged and the abscess cavity curetted out. After a somewhat troublesome convalescence 522 FACTS ON THE HEART she was discharged January 22, with a diagnosis of osteomyelitis May 20, 1896, she wrote that she had gained a great dealand was able to walk about the house without crutches. Second entry. January 29, 1920. Age: 47. Both parents died of heart disease. Her mother had several miscarriages. One living brother was very ill during childhood, had black skin, which peeled off, and was said to have inherited “bad blood.” Several relatives died of cancer. Additional past history. Measles and scarlet fever in childhood. Bronchitis for about six weeks every winter. Typhoid fever thirty- one years ago. Injured the right leg just above the knee thirty years ago. The disease described in the first entry followed. The knee was opened thirteen times and discharged constantly for nine years. . Twenty-five years ago she had a sudden eruption of erysipelas over the legs several times. Twelve years ago she had tonsillitis. Nine Mid sterual ( 5 Nipple 3cm. 8.5 cm. ° 4 cm. Fic. 98.—Measurements by percussion. years ago the right leg was amputated. For a number of years she had throbbing headache every two weeks, better for the last twelve years, when she had worn glasses. For ten years, with the attacks of bronchitis, she had slight cough, palpitation, sharp localized pre- cordial pain, and occasional attacks of orthopnea. She urinated five or six times at night. For the past few years there was occasional burning. Catamenia began at fifteen, but after one period ceased until eighteen. Since then it had been very regular, at times rather profuse. Slight brownish yellow discharge, especially after the periods. Four years ago she weighed 160 pounds, her best weight. Usual weight 150. Three days ago, during the ten minutes’ walk to the office where she was now a telephone operator, she had a feeling of depression and intense pain under the upper part of the sternum and suprasternal region. After sitting down for a short time she felt normal, but on resuming her walk had the same feeling until she sat down in her office. For the next two days she had the same pain on the way to the office. The day before admission it was more severe. In the late afternoon she had another attack, this time very severe, and — for the first time radiating to the left shoulder and down the whole MYOCARDIAL INFARCTION—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 523 left arm to the finger-tips. This lasted more than ten minutes, relieved by small white pills given by a physician. In the evening she had morphia, which kept her awake the greater part of the night. She vomited several times. The patient was well nourished. Head and throat negative. Apex impulse of the heart not found. Action slow. Sounds of good quality. P. greater than A». Electrocardiogram showed normal rhythm, inverted T wave in Lead II. Pulses and arteries normal. Systolic blood pressure 1oo-125, diastolic 50-80. Abdo- Fic. 99.—Necropsy 4138. Arteriosclerosis of the aorta with coronary occlusion. Thrombus of the left coronary artery. Mural thrombus of the left ventricle. Hyper- trophy and dilatation of the heart. Measurements by X-ray the day before death. (Roentgenological Department, Massachusetts General Hospital.) men: Liver dullness 5th rib to costal margin. Edge just felt on inspiration. Genital, rectal and pelvic examinations not made. Extremities and reflexes normal except for amputation of right leg above the knee. Pupils normal except for sluggish reactions to light and distance. Temperature normal except for rise to 100° the day after entrance. Pulse 68-100. Respirations 15-28. Urine: Normal amount, except one record of J10. Sp. gr. 1020-1030. Cloudy at one of three examinations, a very slight trace to the slightest possible trace 524 FACTS ON THE HEART of albumin at two. Renal function 60%. Blood: Hgb. 75%, leucocytes 8600-6400, polynuclears 79%. Wassermann negative. X-ray. Heart shadow enlarged downward and to the left. Promi- nence also in region of left auricle and pulmonary artery. Diameter across base of heart not particularly increased. Aortic knob promi- nent. (See Fig. gg.) The patient was given the usual hospital diet and codeia gr. Ws. Shortly after entrance she had an attack of pain in the chest referred down the left arm, relieved by nitroglycerin gr. 499. The same dose was given on ten out of fifteen days until February 13. Aspirin gr. v was ordered on four occasions for headache; also phenacetin gr. v once, and pantopon gr. 14 in four doses at one-hour intervals. February 21 and 22 pyramidon gr. v. was given. She had had no recent attacks at that time, had been up and about in a chair and able to walk a few steps. February 24 she was discharged to stay for a week in the country before returning to work. Third entry, November 14, 1920. Since her discharge she had been very comfortable until two weeks ago, except for occasional precordial pains, easily and immediately controlled by sodium nitrite tablets. Two weeks ago she had a sudden sharp pain in the epigas- tric region, thought at first to be acute indigestion, somewhat relieved by eating toast and taking soda. Two days later the painful attacks were higher in the precordial region and occasionally radiated to both arms. ‘The nitrite tablets had less effect, the attacks lasting five minutes or more and occurring on any exertion. She had taken On5 Cm. 3 A o ro = A, 7c Ao, S rae 7G, Shletaey OF Sorjerercaie Fic. 100. as many as twelve tablets a day. The morning of entrance a severe attack began at five o’clock and lasted until after eight without relief from codeia or morphia. She brought a note from her physician saying that she had had no treatment until two days ago. The morning of entrance she had had 34 of a grain of morphia. Amyl nitrite made her vomit and increased her pain. She had been on © sodium nitrite gr. i 4 id. for months and digitalis leaves gr. i.b.i.d. for two days. The present attack came on without any unusual — exertion. MYOCARDIAL INFARCTION—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 525 Physical examination. Obese. Complained of precordial pain after every movement. Grayish pallor with slight cyanosis of skin and mucosae. Lungs: Many fine and coarse bubbling rales at both bases behind, on the left rising to the angle of the scapula. Apex impulse of heart not found. Action slightly rapid. Faint tic-tac rhythm. Sounds of very poor quality. Ps doubled and accentuated. Pulses of poor volume and tension. Arteries normal. Abdomen: Liver dullness from 5th rib to 3 cm. below costal margin, where a smooth non-tender edge was felt. Very slight edema of left ankle. Pupillary reactions very slight. Temperature 97°-100.5°. Pulse 100-109. Respiration 20-27. Blood pressure 85 /60-80/65.. Urine not recorded. Blood: Hgb. go%. Leucocytes g600. Polynuclears go%. Wassermann negative. The patient was given soft solids. Fluids were limited to 1500 c.c. Morphia in 1 grain doses, once with atropin gr. 1490, was given p.r.n. every three hours, whiskey 3 2 b.i.d., digitalis leaves gr. iss t.i.d. She had a rather poor night and complained of soreness over the lower sternal region. Next day she suddenly became cyanotic, complained of sharp pain in the precordial region, had Cheyne-Stokes breathing, and died. Clinical Diagnosis.—Angina pectoris. Myocardial insufficiency. Coronary occlusion? Amputation of right leg. Dr. Richard C. Cabot’s Diagnosis —Arteriosclerosis. Arteriosclerosis of the coronary arteries with occlusion. Myocardial infarction (probably). Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Chronic passive congestion. Anatomical Diagnosis —Slight arteriosclerosis of the aorta. Arteriosclerosis of the coronary arteries with occlusion. Thrombus of the left coronary artery. Infarct of myocardium. Mural thrombus, left ventricle. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Edema of the lungs. Fatty metamorphosis of the liver. Soft hyperplastic spleen. Fibromyomata of the uterus. Edema piae. Old amputation right thigh. . 2 526 FACTS ON THE HEART Dr. Oscar RicHARDSON: The brain was frankly negative, the vessels of Willis negative. The abdominal organs were out of the picture. The heart weighed 415 grams. She wasa strongly built, muscular woman, and the hypertrophy is moderate in amount. If she had a heart that weighed 325 grams we should not think anything about it. The cavities showed slight dilatation and the valves were nega- tive. The left ventricle wall was 13 mm. and the right 3. That is about right. The myocardium generally showed no chronic myocar- ditis. But in the region of the left apex there was an area about two inches across where there was some thinning. In places it was some- what fibrous and in other places rather soft. The right myocardium microscopically was negative. There was possibly a little fatty infiltration. The left coronary showed considerable sclerosis, and about two cm. from the region where the coronary breaks up into branches one of the branches was occluded by a small thrombus. Of course the area in the left ventricle was connected with that occluding thrombus. Whether that was the last thing that occurred I do not know. The vessel generally showed considerable sclerosis, and although the first portion of the right coronary artery was in pretty good ~ condition, still it showed some sclerosis. Looking on a little further we found a marked pipe-stem artery. These coronaries had been diseased for a long time, and the left had been occluded by the small thrombus, which was the source of the infarct in the myocardium in the region of the apex. 7 The remarkable thing is that we should not have found more frank myocarditis. But every once in a while for some reason the tissues maintain their condition under the decreased supply of the blood. In the left ventricle, over the area of thinning and infarction, there were several frank thrombotic plaques, thrombi arising on the endocardium over that area of degeneration, in this case a perfectly frank cause for them. Somtimes we find them and really cannot state anatomically why they are there. There was no pericarditis and no growth from the blood, so that if there was any temperature it must have been due to the thrombi. There was only a very slight amount of arteriosclerosis in the aorta. In this case it seemed to be particularly of the coronaries and no other vessels in the body. We took some tissue to be sure — there was no syphilitic taint, and there was none. MYOCARDIAL ABSCESS 527 The lungs showed some edema, otherwise nothing. The lym- phatic apparatus was negative. The anatomical diagnosis is essentially the basis for the clinical picture in this case. A PuysiciAn: Do you often find arteriosclerosis so localized as that? Dr. RICHARDSON: Yes; that is one of the strange things about arteriosclerosis. Dr. Casot: That is one of the common things and one of the tragic things. We may have arteriosclerosis somewhere else and it will do no harm, but if we have two or three inches of it in this little place in the heart, that sclerosis will kill. This was a typical case of its kind. I think everyone sees cases of its exact counterpart. They run very much alike. A PuystctaAn: How common Is it at that age? Dr. Casot: Not very uncommon. We expect it later. A PuysictANn: Are the coronaries more prone than other arteries to arteriosclerosis? Dr. Casort: I don’t think I could say that. I should say the abdominal arteries get it most, and then the big arteries like the aorta. Ishould say the brain arteries suffer as often as the coronaries. Dr. RICHARDSON: Yes, it seems to hit the coronaries or the vessels of Willis. Ill. MYOCARDIAL ABSCESS In our 4000 necropsies there were fifteen cases in which genuine abscess of the myocardium was found. Cases of myomalacia (infarction) without true pus are here excluded. Only five of these fifteen cases were over the twenty-fourth year. One case occurred in a baby only eighteen months old, and excluding this case there were six others at or under the fifteenth year. There were thirteen males (seven boys) and two females in this group. In all cases the cardiac abscess was only a minor item ina general septicemia. This septicemia originated in osteomyelitis in four cases. The septic focus in two cases was the heart valves, in one case a carbuncle, in one case the middle ear, and in two cases a small incised wound of the forearm. In four cases no primary focus could be distinguished. | In one case an actinomycosis of the chest wall was the beginning of the disease which in this case ran a much more chronic course than any of the others, corresponding to the difference in etiology. 528 FACTS ON THE HEART The micro-organisms present were staphylococcus aureus in nine cases, streptococcus in three cases, both of these organisms in one case, actinomycosis in one case, while the remaining case remains in doubt. Ten acute septic cases ran a rapid course lasting from two to eighteen days from the first symptom to death. One case of actino- mycotic abscess lasted four months and really belongs to a different group from the rest. The symptoms are ihose of a general septicemia without anything to call attention to the heart. Chills, ‘‘picket-fence temperature,” marked leucocytosis (90,000 in one case), and increasing stupor (‘‘typhoidal state’) are the main features. One of our cases was mistaken for typhoid fever. In the rest the diagnosis of a general septicemia was made, but there was no suspicion of any cardiac involvement. Nor were there any physical signs of tmportance. The heart was not enlarged, clinically or at necropsy, in twelve of the fifteen cases; in three cases (aet. 28, 40, and 46) there was slight enlargement (345,429 and 450 grams). No murmurs were heard in thirteen cases, systolic apical murmurs in two. There was no arrhythmia. Suggestions of embolism were noted in one case in which one radial pulse disappeared and the spleen increased rapidly in size during observation—an event pointing always (in my experience) to an infarct, whether bland or septic. In two other cases a double septic parotitis gave evidence of the diffuseness of the septic processes, if not of embolism. At necropsy the following metastatic infectious processes were Presen: TABLE 118.—LOCAL SEPTIC PROCESSES ACCOMPANYING CARDIAC ABSCESS Renal abscess i. oy «ss inj dave ee ten cs Set ck None mae 12 Pericarditis... 5 cs o8 islets vind givadniacnel ceo kte ance oe ee 9 Lung abscess; 05. SAV or ee ae eh ag 8 EMpyemag oe Pe odin ea oe Me dient ane allege es ee 5 Splenic abscess icws. ii. ae oe, cag ai wee as 0 yee cer 4 Subcutaneous abscess’...c . oan. eh vale sole cio lath ait cn eet eee 3 Multiple synovitis... eo... lec bees ae ee a nl 3 Liver abstess es -weciiiices oo ee. 5 log ib ee ee 2 Brain abscess/%, + 2..05;. 2s v6 4s seve dy ee eee 2 Abscess.of :the prostate..: .4o5s- 4.5 tt 2-9 go ty ea I Abscess of the: thymus ..2.$20o%ud 4.890. ho 5 Ceo I Abscess of the rectus musclé. 2. 32 05. ee eae Soe I Retroperitoneal abscess) a, init. ee ies 2 a ete ae I MYOCARDIAL ABSCESS——ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 529 During life there were, as has been said, identifiable foci of sepsis, most often in the bones, in peripheral wounds, or on the heart valves. The coronary arteries showed nothing of note in thirteen cases. In one case (Necropsy 59) the branches of the coronary artery in the left ventricle contained grayish-red plugs. In another, one of the arteries was disorganized. One of the abscesses extended to the region just beneath the epicardium. They were usually covered with patches of fibrous exudate. Outside the well marked abscesses, there was often invasion of the spaces between the muscle fibers by polynuclear leucocytes, and masses of cocci. SUMMARY Our general conclusion, from these cases, is that it is hopeless to make any attempt to diagnose or to treat myocardial abscess. It may be suspected, like renal abscess and pericarditis, as a frequent ~ complication of staphylococcus sepsis, and especially of osteomyelitis, in boys. One wonders whether healing and recovery ever take place in such cases. I see no reason why this is not possible. Perhaps some of the patches of scar tissue—which we find in the myocardium without any close relation to the main branches of the coronary— are the remains of healed myocardial abscesses. MYOCARDIAL ABSCESS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES Necropsy 3167 A nine-year-old school boy came to the Accident Room March 2. His father said that except for measles and whooping cough the boy had been perfectly well until a week before admission, when he bruised his shin. That evening when his shoe was taken off he complained of pain just above the ankle. The next morning he was unable to stand on the foot and complained of pain in the lower leg. This had persisted. February 24 the leg was red and swollen. February 25 the left arm became sore, and the following day the lower arm and elbow were red and swollen. The day of admission the right arm began to be sore. The boy had complained chiefly of pain, most severe in the leg. He had eaten and slept very little. Examination showed a fairly well nourished, rather pale boy. The throat was somewhat reddened. The tonsils were slightly enlarged. The heart and abdomen were normal. There were rales throughout both lungs. The right leg from the knee, including the 34 : . , = 530 FACTS ON THE HEART ankle, was much swollen and red. About the lower part of the foot and ankle, there were many blebs filled with serum. There was exquisite tenderness on pressure over the tibia. The left arm from the elbow to the wrist was swollen, very tender, and in the lower half somewhat reddened. There was an indefinite sense of fluctua- tion in the soft parts. The right elbow was somewhat swollen and very tender to pressure and passive motion. X-rays showed nothing definite. The temperature at admission was 104°, the pulse 120, the leucocytes 22,000. Operation was done the day of admission. ‘The periosteum of the right tibia was dissected entirely free the length of the bone by a large abscess. There were pockets of pus in the popliteal space and about the ankle. Other abscess cavities were found on the right ulna and the right humerus. Trephine holes into all these bones showed pus. The boy was in poor condition after the operation. The next day the pulse and general condition seemed a little better. March 5 there was tender swelling in the region of the right parotid and the boy seemed worse. ‘The following day this swelling was very marked and was extending upward over the scalp. There was also some swelling in the left parotid region. March 7 both sides were opened and pus was obtained from inside both parotid sheaths. March 9g the boy died. ; Clinical Diagnosis —Osteomyelitis, right tibia, right radius, left ulna. Double septic parotitis. Sepsis. Exhaustion. Dr. Young’s Diagnosis —Septicemia, staphylococcus. Osteomyelitis. Multiple abscesses. Anatomical Diagnosis.—Septicemia, staphylococcus pyogenes aureus. | Osteomyelitis. Pyemia, abscesses of the lungs, myocardium, thymus, kidneys, and anterior thoracic wall. Serofibrinous pericarditis. Fibrinopurulent pleuritis, double. Septic spleen. Operation wounds. Dr. RICHARDSON: We were not permitted to examine the head. In these cases abscesses and meningitis are found at times. ." MYOCARDIAL ABSCESS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 531 Dr. YouncG: There were no mental symptoms mentioned. Dr. RICHARDSON: One each side of the neck just below the angle of the jaw an open wound extended into the deep tissues. In the region of the left forearm an open wound extended down to the ulna, in which there was a small surgical opening. In the region of the inner aspect in the lower part of the right upper arm an open wound extended down to the humerus, in which there was a small surgical opening. In the region of the right leg an open wound extended down to the tibia, in which there was a small surgical opening. There was a small amount of subcutaneous fat. The muscles were pale and soft. At one place in the subcutaneous tissues of the anterior thoracic wall there was a small collection of pus. The peritoneal cavity and gastro-intestinal tract showed nothing to record. Once in a while in these septicemias we do find lesions in the mucosa of the gastro-intestinal tract. They vary from hemor- rhagic areas to areas of hemorrhagic necrosis, and may go on to perforation. In one case along the mucosa of the small intestine there were small collections of pus,—abscesses. In this case although there was a marked infection the gastro-intestinal tract escaped. The lungs were weakly bound to the parietal pleura by yellowish fibrinopurulent material,—abscesses of the lungs which had extended through and involved the pleura. The bronchial lymphatic glands, the trachea and bronchi were negative. The pericardium showed a frank acute pericarditis. The heart welghed 125 grams. In the myocardium here and there were small collections of pus,—abscesses. The circulatory apparatus otherwise was negative. The kidneys were dotted over with minute abscesses. The culture from the spleen, which was soft, gave a good growth of the staphylococcus aureus. There were some small abscesses in the thymus. All told a frank case of pyemia, the portal of infection debatable. Dr. Younc: He hit his shin and it started immediately after that. Dr. RIcHARDSON: That is the usual story. Dr. Casort: I should like to say a word on the modern hope of finding some sort of chemical treatment for these cases. He applied that only to the very serious cases like this. I venture to prophesy that if we develop valuable drugs of the gentian violet type, we shall apply them not only to the apparently hopeless case but to the early case which, if left alone, becomes appendicitis, becomes cholecys- titis. We do not often take our histories from the point of view of the hypothesis that those supposed local lesions are septicemias 532 FACTS ON THE HEART first. We know that typhoid, pneumonia, meningitis are first septi- *cemias and later local, because those have all been proved. I believe that appendicitis and cholecystitis are the same. I believe that with careful history-taking and especially with this point of view behind that history-taking, we are going to be able to recognize these cases in the septicemic stage before they become appendicitis and chole- cystitis, and, if we get any sterilizing drug, to put it in early as we do with tetanus now whenit has much more chance of doing good. I feel that we are going to have a rearrangement of our ideas about the so-called local lesions, which I believe are not first local and then general, septicemia coming from the local, but general septi- cemia first and then the local lesion. A Puysictan: Do you think that principle might apply to furunculosis? Dr. Casot: I think so. I do not believe furunculosis is a lesion that comes in from the skin in most cases; it comes from a weakening of the powers of resistance against the bacteria which are constantly in the skin or in the blood. Adami and others have shown how com- mon it is to have bacteria circulating in the blood, how common to have mild septicemias which we never complain of at all, the bacteria being excreted by the kidney and never making any localizations. That sort of work and the work of Dr. Frank Kidd* seem to me to show how mild septicemias often are. I think, we often do not find them out. Whereas we have thought of septicemia as a terrible disease almost invariably fatal, I think it is a common disease often mild and in most cases not recognized at all. Dr. Younc: The trouble is that up to the present the drugs are themselves very upsetting. There is no question but that there is a considerable risk of mercurial poisoning in using mercurochrome. I think the drug has to be of guaranteed harmlessness to have it used in the majority of cases. But I do believe what Dr. Cabot has said about the large number of these cases at least starting as septicemias. Necropsy 3575 An American reporter of twenty-two entered March 26. Two years before admission he stayed out of work for two months because he was run down and had lost weight. Otherwise he had always been well until six weeks before admission, when he was ill in bed for two weeks with “grippe.’’ He was feverish, coughed a little, and lost fifteen pounds. A week before admission he had a swelling on * Common Infections of the Kidneys—London, 1920. MYOCARDIAL ABSCESS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 533 the back of the neck. This became increasingly large, painful and tender. He had hardly been able to move his neck, had had a temperature of about 103°, and had felt very ill. For the past two days the pain had prevented him from swallowing. Examination showed a fairly well developed, poorly nourished man looking ill and holding his head turned stiffly to one side. He was unable to open his mouth more than half an inch. The skin was moist and pale, the tongue thickly coated. On the back of the neck was a sloughing area the size of a nickel, surrounded by brawny induration extending half-way around the | neck. The edema completely encircled the [pence neck. The heart was normal except for a gogukas systolic murmur at the apex. The rest of fowss™=| the physical examination is not recorded. aie The temperature and pulse are shown in Fig. tor. The respirations were 23-28. The urine was normal in amount, the specific gravity 1.030. There was a slight trace of albumin. The blood was not ex- amined until after operation. A_ throat Ponsultant, reported, -“I- cannot... see’ the ghottis, but as far as I can see there is no edema. Thesymptoms of inspiratory without expiratory dyspnea, esophageal obstruction, and good phonation point to an obstruction between the larynx and the sternal notch affecting both trachea and esophagus. The only possible pharyngeal neurosis would be a bilateral abductor paralysis, which is very improbable except in cases of tabes.” Operation was done the day of entrance. A T-incision was made through the sloughing area deep into the muscles of the neck. No pus ornecrotic tissue was obtained. Acultureshowed staphylococcus. The patient made a good post-operative recovery and was some- what relieved, being able to open his jaws about an inch. There was a fair amount of staining. He complained of some difficulty in breathing. The edema and induration on the back and sides of the neck were somewhat increased. The leucocyte count was 23,400. March 28 he was distinctly worse, unable to separate his jaws more than a quarter of an inch. Fic. 101.—Temperature and pulse in Case 3575. 534 FACTS ON THE HEART March 29 a two-inch incision was made in the right post-cervical region. Finger dissection revealed no free pus. The tissue was brawny, red, and indurated. A similar incision was made on the other side of the neck, but no free pus was obtained. The wounds were left wide open and packed with iodoform gauze. He was very comfortable during the afternoon, but early in the evening began to grow rapidly worse, with difficulty in breathing, princi- pally inspiratory stridor. March 30 he suddenly died. Clinical Diagnosis (from Hospital Record).—General septicemia. Carbuncle of neck. Cardiac failure. Incision and drainage, March 26. Wider incision and drainage of neck, March 29. Dr. Hugh Cabot’s Diagnosis——Deep cervical abscesses not satisfactorily drained. General septicemia, staphylococcus. Anatomical Diagnosis—1. Primary fatal lesion. Septicemia, staphylococcus. . [ Abscesses of the lungs, | myocardium, kidneys, | and rectus muscle. | Small mural thrombus of the right ventricle. Acute pericarditis. | Acute peritonitis. - Subacute interstitial heptatitis. Soft hyperplastic spleen. 2. Secondary or terminal lesions. Operation wounds. Slight chronic pleuritis. Dr. RicHArpson: I would not be sure that there was no free pus in the neck. So far as I could dissect there was not any. There was no edema of the larynx. Typical staphylococcus infection with abscesses everywhere, pericarditis, and peritonitis,—a profound infection. 3. Historical landmarks. IV. CARDIAC ANEURISM In twenty-five out of g1 cases of myocarditis there was a thinning of the left ventricular wall near the apex. Cardiac aneu- rism occurred in seven of these, associated with fibrous myocarditis or cardiac infarcts. The lesion caused no recognizable signs in life CARDIAC ANEURISM 535 and is of no practical importance to clinical medicine. Ordinarily the weakened tissues bulge outward but in one peculiar case (No. 2413) the myocardium was split and bulged inward so as to produce a narrowing of the mitral orifice. The patient, a woman of thirty-nine, had suffered with cough and palpitation for a year but had had no dyspnea till three weeks before we saw her, when it led rapidly to orthopnea and prevented sleep. Edema and other evidence of stasis were obvious at the time of her admission to the hospital. The heart showed moderate enlargement with a weak diffuse impulse over which was heard a loud harsh sys- tolic murmur replacing the first sound and ending in a feeble second sound. There was no arrhythmia. The pulmonic second sound was accented, the aortic second not remarkable. Edema _ persisted despite rest and digitalis. The pulse rose steadily in rate, reaching 160 in ten days. After that there were occasional extra systoles at regular intervals but no fibrillation. The patient in most respects seemed to be holding her own during the month of her stay, but on the twenty-eighth day she suddenly screamed, turned blue, and died in a few minutes. Necropsy showed a heart weighing 426 grams, the right ventricle four mm. in thickness, the left eleven mm. The valves were normal. With the heart laid open and held apex down, the anterior cusp of the mitral valve was continuous witha projection from the left ventric- ular wall forming a sort of shelf which roofed over a cavity in the ventricular wallitself. The floor of this cavity consisted of the myo- cardium of the left ventricle and papillary muscle. Its roof was formed by the elevated endocardium, the mitral valve, and the left auricle which skirted over and slightly around it. The cavity measured six cm. in greatest diameter and during life, when full of blood, must have caused quite a little obstruction of the mitral orifice, though the valve was itself normal. The myocardium showed fibrous scars. The coronaries were normal. Among the other cases of this series, four showed no signs or symptoms during life by which they could be differentiated from the ordinary senile failing heart of the hypertensive-arteriosclerotic type. Two cases showed no passive congestion post-mortem, one being clinically pneumonia without heart symptoms, the other senile dementia. Either angina pectoris or symptoms suggesting cardiac infarction or both were present in five out of seven cases. ‘There was coronary occlusion in three. ahi *pasOIVJOS SITIBUOIOD ‘UOIjOIVJUI pue WSsLIneue “yivoy poyesuadwooep smoyg ‘AjIsea sivay ‘sno ‘Ay[eoruyfy = 06 /ofI *q'g tr 0 o + te -qy ‘peuuryy eoIjUeA yyoT] 009 W 99 fpge L *pepnyo00 AIvUOLOD 4Ja’T 7 ‘eljyusWep oI{IueS ‘Adseq ‘snoueiqwmou (“Wut ‘Ayyeoruryg §=oL /SO1 *q'g t ae 4 0 =) Z—-1) UlYZ BSTIZUSA 4 Jo"T Sos J 94 Soee 9 *(xode Iepnomy -UdA JJ9] WISsTIneue) Yono4y = ‘y}eep ssolured } ay} 04 Spleté pue suruuiyy ro ‘usppng ‘uo1yesuedui09 peyxlewm pemoys xody *9aI1j 2 -eq ‘oIoIsAS ob ‘g'g at. 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UWOTIRT S9IIVUOIODT ‘as[Nq [eUISII fy -UI ZuTjses8ns syorye € + ce) + oo a -noue Ue YIM pouutyy xody 99S W 09 C1e1 z “PASTS *SI}ISUIUSUI-04d9aT suapuaIsap 4Ja'T *xode oruo1yy ‘asja suIyyoU ye suisjnq (‘wut V) snol pue eviuounoeud A][eoruryo fo) O— fe) ce) te) -qy ‘peuutyy s[oIjUeA 4Jo’'T Svs W OS OQOor I : , “ON Tq UIOIU4 elu ysasu0o YU BIOM xas ‘ON SYICUIDY Ten -yyAyary aAIsseg porejuy eulsuy [[e“ JrIvey Jo uorpuodg qIeazy ‘aay Saige ase) WSIMAANY OVIddvj—OII ATAV], CARDIAC ANEURISM—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES eer On the whole it seems probable that the myocarditis and thinning of the apex (left ventricle) with or without an aneurismal bulge, represents the healing of an old cardiac infarct. There are no clinical manifestations corresponding to such a thinning, whether it bulges (aneurism) or not. ILLUSTRATIVE CASES—CARDIAC ANEURISM Necropsy 3842 An unoccupied American of sixty-eight entered May 27 for relief of weakness and abdominal pain. His father died of enlarged liver, possibly cancer, one sister of cancer of the stomach. One child died of throat trouble at ten days. The patient had the usual diseases of childhood, including scarlet fever. In youth he often had tonsil- litis. Fifteen or twenty years before entrance he was operated upon for hemorrhoids, and since that time had had them two or three times for short periods. He had had no gastric symptoms except very occasional burning indigestion easily relieved by mint tablets. For a year he had had uncomfortable soreness over the precordia, worse on exertion. He rarely used tobacco, and had taken very little alcohol for six years. Before that he was for years a steady drinker, three or four times a day, and was occasionally slightly intoxicated. Eight years before admission he weighed 180 pounds, his best weight; a year ago, 140. He had not lost during the six months preceding admission. Except for the soreness over the precordia he had had no cardiac symptoms until May 15, when after no unusual exertion but rather indigestible food he had sudden severe non-radiating pain limited to the epigastrium, with marked dyspnea and orthopnea. He described the pain as a sense of “‘a ball in his stomach acting as a shut-off to his breath.’”’ He became markedly constipated and during ten days had not had a normal movement, though he had passed flatus freely and had belched some gas. One enema gave a partial result, two others very meager results. The stools were straw-colored, like his former stools. For three or four days at the onset he had marked dull constant pain and weakness in the middorsal region and lower in his back near the midline, relieved by massage and catharsis, which also somewhat relieved the epigastric pain. For three days after the onset he had flashes before his eyes and dizziness.. Since the onset he had had slight nausea and marked repugnance to food. 538 FACTS ON THE HEART Examination showed a fairly well nourished man, cyanotic, with moderate inspiratory distress. The eyelids were puffy, the skin dry, the mucosae slightly cyanotic. The few remaining teeth were poor. The heart was normal in size and position. The action was regular, not rapid. The sounds were of poor quality. The aortic second sound was accentuated and was heard in the neck. The artery walls were palpable, the brachials tortuous. The lung signs were as shown in Fig. 102. There was slight tenderness over the liver. The liver dullness extended 5 to 7 cm. below the costal margin, lower on deep inspiration. The edge went deep into the flank. The extremities, genitals and reflexes were normal. The pupils were equal, irregular, especially the right, and reacted to light and distance. Hyperresonant,. Breath sounds and tactile fremitus increased. Ax Expiration —=. Avs prolonged. Bp ANS Dull. Conson- D BSN f eting r@les. , ZS Tactile frem- “GEA Sy SA itus diminished. Ze Dili eRarees SSH / Dull to flat. Dimin- sa Sage a8) consonating on ished breath,voice, Lars inspiration. whisper and tactile S fremitus. Paraverte- \ WE bral dullness. No aR egophony. eG Fic. :102:—Physical signs in Case’ 3842. The temperature was 96.6° to 99.2° until May 30, then 98.1° to 102.8° until June 2, falling to 95.4°. The pulse was 88 to 130, the respiration 78 to 36. The systolic blood pressure was 135, the dias- tolic go. The urine was normal in amount, the specific gravity 1.028 to 1.014. There was the slightest possible trace of albumin at two of three exminations, pus at two, rare red blood corpuscles, hyalin and granular casts at the last. The hemoglobin was 80%. There were 17000 to g200 leucocytes, 80% polynuclears. The smear showed achromia and slight variation in size. A Wassermann was negative. The patient had three distinct attacks of anginoid pain accom- panied by difficulty in breathing and in the pharynx and the trachea a sense of phlegm which he felt would cause suffocation if he did not raise it. He coughed hard, producing nothing. ‘The effort precip- itated a real attack with great sense of constriction of the chest and CARDIAC ANEURISM—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 539 a feeling of suffocation, horror and air-hunger. During the attacks his pulse became absolutely irregular. There was marked pulse deficit with real delirium cordis. The heart sounds were weak, the face ashen-gray. ‘The heart became regular several hours after the attacks, and remained regular during the last one. It was doubted if amyl nitrite helped him. June 1 he became very much worse, his chest was full of rales, and he was expected to die. The therapy was continued, however, digitalis by mouth, digifolin, morphia, and also large doses of caffein, gr. v, at frequent intervals. He at once showed improvement, which continued until the night of June 3. Then his pulse became very weak and rapid, his temperature sub- normal. He coughed considerably. His breathing was very diff- cult, though there were fewer rales than previously. June 4 he died. Clinical Diagnosis (from Hospital Record) —Chronic myocarditis. Arteriosclerosis. Angina pectoris. Chronic nephritis. Chronic bronchitis. Chronic decompensation. Dr. William H. Smith's Diagnosis —Arteriosclerosis. Arteriosclerotic heart. Probably coronary occlusion. Passive congestion, pneumonia, or infarction of the lungs. Arteriosclerosis and infarctions of the kidneys. Anatomical Diagnosis.—Arteriosclerosis. Arteriosclerotic occlusion of the left coronary artery. Chronic myocarditis with aneurism and infarction. Mural thrombus, left ventricle. Chronic pericarditis. Subacute pericarditis. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Purulent bronchitis. Edema of the lungs. Hydrothorax, right. Arteriosclerotic degeneration of the kidneys, very slight. Slight chronic interstitial hepatitis with hyaline degeneration of branches of the hepatic artery. Chronic pleuritis. , Obsolete tuberculosis of bronchial lymph nodes. Focus of obsolete tuberculosis, apex of the right lung. Chronic perihepatitis and splenitis. 540 FACTS ON THE HEART Cholelithiasis. Cysts of the right kidney. Slightly defective closure of the foramen ovale. Dr. RicHARDSON: The background in this case was arteriosclerosis, and the various lesions in the organs were the end-result of it. The aorta and great branches were rather capacious, but in the first portion of the aorta there was only a slight amount of fibrous sclero- sis. When we came to the arch, the descending portion of the tho- racic aorta and the abdominal portion of the aorta, we saw that the great artery and its branches were the seat of marked fibrous, fibro- calcareous and atheromatous sclerosis, a good anatomical basis for the clinical condition. The heart weighed 600 grams (normally 200-300). The valves showed nothing worthy of discussion. The right coronary artery showed a moderate amount of fibrous sclerosis. It was rather capa- cious, and the areas of sclerosis were scattered. The left one, how- ever, showed an entirely different picture. Along a length of three or four cm. of the first portion, the wall showed marked fibrous thick- ening with much fibrocalcareous change which occluded the artery at one point. From this point on the sclerosed artery and branches are lost in an area of myocarditis. Asa result of these changes in the coronary artery, which had of course gone on for years, there was present in the wall of the left ventricle a well established chronic myocarditis in a large area supplied by the branches of the left coro- nary artery. There were also numerous dirty brownish-red areas which resembled areas of infarction, and the probability is that some of the branches running to that area of myocarditis had become occluded, with resulting softening and necrosis in the areas of chronic myocarditis. On the endocardial surface which rested along the area of myocarditis just described, there was erected within the ven- tricle a large thrombus, so intimately associated with the wall, which was thinned out and bulging, that in the necessary manipulation in the examination, the heart wall tore off with pieces of the clinging thrombus attached to it. There we have the whole process, a slow- growing one due to the gradual decrease in the supply of blood and later more or less sudden occlusion of some of the branches with areas of infarction and the production of a mural thrombus. It is interesting to note that while ordinarily pieces of thrombus sweep off into the blood stream with the erection of infarcts in different organs, in this particular case there were no infarcts anywhere. A possible reason is that the thrombus developed beneath the smooth CARDIAC ANEURISM—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 541 membrane which rested over the exposed surface in the ventricular cavity and prevented it from fracturing. The pericardium showed at one place a broad band of fibrous adhesions, and in addition a general coating of grayish-red granular material which weakly bound the two layers of the pericardium - together; that is, a band of chronic pericarditis and a more or less extensive subacute pericarditis. There was a moderate amount of chronic pleuritis and some few areas of obsolete tuberculosis both in the bronchial lymph nodes and in the apex of the right lung. These pleural adhesions plus the adhesions of the pericardium, together with the arteriosclerosis, are sufficient in themselves to cause the extensive hypertrophy of the heart. About the liver and spleen there were numerous old fibrous adhe- sions, chronic perihepatitis and splenitis. The liver showed slight cirrhosis along the portal canals with some hyalin degeneration of branches of the hepatic artery. The gall-bladder contained about seventy small stones, but the mucosa was negative. The bile ducts and pancreatic ducts were also negative. The kidneys weighed 340 grams (normally 200-400) and were in very good condition. Necropsy 4283 An Irish laborer of sixty entered January 7, 1922, for relief of dyspnea and cough of twenty-five years’ duration. He was in considerable respiratory distress and not cooperative. He had measles, mumps and scarlet fever in childhood. His teeth had always been bad. In general his health had been very good until he was thirty-five. He was ill in bed at forty with pneumonia. He had typhoid fever at forty-five. For a year he had had some diffi- culty in starting the urinary stream and some burning on urination. He formerly drank a pint of whiskey a week. For the past few years he had taken none. For twenty-five years he had had “asthma,” ‘bronchitis,’ and frequent palpitation accompanied by slight dizziness and _ slight cough with thick brownish sputum. He had slight dyspnea on moderate exertion with the asthma until 1917. During the past twenty years he had had attacks of precordial pain, numbness and soreness over the precordial region, and sharp pain in the pit of the stomach and the left arm. These attacks had no relation to meals, 542 FACTS ON THE HEART A were accompanied by gaseous eructations, considerable belching of 7 gas, and marked nausea. Soda had always relieved the pain! For five years his dyspnea had occurred more easily and he had urinated _ fifteen times at night and frequently by day. During the past year he had had to rest for several periods of half an hour each during the day to relieve the dyspnea, and to use five pillows at night. Six months ago he visited a Boston hospital for relief of “indigestion and cough,” and was given pills and powders which relieved the “indigestion” and made him bring up a “ quart of sputum at a time.” He worked until two weeks before admission taking care of horses. His last attack of pain occurred a few days before admission and |. lasted two hours and a half. sy Emphysematous, Crackling and groan- ing respiratory rale throughout. Moist rales at bases on inspiration, Liver edge, slightly tender, Fic. 103.—Physical signs in Case 4283. Examination showed a well nourished man with marked respira- tory distress. The skin was dry. The mucous membranes were slightly cyanotic, the sclerae injected. There were many broken tooth roots and marked pyorrhea. The lung signs were as shown in Fig. 103. The chest expansion was small, the diaphragm excur- sion limited. The apex impulse of the heart was seen and felt in the sixth space 11 cm. to the left, 2.5 cm. outside the midclavicle. The right border of dullness was 5.5 cm. to the right of the midster- num, the substernal dullness 8 cm. The action was rapid, regular, with tic-tac quality. The pulmonic second sound was equal to the aortic second. The artery walls were negative. The pulses were of fair volume and tension. ‘The systolic blood pressure was 120, the diastolic 90. The abdomen was distended. The liver dullness extended from the fifth rib to two centimeters below the costal mar- gin. There was reducible right inguinal hernia. The fingers and toes were clubbed. The rectal examination showed the prostate enlarged. The pupils and reflexes were normal. | The temperature was 99° to 1ro1°, the pulse 81to 111, the respirations 20 to 45. The amount of urine is not recorded. The specific gravity was 1.030. The urine was alkaline at the single " CARDIAC ANEURISM—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 543 examination and showed the slightest possible trace of albumin; no sugar. ‘The hemoglobin was 75%. ‘There were 22,000 to 29,600 leucocytes, 82% polynuclears, 4,568,000 reds, slight achromia. The platelets were increased. A Wassermann was negative. The morning after admission the patient was evidently much worse. He had Cheyne-Stokes respiration with apneic periods as long as fifteen seconds. During these periods he would not respond to questions, though he was rational during the times of active breathing. That afternoon when apparently in about the same condition he suddenly died. Clinical Diagnosis (from Hospital Record) —Emphysema. Chronic bronchitis. Myocarditis. Pericarditis. Arteriosclerosis. _ Dr. Richard C. Cabot’s Diagnosis. —Arteriosclerosis of the coronary arteries, with obstruction. Myocarditis. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. General arteriosclerosis. Chronic bronchitis? Bronchiectasis? Bronchopneumonia? Chronic passive congestion. Anatonuical Diagnosis —Arteriosclerosis of the coronary arteries. Arteriosclerotic thrombotic occlusion of the right coronary artery. Myocarditis and cardiac aneurism. Mural thrombosis of left ventricle. _ Arteriosclerosis. Chronic adhesive pericarditis. Chronic passive congestion. Acute pericarditis. Hypertrophy and dilatation of heart. Slight ascites and anasarca. Chronic pleuritis. Dr. RicHarpson: This man was rather short, well developed and fairly well nourished. We were not permitted to examine the head. The skin in the region of the base of the neck and the upper part of the chest presented a sallow appearance, with possibly a little underlying yellowish tinge. I notice that color in these old cases of heart disease. I don’t know what kind of jaundice it is. It is slight 544 FACTS ON THE HEART in amount, and nothing that would be put down in the anatomieal diagnosis. The peritoneal cavity contained a small amount of thin pale clear fluid,—a little ascites. The appendix was negative. The gastro- intestinal tract was out of the picture except that it showed a well marked velvety, juicy mucosa,—passive congestion. There was a little fluid in the pleural cavities—a few c.c——and pleural adhesions on each side. The trachea and bronchi showed some reddening of the mucosa and a moderate amount of reddish mucus; otherwise they were negative. The apices of the lungs were frankly negative. ‘There were no areas of consolidation. The tissue generally was spongy and a little leathery, and yielded more or less reddish frothy fluid,—a little congestion, no definite emphysema. The pericardium contained about fifty c.c. of thin dirty reddish cloudy fluid and a little fibrin, and there was some reddening of the pericardial surfaces,—a frank acute pericarditis. In the region of the anterior half of the left ventricle a band of fibrous adhesions extended between the visceral and parietal pericardium, a broad band of old adhesions tying the two surfaces together pretty strongly, —an old band of chronic adhesive pericarditis besides the acute pericarditis. The heart weighed 585 grams, considerably enlarged. ‘The myo- cardium, except in places to be spoken about, was pretty fair, but in these places presented an entirely different picture. The right ventricle in the good places was three mm. and the left ventricle eleven mm., so that where it was more or less normal in appearance it was about as thick as usual. In the region of the band of adhesions on the left ventricle wall, section showed marked fibrosis and thinning of the wall. Above and extending well up the wall of the heart the sections of the heart wall showed fibrosis and in places areas of brown- ish-yellow more or less necrotic looking tissue,—altogether a marked myocarditis, fibrous, with areas of necrosis, of course suggesting that — somewhere some coronary had been blocked to produce the condition. This marked thinning of the ventricle wall in the region of the lower half of the ventricle produced what we call cardiac aneurism, some- times called aneurismal dilatation. ‘The valves themselves were out of the picture, showing a moderate amount of the usual sclerosis, but otherwise negative. The circumference of the tricuspid was a little increased. Now for the real condition which underlies all the others. The orifice of the left coronary was free, but a short distance from that CARDIAC ANEURISM—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 545 point there was an area of marked fibrosis with marked diminution of the lumen. Then going down from that point along the artery and its branches, there were places here and there where there were small fibrous plaques with diminutionof the lumen. But in between, the vessel was in pretty good condition. In the right coronary the orifice was free. But about two cm. from that point there was an area of sclerosis with marked thickening of the wall and diminution of the lumen, and on the intimal surface a small columnar thrombus plugging the artery. The right artery beyond this area was much like the left. We have here again an example of the peculiar local- ization of sclerosis within a given set of arteries. The condition of the heart from a pathological standpoint furnishes a basis for Dr. Cabot’s diagnosis, coronary sclerosis, the background for angina. The first portion of the aorta was pretty good. There was slight sclerosis in the arch and a small fibrocalcareous area. The other portions showed more or less fibrous sclerosis with some atheroma. The great branches showed a small amount of sclerosis. The liver showed chronic passive congestion. The gall-bladder, bile ducts, pancreas were negative. The spleen was chunky and thick, the issue elastic; chronic passive congestion. The adrenals were out of the picture. The kidneys weighed 350 grams and were typical, grossly and microscopically, of passive congestion. They were bluish-brown-red, with a good cortex, the vessels rather engorged. Except for passive congestion they were out of the picture. The prostate, seminal vesicles and testes were negative. On the surface of the area of myocarditis in the wall of the left ventricle, up just beneath a papillary muscle there was an area of roughening to which a small frank thrombus was adherent. An interesting thing from the pathological point of view is the peculiar localization of the sclerosis in the coronary arteries and the great amount of change in the left ventricle wall. Not infrequently we find cases where there is marked sclerosis all along the coronaries with diminution of the lumen, leavmg only a slender channel, and with the myocardium showing no definite changes. Dr. Casot: Was there more change in the right than in the left? Dr. RicHarpson: There was more change in the wall of the left ventricle, but there was considerable change in the right ventricle wall also. There was much change in the region of the interventricular septum. 35 546 FACTS ON THE HEART Dr. Cazot: I suppose that long two-hour pain he had was when that thrombus formed. The acute pericarditis we missed as we usually do. We recognise one out of five cases here. Dr. E. L. Younc: I think it is interesting, the number of cases we see here with urinary symptoms and the prostate put down as enlarged, which show nothing post-mortem, as in this case. V. RUPTURE OF THE HEART In one case the cardiac infarction resulting from a much narrowed left descendens led to a rupture of the heart. ‘‘The probe passed easily through the center of an opening four mm. in length with irregular blood-stained margins. This opening is the center of a dark red boggy area in which some branches of the much narrowed ¥ left coronary are lost. Cross section of the heart wall in the region - of the perforation shows a slender ragged channel which extends through into the left ventricle. The tissues about the channel are blackish red and slightly soft; itis margined by a small area of grayish firm fibrous-like tissue.” Despite all this, the clinical diagnosis is “‘ Acute Bronchitis, Psy- choneurosis, Weak Heart.’’ She was not thought to be much ill and was on the danger list for only a few minutes before her death, when she was noticed to be breathing slowly and soon after to be unconscious and pulseless, with great pallor. Until that time the heart and pulse had shown nothing abnormal, but on account of three months’ complaint of prickling sensations in the finger-tips, abdomen, legs and back Dr. James J. Putnam had considered her psychoneurotic. With this may be compared a case of ‘“‘traumatic rupture of the heart” (No. 2249) occurring in a young man of twenty-seven who one hour before he entered the hospital had fallen backward with a heavy iron bar on top of him, sustaining a compound fracture of the left leg with wounds on the scalp and right hand but no injury to the chest. The heart was normal in size and valves but ‘‘over the left ventricle, midway between the auriculoventricular junction and the apex was an ecchymosis in the middle of which was a linear tear 2.5 cm. long with closely approximate edges running diagonally across the ventricle. The rent entered the interior of the heart to the left of and behind the anterior papillary muscle. Below the opening the heart wall showed hemorrhagic infiltration and at the extreme apex there was some laceration and disorganization over the septum beneath ecchymoses. ‘There was also hemorrhagic infiltra- RUPTURE OF THE HEART 547 tion of the wall of the right auricle with a ragged laceration 2.2 cm. by i cm. There was hemopericardium. During the hour of his life at the hospital the heart sounds were very irregular and rather faint, with periods of complete standstill lasting several seconds. The radial pulse could be obtained only occasionally and was very faint and irregular. The patient was in muttering delirium and did not answer questions. Necropsy 1897 was a similar case. A man of twenty-three was struck by a falling telegraph pole. His chest was crushed and his lung ruptured. Death followed swiftly. At necropsy beside the lesions mentioned there were pneumopericardium and rupture of the epicardium. CHAPTER VI ANGINA PECTORIS It is not to be expected that anatomical studies will ever throw much light on the clinical manifestations which we call angina pectoris. At the outset it seems improbable that so elusive and transient a phenomenon, varying as it does with some of the most evanescent of vital changes—such as exertion, emotion, and the effects of the nitrites—could be explained by a permanent anatomic lesion. Anything so closely connected as angina is with temporary physiological phases of the body’s activities cannot so far as I can see be adequately explained by anatomical lesions which must be present before and after the attack, i.e. in the absence as in the pres- ence of angina itself. Hence hypotheses such as vascular spasm or cardiac fatigue naturally suggest themselves. The difficulty with such theories is that it is hard to see how they can be either proved or disproved. I am not disappointed therefore that the 138 cases studied here throw no new light on the nature or the origin of angina pectoris. The controversies regarding the relationship of this disease (or symptom) to occlusion of the coronary arteries seems to me to depend, in part, on the similarity of the symptoms following cardiac infarction —the “‘infarction syndrome”—with those of true angina pectoris. _ The long and especially the fatal attacks of heart pain unrelated to exertion, unrelieved by rest or nitrites, we certainly must associate with coronary block and its effects. We can hardly suppose any unusual state of things in the aorta as causal here. But before or after these terrible seizures there are often milder and properly anginoid attacks, typical in the location of pain, in its relation to exertion, emotion and rest and in the relief by nitrite medication. It is certainly tempting to think that some similar mechanism, some cause for insufficient blood flow through the coro- _ naries is at work also in these cases. But the inference is not neces- sary. There may be some anginoid attacks due to coronary disease and others of a different origin. On the whole I incline to this opinion. There can be no question, I take it, that the pain of cardiac infarction is due not to any changes in the aorta but to the infarct 548 ANGINA PECTORIS 549 itself and its results. It is true that a similar syndrome may occur without infarct as in the following case (No. 3527): An Irishman of seventy-four while being treated in the ward for dermatitis exfolia- tiva associated with aortic regurgitation and without any evidence (post-mortem) of arteriosclerosis or of syphilitic aortitis, complained one evening of slight dyspnea and abdominal distress. At one a.m. he had an attack of sharp pain in the precordia. In half an hour the pain had become an intense agony. (Pulse 140, respirations 50.) Morphia 16 gr. and nitroglycerin 499 gr. had no effect and the pain continued until 5:40 a.m. when 1 gr. of morphia was again given and the pain ceased. On being questioned he now said that he had similar but milder attacks for three or four weeks. He vomited frequently in the final twenty-four hours of his life and after this attack became Irrational, restless, dyspneic, with Cheyne-Stokes breathing leading to death. Necropsy showed no cause for the pain. In spite of occasional cases like this it remains true that there is a group of clinical facts by which we can predict the finding of a cardiac infarct post-mortem with a percentage of diagnostic success equal to that now attainable in most other diseases. But from the existence of angina in the sense of a Sacral pain, preceded or followed usually by pain in the left arm (or both arms), always produced in the early stages of its development by emotion or exertion and ceasing after a few minutes’ rest, often linked with a sense of constriction and an anticipation of immediate death,*— from this what can we predict as to the post-mortem? In our series if we had predicted that esther coronary sclerosis or syphilitic aortitis would be found post-mortem, we should have been right in this prediction 32 times and wrong 11 times, apparently a respectable showing of 75% success. But if we analyze this success it crumbles. Most of the patients here studied were at an age when arteriosclerosis (including some coronary sclerosis) is common and sometimes extreme, without angina. Among our 72 cases of coronary sclerosis without angina there were four in which both the main coronaries were nearly occluded by arteriosclerosis. I have looked over the necropsies and clinical records of all cases which contained in their anatomical diagnosis a note of marked sclerotic changes in the coronaries, 127 cases in all. To these I have added r1 cases suffering from anginoid * T make no attempt to enumerate here a// the phenomena or varieties of angina. 550 FACTS ON THE HEART pain without coronary disease of any considerable degree, making 138 cases in all. The whole group can be subdivided into: (1) Coronary narrowing without angina.... 94 cases (2) Coronary narrowing with angina....... 33 cases (3) Angina without coronary narrowing.... 11 cases 138 Of the first group—narrowed coronaries without evidence of angina in life—there is little to say save that the number of cases, 94, is far beneath the true number.* Among the 94 cases which I have come across, there were eleven in which the arteriosclerotic process was so extreme that the lumen of one or more arteries was nearly or quite obliterated (see below). As in all the cases studied in this section there was an enormous preponderance of elderly males,—ten males to every female. The average age was 54. Theheart was usually enlarged but in two-thirds of the cases was quite competent, the patients dying of pneumonia, prostatic disease, apoplexy, cancer, etc. Less than one-half showed some fibrous myocarditis but no acute infarctions occurred in this group. } The absence of more damage to the myocardium may be explained by supposing that the collateral circulation, which varies in different hearts, was in these cases sufficient to nourish the heart wall despite the narrowing of certain vessels. In two of these cases there was syphilitic aortitis, one with gumma of the heart wall, yetno pain. In another, one coronary was occluded at its mouth, yet there was no pain and death was not sud- den. In three there was arteriosclerotic occlusion of the left coronary; in three others a clot or a vegetation had practically if not absolutely closed the left coronary. When the pain is not relieved by rest but lasts on for hours and is associated with pulse failure and fainting, we can much more confi- dently assert that an organic obstruction of the coronary by syphi- litic aortitis, arteriosclerosis or thrombosis is present and is the main cause of the symptoms. But when the painis brief and not associated * Had I read over all the 4000 necropsies looking for the descriptions of coronary arteries I should have found many,more cases of coronary sclerosis. The 94 cases which I found represent merely those with coronary changes marked enough to be mentioned in the anatomical diagnosis or summary of the findings. Since the accumulation of more cases would merely reiterate a fact already established by many observers (that coronary sclerosis without angina is common), I have not thought it worth while to pile up more of this cumulative evidence, ANGINA PECTORIS é 551 with evidence of heart failure we cannot say, so far as our material goes, that the coronary arteries are any more diseased than in many elderly individuals who are free from angina. Coronary arterioscle- rosis may be present yet insignificant. Again coronary disease may be wholly absent in patients with definite angina, as is shown in eleven cases of this series. In 6 of these the whole aorta, carefully examined macroscopically, was normal,* and I see no reason to believe that the microscope would have revealed anything of importance. These eleven cases without coronary disease were in other respects very much like the cases of this series with coronary disease. There were ten men to one woman, three over seventy years and three under forty (30, 32, 39). The hearts averaged 508 grams in weight. In one the aorta showed syphilitic aortitis without any narrowing of the coronary orifices; four others showed an arteriosclerotic aortic arch (without coronary disease), and six showed no changes whatever in the aorta. Chronic passive congestion was present in ten of the eleven post-mortem. Blood pressures, in one case high, in three cases were normal, in the others not measured. Some of the phrases used to describe the pain are as follows: 1. For six months sharp piercing pains about the heart. 2. Occasional sharp piercing pains about the heart. 3. For two years sharp sudden pains about the heart on exertion. 4. Burning pains in left chest and down the left arm and wrist on exertion, came one to five times a day and lasted from five minutes to two hours. 5. Severe paroxysmal precordial pains up to and on the day of death despite chronic passive congestion. 6. Precordial pain and pressure for two or three months Oe fifty times in a night, ceasing with onset of edema. 7. ‘Typical attacks of angina pectoris” in the ward relieved by nitroglycerin. Chronic passive congestion ante and post-mortem. 8. Intense agony in the precordia lasting five hours despite morphia gr. 1%, finally ceasing with another 1é. Similar but milder attacks for three or four weeks. (Necropsy: chronic passive conges- tion, hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Aorta smooth, coronaries free. No history of syphilis. Chronic perisplenitis and perihepatitis.) 9. For five months attacks of sharp precordial pain lasting a few minutes. (Blood pressure 160/130.) * One showed a single smooth yellowish patch. 552 FACTS ON THE HEART 10. Two years ago attacks of nocturnal precordial pain for three months. (Chronic passive congestion ante and post-mortem.) Syphilitic aortitis with narrowing of the coronary orifices in the aorta certainly seems to have a closer relation to angina than arterio- sclerosis does. It was present in twelve cases of this series, ten of which suffered from angina. In our g2 cases of syphilitic aortitis there were fifteen with angina and several others with epigastric pain, possibly of the anginoid type. ‘This frequency is apparently about the same as in coronary sclerosis, which out of 127 known + 4 ’ y. i. , 4. cases is associated with angina in 33. But the actwal number of cases of coronary sclerosis in this series is presumably far more than 127. For out of tro5z cases recorded as arteriosclerotic in the necropsy records, we can scarcely believe that the coronaries were spared in 970. But granting that syphilitic aortitis and angina are not infre- quently associated, the question still remains, what is the relation between the two? The partisans of the coronary theory of angina can point to a good many cases of angina in which post-mortem the mouth of one or more coronaries was found narrowed or occluded by the syphilitic process. But still more common is the coincidence of syphilitic aortitis and angina when the disease has not blocked the coronaries at all, and when these vessels are free, smooth, and dilat- able throughout. In our series, among 15 cases of syphilitic aortitis with angina there are four showing narrowed or occluded coronary openings and six in which these openings are free. My chief impression is this: Syphilis has something to do with angina pectoris, more to do with tt than arteriosclerosis has. But the syphilitic disease certainly does noi act in all (or in most) cases by any demonstrable effect on the coronary arteries. It may exert its effect in the way described by Sir T. Clifford Allbutt or in some other way, but certainly not in all cases by way of the coronaries. | Of the 33 cases of angina pectoris with coronary changes, 23 were above the fifty-first year, 21 were men and 12 women. The pain disappeared with the advent of chronic passive congestion in three, and did not disappear in twelve; as to the other cases the record is not clear. . Syphilitic aortitis was present in nine of the 33, fibrous myocardi- tis in fourteen, cardiac hypertrophy in most. The blood pressure showed no rule; it was high, low, or normal. ANGINA PECTORIS 550 Among the phrases used to describe the pain fourteen could be classified as typical of angina: Other non-typical phrases are recorded as follows: t. ‘In bad weather sharp pain shooting from chest down left arm.” 2. ‘Frequent attacks of precordial pain for two months.” 3. “Much pain around the heart July 3” (during hospital obser- vation one week before death). 4. ‘‘Constant pain in right breast, worse with exertion. Some- times shoots down left arm.” 5. In ward “‘attacks of great weakness and precordial distress relieved by amyl nitrite or morphia; two to four attacks in twenty- four hours, especially at night.” 6. Severe epigastric pain with smothering. 7. Sense of painful constriction in the chest. Sudden death. Arteriosclerotic occlusion left descendens with myocarditis. 8. Shooting pain in right arm with slight tightness in chest. g. ‘“‘Dyspnea and constriction in the chest at night.” (Perni- cious anemia.) to. “Sharp pain in chest radiating to left nipple.” tz. “‘Substernal pain.” Arteriosclerosis of coronaries with fibrous myocarditis and intracardiac clot in corresponding region. 12. Dull precordial pain with exertion, radiating down left arm. 13. Severe stabbing pain at cardiac apex following attacks of paroxysmal dypsnea. Sudden death. Acute endocarditis with coronary thrombosis. 14. For three years attacks of sharp non-radiating momentary precordial pain on exertion. 15. Dull throbbing precordial pain radiating to chest and shoulders. Right coronary closed by syphilitic aortitis. 16. Male, sixty-seven years. Eight years epigastric pain in half-hour attacks both with and without exertion, radiating to both arms. Marked arteriosclerosis of the aorta and coronaries. The following cases are of interest. No. 3424. Housemaid of sixty. For five years she has suffered from attacks of severe precordial pain and intense dyspnea brought on by exertion, worry, or anger, two or three times a year. Pain usually starts in precordia and is as though she were being crushed. Radiates to left shoulder and hand. Lasts about anhour. Followed by intense dyspnea and cough, which last for about a week after the attack. 554 FACTS ON THE HEART Last May she had an exceedingly sharp cutting pain starting in the region of the left biceps, radiating across the back to the shoulder and arm and finally to the precordia. Since then (it is now Decem- ber) she has had no more pain but progressively increasing dyspnea, orthopnea and cough. Physical examination showed aortic stenosis and regurgitation, hypertrophy and dilatation, chronic passive congestion. Necropsy confirmed these. The aorta and coronaries showed marked arteriosclerosis. | No. 3259. Carpenter of fifty-five with diabetes and abscess of right lung. October 5th: ‘‘On this date a carbuncle of the back appeared and he began to feel an ache down his left forearm when he walked. A year later he made many visits to the Out-Patient Department on account of precordial pain which began nine minths after the first hospital visit. He describes it as ‘‘a dead heavy feeling over the heart, coming on with exertion and lasting ten to fifteen minutes.” In attacks he has also headache, vertigo and dizziness and feels as if he was going to die. The pain radiates down both arms, especially the left. The attacks now come on with less exertion and last longer, sometimes an hour. Sudden death in the hospital. Arteriosclerotic occlusion of the coronary arteries with fibrous myocarditis, chronic pneumonitis and abscess of the lung. No. 3607. A colored fireman of thirty-four complains that for eight years he has noticed a sickening fainting feeling under the sternum with nausea on exertion. Three years ago he began to have constant pain of varying severity in both forearms. This left the right arm after a month but has continued in the left. For the past year it has radiated up the arm and across the back. Mercury gives relief. Necropsy: syphilitic aortitis. Coronaries not obstructed. ANGINA AND MYOCARDITIS Beside the two familiar but still mysterious associates of angina, aortitis and coronary narrowing, it is inked up with fibrous myocardi- tis which was present in fifteen of the forty-four cases of angina. The most obvious explanation that suggests itself is that coronary disease, which is certainly responsible for some cases of fibrous myocarditis and myomalacia, may be also the cause of angina and so link the two sets of facts together. But as both angina and myocarditis are noto- bd THE CESSATION OF ANGINA 555 riously diseases of elderly people, their association with sclerotic coronaries proves nothing as to the cause of angina. Aortic stenosis without mitral disease also appears rather fre- quently as an associate of angina. The latter was present eight times among 28 cases of aortic stenosis. But here as with myocardial fibrosis, we must take account of the factor of age. Aortic stenosis (uncomplicated) is a disease of elderly people, 22 of 28 cases occurring in persons past their fortieth year, and 15 of 28 after the fiftieth year. It may be that influences dominant in elderly people act to favor both the slow emergence of the symptoms of aortic stenosis and the appearance of angina pectoris. ‘There need be no more direct con- nection between the pain and the valvular lesion. I have seen three cases of intense and typical angina associated with pernicious anemia and without coronary change. One showed moderate sclerosis of the aorta, the others none. All were strictly dependent on exertion and relieved by rest. Such cases, like those seen in convalescence from pneumonia and from other infections, certainly make us skeptical of any etiology based wholly on organic and permanent changes either in the coronaries or in the aorta. BLOOD PRESSURE AND ANGINA Although the recorded data furnished as to blood pressure are scanty in this series of patients with angina pectoris, they are sufh- cient to support the usually accepted idea that angina has no definite relation either to hypertension or to hypotension. High, low, and normal pressures are found and the high pressures are no more common than in any set of people past middle life and free from angina. Cardiac enlargement is present in a considerable majority of the cases, but like hypertension, myocarditis and aortic stenosis, bears no discernible causal relation to the angina, which can and does exist in persons with hearts of normal size. THE CESSATION OF ANGINA WITH THE ADVENT OF GENERAJ PASSIVE CONGESTION It has been noticed by many that angina pectoris often ceases when cardiac compensation fails. Our experience presents three striking instances in confirmation of this. But out of fifteen cases in. which this point was especially studied there were twelve in which the angina persisted, despite all the evidences of chronic congestive 550 FACTS ON THE HEART heart failure. Evidently it is only certain types or phases of con- gestive failure which give relief to angina. Death from angina without congestive failure is I believe a decided. rarity, if we exclude the cases of cardiac infarction with blocked coronary. ‘There were but thirteen cases in this series of 44 in which no congestive failure was found post-mortem. This represents all the known deaths from angina in a series of 1906 individuals dying with cardiovascular lesions. CORONARY THROMBOSIS AND ACUTE BLOCKING OF THE CORONARY I. Cases without Pain. 1. In No. 2393, a boy of twenty suffering with acute endocarditis; the orifices of the coronaries were partly occluded by soft vegetations attached to and above the aortic valve. ‘There were no symptoms corresponding to this obstruction in life, the patient dying of chronic passive congestion and sepsis. 2. No. 2578 is a similar case of acute endocarditis occurring in a man of forty-six, who died with symptoms of a general septicemia and without any pain. His death was not sudden or in any way remarkable. 3. In No. 2727 a woman of forty-three dying of a widely dissem1- nated lymphoma with no symptoms calling attention to the circula- tory system (the diagnosis was lethargic encephalitis in life) was found at necropsy to have a thrombus in the descending branch of the left coronary. IT. Cases with Pain. t. In No. 3389 a man of fifty-two suffered from typical angina and also from sharp paroxysmal epigastric pain with dyspnea. Post- mortem the left descendens was not only sclerotic but occupied by an organizing thrombus. Death was not sudden or painful but is to be counted I suppose as, on the whole, of the anginoid type, since there was no chronic passive congestion or other cause for death discovered. 2. Necropsy 3921 was performed on a woman who died at thirty- one of acute endocarditis and chronic passive congestion. She had had many attacks of severe stabbing precordial pain immediately following on spells of dyspnea and weakness. Death was sudden and was associated with intense pallor and a slight general convulsion. The post-mortem examination showed in addition to the acute endo- carditis a partial obstruction of the left descendens by a clot. CORONARY THROMBOSIS 557 In the painless cases we may suppose, I take it, that death followed the coronary obstruction too swiftly for the production either of pain or of myocardial infarct. Outside of the 4000 cases here analyzed I have records of the following cases which seem of sufficient interest to be added here. 1. No. 4116. A married Scotch woman of forty-seven was seen in the autumn of 1915 with the history of seven years of attacks of severe epigastric pain with vomiting and headache. She had had seven such in the last five weeks, relieved only by morphia. Explor- atory laparotomy showed no disease in the biliary tract, stomach, duodenum, pancreas, kidney or spleen. An appendix thought to be slightly inflamed was removed. The attacks of pain continued. In September 1920 she had sudden severe substernal distress following exertion and lasting twenty minutes. That night she had another attack while lying quiet in bed. This time the pain radiated to the back, to both shoulders and down the left arm, espe- cially to the fourth and fifth fingers. Dyspnea and orthopnea came with the pain which she said lasted twenty-four hours this time, and had recurred several times since. Orthopnea persisted and six days ago the feet became swollen. There were paroxysms of fibrillation and at times an apex rate of 190 with a large pulse deficit, but no arrhythmia. Electrocardio- gram showed only sino-auricular tachycardia with a somewhat inverted T-wave (digitalis?). She died in diabetic coma. | At necropsy there was very slight general arteriosclerosis; very marked coronary sclerosis with occlusion of the left descendens, with a corresponding area of fibrous myocarditis, and a degeneration and perforation of .the interventricular septum. There were mural thrombi in the ventricle, slight hypertrophy and dilatation, chronic passive congestion. Streptococcus sepsis with abscess in a bronchial lymph gland. Also hyalin degeneration of the islands of Langerhans and a few minute concretions in the gall-bladder. The most natural interpretation of these data seems to’be that the patient had survived an infarct of the heart in or before 1915; that the infarct became transformed into a fibrous myocarditis, but that a few days before her.death in 1920 the interventricular septum became necrosed and perforated owing to the degeneration of a fresher cardiac infarct. 2. A Finnish laborer of thirty-nine had suffered for three years with attacks of precordial pain and dyspnea, accompanied by severe 558 FACTS ON THE HEART pain in the left elbow. The attacks lasted about two minutes. Three months before he came under observation he had an attack which he said lasted nine days without intermission or change in intensity. He sat doubled up and could not sleep or eat. The elbow was not swollen. Later chronic passive congestion appeared and the pain ceased. X-ray suggested a mitral lesion with dilatation. Blood pressure 105/80. Heart enlarged, regular, 80, soft systolicat apex. Wasser- mann negative. Electrocardiogram showed a broad notched P-wave in Lead II. The R-wave in all leads was low. Sinoauricular tachycardia: Sudden death after nine-days’ observation. Necropsy.—Heart 590 grams. Left coronary occluded for 3.5 cm.; this artery led directly to a large area of fibrous myocarditis with great thinning of the wall (5-1o mm.). Mural thrombus over this. Moderate arteriosclerosis of aorta. A branch of the pulmonary artery occluded by arteriosclerosis with resulting infarct. A broad band of old pericardial adhesions at the cardiac apex. No sign of syphilis. 3. No. 4170. A Swiss woman of sixty-five, divorced, had had two still-births and three living children. Was seen in decompensation with attacks of precordial pain and “‘tightness”’ relieved by nitro- glycerin. Blood pressure 160/65, 175/85, 180/100, 100/45, 96/65. Auricular fibrillation. Heart not apparently enlarged. Parkinson’s disease. Died of congestive failure. Necropsy—Heart 440, moderately enlarged with dilatation confined to the auricles; left coronary sclerosed with considerable diminution of its lumen. Right less so. Myocardium no lesions. Arterioslcerosis of aorta with small dissecting aneurism. 4. No. 4200. A married woman of forty with a negative past history began to suffer two weeks before we saw her from excruciating knife-like midepigastric pain radiating to the back beneath the right scapula and lasting two days; morphia alone gave any relief. On the second evening she became unconscious. Next morning the right hand and right facial muscles were weak and the speech thick. But after a week in bed she felt and seemed well and was up for two days. | Then dyspnea and orthopnea. When seen there was a loud friction rub synchronous with the heart’s action, heard over and on both sides of the sternum. Blood pressure 120/60. Heart irregular, rapid, no mumurs. Moderate cardiac enlargement. Right hand weak. Staphylococcus albus — cultivated from the blood. Death in two days. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS 559 Necropsy.—Subacute pericarditis with moderate hypertrophy and dilatation (430 grams) and mural thrombus in the left ventricle. Circumflex coronary occluded by an embolus and an infarction of the corresponding area of the heart. Also embolism of superior mesen- teric and of iliac arteries. A small amount of fibrous sclerosis in the aorta, none elsewhere. The pain might conceivably be due to pericarditis, but its inten- sity, sudden onset, its radiation and the coma soon after it, make the coronary embolism a more probable cause. 5. A man aged forty-eight when seen, had had four years pre- viously an attack of sharp precordial pain radiating to the left shoulder and down the left arm. Physical examination was negative and ina short time he seemed quite well and remained so until during an attack of peritonsillar abscess, which did not disable him from work, he was suddenly seized with terrible pain in the abdomen and legs which caused him to fall to the floor. He died a week later with signs of general peritonitis and gangrene of the legs. Necropsy showed old myocardial scars and complete arteriosclero- tic closure of a small branch of the left coronary. Intracardiac mural thrombi on the old myocardial scars had led to mesenteric and iliac thromboses. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS 1. If we take care to distinguish the group of symptoms and signs known as angina pectoris from the syndrome accompanying cardiac infarct, we must confess that there are many cases of angina without adequate anatomical basis or explanation. 2. Coronary sclerosis and occlusion is certainly a cause of the pain and collapse seen in cardiac infarction, but bears no clear or stable relationship to angina pectoris proper. 3. The same may be said of disease in the aortic arch of which there is no evidence macroscopically in a considerable group of anginoid cases. 4. Extensive coronary occlusion is not infrequent in the hearts of patients who during life have never suffered from angina. 5. Syphilitic aortitis is associated with angina in about 16% of cases. Butin only a small minority of these do we find the coronaries obstructed at their mouths. There must be some other connection between syphilis and angina, perhaps that suggested by Sir T.- Clifford Allbutt. 560 FACTS ON THE HEART 6. Fibrous myocarditis and angina are often associated but there is no evidence of a causal connection. The same is true of aortic stenosis and angina. 7. Angina occasionally ceases with the advent of general passive congestion. But in most cases of our series this was not true. 8. When a coronary is suddenly blocked by a clot death may follow at once with or without pain. (See Cardiac Infarction, Chapter. iV si) CHAPTER VII ACUTE AND. SUBACUTE ENDOCARDITIS DEFINITION AND TERMINOLOGY The 180 cases studied here have in common this fundamental fact: —on some portion of the endocardium, usually the heart valves, there is situated a patch of soft inflammatory tissue composed largely of blood platelets, fibrin and bacteria more or less firmly adherent to the endocardium adjacent. These adherent masses are distinguished from the dard fibrous or fibro-calcareous scars of chronic endocarditis, which however may be present along with the acute soft vegetations. The word “‘acute”’ refers primarily to the softness of the vege- tations on the endocardium, that is, to the early stage of the inflamma- tion. As will be seen below, some of the cases are /iterally acute in the sense of lasting but a short time and leading rapidly to the death of the patient. Other cases strictly deserve the term “‘subacute”’ or even ‘“‘chronic”’ since they last for months or even for years. But there is no justification for lumping all these cases under the single termination “‘subacute”’ as has been done by some writers. _ The term “‘subacute bacterial endocarditis,’’ much used at the pres- ent time, seems intended to suggest that there are forms of endo- carditis not due to bacteria, an assumption which seems insufficiently grounded. I prefer therefore the general term “‘acute and subacute endocarditis”? though admitting that it has to be stretched to cover some cases lasting too long for the strict application of either term. TYPES OF ACUTE AND SUBACUTE ENDOCARDITIS The cases here studied fall into two main groups: (1) those which apparently start in the heart and circulation and not in any septic focus outside it; (2) those that apparently come to the heart, originating either in a focus of sepsis or in a gravely weakened condition of the whole organism due to cancer, nephritis, diabetes, or some other debilitating disease. Within the first group we may distinguish further (a) those which manifest the first attack of disease in the heart, and (b) those which 36 561 562 FACTS ON THE HEART are recurrent or implanted upon a previously diseased endocardium. Linking these two groups together I shall speak of them as ‘‘primary”’ acute endocarditis.* In our 180 cases, 102 belonged to the primary group. Of these, 36 cases represent first attacks and 66 recurrent or implanted disease. In contrast with these 102 cases there is a group of 78 in which the endocarditis is relatively a secondary or minor feature while the main cause of death is some such disease as general peritonitis or cancer. Within this group one can distinguish two sub-groups, (1) pyemic and (2) terminal. The pyemic group, comprising 44 cases, is made up of those in which it seems clear, both from the post-mortem examination and from the clinical history, that the disease has origi- nated and done its most serious damage outside the heart. 25 of the 44 cases belonging within this group showed only soft vegetations, while in 19 these soft vegetations were implanted upon or associated with a fibrous or fibrocalcareous base representing, I take it, a previous attack of endocarditis. Finally there is the terminal group of cases in which the endo- carditis plays no part recognizable during life and is often so minute as to be easily overlooked by the post-mortem examination. 34 cases belong to this group. TABLE 120 t.. (a) Prrtary acute endocarditis, 5... 2.5 0+. 02-45 ans ye oe OnCnaee (b) PRIMARY acute endocarditis, recurrent ...............' 66 cases 2. (a) SECONDARY acute endocarditis, pyemic............... 44 cases (19 recurrent) (b) SECONDARY acute endocarditis, terminal.............. 34 cases (17 recurrent) 180 cases Total recurrent cases(66 + 19 + 17) = 102 Total non-recurrent cases = 78 180 Characteristics of the Main Subdivisions.—The distinguishing marks of the primary group of cases, whether initial or recurrent, may be set down here in the way of an introductory summary of the pages to follow. The characteristic features of this type are as follows: * T realize fully the limitations of the word “primary” and the obvious fact that endocarditis must in all cases be brought to the heart from outside it and not originate there. The word primary is here used to mean that the bulk and most serious portion of the lesions are situated in the heart itself rather than outside it. AGE AND SEX : 563 (a) The absence of any focus of infection or other important lethal cause outside the heart. (b) The presence post-mortem (in seven-eighths of the cases), of relatively large shaggy masses or ulcerations on the heart valves. . (c) Embolism present in 60%. (d) Nephritis present in one-third of the cases. (e) Cardiac enlargement ante and post-mortem, associated in most cases with dyspnea and often with edema. (f) Constitutional evidences of sepsis, especially chills and stupor, without any evidence of a septic focus outside the heart. (g) The presence of murmurs other than the insignificant systolic murmur. (h) The presence in most prolonged cases of an increasing second- ary anemia. In contrast with these characteristics, the cases belonging in the second group show: (a) The presence of an important cause of death outside the heart. (b) Small lesions on the heart valves (in five-sixths of the cases). (c) Embolism almost never recognized before death and only in one-third of the cases after death. (d) Complicating nephritis relatively rare. (e) Little or no recognizable enlargement of the heart. (f) Murmurs, systolic or absent. AGE AND SEX* Uniting all groups we find 93 males and 87 females in this series. The sex incidence is essentially the same in all the different sub- groups above described. In the primary cases there were 57 males to 45 females, in the secondary group 56 men to 42 women. The predominance of males is in accordance with previous observations on this subject, though it 1s not as extreme as is suggested by Riesman.7 * In the whole 4000 necropsies among which these 180 cases occurred the males are nearly twice as numerous as the females. + Journal of the American Medical Association, May 21, 1921. 564 . FACTS ON THE HEART TABLE 121.—AGE AND SEX IN ACUTE AND SUBACUTE ENDOCARDITIS Female In Table 121 the distribution of the ages is shown in detail. Sum- ming it up we may say that in the primary group the disease affects especially young adults between the twentieth and fortieth year. Fifty-six of the 102 cases fell within these limits. In the secondary group the age and sex are those characteristic of the underlying disease. In any form the disease ts rare in the first decade-and not common before the twentieth or after the sixtieth year. When we come to note the relation of age to sex we fad that among the patients who died before the fortieth year females predomi- nate in the relation of 60 to 51 males, while among those dying after the fortieth year there are 42 males to 27 females. One may con- jecture that this difference is due to the fact that in the first group there fall a good many cases in which the disease is implanted upon a previously existing chronic endocarditis of the mitral valve, a site of infection commoner inwomen thaninmen. Onthe other hand, cases falling in the second group have relatively few of the recurrent type which is so prone to attack women. 72 of the 102 primary cases occurred before the fortieth year, and only 30 in persons more than forty years of age. In the whole 180 cases there were but 32 with a previous history either of rheumatic fever or of chorea. Most of these fell into the recurrent section of the primary group. VALVE AFFECTED The disease was confined to the mitral valve in 77 cases, to the aortic valve in 36 cases, while both valves together were affected in 50. The further details as to the parts affected are shownin Table 122. — VALVE AFFECTED 565 TABLE 122 Primary Secondary Valve affected I By: III IV Initial Recurrent | Pyemic | Terminal Mitral Aortic Mitral and Aortic RS ST Ue oy d CO ee MTECHISTME 8s cin 5 aos + ous. Aortic and Tricuspid... Pulmonary Mitral and Tricuspid... WaVOIVES®. «. 2+ It is of interest here to notice the resemblance between the cases of this series, the chronic non-deforming lesions and the com- monest of the chronic deforming value lesions described in Chapter II. The similarities, as will be seen in Table 123 are quite striking. TABLE 123 Acute and sub- Chr. deform. Chr. non-deform- Valve affected a Pap ‘ ef acute endocarditis} endocarditis ing endocarditis * All combinations other than the above. 566 FACTS ON THE HEART I do not wish to press this analogy too far but certainly it con- tains at least a suggestion that the organism or organisms of acute endocarditis are if not identical with at least closely similar to those which produce chronic valvular heart disease. On the other hand the dissimilarities of incidence obvious in chronic non-deforming endocarditis argue a different etiology. Another point of interest about these findings is the absence of any notable tendency to favor the tricuspid valve. It has often been said that acute endocarditis—the so-called malignant or ulcerative forms—is especially prone to attack the tricuspid valve. But this series shows that in only sixteen cases out of 180 was the tricuspid valve attacked at all, and in only three was it attacked exclusively.* A curious and interesting point is the relation of sex to the site of the disease. Of 77 cases in which the mitral valve alone was the seat of the acute endocarditis, 49 or nearly two-thirds were women. On the other hand, in the 36 cases involving the aortic valve alone, 23 or 24 were men. I have no idea how these figures are to be explained. One may also note that in the recurrent cases (grouped in the second, third and fourth columns of Table 122) the preponderance of cases confined to the mitral valve no longer exists. In the group of recurrent cases the disease was confined to the mitral valve in only 38 or 38% and affected other valves in 64. The non-recurrent cases show that the mitral valve was attacked exclusively in 39 or 50% and the other valves also in 39. ‘The difference in the two groups is considerable. In 117 of the 180 or 64% the disease was confined to a single valve. NATURE OF THE INFLAMMATORY PROCESS (TABLE 124) There appear to be two main morphological types in the patho- logical anatomy of acute endocarditis: (1) those in which the disease is composed exclusively of soft thrombotic masses or vegetations, and (2) those in which ulceration and destruction of the valve is associated also with these vegetations. The latter or ‘‘ulcerative”’ type is much the less common, occurring in only 34 of 180 cases. But this predominance of the vegetative or polypous type of endocarditis is less marked in the primary group of cases, where we find 29 ulcera- * Gonorrheal endocarditis though carefully searched for was not found in the 4000 necropsies of this series. The proneness of this organism to attack the tricuspid and pulmonic valves has been noticed by Thayer and others. +In 19 cases within group III (Table 122) the sepsis was implanted upon an old endocarditis so that these 19 cases are recurrent as well as pyemic, NATURE OF THE INFLAMMATORY PROCESS 567 tive cases out of 102, as compared with five ulcerative cases out of 78 in the pyemic and terminal varieties. TABLE 124.—NATURE OF ENDOCARDITIS ! I reer rer ia . Primary” : ? III I | Primary | Septic + Mi fete? Septic | Terminal recurrent recurrent | recurrent Bet PCADOLY DS. tens a. 20 24 Ulcers and polyps Smale DOL PS. ss.<. a6 : Pinhead sized polyps... . Manite polypsis . 7%.) ss Table 124 also shows that the lesions are much larger as a rule in the primary than in the secondary cases. Nevertheless it is notable that even in the latent terminal cases two showed large polypoid masses. Embolism.—86 out of 180 cases showed at necropsy evidences of embolism (135 embolic lesions in all). The distribution of these embolic lesions appears in Table 125. TABLE 125.—DISTRIBUTION OF EmBoric LESIONS I LE III c¢ . i 4 : : nee Primary | Septic + ae Total 135 non- Terminal ; epee atnier recurrent | recurrent akan in 180 a6 76 1n 66 21 1n 44 Fextremities t.). <9. 0. TET ase Oe Sees Sia ee i SAT a, eee Ha To 7. Coronary arteries Bear Oi VIAN ke ts, ve: Mesenteric vessels Mae An ian oe ae Paravertebral tissues... . eC) OOO Pete O- O7N Cab OS Ribs Ors © Sra) © VOnOmO aie 7 OR. Om O 205.07 0 £0 2 O7-O.. On On Ont HH He HH HH HH DS HS HP HL LH OR ORC Sis Ocs Ole (© She eh) BONA artery. sa) lei. 568 FACTS ON THE HEART Embolic lesions are much commoner in the primary types of acute endocarditis than in the secondary varieties. Thus 66% of ‘the primary cases (Columns I and II above) showed some evidence of embolism after death, while only 24 out of 78 or 32% of the second- ary group showed such evidence. Emboli were commonest of all in the recurrent-primary cases, occurring there in 43 out of 66 cases, or 65%; in the non-recurrent primary group, embolic lesions were found in 19 out of 36 or 52%. In the other groups the percentage is pro- gressively less, being only 26 in the terminal cases. Only a minority of these embolic phenomena were recognized during life, 33 as against 86 post-mortem (see Tables 125 and 126). All but two of these 33 cases fall within the primary group. Aside from purpura which some might hesitate to include as an embolic phenomenon, splenic embolism was recognized most often, seven times in-all. Renal embolism comes next with six diagnoses, then cerebral embolism with TABLE 126.—EMBOLISM RECOGNIZED IN LIFE Primary Secondary Total Dunes and spleeia.. ae se eae eee I Brachial tite Ses ob eee ee Radial ete ae trices ee eee Kidney and spleene a an.ie ss |, SUperiGrmmesenterios tare nr ate a" PMNS sD. ak sa es ee ee tes ee a ne 3 PUrpuray syste eee rete see he Splenic, renal, brain, subcutaneous DET ela dey LDS ee tye eae eas Kidneys, spleen, brain, lung...... Brainsand kidneyes anc eure. Brain, spleen and kidney......... Brain and skin den st ee nee ") ie Retinatand skins weet ete red ee a) I Le fot) _ =) e+ + SS HS SS HS HS DH AS HS e mW FB Dh HW HF DN WH WH 4 HA eS AS HH AH F&F 16 15 I I 33 cases in 172 NATURE OF THE INFLAMMATORY PROCESS 569 five, and pulmonary embolism with four. There were three cases of acute parotitis, very possibly metastatic or embolic in origin, though the direct entry through the mouth is also possible. The case of superior mesenteric embolism presented in life only the evidences of acute intestinal obstruction with peritonitis. No endocarditis was suspected, and the case was treated as a surgical emergency. The central artery of the retina was recognized as plugged in only one case, although from the observations of others I should suppose that some cases must have been overlooked in the present series. The practical importance of emboli in the diagnosis of the disease will be referred to later. But itis obvious that if we are to make the diagnosis at all we must do so without recognizing emboli in the great majority of cases. For though doubtless many were over- looked in the present series, the fact that we were aware of their presence in only 33 cases out of 180 in the whole series, and in only 31 cases out of 102 in the primary group, leads me to believe that even with the best of clinical study we cannot as a rule recognize any emboli in life. Skin Hemorrhages.—Hemorrhages are recorded during life in only 17 cases, ten of these belonging to the primary group and seven consisting merely of purpuric spots. A generalized hemorrhagic erup- tion such as is seen in other infectious diseases is seldom recorded in our cases of acute endocarditis. Tenderness of the Fingers and Toes.— Only in three cases of our series was this noted, but I strongly suspect that with better observa- tion we should have recognized this symptom in a larger number of cases. I am convinced however that it is not common. Nephritis.—Some type of nephritis occurred in 45 cases out of 180. This is excluding suppurative infections of the kidney. Table 127 shows that nephritis was much commoner in the primary group of cases than in the others. 33 out of 102, or practically one-third of the cases in the first group showed some nephritis, while only 12 out of 78 cases in the second group showed it. Among these cases of nephritis 24 were of the acute glomerular variety, 10 were classified as subacute glomerulonephritis, and the remaining as chronic nephritis. In the primary group acute nephritis occurred 19 times, subacute 7 times, chronic 7 times. In the secondary group acute nephritis 5, subacute 3, chronic 4. It would appear therefore that there is no single type of nephritis regularly associated with acute endocarditis, as some writers have supposed. 570 FACTS ON THE HEART TABLE 127.—NEPHRITIS IN ACUTE OR SUBACUTE ENDOCARDITIS Group I. Initial Primary Group II. Recurrent Group III. | Pyemic | Subacute Secondary Terminal Group IV. Meningitis.—In 11 cases of the first group, three of the recurrent and eight of the non-recurrent types of endocarditis, acute lepto- meningitis occurred as a complication. In the secondary type of endocarditis none of these complications occurred. Foci of Sepsis.—In the 78 cases of endocarditis believed to be secondary to disease outside the heart, general peritonitis was most often the source of infection and was believed to be the cause in 10 cases. Pneumonia comes next with’* seven cases, puerperal sepsis in six cases, a septic extremity, arm or leg, in five cases, sepsis in the urinary tract in five cases, empyema in three, lung abscess in two, dermatitis in two, tonsillar sepsis, bed sore, appendicitis, osteomye- litis, post-operative sepsis, once each. Puerperal sepsis has long been recognized as prone to attack the heart, but I do not think that general peritonitis has received suffi- cient attention in this connection. The same is true of urinary sepsis. On the other hand, I am surprised to find that osteomyelitis and bed-sores have played so small a part. By the classification adopted in this chapter no case has been included in the primary group unless we were convinced, the patholo- gist and I, that the sepsis manifesting itself as acute endocarditis had originated within the circulatory system. Nevertheless there are included within the 102 cases of this group five in which necropsy showed suppurative lesions outside the heart, in our opinion second- ary to the endocarditis or independent but not its cause. These lesions were, in one case empyema, in another interlobar empyema with tuberculosis, in a third lupus, in a fourth mastoiditis and deep phlegmon of the neck, in a fifth meningitis, duodenal ulcer ae NATURE OF THE INFLAMMATORY PROCESS 571 and pneumonia. We recognize that in any of these cases an inter- pretation of the endocarditis as secondary is possible, and we men- tion them here to make clear the consequent percentage of possible error in our classification. Underlying Disease in Terminal Cases of Endocarditis.—Neo- plasms come first with ten cases, nephritis next with seven, the rest of the causes, as shown in Table 128, are pretty well scattered. TABLE 128.—ACTUAL SOURCES OF SEPSIS General peritonitis Pneumonia Puerperal sepsis Urinary sepsis Septic leg (arm) Se & H AH HH HH DY HWHB NL AN TABLE 129.—UNDERLYING DISEASE Neoplasm Nephritis Diabetes Apoplexy Pernicious anemia Splenic anemia Erysipelas Leukemia Pericarditis Phthisis Tabes dorsalis Tuberculous peritonitis 572 FACTS ON THE HEART CLINICAL MANIFESTATIONS 1. Constitutional Sepsis.—Evidences of the influences of a general infection upon the body (i.e. fever, leucocytosis, anorexia, loss of weight), were present in only 79 of the 102 “‘primary” cases and in 4o of the 78 “secondary” cases. But these were of value in calling attention to the possibility of endocarditis only in the 102 cases of the first group. In the others they would naturally be attributed to some of the more obvious foci of sepsis present in the body. The type of fever was continued in 17 cases and of the intermittent or picket-fence type in 13 of 36 cases in Group J. Cv/ills were noted in only 27 cases out of 172, 23 in the primary group and four in the others. They were especially common in the non-recurrent primary cases, making up 17 out of the total of 36 in this subdivision. It is only in this type of case that chills are of any help in diagnosis. In a general way we may say that when chills occur without any recognized cause such as malaria or a known septic focus, there are three places to look for their origin: (1) the biliary tract and gall-bladder, (2) the genito-urinary tract, and (3) the heart. In our experience, however, chills even when present as a symptom of acute endocarditis are rarely of diag- nositic value as compared with more localizing and definite evidence such as embolic phenomena or diastolic murmurs. 2. Mental State.—In the classical descriptions of acute endo- carditis it has repeatedly been noticed that patients with this disease do not feel sick, complain of nothing, want to get up and go about their usual occupations, and sometimes actually do so. This state of euphoria was distinctly noticeable in four of the 102 cases of primary endocarditis here studied, and very possibly would have been noted in others had it been more carefully looked for. In most of the cases however it was certainly not present. One of the cases of striking euphoria in this series occurred in a hospital orderly who up to one week from the time of his death was actively at work carrying patients and attending to the ordinary duties of his position. Ordi- narily however either an overwhelming constitutional sepsis or the discomfort attendant upon local foci of sepsis or sufferings from an uncompensated chronic valve lesion prevented possibility from an euphoria while the patients were under observation. A ‘‘typhoidal state’? was noted in two cases of this group, and a stuporous or comatose condition in eleven. One patient was notably nervous and troubled with insomnia. | 3. Anemia.—In Table 130 are shown the blood counts of seven patients in the non-recurrent subdivision of the primary group. CLINICAL MANIFESTATIONS 573 TABLE 130.—ANEMIA INGROUP I Necropsy Age and Sex Red Cells Hemoglobin 2,248,000 48% 2,880, 000 45% 2,800,000 3,100,000 41% 70% 55% 60% Leucocytes TEs tieand TI Under 5000 5 ,OOO-10, 000. 10, 000-15, 000 15, 000-50, 000 50, 800-58, 000 “Leucocytosis’”’........ SRETEOONT epee hs oo oe geal The anemia here illustrated is of course of the secondary type and is considerable though not extreme in degree. When it occurs, however, it is of very great diagnostic value, supposing that hemor- rhage and other obvious causes are absent; for chronic valve lesions and the fevers most likely to be confused with that of acute endocar- ditis rarely produce anemia. So that I think one may say that if a case appears to be one of ordinary valvular heart disease but is accompanied by fever and especially by anemia not obviously accounted for otherwise, acute or subacute endocarditis is a very probable diagnosis. *These numbers (I, II, etc.) refer to the sub-groups of acute and subacute endo- carditis explained above. ‘II + III”’ means a dominant septic focus outside the heart, but also at necropsy an old chronic endocarditis underlying the fresh acute vegetations. 574 FACTS ON THE HEART 4. Leucocytosis.—In Table 131 are shown the leucocyte counts in 103 cases of the present series. 71 of these fall into the class of well-marked leucocytoses, most of them above 25,000 and under 50,000. In five cases the count ranged between 50,800 and 78,000. There is, however, a small but important group of 14 cases with leucocytes in normal numbers. In the absence of other causes for leucocytosis, especially in the group here called primary, the presence of a real leucocytosis is of considerable value, though it must be remembered that intracardiac clots and peripheral infarcts are also capable of producing fever and leucocytosis in the absence of any septic foci inside or outside the heart. Circulating Phagocytes—In one of the cases of this group the progressive anemia and leucocytosis were associated with an extra- ordinary number of circulating phagocytes which could be seen actively ingesting both red and white corpuscles. This case has been recorded in detail by Dr. Mary W. Rowley.* A similar case studied by her also occurred in connection with a chronic endocarditis very possibly overlaid by acute endocarditis but not proved to be such, as there was no post-mortem examination. Another case similar to these has been reported by Van Nuys.T 5. Arrhythmia.— Unfortunately our records upon this point are worth very little. They suffice merely to show that in a majority of these cases arrhythmia is either absent or so slight that it was not noticed at all during the life of the individual. In 32 cases, 23 of them falling within the primary group, some type of arrhythmia was noticed. In a good many of the other cases the absence of any arrhythmia was definitely stated. In others there is no record. SYMPTOMS ON THE PART OF THE CIRCULATION (a) In Table 132 it appears that in the primary group of cases cardiac enlargement was usually recognized. ‘This is especially true of the recurrent subdivision. In the cases of secondary and terminal endocarditis, on the other hand, cardiac enlargement was recognized only 16 times among 78 cases, as contrasted with 67 times in 102 cases of the primary group. (b) Very similar figures are seen as regards dyspnea in Table 133, and as regards edema in Table 134. * Occurrence of Atypical Phagocytic Cells in the Circulating Blood, New York Medical Journal, 1907. Vol. 85; p. 674. + F. Van Nuys: An Extraordinary Blood. Presence of Atypical Phagocytic Cells. Boston Medical and Surgical Journal, 1907. Vol. 156, p. 390. “a SYMPTOMS ON THE PART OF THE CIRCULATION 575 TABLE 132.—CARDIAC ENLARGEMENT IN LIFE From a diagnostic point of view however it is obvious that cardiac enlargement, dyspnea, and edema do not help us to recognize acute endocarditis, but point rather towards a valvular or hypertensive type of chronic heart trouble. Still when these manifestations of impaired circulation are associated with those of constitutional sepsis referred to above, we certainly have a basis for suspecting acute endocarditis, a suspicion which cannot approach definite knowledge unless we have bacterial findings from the blood stream or evidence of embolism. This group presents itself ordinarily under the clinical picture of chronic valve disease and is so diagnosed. (c) Cardiac Murmurs—Murmurs of some sort were recorded in 118 out of 180 cases. In the cases of primary endocarditis they were recorded in 79 out of 102. The definite absence of murmurs is recorded in only to cases of this group; in the remaining 13 there is no record. In the cases of secondary endocarditis, on the other hand, murmurs were recorded in only 35 out of 78 and are definitely recorded as absent in 34. Systolic murmurs alone—which of course have no diagnostic significance—make up the whole record in 55 cases. Turning to the more significant murmurs we find systolic and diastolic murmurs together in 40 cases, systolic, diastolic, and pre- systolic murmurs combined in 14 cases, systolic and presystolic mur- murs in eleven. Obviously none of these murmurs or combinations of murmurs has any peculiar diagnostic significance in relation to acute endocarditis, though I believe it is entirely possible that an acute endocarditis, quite unassociated with chronic deformity in 576 FACTS ON THE HEART the valve, can, through the presence of perforating ulcerations and blocking polypous masses, produce either a stenosis or a regurgitation. This, however, in my opinion, is rarely the case, the significant mur- murs being due.in the great majority of cases to chronic underlying lesions. The nature of the evidence on which this belief is based is hard to present. With the heart in one’s hand, looking at the vegetations and ulcerations and estimating their size, one arrives at an impression that they are or are not capable of producing stenosis or incompetency of the valve. When the vegetations are so minute that it needs a hand lens to make sure of their presence, it would be generally agreed, I take it, that they could not of them- selves produce a leak or a blocking of the valve. On the other hand, when the vegetations are as big as one’s thumb it is almost impossible to avoid the conclusion that they have interfered seriously in the function of the valve to which they are attached. Between these ~ extremes there are of course doubtful cases where the presonal equa- tion of the dbserver must enter in. I do not believe that the quality or the exact locaticn of murmurs © helps much if at all in interpreting them as evidence for or against acute endocarditis. Much more important is a change in the posi- tion or quality of the murmur within a few hours or days under the observation of one person. Among the 36 cases of primary non- recurrent acute endocarditis such a change occurred in seven cases out of ten in which there is a definite record on the subject. But in the majority of the cases both in this group and in the others, we have no sufficient study or record upon this point. (d) Thrills —Largely from the study of cases not included in this group I have come to believe that a thrill is the most important of all the features in the local examination of the heart as evidence of acute endocarditis. Realizing of course that a thrill may be produced by a chronic stenosing lesion at any of the valves as well as by congenital defects and by aneurism, I believe nevertheless that the presence of a thrill and especially the appearance or modification of such a thrill, in a febrile case, is of considerable practical value in the diagnosis of an acute lesion. In the present series, however, such thrills were recorded in only 29 out of 180 cases, and 22 of these were in cases associated with a chronic deforming lesion and may well have been due to that rather than to acute endocarditis. My own belief, there- fore, as to the significance of a thrill in this disease is not substantiated in the figures here presented. I urge it nevertheless upon the atten- — tion of others. SYMPTOMS ON THE PART OF THE CIRCULATION Swi (e) Chronic passive congestion was found at necropsy in 86 out of 180 cases, 72 of these belonging to the primary group and 14 to the secondary. It is notable that evidence of general stasis was present in almost every one of the recurrent cases, in the first group, 59 out of 66. Thisis only what one would expect from the association in this group of a chronic valvular lesion. But it is notable that even in the absence of any such chronic lesion, 13 oué of 36 non-recurrent cases tm the primary group showed chronic passive congestion after death. On the other hand, not a single case in the group of pure sepsis with secondary involvement of the heart showed any passive congestion after death, a fact which seems to suggest that sepsis alone cannot weaken the heart in such a way as to produce chronic passive congestion. About a quarter of the cases with sepsis and secondary involvement of the heart valves implanted-upon a pre- vious chronic endocarditis, showed passive congestion after death. But where there was no chronic process on the valve, secondary sepsis alone was never in this series associated with chronic passive congestion. TABLE 135.—HEART WEIGHTS AT NECROPSY Pyemic; mMormal.. >. 128-200 200-249 250-299 300-349 3509-399 400-~449 459-499 5909-549 559-599 600-700 700-800 “Enlarged” 850 II50 1273 37 Primary acute Primary acute re- current tl wW Lan I I 1 I r 2 I 1e) 2 2 12) I 1e) ce) te) = COOH AW Ob Y - 12) H+ 4+ &# DS WH BR AO OO Pyemic (os oy Tey TaN eh Lon col akoy cee Fob Sy ES ee hes) | iS} Wn chronic endo. as well as acute Terminal (IV) OOO) Oe Het me et Go se Ca COO! -O al ve) OF 050 A Boe eS NON Oo OF SB OO roca 578 FACTS ON THE HEART WEIGHT OF HEART AT NECROPSY In comment on the facts shown in Table 135, one may say that in 111 out of 180 cases hypertrophy is slight or absent; 1.e. in 111 cases the heart weighed 450 grams or less. In the 78 cases of secondary acute endocarditis 38 or approximately one-half showed no hyper- trophy whatever. On the other hand, in the 102 cases of the first group there are many very large hearts and only 27 under 400 grams. The largest hearts of this series were associated with chronic peri- carditis as well as with acute endocarditis and valve lesions, so that we have no reason to believe that the endocarditis played any considerable partin theirsize. Ontheother handin thenon-recurrent cases of the primary group there are eleven cases of hypertrophied hearts the size of which is not explained by any chronic lesion or by any hypertension evident during the period of observation in life, so that it seems possible that acute endocarditis is of itself capable of producing cardiac hypertrophy in some cases. Four cases of this group occurred in persons less than thirty years of age and not the subject of any nephritis or arteriosclerosis. ‘Three of these four were women, one fourteen years of age, one twenty-one, and one twenty- nine. It is hardly probable that hypertension should have produced the cardiac hypertrophy in these cases, and there was nothing what- ever in the heart, pericardium or kidneys to account for any such enlargement as was found. Under these conditions we may reason- ably believe that there has been no hypertension present to explain the cardiac hypertrophy, and may therefore suppose that the ulcera- tions and polypoid masses themselves produce enough disturbance of cardiac function to account for the hypertrophy. BACTERIOLOGY So little perseverance was devoted to catching bacteria in the cir-_ culation during the life of the cases here studied that I shall here record only the results of post-mortem cultures. In 80 out of 180 © cases (see Table 136) an organism very probably connected with the endocarditis was cultivated from the blood at necropsy. 54 of these positive cultures were in the first or primary group of cases, and only 26 in the secondary cases. 19 out of 36 of the primary non-recurrent cases of acute endocarditis showed positive cultures. 35 out of 66 of the recurrent cases, 1g out of 44 of the septic cases with secondary endocarditis, gave positive cultures, while seven of the 34 terminal cases were also positive. ASSOCIATED LESIONS 579 TABLE 136.—ORGANISM POST-MORTEM Streptococcus Staphylococcus aureus Atypical streptococcus Pneumococcus Staphylococcus albus Streptococcus and staphylococcus.. Streptococcus and pneumococcus... H | | Ke) OO H30r SOs Onc. i? 20 (O04. 0 MOEN “I The streptococcus was much the commonest organism, being present either alone or in association with other organisms in 75%. No careful study of the type of streptococcus was made in any considerable number of these cases, so that I shall attempt no com- parison with the results of others upon this very important point. The staphylococcus aureus was found in nine cases all falling within the sub-group of primary acute endocarditis, the pneumococcus in nine cases, six of which fell in the first group and three in the second, Staphylococcus albus not the result of skin contamination occurred in one case. In two cases there was the association of streptococcus and staphylococcus and in one case of streptococcus and pneumo- coccus. Wo gonococct or “influenza bacilli” were found. ASSOCIATED LESIONS 118 of these cases were associated with hypertrophy and dilata- tion of the heart, and 62 were without any such association. Aside from the question of cardiac enlargement, 54 cases showed no cardiac lesion except the acute endocarditis. 69 were associated with valve lesions and of these 69, 20 had also further pathology in the circulatory system. 20 were associated with chronic non-deforming endocarditis, seven of these being further complicated. There were g cases of acute pericarditis and g of chronic pericarditis with the acute valvular lesion. 13 of these pericardial cases were still _. further complicated by other circulatory lesions. 17 cases were associated with arteriosclerosis and 17 with chronic nephritis, nine of these 34 cases having some further cardiac pathology as well. One case is associated with goitre and one with myocarditis and other lesions. The overlapping and duplication of these is obvious. 580 FACTS ON THE HEART If one looks for the gravest associated lesion in each case the results are as in Table 137. TABLE 137.—CHIEF* ASSOCIATED LESIONS IN 180 CASES OF ACUTE ENDOCARDITIS Without With Acute and subacute endocarditis enlargementlienlargement With nephritis With goiter With chronic pericarditis With leukemia With pernicious anemia With acute pericarditis With chronic non-deforming endocarditis With arteriosclerotic degeneration of the kidney With arteriosclerosis With myocarditis OR NHB OOH HON Ov iS) * To avoid duplications the most important lesion associated with the endocarditis has in each case been counted as the associated lesion. TABLE 138.—PRIMARY ACUTE AND SUBACUTE ENDOCARDITIS Nonrecurrent Recurrent Duration Less than 2 weeks 2— 3 weeks 4— 7 weeks 10-14 months 15-24 months 24 months - 2— 3 years 4 years Questionable 2 3 6 4 5 5 2 I 5 8 2 2 i (e) I % 2 Z 2 toa oO fos Ov DURATION 581 DURATION We have no way of calculating the duration of cases in the group of pyemic or terminal endocarditis since there the underlying illness, septic, neoplastic or whatever, may always have produced the earliest symptoms. In the group designated as primary we obtained the figures shown in Table 138, from which I shall draw the following conclusions. The recurrent cases of primary endocarditis last usually for months. 38 out of 50 with a known duration lasted two months or more. On the other hand, the non-recurrent primary cases lasted as a rule weeks rather than months, 23 out of 36 knowing nothing of any illness until within two months from the day of death. Four to seven weeks is the duration in nearly half of these cases, while two to five months is the commonest duration in the recurrent cases, tg of which fell within these limits. The majority of the notably long cases, lasting ten months or more, are in the group of recurrent cases, seven falling in this group to six in the non-recurrent group. Among those in which the duration is stated as two or three years (or four years as in one case), it is to be supposed that as in other chronic infections, for example tuberculosis, there is a waxing and waning of immunity against the disease, periods of latency or arrest in the process followed by the periods of activity. That this was the case in at least two of our cases was shown by the occurrence post- mortem of clean-cut, smooth-edged holes in valves, easily distinguish- able from congenital defects or fenestrations, and clearly the result of a previously ulcerative process which had healed. In one case the patient definitely stated that he had been through exactly the same experience two years previously, had recovered after some months of illness, and then had remained perfectly well until a few weeks before the time when we saw him. Especially in children and in adolescents I think there is reason to believe that this alternation of periods of activity with periods of quiescence in the inflammation upon the heart valves is not at all uncommon. Many of the cases called “‘chronic”’ and listed along with deforming valvular lesions had at certain periods leucocytosis and fever unexplained by any known lesions outside the heart. Some of these cases may well have suffered from a brief and relatively mild attack of acute endocarditis, overcome, like the milder tuber- culous infections, without ever subjecting the system to any observable strain or producing any but the mildest evidences of a constitutional reaction. 582 FACTS ON THE HEART In the primary non-recurrent group of cases the average stay in the hospital up to the time of death was 17 days. Leaving out of account four relatively long cases which were in the hospital between 37 and go days each, we have for the remaining cases an average of ten days from the time when they were sick enough to be brought to a hospital until the moment of death. Diagnosis.—31 cases out of 102 of the primary group were diagnosed in life. None of the secondary group was recognized during life. SUMMARY 1. Acute and subacute endocarditis can be divided into the “pri- mary’”’ cases which appear to be confined to the circulatory system, and the ‘“‘secondary” group which result from a septic focus outside the heart (e.g. general peritonitis or a septic uterus) or from a chronic debilitating disease (neoplasm, nephritis, etc.). In these secondary cases the endocarditis is probably a terminal event. 2. In 56% of cases, acute or subacute endocarditis is a recurrent process Implanted upon an old area of healed inflammation. This percentage rises to sixty-four if we consider only the “‘primary”’ cases. 3. It occurs especially between the twentieth and the fortieth year and affects the two sexes about equally. 4. The mitral valve is attacked in 76% of cases, and is the only valve attacked in 43%. In general the frequency of occurrence of the disease on the different valves is about the same as in chronic deforming endocarditis. ‘There is no special tendency to attack the tricuspid or pulmonary valves. 5. Embolism is shown post-mortem in nearly two-thirds of the “primary” cases, but is recognized during life in only one-half of these, or one-third of all “primary” cases. The skin, spleen, kidneys, brain, and lungs are most often affected. In the ‘‘secondary”’ cases emboli are but one-half as common as in the “‘primary.”’ 6. Nephritis occurs in 40% of all cases and in 33% of the “primary” group. 7. Diagnosis is often, perhaps usually, impossible. Fever and chills in a patient with a diastolic murmur and a palpable thrill should always make us suspicious. If these are associated with an unexplained secondary anemia and especially with evidences of embolism (purpura, hematuria, enlarged spleen) we may expect that assiduous search will demonstrate organisms (usually strepto- cocci) by culture in the blood. ACUTE ENDOCARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 583 In many cases the diagnosis is masked by the more striking evidences of chronic valvular disease and general passive congestion. 8. Decided cardiac enlargement occurs in 37%. Most of these cases can be accounted for by an associated valvular disease or by hypertension. But in a few cases it seems probable that the acute vegetations themselves disturb cardiac function enough to produce hypertrophy. 9. The duration is usually weeks or months, occasionally years. to. Recovery certainly occurs and in children is probably not uncommon. Points of Especial Interest to the Writer 1. The frequent occurrence of a palpable thrill. 2. The occasional occurrence of cardiac hypertrophy unexplained. 3. The absence of any evidence that the right side of the heart suffers more often than in chronic valvular disease. 4. The proof of healed ulcerative lesions. 5. The absence of the gonococcus and the influenza bacillus. 6. The rarity of an association with acute pericarditis (only 9 cases in 180). : 7. The absence of the sternal tenderness mentioned by Libman. ILLUSTRATIVE CASES Necropsy 2700 A housewife of twenty-nine entered August 20 with a diagnosis of Banti’s disease made by an intelligent internist. She had always considered herself healthy. She had had no rheumatic fever, pleu- risy, or malaria. She had had two miscarriages and no subsequent pregnancies. Her catamenia were usually profuse, regular and pain- less; ceased the May before admission. During the present illness she had urinated once or twice at night. Her bowels were always costive. Her best weight was 99!4 pounds. Eight months before admission she was curetted on account of a miscarriage. Some time after this she began gradually to lose strength, color and weight. In May she was in bed a week with nausea, fever and pain in the right side (abdomen?). Two weeks later she noticed peculiar numbness in the right arm; no paralysis; but at this time she had difficulty in enunciation and next day com- plete aphasia which lasted forty-eight hours but left her quickly. 584 FACTS ON THE HEART Two months before admission she had severe pain in the left upper quadrant for four weeks. This kept her awake at night, was not associated with any lump, and gradually passed away. Her bowels were increasingly constipated, though there was no pain or change in the stools so far as she knew. The chief complaint was of increasing pallor and weakness, so that for the two months before admission she kept to her bed. There was no jaundice or bleeding from the gums. For the past two months she had noticed crops of red spots on the legs. Examination showed a fairly well developed, poorly nourished woman with obvious loss of flesh. The skin was muddy, but not really jaundiced. There were purpuric spots over both legs below the knees. The apex impulse of the heart was in the fourth space, 7 cm. from the midsternal line. There was no right-sided enlargement. A blowing systolic murmur was heard at the apex transmitted to the axilla and back, also heard at the base. The sounds were of good quality. The pulmonic second sound was not accentuated. The lungs showed dullness, diminished voice and breath sounds at the left base extending up about halfway to the angle of the scapula and continuing around the chest to the front. There was a pleural rub at the right base behind on deep inspiration. Over an area extending from the umbilicus to the pubes and corresponding roughly with the area which would be produced by a greatly distended bladder there was distension, tympany, visible peristalsis and a succussion sound. In the region of the spleen there was a hard mass with a definitely nodular edge moving freely with respiration, on pressure not tender, well felt from the flank. There was slight dullness in both flanks, not shifting with change of position. There was some diastasis of the recti. Vaginal examination showed nothing of importance. The rectal examination was negative. The extremities and reflexes were normal. During more than seven weeks of observation in the hospital the patient had waves of fever lasting a week or ten days each, rarely reaching more than 103°. There were only three or four days in this whole period when she was free from fever. As a rule the daily swing was about 2°, but at times it was 4° or more. The pulse was continuously elevated, usually between too and 120. The respirations were 20 to 25 during most of the course. The output of urine was 40 to 70 ounces, the specific gravity 1.002 to 1.005 at five of seven examinations, 1.016 at the other two. ‘Traces of albu- min were always present, sugar absent. The sediment usually ACUTE ENDOCARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 585 showed a few hyalin and granular casts; nothing else of importance. At entrance the red cells were 2,500,000, the leucocytes 6,000, the hemoglobin 38% (Sahli), the polynuclears 83%. The stained smear showed moderate achromia, slight variation in size and shape, no blasts. The blood plates counted by Dr. J. H. Pratt were 141,000. August 29 the blood showed very little change. September 9g the red cells were 2,280,000, September 13 2,056,000, September 17 2,000,000, September 24 1,900,000. There werenoimportant changes in the look of the blood smear except that the achromia grew more and more marked and polychromatophilia appeared. Blood cultures August 22, 24, 25 and September 5 showed always a profuse growth of atypical pneumococci. A urine culture August 25 and September 8 showed the same organism. September 19 a blood culture showed a somewhat less definite organism, the surface growth showing diplo- Fic. 104.—Rash following medication. cocci while the water of condensation showed chains of streptococci. A Wassermann August 24 was positive. August 26 20 minims of a catheter specimen of urine were injected into a guinea-pig. Necropsy on this animal October 3 was negative. Further study of the mass in the left hypochondrium seemed to show that it was a tender spleen. At entrance the patient was given ten grains of potassium iodid three times a day. Forty-eight hours later a very marked rash developed on the face and arms. (See Figs. 104 and 105.) August 26 this rash was pustular, but cultures taken from the pustules showed no growth. The mass in the region of the bladder at first suggested the retention of urine. The patient was catheterized with removal of thirty-six ounces of urine, but the tumor still persisted. Apparently it was due to protrusion of intes- 586 FACTS ON THE HEART tines through the rectal diastasis. About August 25 she had several sharp attacks of pain in the spleen with increase of its tenderness. On the 26th a loud harsh systolic murmur was heard at the apex of the heart apparently different from that heard at entrance. Dr. K. Lawrence Oliver pronounced the cutaneous eruption to be due to KI taken. September 7 there was a slight colitis, which cleared up in a few days. About this time the patient began to have constant severe pain in the region of the spleen, and its lower edge was exqui- sitely tender. At midnight on the eighth she suddenly developed deep noisy breathing and when seen by the nurse was in a convulsion. Next morning the reflexes of the right arm were increased and there was right ankle clonus. The patient was drowsy and stupid all day, the white count still, however, remaining low. At this time the Fic. 105.—Rash following medication. cardiac murmur replaced the first sound altogether. September 11 the left chest showed dullness to flatness from the angle of the scapula to the base, with moist rales and absent breath sounds over this area. The left clavicle was slightly tender. By September 19 the splenic tenderness had disappeared and the signs in the left chest were gone. Her appetite was good, her spirits much improved, yet the patient was steadily growing weaker. There was marked ankle clonus, especially on the left. September 27 the liver was quite tender. Toward the end of life she had to be kept under morphia and became incontinent of urine and feces, so that a bedsore developed over the sacrum. October g she died. Clinical Diagnosis (from Hospital Record).—Subacute infectious endocarditis. ie ACUTE ENDOCARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 587 Multiple infarcts. Septicemia. Chronic passive congestion. Dr. Richard C, Cabot’s Diagnosis.—Septicemia, streptococcus- pnheumococcus. Acute endocarditis of the mitral valve. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Chronic passive congestion of the lungs. Infarcts of spleen, liver, lungs. Perisplenitis. Decubitus. Anatomical Diagnosis.—Septicemia, atypical pneumococcus. Acute and slight chronic endocarditis of the mitral valve. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Infarcts of the spleen and kidneys. Slight chronic passive congestion, general. - Hemorrhages of the liver. Focal fibroid myocarditis. Slight chronic pleuritis, right. Decubitus. Dr. RicHARDSON: The gastrointestinal tract showed nothing at all except some reddening of the mucosa, the initial stages of passive congestion. The abdominal wall was very thin, the muscles pale, and while there was no distinct separation, yet the thinness of the wall would easily permit the bulging forward of the intestines that Dr. Cabot mentioned. Dr. Casor: Do you think that just part of the general emaciation ? Dr. RICHARDSON: Yes. Dr. Casot: We said: ‘‘Why was there diastasis of the recti?”’ The answer is, there was not any. The mystery is wiped out. The patient was very thin everywhere, so thin that the intestines came forward. Dr. RicHarpson: The cultures showed the organism already mentioned, an organism belonging to the streptococcus-pneumo- coccus group and that particular one known as the viridans. That was proved true in life, proved true in the heart blood and from the spleen, establishing the streptococcus septicemia. The heart showed only very slight hypertrophy and dilatation. The right wall of the heart was 4 mm. thick, slightly thickened, the left to mm., not thickened at all. The cavities were only slightly enlarged. That is important, because there was only a slight amount 588 FACTS ON THE HEART of chronic passive congestion and not much dilatation. The aortic, tricuspid and pulmonary valves were negative. On the mitral valve in a few scattered places there were small polypoid vegetations, taken together a very small mass. So that within the heart there was no definite cause for hypertrophy and dilatation, and there was not much. The aorta and its branches were negative. So that although there was a polypoid mass of vegetations on the mitral valve, they were so small that they produced but little decrease in the circum- ference. She was a very small woman, and the valve would not ordi- narily measure more than eight cm.; there was very little change. That makes very little deformity of that valve. That is a point Dr. Cabot has always insisted on. Where there is real stenosis of a valve there is with it deformity or such change as can be called deformity. There was nothing in the cavities, and no ball thrombus. The spleen was very large as has been described. It weighed 465 grams; that is considerably enlarged. Scattered through it were infarcts the outer surfaces of which showed acute splenitis resting over these areas of infarction. The spleen tissue itself was a little soft, as 1s apt to be the case in infections, although not always so. The pleural cavities showed no fluid. The lungs showed a slight amount of chronic passive congestion, and there was a slight amount of chronic passive congestion in the liver, which is of course in har- mony with the character of the heart. The liver weighed 1660 grams—a little large—and the interesting thing was that scattered through it were some small areas of hemorrhage. Those were in the nature of purpura, and probably are to be associated with the infection present and also with the anemia. Dr. Casot: Why do we have purpura in infections? Dr. RicHARDSON: I don’t know. As the cases come here we find it associated with infections and anemia. Those are the two com- mon things, and then again we find it associated with nothing that we can put our finger on. We do not know whether it is change in the quality of the blood or in the character of the vessel walls which produces purpura. A PuysiciAN: How much purpura hemorrhagica do you see? Dr. Cazsort: It is a very rare disease. We often go a full year in this hospital without seeing any. Dr. RICHARDSON: We get cases here of unexplained purpura, something akin to hemorrhagic diathesis. One of the most marked cases I have seen was in connection with tuberculosis. That of course was infection. ACUTE ENDOCARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 589 The microscopic examination confirmed the gross picture, showing the vegetations on the heart valve laden with bacteria. Another interesting point is that of the focal myocarditis of the left ventricle. There was a small area of softening in the wall, and the vessel leading to that area was occluded; it was definitely an area of infarction, a focal myocarditis. A PuysictANn: Is this case infection from the heart vegetation itself? Dr. Casot: I do not think anybody can answer the question whether it starts in the blood and goes to the heart or starts in the heart and goes to the blood. My own guess is that it starts in the blood. Necropsy 2910 A colored laborer of twenty-eight entered August 19. His past history was negative except that he was kicked in the leg by a horse a month and a halfago. For the past three weeks he had been drink- ing two bottles of beer and one of gin daily. He formerly drank much whiskey and beer. He smoked from two to six cigars a day. He had “‘chancre”’ three weeks before admission. A few days after the chancre appeared he began to have “‘rheu- matism”’ in his ankles, calves, and left wrist, so painful that he had difficulty in walking. For three weeks his appetite had been poor, especially in the morning. August 12 examination in the Orthopedic Room of the Out-Patient Department showed slight swelling of the left wrist and right ankle. He was given aspirin. August 15 he is reported that the pain was relieved, but that he now had pain in the left lower quadrant. The leucocyte count was 16,000. August 19 the abdominal pain was still present. Physical examination showed no tenderness. The constant dull ache in the left lower quadrant had persisted. He had vomited a little white watery material during the past two days, without relation to food. He thought he had had slight edema of the legs. He urinated once or twice nearly every night. Examination showed a well-nourished negro. The right epi- trochlear glands were the size of a pea; the left were not palpable. The heart showed no enlargement to percussion. The sounds, action, pulses and artery walls were normal. There was a soft blowing systolic murmur at the apex, transmitted to the axilla. The systolic blood pressure was 115. The lungs were clear. The spleen seemed somewhat enlarged to percussion. The edge was not 590 FACTS ON THE HEART felt. There was a small indurated area on the corona of the penis with a moist surface and slight discharge. No urethral discharge was discovered. There was slight tenderness under the outer malleolus of the left ankle. The left wrist was slightly painful on extreme flexion or extension. The pupils were slightly irregular. The right reacted sluggishly to strong light; the left reacted well. The reflexes were normal. The temperature was 101° to 105°, the pulse 84 to 160, the respira- tion 28 to 80. The amount of urine was 25 to 81 ounces, the specific gravity I.o12 to 1.020. There was the slightest possible trace to a trace of albumin at all of five examinations, a few red blood corpuscles at all, rare hyalin and granular casts at two, a large number of granular casts, a few hyalin, and many casts with red and white blood corpuscles attached at the last two. The hemoglobin was 100%. There were 25,000 to 52,000 leucocytes, 91% polynuclears. A Wassermann was negative. Blood cultures August 19 and 23 showed streptococcus pyogenes. ‘The stools were dark red, showed many red blood corpuscles, and gave a positive guaiac. A skin consultant reported, “I think that the lesion of the penis is probably a primary lesion. I do not believe his temperature is due tosyphilis, and should think his present acute medical condition of more impor- tance than his syphilis.” August 25 the heart murmur had a muscial quality which dis- appeared over night. Many fine crackles were heard at the lower right axilla, and August 26 many crackles at the left base behind. August 28 he had a chill. Although he gradually lost ground he felt comfortable and ate his meals with evident relish. August 29 there were many fine moist crackles at the right base in the axilla and in front. September 4 the pulse and respirations rose. Autogenous vaccines were given. The systolic murmur continued loud and harsh, occasionally with a musical tone. Rales were heard at both bases. September 7 he died. Clinical Diagnosis (from Hospital Record).—Streptococcus septicemia. Syphilis. Dr. William H. Smith’s Diagnosis Streptococcus septicemia. Ulcerative endocarditis of the mitral valve. Possibly multiple foci of bronchopneumonia. Passive congestion? Infarction of the lungs? of the spleen? of the left kidney? Anatomical Diagnosis.—Septicemia, streptococcus. ACUTE ENDOCARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 591 Acute endocarditis of the mitral valve with occlusion of the valve orifice. Extensive infarcts of the spleen and kidney with purulent soften- ing of a large splenic infarct. Thrombosis of the right common iliac artery, the splenic artery, the branch of the left renal artery. ; Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Fic. 106.—Acute polypous endocarditis of the mitral valve with a huge mass occluding the mitral orifice. (Photograph by Lewis S. Brown. Dr. Oscar Richardson.) Chronic passive congestion, general. Acute glomerulo-nephritis. Slight chronic pleuritis, left. Dr. RicHarpson: The illustration (Fig. 106) shows the mitral valve with the huge mass on it. When all its edges are brought together there is little space for the circulating fluid to go through. 592 FACTS ON THE HEART It was gradually closing down. This was a case of streptococcus septicemia with which was associated the large polypoid mass of vegetation on the mitral valve and the acute glomerulo-nephritis, By the latter I mean a condition in which there is proliferation of the endothelial cells of the capillaries of the glomeruli with the occlusion of the glomeruli. At this time we associate the condition with organisms of the streptococcus-pneumococcus group. From the picture of the mitral valve it is plain to see how small particles could be washed off and carried into the various vessels. We do not always find the plugs in the vessels as we did in this case, where we found them in three places. That picture is rather uncommon. The question arises in these cases of infection with this group of organisms as to whether it may not be an arteritis of the vessels and the thrombi erected at that point. We had a case the other day which supports this hypothesis well. In this particular place we do have a definite source for the thrombi, that is, the thrombi are embolic. The emboli come down, get plugged there, and become adherent to the wall. In the other case the valves were perfectly smooth and free, and there was marked infarction of the kidneys and the thrombus in the renal artery. The heart weighed 363 grams and was moderately dilated. With the exception of the mass on the mitral valve it showed nothing remarkable. We made a careful examination for gonococci and spirochetes, not only by the cover glass method but also by staining sections according to Levaditi’s method. There was no evidence of syphilis or gonorrhea. The lungs showed chronic passive congestion. The liver and the gastro-intestinal and the genito-urinary tracts were negative with the exception of the kidneys. They weighed 404 grams, rather large. (Normally 200-400.) They showed the infarcts mentioned in the anatomical diagnosis and a rather wide cortex, 6-7 mm. The glomeruli were visible at points. Although this man was a negro, in whose race the prevalence of tuberculosis 1s well-known, there is no tuberculosis recorded; even the lymphatic glands were negative. Necropsy 3030 An Irish laborer of thirty entered January 8. His past history was negative except for “‘fever’* for a few days asa child. He drank six glasses of whiskey and eight of beer a day, sometimes more. ACUTE ENDOCARDITIS—-ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 593 For a year he had had ulcers on his legs. Three months before admission they practically healed, but soon broke down and since this had not healed. He had never noticed any varicosities, and denied all symptoms of syphilis. For six weeks he had had a troublesome cough with a moderate amount of sputum. He had been increasingly dyspneic, especially at night. His feet and ankles had been swollen at times. He uri- nated three or four times at night. He slept poorly, especially after drinking heavily. He had anorexia and was constipated. Examination showed a well-nourished man tossing restlessly about, with occasional unproductive cough. The mucous mem- branes were slightly dusky. The apex impulse of the heart was in the fifth space. The borders of dullness were 14.5 cm. to the left, 4 cm. to the right, the substernal dullness 6 cm. The action was rapid and slightly irregular. The sounds were of fair quality, heard with difficulty on account of noises in the bronchi and lungs. There was a loud blowing systolic murmur at the apex transmitted to the axilla, a to-and-fro murmur at the second right rib transmitted to the neck. The aortic second sound was accentuated. The pulses were irregular. The blood pressure was 150/80 to 120/70; the systolic later fell to 100. The lungs showed poor expansion. Expiration was somewhat prolonged, especially on the right. There were many coarse crackles and groans. There was moderate dullness through- out the right side of the abdomen, not shifting. The liver dullness extended from the fifth space to 3 cm. below the costal margin. The edge was not felt. The genitals were normal. ‘There was con- siderable pitting edema of the lower legs and ankles. On the lower legs were two ulcers, discrete, with well defined edges and granulating centers, and a small healed scar surrounded by an area of scaly brownish skin. The pupils and reflexes were normal. The temperature was 95.7 to ror.8°, the pulse 65 to 116. The respirations were 17 to 36, after February 1 not remarkable. The amount of urine was 17 to 75 ounces, the specific gravity 1.030 to 1.012. There was albumin ’in large amounts in twenty-four of twenty-eight examinations, a slight trace at the other four. Hyalin and granular casts were seen at all examinations, in large numbers at the first three, red blood corpuscles at all, leucocytes at nine. A culture from the urine showed a few bacilli. The hemoglobin was 80 to 60%. There were 7,200 to 12,600 leucocytes, 75% polynuclears. The smear at entrance was not remarkable; March 18 the reds were 38 594 FACTS ON THE HEART 2,648,000. Four Wassermanns were negative. The fundi at admis- sion and February 13 were normal. The patient was very uncomfortable at entrance. January 13 he was resting better at night, the edema was clearing, and the heart borders coming in. He continued to improve slowly. Janu- ary 21 the left border of dullness was 16 cm., the substernal dullness 8 cm., the apex impulse diffuse in the 5th and 6th spaces. There was a short rough musical systolic over the left precordia, a short rough systolic of different quality in the aortic area, a soft diastolic Fic. 107.—The heart is greatly enlarged to the left. There is a shadow at the right of the sternum probably due to peribronchial thickening. The aortic arch is not enlarged. General peribronchial thickening and glandular enlargement. By fluro- scope no abnormal pulsation was made out. in the aortic area and along the right sternal margin. ‘There were a few rales at the bases of the lungs. The ulcers of the legs were improving rapidly with corrosive dressings. X-ray January 24 showed the chest as in Fig. 107. He was put upon mercury salicylate and potassium iodid. Because of marked coryza and lachrimation the potassium iodid was omitted next day, and because of saliva- tion the mercury was omitted January 31. February 4 the systolic in the aortic area was barely audible. He was running a slight irregular temperature without obvious cause. Blood cultures were negative - February 4 and 21 and March 2. March 5 the temperature was no longer elevated. He was allowed to sit on the porch. He was given q ACUTE ENDOCARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 595 two carbon dioxid baths and felt better after them. There was a slight amount of fluid in the abdomen. March 14 the right ear and mastoid region were painful, the mas- toid tender on pressure. This drum was incised by an ear consultant, with a free discharge of pus, which continued. March 21 there was a butterfly patch of dull red over the nose, slightly tender and indurated. The patient had a slight chill. Two days later the patch had disappeared, but the mastoid tenderness was exquisite. The patient was dull, often irrational, complaining of no pain. The aural consultant advised postponing operation on account of the general condition. There was considerable edema of the legs, later of the hands, and marked edema and tenderness down under the right jaw. March 30 the eyes were turned to the right; there was slight nystagmus. The knee-jerks were feeble. The patient was noisily delirious, and died that day. Clinical Diagnosis (from Hospital Record).—Chronic glomerulo- nephritis. Chronic endocarditis. Aortitis? Chronic middle ear. Chronic mastoid. Dr. Richard C. Caboi’s Diagnosis —Chronic endocarditis of the aortic and mitral valves, with stenosis of each. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Subacute glomerulo-nephritis. ) Secondary anemia. Terminal streptococcus infection. Chronic passive congestion. Anatomical Diagnosis.—Acute vegetative endocarditis of the aortic valve. Chronic ulcerative endocarditis of the aortic valve. Subacute glomerulo-nephritis. Septicemia, pneumococcus streptococcus. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Chronic passive congestion, general. Hydropericardium. Hydrothorax. Ascites. Anasarca. Scar in the region of the right mastoid with sinus formation. Phlegmon of the deep tissues of the right side of the neck. 596 FACTS ON THE HEART The heart weighed 584 grams (normally 200-300). The cavities were considerably enlarged. The mitral valve was 12 cm. in cir- cumference (normally 1ocm.). The valve was not otherwise remark- able. The circumference of the aortic valve laid open was 8 cm.; but there was a large fibrocalcareous mass 3 cm. X 2 cm. which fused two of the cusps together and pushed up into the orifice of the valve, thereby considerably decreasing its actual circumference. The circumference of the tricuspid valve was 14 cm. (normally 12-13). Except for enlargement the valve was not remarkable. The pul- monic valve measured 9.75 cm. (normally 8-9 cm.), not remarkable. Note by Dr. G. W. Holmes.—In reviewing the X-ray plates in the light of the outcome it may be noted that the general shape of the heart, roughly triangular, suggests fluid in the pericardium. Necropsy 4577 An Italian clerk of twenty-three entered August 4, 1923, for relief of general weakness, malaise, dyspnea, slight cough, palpita- tion, and slight aching in the joints. His general health had always been good. He had the usual diseases of childhood and possibly scarlet fever. He had occasional head colds and slight headaches. Since tonsillectomy at seven he had had occasional sore throats. Several years before admission his nose was injured. Four and a half years before admission, after a mild attack a week and a half in duration of influenza and tonsillitis associated with general malaise, slight fever and some chilliness, he had his first attack of painful and swollen joints. He was confined to bed for nine weeks. On returning to work he developed sore throat, soon followed by mild general constitutional symptoms. One morning on waking he had considerable swelling of all the joints, and pain which increased in severity until it was almost impossible to bear the weight of the bed clothes. There was local heat but no redness. He felt slightly feverish and at times chilly, but had no actual chill. At the initial attack all the joints became involved simul- taneously. Active or passive motion aggravated the pain consider- ably. In addition to it there was swelling of the precordia. The acute condition did not last very long. Most of the nine weeks of his illness was a gradual recovery. In addition he spent a few months in recuperation. From that time he was free from symptoms until two months before admission, when he had a second attack of painful and swollen joints. A month later cardiac signs were discovered. During the past two weeks cardiac symptoms had developed. He ACUTE ENDOCARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 597 attributed the present attack of debility to worry about his mother’s condition. A short time before the joint symptoms developed he had slight malaise and weakness. ‘Then followed pain and stiffness in the left calf muscle, and soon afterwards pain and swelling in the right ankle, with rapid involvement of the left ankle. He gave up work. A few days after the ankles had been involved, when the inflammation was subsiding, the knee-joints became involved, and soon after this the ankle-joints again, with the left shoulder joint. Until a few weeks ago he was up and about the house. For three weeks his joints had given him no trouble, but he had developed at first a “‘full feeling”’ in the epigastrium, with gradual development of slight dyspnea, which in the past week had increased so that he slept in a more or less semi- recumbent position. His sleep was still considerably disturbed, especially in the past few days. The ‘‘fullness in the stomach” had increased until it had several times caused him to vomit. In the past few days he had had palpitation and slight precordial pain. Recently he had had slight unproductive cough and had urinated once or twice at night. 3-5 Ee Fic. 108.—Measurements by percussion. Examination showed a poorly nourished, rather pale man. The lungs were clear. The apex impulse of the heart was felt in the fifth space, diffuse. The heart was enlarged to the right and left. The percussion measurements were asshownin Fig.108. There was force- ful bounding pulsation, best seen and felt in the fifth space one cm. outside the nipple line, faintly felt in the sixth space. The whole pre- cordia lifted with the apex. There was an apical thrill. A systolic murmur replaced the first sound at the apex and the base. A short diastolic was heard at the aortic area and the apex. The blood pres- sure was 130/50-0. ‘The abdomen was dull, perhaps because of feces. The liver and spleen were palpable. ‘The liver edge was felt. The fingers weresome whatclubbed. ‘Thepupilsand reflexes were normal. The temperature was 98° to 103.1°, the pulse gt to 120, the respi- ration 18 to 36. The output of urine was 42 to 83 ounces, the specific gravity 1.010 to 1.018. ‘There was a very slight trace to a trace of albumin at all of five examinations. Red and white blood corpuscles were present at all but one, twice in large numbers, granular casts 598 FACTS ON THE HEART at three. The renal function was 50%. The hemoglobin was 65%. There were 13,600 to 34,500 leucocytes, 3,580,000 to 4,160,000 to 3,100,000 reds, moderate achromia, only slight variation in shape, with an occasional tendency toward tailed forms. One blood culture was negative, one showed streptococcus. One Wassermann was 4 | Fic. 109.—Chest 25.5 cm. Marked enlargement of the heart shadow. Increase apparently marked across the base in the region of the auricles. No change in the supracardiac dullness. Marked increase in the hilus shadows on both sides, with thickened prominent lung markings extending well out toward the periphery of the chest, and a large amount of mottling between the larger lung markings. These changes apparently do not reach the periphery or apices, and may be cardiac in origin. weakly positive, one negative. The X-ray findings August 17 are shown in Fig. ro9. August 16 transfusion of 510 c.c. was followed by a chill for a short time. The red count was not markedly changed. August 21 the patient was discharged with instructions for rest and hygiene. ACUTE ENDOCARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 599 September 18, 1923, he reentered. During the greater part of the interval since his discharge he had been in bed, in the afternoon walking about for a short time. His condition had remained in general about the same, perhaps growing somewhat worse, definitely so for the past few days. After he had been home a short time he began having bloating and a full feeling in the epigastrium, so that it embarrassed his breathing a good deal toward the evening and usually after eating. With the bloating he usually had cough with watery mucoid sputum, and frequently vomited withrelief. After the vomit- ing he frequently had palpitation and precordial pain which at times radiated to the right side. A few days before reentry he noticed for the first time toward evening pitting edema of the ankles. He was dyspneic when at rest, especially when bloated. He had had IN SPL ) | LA / WD, 6A Dull. Distant Smooth breath and tender voice sounds, liver A few rales, Fic. 110.—Chest sign in Case 4577. no joint symptoms except some pain and stiffness in the right calf a few weeks ago. He thought he had some evening rise of temperature. Upon examination he was very emaciated, with slight mucoid cough. The lung signs were as shown in Fig. 110. The heart was very large, with diffuse heaving precordial impulse and thrill. There was a systolic blowing murmur over the precordia, best heard at the pulmonic area, and a crisp short diastolic. The heart was heard throughout the chest. The blood pressure was 105/50. The spleen was not felt because of abdominal distension. The liver was as shown in the diagram. There was great edema of the feet and ankles. Over the shins were red petechiae. The temperature was 99° steadily falling to 94°, the pulse 130 falling to 86, the respiration 34 to 16. The output of urine was 20 600 FACTS ON THE HEART to 33 ounces, the specific gravity 1.018. There were occasional leucocytes, no albumin. The hemoglobin was 50 to 55%. There ~ were 32,800 to 33,200 leucocytes, 2,980,000 reds, 89% polynuclears. The mononuclears showed large vacuoles in cytoplasm. The red blood corpuscles showed considerable variation in size, typical macrocytes, a few microcytes. Most of the fields showed red cells well filled with hemoglobin; others showed slight achromia. There were a few tailed forms and oblong cells. The platelets were strikingly decreased and small. A Wassermann was moderately positive. The non-protein nitrogen was 95 mgm. X-ray showed the general appearance of the heart practically the same as at the previous note, possibly slightly more enlarged. The right antrum was dull. The right superior bicuspid tooth supporting a bridge showed evidence of a small area of absorption at its apex. The patient vomited almost everything taken. There was con- siderable abdominal pain from liver distension. September 18 transfusion of 500 c.c. was followed by a moderately severe chill and prostration. The patient had been growing pro- op gressively worse since admission. Takiae neatenieoetee The evening of September 18 he Fic. 111.—Measurements by X-ray became weaker, andthe pulse failed apes ee decidedly, though it improved with caffein. Early the next morning he quietly died. Clinical Diagnosis (from Hos pital Record) —Bacterial endocarditis. Streptococcus infection of blood. Dr. Richard C. Cabot’s Diagnosis —Acute and chronic endocardi- tis of the aortic and mitral valves. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Chronic passive congestion. Acute nephritis (?). Chronic pericarditis (?). Anatomical Diagnosis—Vegetative endocarditis of the mitral and aortic valves. Vegetative endocarditis of the endocardium of the right auricle. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Chronic passive congestion, general. Total heart diameter. ACUTE ENDOCARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 601 Infarcts of lungs, spleen and kidneys. Chronic glomerulo-nephritis, capsular. Ascites. Edema of the ankles. we Se Fic. 112.—Case 4577. Streptococcus viridans endocarditis. Section of valve A, B, bacterial fringe. (X 1000). (Photomicrograph by Dr. Albert E. Steele. Dr. William H. Smith.) Fic. 113.—Case 4577. Streptococcus viridans endocarditis. High magnification of the area at A in Fig. 112. (X 1500.) (Photomicrograph by Dr. Albert E. Steele. Dr. William H. Smith.) Dr. RicHarpson: We were not permitted to examine the head. _ There was edema of the legs. There were red spots scattered over the feet and the anterior aspect of the right arm. There was considerable thin clear fluid in the peritoneal cavity,— ascites. The liver was seven cm. below the costal border. The dia- 602 FACTS ON THE HEART phragm was at the fifth rib on the right, at the fifth interspace on the left. In the pleural cavities there were fifty c.c. of fluid on the right and forty c.c. on the left, with a few adhesions on each side. The lungs were rather voluminous, but showed nothing for note except for a few small dark red areas scattered in the lung tissue. 9 - a There was fifty c.c. of clear fluid in the pericardium, the begin- — nings of hydropericardium. The heart weighed 670 grams,—a very large heart for the lesions mentioned. The myocardium was three to four mm. on the right, eight to nine on the left. The cavities showed some dilatation and were filled with blood clot. The valve measurements were as follows: mitral 12 cm., aortic 7.5 cm., tricuspid 14 cm., pulmonic 9.5 cm. That is an increase in the circumference of the mitral, with the others about as usual, except that the tricuspid is a little large. The tricuspid and pulmonary valves showed no lesions. But on the mitral, extending over practically the whole length of the free margin of the curtain, there were numerous smaller and larger frank vegetations. These vegetations extended up high on the wall of the auricle. The aortic cusps showed a number of vegetations, not so large though as those on the mitral. Dr. Cazort: Was there anything chronic on those valves? Dr. RicHARDSON: I did not see any; and a mitral valve of twelve cm. of course indicates that the amount of chronicity, if there was any, was very slight. The extension of the vegetative patches upon the auricle is rather characteristic in these viridans infections. The spleen weighed 395 grams and was moderately enlarged. We must remember that this man was an Italian. There were a few infarcts in it. The kidneys weighed 582 grams. This means they were enlarged. The microscopical examination showed capsular glomerulonephritis and infarcts. | The culture from the heart blood showed a streptococcus of the viridans type. Dr. Casot: There was no pericarditis? Dr. RICHARDSON: None. Dr. Younc: Would you get as much nitrogen retention as this in the terminal hours of any other condition than one causing passive congestion? This was done the day of death. Dr. Casot: I remember 125 in a case of typhoid fever; we scratched our heads over that a lot. Of course there is passive con- gestion. So that I should not be able to say I had seen it in cases ACUTE ENDOCARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 603 4 without passive congestion. But I do think it is important not to make a diagnosis of nephritis on a high blood retention unless we have other evidence. A PuysiciAn: May I ask Dr. Richardson if the lungs showed any changes? Dr. RicHARpDSON: Nothing but chronic passive congestion. Dr. Casot: The X-ray did not lead us to expect anything more than passive congestion. A PuysicrAn: I have been interested in the changes in the lungs in passive congestion. I wondered whether that mottling was wholly due to passive congestion or whether there was a true fibroid condi- tion there. Dr. Casot: But our general impression is that we can get just as much mottling from passive congestion alone, that we must not conclude that we have an organic condition in the lungs if we have something else like passive congestion to account for the mottling. A PuysiciAN: How do you explain the weakly positive Wassermanns? Dr. Casot: I do not explain them. We have a great many here, although the test is done as carefully as possible. Our rule in all departments of this hospital, including the syphilis department, is never to make a diagnosis of syphilis on a weakly or a strongly positive Wassermann without any other evidence of syphilis. A Puysictan: What is the antigen used? Dr. Casot: I don’t know what antigen we are using now. But I think it is a generally accepted observation that one should never make a diagnosis of syphilis on a Wassermann reaction no matter who made it or what kind of antigen was used, unless there is other evidence in the patient’s history or body to support it. I think a great deal of harm is done by concluding from a weakly or moderately or strongly positive Wassermann that a patient has syphilis. Necropsy 4081 An English housewife of thirty-two entered May 3. From the age of twelve she had attacks of dull frontal headache lasting a few hours, usually relieved by vomiting, at first very frequent and severe, later occurring once in three or four weeks. She had had none for ten years. She had always been near-sighted, and for twenty years had worn glasses. At fifteen she was in bed ten weeks with chorea, and ever since that time had had palpitation, slight 604 FACTS ON THE HEART dyspnea and rapid pulse after exertion. At twenty-seven she was ill two weeks with mumps. She had had four or five attacks of severe bleeding from both nostrils lasting two to six hours, relieved - by packing. The last attack was four years ago. She had one or two ‘‘colds”’ each winter. At twenty-two she weighed 135 pounds, her best weight. A year before admission she weighed her usual weight, 128 pounds. Five months ago she gave birth to her first child. She was in labor for more than ten hours and finally was delivered with forceps under ether. She stayed in bed for two weeks and felt well. She had slight bloody discharge for eight or nine days. She was said to have a normal puerperium. The baby was breast fed for four weeks, then put upon artificial feeding because it was not getting enough. Meanwhile the mother felt sick and tired easily. ° There was a gradual onset of slight irritating cough with or without being preceded by a tickling sensation of the throat. The cough was unproductive and was more frequent towards the evening then the rest of the day. She felt alternate cold and warm sensations over her body. There was insidious onset of-night sweating. She hada feverish sensation, usually worse in the afternoon, and at times her temperature rose to ror®° or more. She had taken many kinds of tablets and syrup for the cough without any relief. Her weakness and cough became more marked and she had been compelled to stay in bed for the past three and a half months. For three or four weeks the temperature rose as high as 104° in the evening on several occa- sions. The night sweats became much worse. Her appetite became very poor and her sleep much disturbed. Her bowels were moved once In one or two days by salts or enema. Examination showed a poorly developed and nourished woman with some mental confusion simulating partial aphasia. Over the chest and abdomen were numerous scattered pin-point purpuric spots. The scalp was yellow, scaly, the hair thin. The mucosae were slightly pale. There was slight pyorrhea. The tongue was protruded in midline with coarse tremor. The chest expansion was slightly greater on the right than on the left. The lungs showed slight dull- ness over the left top in front and harsh breath sounds throughout, with high-pitched inspiration. The heart sounds were transmitted throughout both backs. There were a few scattered medium moist rales at both bases posteriorly. The apex impulse of the heart was seen and felt in the fifth space 10 cm. to the left. There was a systolic thrill. The action was very rapid (140). The pulmonic ACUTE ENDOCARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 605 second sound was markedly accentuated. At the apex was a short presystolic roll. A snapping first sound and a loud blowing systolic murmur were heard over the precordia. The pulses were of small volume and tension. The blood pressure was 150/70 to go/so. The liver dullness extended from the fifth rib to two centimeters below the costal margin. The edge was not felt. There was a firm smooth mass in the left upper quadrant extending 6 cm. below the costal margin to the midline, probably spleen. The rectal examina- tion showed nothing of importance. There was slight cystocele and rectocele. Pelvic examination showed a lacerated perineum. The anterior lip of the cervix was cystic. There was slight edema of the feet, more on the nght. The fingers showed slight tremor. The right pupil was greater than the left. Both were slightly irregular, with poor reactions to light and distance. The reflexes were normal except for poor position sense in the toes on the left. The temperature was 98° to 103.2°, the pulse 108 to 147, the respiration 20 to 38. The output of urine was 11 to 42 ounces, the specific gravity 1.014 to 1.030. The urine was cloudy at all of five examinations and showed a very slight trace to a trace of albumin at all, leucocytes at all, red cells at three, granular casts at two. The hemoglobin was Tallqvist 70%, Sahli 72%. There were 4800 to 8600 leucocytes, 78% to 90% polynuclears, 4,012,000 to 3,136,000 reds, showing slight achromia. The platelets were slightly increased at one examination, the reds and platelets normal at another. No endothelial leucocytes were seen in sixteen smears. A Wassermann was negative. May 3 a blood culture showed streptococcus and Gram-positive bacilli in one flask, staphylococcus and Gram-positive bacilli in another. May 7 there was streptococcus viridans in both flasks. May 11 streptococcus in both and staphylococcus albus in one. The patient lost ground and was very confused at times. The pulse rate was 130. New purpuric lesions appeared on the neck and feet. The presystolic murmur was variable. May 11 there was marked hallucinosis and her fingers were very cyanotic. May 13 she was failing rapidly. The pulse rate varied from 80 to 135 from minute to minute, and was very poor in quality. There was slight edema over the upper lumbar region. ‘There were frequent new crops of ecchymoses, or rather purpuric spots, on the chest, abdomen, back and mostly on the neck, occasionally on the finger tips and toes. There was no change in the heart sounds except occasional extra- systoles. May 20 for a few minutes she had twitching of the right ‘ ‘ 606 FACTS ON THE HEART ‘. hand and leg. May 22 she was more or less stuporous, with a fixed stare. Cyanosis of the hands was marked at times. The anemia was progressive. The temperature was normal, but the condition was poor. Early in the morning of the 23rd she suddenly cried out, and at once went into a series of violent convulsive movements of the whole body, slightly more marked on the left side. Her eyes were turned to the left and her legs drawn up. The respirations became weaker, and she died. Clinical Diagnosis (from Hospital Record) Malignant endo- carditis. Mitral stenosis. Secondary anemia. Dr. Richard C. Cabot’s Diagnosis —Chronic and acute endocarditis of the mitral valve. Mital stenosis. Septicemia, streptococcus. Infarcts of the spleen. Cerebral embolus. Secondary anemia. Anatomical Diagnosis —Septicemia, streptococcus viridans. Malignant endocarditis, mitral valve. Small vegetation on one of the cusps, aortic valve. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Slight hydropericardium. . Hydrothorax and ascites; slight anasarca. Slight chronic passive congestion, general. Infarcts of the spleen and kidneys. Cholelithiasis. Obsolete tuberculosis of a bronchial gland. Dr. RicHAarpDson: This case showed a streptococcus viridans septicemia, established during life and from the heart blood at necropsy. The heart weighed 350 grams; considerable enlargement and moderate dilatation. Except for a small vegetation on one of the aortic cusps the aortic valve was negative and the tricuspid and pulmonary negative. The mitral valve showed a very extensive area of vegetations forming a thick mat extending along the free margin and from the posterior cusp extending up along the auricular wall. This mass taken all together when the valve was closed produced considerable obstruction to the valve. But so far as any extensive chronic process goes, that was not found. ACUTE ENDOCARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 607 The kidneys were negative for glomerulo-nephritis, but showed- extensive infarcts. The spleen was markedly enlarged and showed numerous infarcts. The circulatory apparatus elsewhere was nega- tive and the uterus and adnexa negative. The gall-bladder was negative save for about eight stones of pretty good size. (Specimens of heart and spleen.) The spleen weighed 850 grams. We can plainly see the infarcts showing here and there. Some pleces were cut from the valve, but the marginal process is evident. If we supply the gaps with material like that extending all along the free margin of the valve and note the process on the auricular wall and where it extends down on the chordea tendineae, we have a typical picture of malignant endocarditis. The appendices in this heart were free. Small masses broke off from what we see here and passing into the vessels plugged them up, with the produc- tion of infarcts. Necropsy 3945 A divorced Irish-American woman of twenty-nine, unoccupied, entered September 21 for relief of weakness. She had always been “nervous.” She had measles, pertussis, chicken-pox and scarlet fever before she was seven. At eight and at twelve she had chorea, and about the same time two attacks of inflammatory rheumatism. Since childhood she had sweat so heavily that her clothes were very wet most of the time. She had hysterical attacks about once a month, at the time of catamenia. At twenty-one she was anemic and did not menstruate for two months. At twenty-seven she was divorced from her husband, a drunkard and drug addict of sixty-one. She had one miscarriage. She had dysmenorrhea, and for a year had had leucorrhea. Once or twice a month she had cramps in the legs, often awakening her from sleep. Her best weight was 130 pounds, her present weight 116. 3 1.5 4.5 Fic. 114.—Heart measurements by percussion. For thirteen years she had had palpitation. For five years she had had “gas pains” and epigastric distress once or twice a week either shortly after meals or when she was nervous, relieved by belching, by induced vomiting, and by indigestion pills. She was afraid to eat because of gaspains. For two years she had had chills, especially in damp weather, one to three in a fortnight, lasting two 608 FACTS ON THE HEART ‘minutes, relieved by hot drinks. For two months she had been growing more nervous and had had increasing weakness, especially in the legs. She had a horror of being alone, and when left so had palpitation. Her hysterical attacks caused more weakness than formerly. For four to five weeks she had had swaying sensations in the head brought on usually by worry or excitement. The day before admission for the first. time she had sharp gnawing pains in the abdomen for five minutes. Examination showed a well-nour- ished woman with marked pulsation sat tkek te iva feat by Of the vessels of the neck. The throat X-ray. was reddened. The apex impulse of the heart was in the fifth space, 12 cm. to the left of the midsternum. The measurements by percussion and X-ray are shown in Figs. 114 and 115. Short high-pitched systolic 6 cm. sternal Mi Fic. 116.—September 29. Enlarged and calcified glands at the lung roots. Increased density of the lung markings, noticeable in the ascending trunks. The signs are more marked on the right. The heart shadow is symmetrically enlarged. and diastolic murmurs were heard at the apex and in the left axilla, a rough loud systolic at the base transmitted upward, and a long ACUTE ENDOCARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 609 rough blowing diastolic transmitted downward along the left sternal border. The pulses were synchronous, of good volume, high ten- sion, Corrigan in type. Pistol shot was well heard over all the large vessels. The fingers showed capillary pulse. The systolic blood pressure was 160 to 170, the diastolic 50. The artery walls were pal- pable. The abdomen was normal except for a dynamic aorta. The extremities, pupils and reflexes were normal. The temperature was 96.7° to 99°, the pulse 71 to 128, the respira- tions normal except for one rise to thirty-one the day before discharge. The output of urine was 17 to 63 ounces, the specific gravity 1.010 to 1.020. The urine was cloudy at three of four examinations. There was no albumin. The sediment was full of pus at the first examination and showed many to occasional leucocytes at two others. Two more specimens, taken by catheter, showed very rare leucocytes. A urine culture showed a slight growth of staphylococci. The renal function was 30% in the first hour; no urine the second hour. The hemoglobin was 80%. There were 6200 to 22,000 leucocytes, 61% to 74% polynuclears. A Wassermann was negative. The blood nitrogen was 42 mgm. per 100 c.c. of blood. A stool was negative to guaiac. A vaginal smear showed no gonococci. The fundi were nor- mal. X-ray September 22 showed evidence of a small amount of fluid at the left base. September 29 (see illustration) there were enlarged and calcified glands at the lung roots, increased density of the lung markings, noticeable in the ascending trunks. The signs were the most marked on the right. The heart shadow was symme- trically enlarged. The kidney outlines were obscured by gas. There was no evidence of stone. The condition changed very little. She complained of pains in the right lower quadrant. After September 29 the leucocyte count ranged from 16,200 to 22,000. ‘There was a considerable neurotic element in the case. The patient had many pains and complaints for which no cause could be found. October 2 the digitalis was omitted, and October 5 KI gr. x t.i.d. was ordered. October g she was discharged relieved. March 21, two years and a half later, she reentered. She had worked steadily as cashier or as maid in a club. All the summer before readmission she had felt tired. In January she began to have dyspnea, then edema of the legs and some cough. Four weeks before readmission she gave up work because of edema, increasing dyspnea and some orthopnea. For three weeks her abdomen had been swelling. For two weeks she had been in bed. 39 610 FACTS ON THE HEART Examination was as before except for the points noted. She was fairly well nourished, very dyspneic, with jumping carotids— the chest shook with every heart beat. The mucosae were cyanotic. There were moist rales in both lungs behind below the angles of the scapulae. The apex impulse of the heart was seen and felt all over the chest and in the seventh space in midaxilla, with systolic retraction at the apex. The left border of dullness was in the midaxillary line. The other borders were as before. The action was regular and rapid (124), the sounds of good quality, the pulmonic second sound accentuated. Murmurs replaced all the _ heart sounds. At the apex the first sound was sharp and replaced (sic) by a loud blowing systolic transmitted to the axilla and back; also a loud blowing diastolic. At the base both a systolic and a diastolic were heard. The aortic second sound was gone. All the murmurs were heard over the back. There was pistol shot in the groin. A presystolic thrill was felt at the apex. The pulses were of poor tension, the artery walls not palpable. The systolic blood pressure was 180 to 145, the diastolic 50 to 60. The liver edge was 6 cm. below the costal margin, tender and pulsating. The extremities showed marked tremor. There was edema of the legs and lower back. The shins were smooth. The knee-jerks and ankle-jerks were sluggish. The temperature was 95° to 99.2°, the pulse 82 to 142, the respira- tion 21 to 48. The output of urine was g to 32 ounces, the specific gravity 1.018 to 1.032. The urine was muddy or cloudy at four of five examinations and showed a very large to slight traces of albumin at all, diacetic acid at two. The sediment was red at one examina- tion and showed red blood corpuscles at three, leucocytes at four, a few hyalin casts at two. The hemoglobin was 95%. There were 11,600 to 24,000 leucocytes, 71% polynuclears. A Wassermann was negative. The non-protein nitrogen was 19 mgm. per 100 gm. of blood. The day after admission the chief of service found a suggestion of presystolic thrill at the apex and of systolic thrill at the base. March 23 the heart started fibrillating. There was marked orthop- nea. March 29 there was some distension, relieved by enema. March 30 the patient was fairly comfortable, slept most of the time, and had the slowest pulse since admission, 84, with no pulse deficit; still absolutely irregular. April 2 she became very dyspneic and cyanotic and complained of a sense of great oppression in the chest. The heart was rapid, weak, and absolutely irregular. Caffein gr. ACUTE ENDOCARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 611 iii s.c. gave relief. There was a return of distension. The patient became very orthopneic, and complained of pain in the right scapular region. There was pulse deficit 5-10. When asleep she had Cheyne- Stokes breathing. She grew steadily worse. The edema increased. April 15 there was ptosis, external strabismus and dilatation of the pupil of the left eye, and some difficulty in talking. Soon after this she was comatose for a while, with rapid contraction and dilata- tion ‘of the pupils, and was afterwards unable to articulate clearly. April 17 she died. Clinical Diagnosis (from Hospital Record).—Cardiac decompensa- tion. 3 Dr. Richard C. Cabot’s Diagnosis —Chronic endocarditis of aortic and mitral valves with stenosis and regurgitation of each. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Cardiac thrombosis or acute endocarditis. Chronic passive congestion, general. Infarcts of spleen and kidneys. Anatomical Diagnosis —Chronic endocarditis of the mitral, aortic and tricuspid valves; stenosis. Acute endocarditis of the mitral valve. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Chronic passive congestion, general. Infarcts of the right lung. Hydrothorax, double. Hydropericardium. Slight ascites. Anasarca. Slight arteriosclerosis. Dr. RIcHARDSON: The heart in this case weighed 772 grams (nor- mally 200-300). It was greatly hypertrophied. It was dilated markedly on the left, slightly on the right. The mitral circumference was reduced to 7 cm. (normally ro), the tricuspid to 5.5 (normally 12-13). The aortic was 7 cm. (normal), but the cusps were greatly shortened by the fibrosis. Dr. Casot: Were there no infarcts? Dr. RicHARDSON: None except one in the lung. Dr. Cazort: And no thrombi in the heart? Dr. R1icHARDSON: There was an acute endocarditis on the mitral which was a thrombus mass on the valve. This of course could be a source for emboli. The kidneys were negative. 612 FACTS ON THE HEART Necropsy 3542 An Irish-American painter of forty-five entered October 11, 1915, for relief of edema and dyspnea. He had ‘‘typhoid-pneumonia” at ten years. For eighteen years he had been a carriage and auto- mobile painter, and until 1910 used much lead paint. In 1900 he had lead poisoning. Since that time he had been careful about washing, etc. For five years he had used no lead. For ten years he had had a sharp stabbing pain in the left axilla, worse when he had a cold or cough. Until t910 he used to have slight attacks of dizziness. From rgro until six weeks before admission he had daily dull frontal headaches coming at any hour, sometimes at night. For over a year he had had dull epigastric pain half an hour after eating, associated with an ‘‘awful feeling like a bunch in the epigastrium” with nausea and vomiting. Vomiting, and nothing else, gave relief. There was some pyrosis. For a year he had had one loose movement a day and had urinated six or seven times by day, five or six at night. His best and usual weight was 142 pounds, his weight a year before admission and at present 118. In rgrt he had a pain over his heart on exertion travelling to the axilla and back, sharp for twenty-four hours, then growing dull. With it was dyspnea. Every two or three nights he had attacks of nocturnal dyspnea. He had occasional edema of the legs and ankles in the evening. His appetite began to be poor. For two years he had had a real chill every morning and afternoon, followed by fever. For six months he had had swelling of the abdomen. He stopped work because it was slack and in order to rest. His dyspnea, edema and precordial pain grew worse, so that two months ago he could hardly walk upstairs. He slept on three pillows. He now had constant “‘dragging”’ precordial pain radiating to the back and the epigastrium. Six weeks before admission his knees, ankles, and great toe were red, hot, swollen, stiff, and so painful he could not stand up, but remained in bed. For five days he had had a short, dry cough with very little sputum. Examination showed a fairly well developed and nourished man, slightly dyspneic. The skin had a slightly yellowish pallor. The mucous membranes were pale. There was much pyorrhea; no lead line. The chest expansion was greater on the right than on the left. The apex of the heart was in the fifth space, 12 cm. to the left of midsternum, 14 cm. outside the nipple line. The left border of percussion dullness was 13.5 cm. outside the nipple line, the right border 3 cm. to the right of midsternum, the substernal dullness 7 cm. ACUTE ENDOCARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 613 The sounds were of fair quality. ‘There was an occasional dropped beat and extrasystole with compensatory pause. The aortic second sound was accentuated. At the base the sounds were faint and there was a faint systolic murmur. At the apex there was a rough systolic murmur loudest just inside the nipple line, following a rough first sound. The second sound was reduplicated. The rhythm and sounds changed from minute to minute. The pulses were of fair volume and low tension, with an occasional dropped beat. The artery walls were felt. The lung signs are shown in Fig. 117. The abdomen bulged, and showed tenderness under the left costal margin. ‘The liver dullness extended from the sixth rib to two centi- meters above the costal margin. ‘The genitals were negative. The i few medium moist rales. i Vocal fremitus increased. oe a Whispered aN voice and BV SS tactile fremitus increased, eS Increased eZ roughened inspiration.| Bronchovesicular breathing. Rough, coarse dry rales. Hyperresonant throughout, with distant breathing. Fic. 117.—Physical signs in Case 3542. “voice fyeteo increased, extremities showed no edema. The pupils were slightly irregular, reacted to light and distance through a small arc; the right was greater than the left. The reflexes were slightly exaggerated. The fundi were normal except for arteriosclerosis. Until November 1 the temperature was usually 98° to 100°; the later chart is shown (Fig. 118). The pulse was 68 to 140, the respiration 19 to 37. The blood pressure was 200/100 to 105/70. The output of urine was to to 72 ounces, usually 15 to 40 ounces, the specific gravity 1.006 to 1.012 at seventeen tests. There were small amounts of albumin at all, granular casts at 12, hyalin at 9, fatty at 3, cellular at one, leucocytes at 3. The renal function at three tests was 10%, at one test 15%. The hemoglobin was 65 to 45%. The leucocytes were 10,100 to 24,600, the polynuclears 82 to 66 to 87 %, the reds 4,600,000 to 1,840,000, with slight achromia and variation in size, very slight poikilocytosis at two of six examinations, slight polychromatophilia. The non-protein nitrogen was 66 mgm. per 100 gm. of blood. A Wassermann was negative. The stools 614 FACTS ON THE HEART gave a negative gualac at three tests. A Mallein skin test was nega- tive. In an X-ray of the kidneys the outline was fairly well seen. There was no evidence of stones. Plates of the teeth showed multiple tooth roots and pus pockets. The sinuses were negative. October 16 the knees and great toe joints were stiff and painful, the left knee hot, tender, and slightly fluctuant. Next day there was a loud roughened systolic at the apex, faintly heard in the axilla and at the base, and the aortic second sound was more accentuated. The left knee was more painful October 22. The heart action was regular, the second sound accentuated, the murmur heard in the neck. O obey No Li rence | | LT Fe EA EE iscase : aioe ee BMBMe ac fed ER GT fe a TN ee LL SI TNLURTARARIGITEREEITAR PRM MRRRGe STOTT oa ear Po A et oa ec el a onl ook ers doe a ce Seed es A De Soil he ie ee a re a Ee cs SEE EES eee eee see tt EEE EEEEEHEE EEA Hot | 1 da tT ALN A SACO HE oo all EP Seeee0500 ata |e pat ag BRR MMMEM Man eet Te aa NE Fic. 118.—Temperature and pulse in Case 3542. The apex impulse was 9.5 cm. from midsternum, 1.5 cm. inside the nipple line, the right border 4.5 cm. to the right, the supracardiac dullness 6cm. October 25 the knees were better but the ankles were stiff and painful. A throat consultant found no evidence of a focus of infection in the tonsils or sinuses but was in doubt about the teeth. October 27 several teeth were extracted for drainage of pus pockets. Two days later the joint condition had subsided and the right cardiac border had come in to 3.5. ACUTE ENDOCARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 615. November 2 the temperature began to run from 100° to 103.4° and the pulse from 80 to 125 with no discoverable cause. The joints were not troubling. ‘The murmurs and the aortic second sound were as at entrance. The urinary output was up and down. By December 2 the temperature was down, the appetite better. Decem- Slightly dull. Bronchial breathing. Slight bronchial | whisper, No rales, | i Fic. 120.—Heart shadow normal. Prominent aortic knob. Mottled opacity, left lung, from the apex of the fourth rib. ber 13 he was coughing less. December 15 the lung signs were asin Fig. 119. The breath was very foul, especially at night, and the patient was spitting up about an ounce of mucopurulent material daily. X-ray of the left chest (see Fig. 120) showed a rather mottled 616 FACTS ON THE HEART opacity extending from the apex to the fourth rib in front. The heart shadow was not displaced. ‘The left chest expanded less than the right. The right lung appeared normal. Electrocardiogram showed normal rhythm. December 24 the left upper back was dull, with increased breath- ing and whisper. December 28 the lung signs were as shown in Fig. 121. January 3 he was coughing more, with still increasing amounts Bronchial breathing Slightly dull. | slightly increased. Increased breathing and vocal and tacte ile fremitus, Occasional fine non=c onsonating rales. Bronchial breathing, Fic. 121.—Physical signs Dec. 28. of sputum. January 6 the lung signs were as in Fig. 122. He grew weaker. The signs became most marked in the left upper back. January 24 he died. | Inter pretation of X-ray, December 16.—Pneumonic process in the left upper lobe. Abscess. ESL Dull. Vodice unchanged. Whisper negative, Many hy \ < Slightly dull. Bronchial breathing. consonating rales: BSH Bronchial whisper. throughout the dull ES v= Tectile fremitus NY area and below. the same, No rales. Bronchial breathing No amphoric respiration or other signs of cavity. Breath very foul. Fic. 122.——Physical signs Jan. 6. Clinical Diagnosis (from Hospital Record)—Chronic nephritis. Lung abscess. Arteriosclerosis. Secondary anemia. Bronchopneumonia. Extraction of teeth. Dr. Richard C. Cabot’s Diagnosis.—Arteriosclerosis. Arteriosclerotic kidney. ACUTE ENDOCARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 617 Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Abscesses of the left lung. Terminal pneumonia of the right lung? Secondary anemia. Acute endocarditis? Anatomical Diagnosis.—Arteriosclerosis. Arteriosclerotic nephritis. Hypernephroma of the kidney. Acute endocarditis of the aortic valve. Chronic endocarditis of the aortic valve. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Abscess of the left lung. Infarct of the spleen. Anemia. Chronic pleuritis. The heart weighed 282 gm. The organ was slightly enlarged. The right ventricle wall measured 3 mm., the left ventricle wall 12 mm. The cavities on the right were moderately increased, on the left slightly increased. The mitral valve measured 10.5 cm., the aortic in the region of the aortic ring 6.5 cm., with 4.5 cm. for the circumference of the cusp margins. The tricuspid measured 13 cm., the pulmonary 7 cm. ‘The mitral and tricuspid valves showed a slight amount of fibrosis. The pulmonary valve was negative. In the region of the junction of the anterior and the posterior cusps of the aortic valve there was a small irregular fibrocalcareous mass of material about 1 cm. in greatest dimension. Adherent and erected upon this was a cauliflower-like mass 1.5 by 1 cm. by 6 mm. consist- ing of pale grayish granular rather friable material mottled with spots and flecks of adhering blood-like material. The mass rested upon the ventricular aspect of the cusp. On the right posterior cusp, ventricular aspect, and in the region of the corpus Aurantii there was a group of small, rather flat vegetations, otherwise similar to the vegeta- tions already described. The cusps elsewhere showed a slight amount of fibrosis. In the endocardium beneath the cusps there were a few small fibrous areas. Necropsy 4522 An American student of twenty-one came to the Emergency Ward May 3, 1923. At twelve he had rheumatic fever. Since that time he had been active except that he had not taken part in strenuous games. 618 FACTS ON THE HEART April 21 he came down with influenza. After three days in bed he returned to school. April 28 he was obliged to go to bed again, and had remained there, with a fluctuating temperature up to 102°. He was feeling better until four o’clock the day of admission, when he was seized with a sudden left-sided hemiplegia with spasticity. At admission he was unable to talk. | Examination showed a well nourished, semistuporous boy with left-sided paralysis, the left arm and the fingers of the left hand rigidly flexed and the left leg fixed in one position. He restlessly moved his right arm and leg. He was incontinent of urine. He made a feeble attempt to put out his tongue and open his mouth; it was not possible to determine whether there was paralysis here or not. The cranial nerves were not tested. ‘There was slight tremor of the tongue on extension. The neck was possibly slightly stiff. There was no neck sign. The heart was slightly enlarged to the left. The percussion measurements were not recorded. The point of maximum intensity of the beat was outside the nipple line. There were thrill and systolic and diastolic murmurs at the base. The blood pressure was 130/68. The lungs, abdomen, genitals and pupils were normal. The reflexes were increased on both sides, more on the left. There was clonus of the left ankle. Babinski and Kernig were positive. The knee- jerks were active, especially the left. The temperature was 100°, the pulse gt to 108, the respiration 20 to 36. The amount and specific gravity of the urine were not recorded. There was the very slightest possible trace of albumin at the single examination, many hyalin and cellular casts, thirty to forty red blood corpuscles and eight to ten leucocytes per high power field. The hemoglobin was 80%, the leucocytes 17,000, the poly- nuclears 83%, the reds and platelets normal. The Wassermann is not recorded. A pharyngeal culture showed pneumococci and strep- tococcl. Lumbar puncture gave to c.c. of slightly cloudy pearly whitish fluid. The specific gravity is not recorded. The initial pressure was 170, the pressure after withdrawal of 5 c.c. 140, after withdrawal of 5 c.c. more 120. The pulse, respiration and jugular compression were normal. There were 860 cells, 70% poly- nuclears, 30% lymphocytes; no organisms. A Wassermann was negative, alcohol a trace above normal, goldsol 0011100000, total pro- tein 68, sugar .714%. Neurological examination showed bilateral spasticity, more on the right, a very spastic flexed left arm, some spas- ticity of the right, with some voluntary motion. ‘The knee-jerks were very greatly increased, the right more than the left. There was ACUTE ENDOCARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 619 bilateral Oppenheim and Gordon. ‘The fundi showed clear discs, the margins normal, the vessels full; not so well seen on the left. Aneye consultant reported early choked discs, both eyes, the left more than the right. The morning of May 4 the patient was more stuporous, the breathing was Cheyne-Stokes in type, and the reflexes were more active than the night before and slightly more active on the right side than at the previous examination. He was not able to respond at all to.questions, and made no attempt to comply with commands to put out his tongue, etc. The cardiac condition, temperature and blood pressure remained unchanged. It was hard to be certain whether Kernig was present or whether the limitation of motion was due to spasm. Both sides reacted in about the same way, but the left Kernig seemed slightly more pronounced than the right. In the afternoon he was still more stuporous and there were many loose moist coarse tracheal rales. He made no attempt to move. The neck was still stiff. The pupils reacted sluggishly, and there were slight slow lateral movements. That evening he quietly ceased breathing. The heart continued to beat for five minutes after the respirations stopped. At first the beat was regular, then coupled, then in triads. Clinical Diagnosis (from Hospital Record)—Rheumatic heart disease (mitral stenosis). Left hemiplegia (embolus). Meningitis. Dr. Richard C. Cabot’s Diagnosis —Chronic endocarditis, aortic (and mitral?) ; aortic stenosis and regurgitation. Acute endocarditis, aortic. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Cerebral embolism and abscess. Acute meningitis. Anatomical Diagnosis.—Chronic and acute endocarditis of the mitral valve. Embolic occlusion of middle cerebral arteries with large areas of infarction of the brain. Hypertrophy and dilatation of heart. Slight chronic passive congestion. Infarcts of spleen. Soft hyperplastic spleen. Dr. RicHarpson: There was much pale froth running from the nostrils. Opening the skull we found considerable edema of the pia 620 FACTS ON THE HEART but no definite meningitis. The left cerebral artery was solidly plugged, and the anterior half of the brain, especially on the right side, showed marked softening and disintegration. The sinuses and middle ears were negative, the pituitary and pineal glands negative. In other words there was an embolus plugging the middle cerebral artery, with softening of the brain. It is fair to say that the speci- men was kept intact because it is not so very usual to find such a typical picture of embolus plugging the middle cerebral. It is possible that the original embolus was infected, coming from the vegetations on the valve. But there was no definite meningitis, and if there was any infection present it was probably in the disinte- grated tissue. There was nothing in the peritoneal cavity. An appendix was recorded only two cm. in length. That is very small, but otherwise there was nothing the matter with it. The gastro-intestinal tract showed streaks and areas of reddening of the mucosa,—beginning chronic passive congestion, not very extensive. The diaphragm on the right was at the fourth rib, on the left at the fifth rib. The pleural cavities showed no fluid and no adhesions. The trachea and bronchi contained much reddish frothy fluid. The lung tissue was leathery, brownish-red, yielding considerable frothy fluid,—beginning chronic passive congestion, not very marked as yet except for considerable edema. ‘There was no hydrothorax, no hydropericardium, but the fluid was beginning to infiltrate into the lungs. The heart weighed 329 grams, not much enlarged. The myo- cardium was good, the right ventricular wall four mm., a little thick, the left twelve mm., about what it should be. On the left the cavities showed slight dilatation. That goes very well with the picture we have already mentioned. The mitral valve was seven cm. in circumference,—a little decrease. In places it showed fibrous thickening, and for a length of about three cm. there was a thick fibrous base on which was erected a mass of thrombotic material, a little firm at the base, but as we came to the surface soft spongy acute endocarditis. From that of course the bit was washed off that went up into the brain. In the spleen, which was definitely enlarged at one pole, a definite infarct. ‘The kidneys were free from infarcts. The aortic valve was six cm. in circumference, the tricuspid twelve, the pulmonary seven, and those valves were frankly negative. Cd x br eS we tt are i IE ACUTE ENDOCARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 621 The intima of the aorta and great branches was smooth, showed no evidence of sclerosis. The pulmonary artery, veins, and vena cava were negative. The liver showed beginning chronic passive congestion. The gall- bladder and bile-ducts were negative. The kidneys weighed 245 grams, and macroscopically and microscopically showed nothing except a little bit of congestion. The pelves, ureters, bladder, prostate, seminal vesicles, and testes were negative. Culture from the blood at the time of necropsy gave no growth. But in these cases of infection with an organism of the viridans group, as this one is, it is not infrequent to get negative cultures. Dr. Casot: Is there any way in which that soft area of the brain could have communicated with the spinal canal so that the lumbar puncture findings might be explained? Dr. RICHARDSON: It was pretty well disintegrated. The whole artery was shut off. Dr. Casot: We want to account, if we can, for this very queer lumbar fluid. Dr. RicHARDSON: That is the only way,—1.e., by the softening. But there was no definite abscess so far as we dissected, and it would be just the same as sometimes happens in an infarct of the spleen, where I have in some cases recovered the organism from the infarct and not from the blood. That of course immediately points the finger at me. It would have been a good idea if we had taken a culture from the infarcted area of the brain. It is a possibility. Dr. Casort: It seems possible for us if we want to be obstinate to say that this was an abscess of the brain which communicated with the spinal cord and so gave us this fluid as we supposed. We have no culture. I do not feel at all sure that it is so. But in the absence of culture it is very hard to say that it is not. Unless we say something of that kind it is very hard to account for the spinal fluid. : Dr. RicHARDSON: Did they describe the macroscopic appearance of that fluid? Dr. Casor: It was “pearly white,’’—that is, not clear. Dr. RicHarpson: I should not expect to find many leucocytes in a peerly fluid. Dr. Foster: A very interesting thing about this case is that the only history of any possible heart incapacity was at school. The doctor there had told him he should not take part in any strenuous athletics. At the beginning of his iilness a local doctor examined his 622 FACTS ON THE HEART heart and said there were no murmurs. He was here at the necropsy and was about ready to give up medicine. JI was wondering whether or not this murmur could have developed as rapidly as that. Dr. Casor: Of course the murmurs of mitral stenosis in a well- compensated case are just the kind that most physicians of this country do not hear. A presystolic roll with very little else most people miss. But if there was as little as you got it might depend perfectly well on the acute endocarditis. A Purysician: In a leucocytosis of the blood ordinarily you would not get such a spinal fluid ? Dr. Casot: Nothing like that at all. Necropsy 2439 An Trish stone cutter of fifty-eight entered September 2 for relief of difficulty in urination of two or three years’ duration. He had always had the best of health though he had lost considerable weight, he did not know how much. He denied venereal disease. Five days before admission he had complete retention. A physician catheterized him and left the catheter in for two or three days. Since the morning before admission he had passed some urine with difficulty. He voided last four hours before admission. Since the onset of the acute retention he had had continued pain in the bladder. Examination showed a man looking sick and old and showing evidence of the loss of considerable weight. His color was fair, his mucous membranes rather cyanotic. The location of the apex impulse of the heart is not recorded. ‘There was no enlargement to percussion. The radials were slightly hard. There was moderate lateral excursion of the brachials. The action was regular, the sounds faint but of fair quality. There were no murmurs. The prostate was slightly nodular but not enlarged or tender. ‘The examination was otherwise negative. The temperature and pulse are Shown in Fig. 123. The respiration was normal until September 7, afterwards 24 to 30 with a rise to 40 on the last two days. The urine was normal in amount, cloudy, alkaline at one of two examina- tions, the specific gravity 1.006—1.018, a slight trace of albumin at the second examination. The blood is not recorded. The patient was put immediately upon constant drainage. There was a residual of four ounces of slightly turbid urine. He complained of considerable pain in the perineum. The catheter was removed and the perineum found to be fluctuant and tender about the bladder. Pressure expressed pus from the meatus. At operation September ACUTE ENDOCARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 623 5 a sound met obstruction in the deep urethra. Incision was made in the perineum with the evacuation of two ounces of thick cloudy urine. The urethral bulb was surrounded by slough. A rubber catheter was passed through the perineum to the bladder. The patient did not gain as he should have done after the operation. The urine was kept up by rectal salt solution. September 13 he was worse and markedly jaundiced. There was bile in the urine and in the stools. The amount of urine was greatly diminished. e F Deecions | | | iis Da [S67 f aktouir Hoar lyse yinn (ie (10) Loman feet ex fet] iets | 7, emeeaimieca atta | Je EEE 260 105° (.oseeeeeee 250 |W} 104 2 lero i 240 |>| 103° f : Saat tal othe Fore cal al mie rNetaal it CAL AL ae erarinee SAAN WW 200 porilillve: Tel tal ed laa Nee lies asia peri ait Lele Rais cle le Wa feels alae eked Rd a a Ca m of Mima aaa aie eal uites las) wasieala ie alea Eeaaltene hws eal Slscl ar engl a| eT eh She (eee io fo ERC " 0 [2 of eT 90 90 eS < ‘ o VY ara ae so fe a Ml Boal fc ie [nena UIE ae 123.—Chart in Case 24309. During the last few days of his life a tremendous systolic blow was heard principally over the apex beat. September 14 he died. Clinical Diagnosis —Perineal abscess. Malignant endocarditis. Dr. Edward L. Young’s Diagnosis Obstructing prostate. Periurethral abscess. Septicemia. Acute endocarditis. Anatomical Diagnosis ——Malignant endocarditis of the mitral valve. Septicemia, streptococcus. 624 FACTS ON THE HEART Infarcts of the spleen and kidneys. Icterus. Operation wound. Dr. RICHARDSON: The incision in this case was a short one in the anterior abdominal wall. We could not remove any of the organs. Icterus was well marked. There was no evidence of peritonitis, no stones in the gall-bladder. The hepatic, cystic and common bile-ducts were free, the mucosa negative, the bile flowed freely. The pancreas was not remarkable, the ducts of Wirsung free. There was no evidence of new-growth in any of the organs seen, no ulcers in the lower end of the ileum. There was a soft, hyperplastic spleen with infarcts. The kidneys were of normal contour and size and showed infarcts. The heart was somewhat enlarged and the mitral valve presented a frank mass of vegetations, three by two cm. The lungs were negative as nearly as could be made out. The growth was streptococcus from the spleen. ‘The vegetations on the mitral valve and endocardium showed the usual hyalin material, blood plates and masses of micrococci. Dr. Younc: Did you open the bladder? Dr. RIcHARDSON: No. Dr. Casot: As you hear the history, Dr. Richardson, would your guess be that this endocarditis originated in the conditions of the bladder and the instrumentation? He had had no heart symptoms, had he? Dr. Younc: There were none according to the record. They report the location of the apex impulse not recorded, no enlargement to percussion, the action regular, the sounds faint but of fair quality, no murmurs till near death. Dr. RICHARDSON: When was the first rise in temperature? Dr. Younc: He came in with enough sepsis so that he had a temperature the day after he camein. ‘The first rise was right after the operation. I believe he came in with a septicemia. Dr. RICHARDSON: But it shoots up on the day after operation. I think that is fair enough, but there is also the other side, that he might have had the septic condition mentioned and that following the operation it extended and set up the endocarditis. Necropsy 3336 A man of thirty-eight entered the hospital March 30. His past history was negative except for recurring attacks of left lower quadrant pain with alternating diarrhea and constipation. For a ACUTE ENDOCARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 625 year he had been subject to great mental and physical strain. He used alcohol and tobacco in moderation. A week before admission he had an attack of tonsillitis. On the fourth day a peritonsillar abscess was opened with marked relief. The next day his throat was much better, but he was chilly and feverish. Examination showed a well nourished man, bright, cheerful, free from pain, but a little delirious at night. The throat showed Duration of Disease Dejections AES 103° ae ay 210 #h100° a votes EAR BE Hp BS SS aes if et al Po Bs dal 170 SEE ota . 2p Soeren i ECCECCCE CA =] RS Eo al ees ee es da z AP Et a ae ee ee AAT es Ae eas We fu ai fo [a1 “AL (3) 9 SSG ea a Fic. 124.—Temperature and pulse in Case 3336. marked injection and swelling, especially on the right, where there was a small whitish scar (incision for peritonsillar abscess). There were several submucous hemorrhages in this area. Examination was otherwise negative. The temperature and pulse are shown in Fig. 124. The respira- tion was 25 to 45. The blood pressure is not recorded. The output of urine on the day of entrance was 165 ounces, after that 50 to 85 40 626 FACTS ON THE HEART ounces. The specific gravity was 1.010 to 1.017. There was the slightest possible trace to a very slight trace of albumin, an occasional red cell and a rare granular cast. There were 14,200 leucocytes, go% polynuclears. The reds were normal. A blood culture showed very large numbers of streptococct. 7 April 2 the patient was still delirious, with a temperature of 104°. A painless red spot the size of a half-dollar appeared on the right wrist. The next day this was painful. April 5 the patient seemed better, slept well with opiates, and was delirious only occasionally. The right wrist also was better, but a similar spot appeared on the left calf. April 6 both these spots were better, but the left wrist and eye were now red and painful, and the patient more uncomfortable and delirious. Next day the eye was worse, and was pronounced by an eye consultant to be a case of embolism of the retinal artery. The throat, the wrists, and the calf were better. Nevertheless the patient seemed to be losing ground. A systolic murmur at the apex was now noted as having grown more marked since being first observed three days before. The pulse was going up, though of good quality. Petechiae appeared over the back. With no new symptoms, but constantly rising temperature, pulse and respiration, the patient grew increasingly toxic, and April 12 died. Clinical Diagnosis (from Hospital Record) —Pyemia. Endocarditis. Peritonsillar abscess. Dr. Richard C. Cabot’s Diagnosis.—Streptococcus septicemia. Probably acute endocarditis, (left side of the heart). Probably emboli in the kidney, perhaps in the spleen and liver, possibly in the lungs, retina and subcutaneous tissues. Probably acute glomerulo-nephritis. ACUTE ENDOCARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 627 Anatomical Diagnosis—1. Chemical or physical origin of fatal illness. Septicemia, streptococcus. [ Acute vegetative endocarditis of the mitral valve. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. (Weight 473 grams.) Infarcts of the spleen and kidneys. 2. Secondary or terminal lesions. Fibrinous pleuritis, double. Soft spleen. Central degeneration and foci of necrosis of liver. Suppurative nephritis. Purpura. Focal hemorrhage in wall of small intestine The kidneys weighed 512 grams. Wide cortex. There were many purplish spots, and in the right kidney three yellow infarcts; both these lesions embolic. The cardiac hypertrophy is not explained. The patient was athletic and took much exercise; but most athletes have no cardiac hypertrophy. CHAPTER VIII CHRONIC NON-DEFORMING VALVULAR SCLEROSIS OR ENDOCARDITIS After excluding cases characterized by soft or acute vegetations on the valves, there remains a group of cases usually labelled by the pathologist as ‘‘chronic endocarditis”’ on the basis of fibrous thicken- ing of the valves, to which may be added stiffening and fibrocalcareous changes. From the clinical point of view the important thing about these lesions is to distinguish those which deform the valves and so interfere with their function, from those which do noi. ‘This we have attempted to do by the careful study of the records in all cases to which our memory of the post-mortem examination did not extend. After excluding the cases with definitely deformed valves believed to cause stenosis or regurgitation, there are left in our 4000 necropsies 237 cases in which the valves, despite some endocarditis, remain flexible and apparently quite capable of opening and shutting in the normal way. There is apparently little if any interference with their function. These cases of non-deforming sclerosis or fibrosis of the valves we have further subdivided on the basis of the patholo- gist’s judgment, into those which represent (a) “‘the usual sclerosis of age,’’ and (b) those in which the changes seem greater in degree or different in kind from anything that can be accounted for in this way. In our series Group a represents the condition of the valves in almost every elderly patient, quite independent of the cause of his: death, and recognizable only by careful comparison with the heart valves of younger persons. Of these we have made no special enu- meration or further study, believing that there is no considerable chance of their being of any clinical importance. After setting these on one side there remain as already said 237 cases which are not to be included under Group a but yet which do not deform the valves. Further study of these 237 cases brings out the following facts as to 628 _ ETIOLOGY 629 ETIOLOGY There appear to be two causal factors. One of these factors acts especially on younger people, up to the thirtieth year, and acts on both sexes alike. In this group there were twenty-five males and seventeen females. But as this is almost exactly the relation (66 to 34) of male and female in the total group of 4000 necropsies in which these fall, we believe that the figures do not represent any excess of males. In this group there is very little cardiac enlargement or arteriosclerosis, very little chronic passive congestion, and fewer murmurs than in the other group. The other factor is one which acts especially on persons over the thirtieth year and which acts twice as often in males as in females. There is certainly reason to suspect that this factor is arteriosclerosis. Atvany rate it can be called an old man’s factor. This latter factor (arteriosclerosis?) usually affects both the mitral and the aortic valves. It was present in 73 males to 31 females, and especially in the decades between the sixtieth and eightieth years. On the other hand the cases in which the mitral valve alone is affected are about equally males (36) and females (31), figures which when properly weighted in relation to the distribution of males and females in our necropsy statistics, as given above, seem to show that females are somewhat more affected Ly this predominantly “mitral factor,’’ which we may surmise to be rheumatism, as we know that the infection associated with this syndrome has a particular tendency for affecting the mitral valve alone and the female sex predominantly. TABLE 139.—AGE, SEX AND VALVE INCIDENCE IN NON-DEFORMING. VALVE THICKENINGS Pure mitral Mitralandaortic Pure aortic Other valves Total Male | Female | Male | Female | Male | Female | Male | Female Winger LOsyrse oe ee ne, Oe | Lael I fe) I 2 3 (a) louna ease Suleeibeo hoon Onno lke pes Ma wee nso ER Hea OL0-o ploornnwnoocd ies) + WwW = 4 o Ore lar Sos. hee oO “nN = oO as BS aS to Ny 630 FACTS ON THE HEART There remains a third group affecting the aortic valve alone. In this there are thirty-three males, eleven females, and only 11 out of the forty-four cases were under the fiftieth year, 8 of these 11 being males and three females. This is presumably an arteriosclerotic group of cases. The cases with tricuspid involvement were eighteen of them in males, four in females. These last groups are apparently like the second group in respect to age and sex distribution. In other words, when this disease gets beyond the mitral valve it is a lesion of elderly males, i.e., arteriosclerotic (?). My chief interest in the study of these cases has been not only their possible etiology, just dealt with, but has concerned itself with the following questions: (1) Do these lesions cause functional impairment of the heart as shown in chronic passive congestion post-mortem? (2) Do these lesions produce cardiac murmurs? (3) Are they associated with cardiac hypertrophy? (4) Do they lead to cardiac symptoms and complaints recognized by the patient himself (dyspnea, palpitation, pain, etc.) ? 1. Pursuing the first inquiry whether these non-deforming valvu- lar lesions weaken the heart’s action so as to produce passive con- gestion, we find that at necropsy there was present chronic passive congestion in: 15 out of 44 cases affecting the aortic valve alone. 13 out of 67 cases affecting the mitral valve alone. 33 out of 104 cases affecting the mitral and aortic valves. 6 out of 22 cases affecting the mitral aortic and tricuspid valves. Total, 67 out of 237 or 28%. What can we conclude from these facts? Since only 28% showed any passive congestion, we cannot say that these lesions usually cause passive congestion, for a “‘cause’’ must act in more than 28% of the cases in which it is present. But now analyzing further these sixty- seven cases in which chronic passive congestion was present, we find the following factors, other than the valve lesions, to account for it: (See table 140.) Since most of these complicating lesions are in themselves well recognized causes for chronic passive congestion without the con- currence of any valve lesions, I conclude that there is no reason to believe that these non-deforming valvular lesions so interfere with the heart’s action as to produce chronic passive congestion. ETIOLOGY 631 TABLE 140.—ASSOCIATED LESIONS IN THE 67 CASES OF NON-DEFORMING VALVE SCLEROSIS, WITH STASIS AT NECROPSY Arteriosclerosis 29 cases Chronic nephritis II cases Chronic pericarditis 8 cases Fibrous myocarditis 6 cases Syphilitic aortitis 4 cases Acute endocarditis 3 cases Acute pericarditis 7 cases Acute nephritis 4 cases Hypertrophy and dilatation without “‘cause”’ 6 cases Pernicious anemia I case I case 80 cases 2. Did These Lesions Produce Cardiac Murmurs?—Part of the answer to this question can be given at once in statisticalform. Only 79 out of 237 cases, or 33%, produced any murmurs that were recog- nized in life. These murmurs were systolic in 78 cases and diastolic in 19; that is to say, all but one of the diastolic murmurs accompanied systolic murmurs. One or both of these murmurs were heard in: 21 out of 67 mitral cases. 18 out of 44 aortic cases. 31 out of 104 mitral and aortic cases. g out of 22 mitral, aortic and tricuspid cases. 79 237 Obviously then, as with the question of chronic passive congestion in its relation to these lesions, so with the murmurs, we may say that a lesion associated with murmurs in only 33% shows but a feeble correlation and can hardly be said to be a cause of importance. But now if we study further the 79 cases associated with murmurs we find present the following conditions, all of them by themselves often associated with murmurs and ordinarily believed to have a causal relation to them. (See table 141.) This table shows that in the twenty-one “‘pure mitral”’ cases with murmurs there was no arteriosclerosis at all in the vessels post- mortem. How about the ‘“‘pure mitral’’ cases without murmurs? Six of the forty-seven cases without murmurs had arteriosclerosis. 632 FACTS ON THE HEART TABLE 141.—VALVES AFFECTED Mitral Mitral, and Mitral | Aortic | aortic and aortic tricuspid Arteriosclerosis with hypertrophy and dilatation Chronic nephritis Hypertrophy and dilatation without known cause Chronic pericarditis ACUTE eriCardl us alnctoke hae ee an aert MV OCAECIEIS. wits: cts eet ee eae te en gee Aneurism Acute nephritis Unknown or doubtful Acute endocarditis Pernicious anemia et OF OUEO se eS emo OO™N DN ORF HH DMN OR ND HWW OO FW Sb 30 OO Oe St cet OL & In other words, arteriosclerosis was a very small factor in these “pure mitral’? cases. (The six cases just referred to occurred at the following ages: 78, 60, 56, 55, 54, 31.) This tends to show (what is usually recognized) that arteriosclerosis has very little to do with the lesions of the mitral valve. Combining by causes the figures of the last table we see that arteriosclerosis with enlarged heart was present in forty-two of the cases with murmurs. Enlarged heart without arteriosclerosis, nephritis or any other known ‘‘cause”’ was the only tangible lesion in sixteen cases. Chronic nephritis (with enlarged heart), chronic adhesive pericarditis, fibrous myocarditis, are also common lesions in the cases showing murmurs. There were but nine cases out of 79 in which no gross lesion of any kind could be found to account for these murmurs, not even cardiac enlargement, which the following table shows to be an outstanding fact in the whole series except in the pure mitral cases which eyidently form a group by themselves. : | 3. Is Cardiac Hypertrophy Associated with Cases of Non-deforming Endocarditis? (See table 143.) Obviously these figures need not mean that the often-associated hypertrophy was due to the slight thickening of the valves. For first of all the hypertrophy was present in but two-thirds of the cases (160 out of 237) and in the pure mitral cases only in 28 of 67, or two- fifths. Moreover there were present in the 160 hypertrophied cases the following traditional ‘“‘causes’’ for such a condition. ETIOLOGY 633 TABLE 142.—ASSOCIATED LESIONS IN 160 CASES OF NON-DEFORMING ENDOCARDITIS WITH CARDIAC HYPERTROPHY Arteriosclerosis 72 cases Chronic nephritis 24 cases Chronic pericarditis II cases Fibrous myocarditis 9 cases NST SE GS TS PCS, i ee ee Eg gat ea oe | eo Ea A a . IO cases Syphilitic aortitis 7 cases Acute nephritis 2 cases 135 Counted more than once ni No cause No ‘‘cause”’ for hypertrophy (unless the non-deforming endocar- ditis is so considered) was found in forty of the 160 hypertrophied cases. If mere correlation is to be considered ‘‘causal,”’ these forty cases could be held to indicate that non-deforming endocarditis leads once in four times to cardiac hypertrophy, though not to chronic passive congestion and not to murmurs. But there is no need of any TABLE 143.—CARDIAC HYPERTROPHY AND DILATATION IN NON-DEFORMING VALVULAR SCLEROSIS ; Mitral Mitral and ‘ : ie ria ; Mitral Aortic aortic and aortic tricuspid 81 of 104 28 of 67 33 of 44 18 of 22 160 of 237 such conclusion. For it is well recognized that anatomical ‘‘causes”’ for cardiac hypertrophy are not always to be found; 154 of 1209 in our series were without any recognized ‘“‘cause.’? Many cases of such enlargement exist not only without any of the ‘“‘causes”’ listed in the last table but without any valve lesion, deforming or non- deforming. Hence it seems to me probable that the correlation of hypertrophy and non-deforming valve lesions in these forty cases is a coincidence. ‘They may have been cases of hypertension without known cause. 4. Does Non-deforming Endocarditis Produce in Life ‘‘Cardiac Complaints”’ (Dyspnea, Palpitation, Edema, Etc.)?—In only fifty-one of our 237 cases, or 21% were any such cardiac complaints recorded : 634 FACTS ON THE HEART TABLE 144 VALVE AFFECTED SYMPTOMS IN Pure mitral 8 cases out of 67 or K%— Pure aortic ro cases out of 44 or 444+ Mitral and aortic....5.2.........2-2.:.5.0 25 Cases OUL Of TOs Bere Mitral, aortic and tricuspid................ 8 cases out of 22 or 44+ ot , 237 In these fifty-one cases other well recognized causes for cardiac com- plaints were found (arteriosclerosis with hypertrophied and dilated heart 17 cases, chronic nephritis ro cases, hypertrophied and dilated heart without known cause 6 cases, fibrous myocarditis 5 cases, chronic pericarditis 4 cases, acute pericarditis 4 cases, aneurism 2 cases, stomach cancer with anemia 1 case, pernicious anemia I case, acute endocarditis 1 case). In the mitral group in which other factors such as arteriosclerosis, nephritis, myocarditis etc. are at the minimum, in which therefore we most often find the non-deforming endocarditis standing out as the only lesion in the heart, we find fewer cardiac complaints, fewer murmurs, less chronic passive congestion and less cardiac hyper- trophy than in the other groups. ‘These four evidences of disturbed heart function fall off rapidly as we get nearer to isolating the non- deforming endocarditis from confusing accompaniments. CONCLUSIONS 1. It seems to me from these considerations that chronic non- deforming endocarditis (or sclerosis) of the heart valves: (a) Does not cause cardiac complaints (or symptoms). (b) Does not cause chronic passive congestion. (c) Does not cause cardiac murmurs. (d) Does not cause cardiac hypertrophy. And so it may be said to have no clinical significance. 2. Pathologically it is a result, I believe, either of a slight attack of rheumatic endocarditis (especially when it occurs in young people on the mitral alone) or (more often) of the general causes of bodily wear and tear which are associated with advancing age, arterio- sclerosis and the male sex. In the latter group of cases it usually affects two or more valves. In both groups it is functionally and practically insignificant. CHAPTER Ix ACUTE PERICARDITIS 1. Age and Sex.—In 186 cases of acute pericarditis the outstand- ing and altogether mysterious fact is the very decided excess of males. More than three-fourths of all (141 out of 186) cases were in that sex. This is all the more surprising because we have been in the habit of thinking of acute pericarditis as frequently, at least, rheuma- tic in origin, and it is certainly true that women are more prone to TABLE 145.—AGE IN ACUTE PERICARDITIS TABLE 146.—SEX IN ACUTE PERICARDITIS rheumatic infection than men. But so far as our statistics go, the fact seems to be that rheumatism in the ordinary sense—that is to say, a generalizéd infection prone to attack the joints as well as the heart—is only a minor factor in the production of pericarditis If we put on one side the cases in which the pericarditis can be regarded 035 636 FACTS ON THE HEART as a terminal phenomenon and not as the main illness from which the patient suffered, then it will doubtless appear that im the remaining group of cases rheumatism is an important factor. That this group is small appears at once probable from the fact that we have a clear rheumatic history in only twenty-four cases out of 186, not much more than 12%. That pericarditis is primarily a terminal affair is further suggested | by the ages of the patients in our series: only 62 of 186, or 33%, were under the thirtieth year at the time of death. 2. Associated Lesions.—One of the facts which has surprised me most in the study of this series of cases is that there are so few examples of acute endocarditis occurring in connection with the pericarditis. We find only sixteen undoubted cases in this series, or 8%. It used to be taught that in acute pericarditis, underlying valvular murmurs are often covered up by the noise of the pericardial friction, and that we must always be on the watch for this association of acute endocarditis and pericarditis. This series seems to prove that this 1s not the case. There is, on the other hand, a rather small proportion of chronic endo- carditis associated with acute pericarditis, which serves chiefly to confirm our estimate of the amount of rheumatism in this group of cases. In the history, rheumatism appeared clearly twenty-four times, a figure remarkably close to the number of cases of chronic endocarditis as found post-mortem,—twenty-eight cases in 186. 3. Fever and Leucocytosis.—Another surprise in the study of these cases has been the absence of fever in 45, or 26% of the 172 cases in which a definite record was made. Many of these patients were the subjects of wasting, debilitating diseases often associated with subnormal temperature. The terminal nature of acute peri- carditis is further emphasized by this group of facts. The leucocyte curve corresponds very well with the temperature curve; that is, we have leucocytosis in 115 out of 156 cases in which a definite record is made. The absence of leucocytosis in 41, or 26% may be reasonably held to indicate (like the 26% of afebrile cases) that the patient does not sufficiently react against the invading infection. } 4. Diagnosis.—In my previous studies of pericarditis I have repeatedly called attention to the fact that our diagnostic resources are very scanty. The reason for this is obvious if we remember that the diagnosis of acute pericarditis rests in the majority of cases on nothing but the presence of an audible or palpable friction rub. When the diagnosis of any disease rests upon but a single sign - ACUTE PERICARDITIS 637 or symptom, it is obviously insecure, and particularly so when, as is shown in this series, that sign is very frequently absent in proved cases of the disease. Only in 4o, or 21% of 186 cases was any fric- tion heard. In many of these cases—though I cannot say exactly how many—the pericarditis had been suspected owing to the presence of an accompanying pneumonia or endocarditis. Therefore it was searched for and listened for again and again, as in several of these cases I can personally recall. Only in ten cases was there evidence of pericardial fluid that could be regarded as approximately distinctive. Seven of these cases are included with the forty already mentioned as showing friction. If therefore, we add together the cases in which pericarditis was suggested either by the presence of friction or by signs suggesting pericardial effusion, or by both sets of data, we get a total of forty- three, the figure representing our percentage of diagnostic success, 23%. Precordial pain was even less reliable as a clue to the existence of pericarditis in this series. In only twenty-six cases or 14% was it definitely complained of. Of particular interest to me is the list of underlying causes of death in this series of cases, as shown on page 642. First of all comes the group of blood infections, septicemia or pyemia, whether associated with a known focus of infection or not. Within this last group comes the particularly interesting type of pericarditis occurring in children with staphylococcus sepsis,—seven cases. All of these had abscesses of the myocardium, so that the pericarditis may reasonably be assumed to have spread through the myocardium. In addition to these there is a considerable group of cases due to the streptococcus, in which the pericardium is inflamed along with other portions of the body; or, in other words, in which the pericar- ditis complicates an empyema, an acute endocarditis, a general peritonitis, an abscess of the lung. After septicemia three diseases stand out in the etiology: pneumonia, chronic nephritis, and cancer. Chronic passive congestion was found in sixty-seven necropsies out of 186, or 35%. In twenty-four of these it was accounted for by chronic nephritis; in seven by hypertension with arteriosclerosis, in eight by valvular disease, in four by chronic pericarditis, a total of forty-three out of sixty-seven. Septic Heart Failure and Dropsy (Chronic Passive Congestion). Beside these mechanical reasons for general stasis (applicable to about two-thirds of our cases) there may be considered a septic- 638 FACTS ON THE HEART infectious group of causes which are not well recognized as causes of poor heart function and so of dropsy. Even lesions like tonsillitis or dental sepsis which seem small, local, and not septicemic, are generally and I think correctly believed to weaken the heart’s action. Even after a ‘‘cold” we are sometimes surprisingly feeble and dysp- neic. But it is, I suppose, the more overwhelming and virulent infections that might produce the most serious effect on the heart,— such infections as show themselves simultaneously in several places. In our sixty-seven cases of acute pericarditis associated post-mortem _ with evidence of chronic passive congestion, there were sixteen which showed in life only the following septic lesions as possible causes for the circulatory failure: TABLE 147.—SEPTIC LESIONS ASSOCIATED WITH STASIS AT NECROPSY IN ACUTE PERICARDITIS Acute pericarditis only ai, 5 ios; ac tghecn ee sls le ee 4 Pneumonia and empyema sa. 95,0 4. Oo ok «nos eee 4 Acute endocarditis: 4 pi aon a hd cee eee ee oe ee 3 Acute'empyemay sist Ursa os hee DO aa nt eee 2 Acute polyarthritis, #2). 25.4 nie ss: Vale ota ties eee oe I Acute:pleuritis.and peritonitis (../-- Gola si) ken eee I Acute-chorea and, phthisis $:).4..9'2. 2: tole yy. segue Ss ote eee ae L 16 Acute or Chronic Passive Congestion ?—In sixteen of the remain- ing cases the pathologists recorded after death a chronic passive congestion, although in life the entire illness (so far as the patient or his friends knew) had lasted but a short time, e.g. two weeks (No. 921, pneumonia and acute endocarditis), one week (No. 1801, acute pericarditis the only cause of death), three weeks (Nos. 3053, 3242, acute polyarthritis and pericarditis). In the majority of these sixteen cases, however, a chronic lesion such as chronic nephritis, mitral stenosis, mediastinitis, was present before the acute symptoms showed themselves, so that the pathologist’s findings are in all probability correct. But in a few acute septic cases like those just quoted, one wonders whether the pathologist was correct in recording chronic rather than acute passive congestion. Can this distinction be made in all cases from post-mortem evidence alone? Pericardial Effusion.—Out of 186 cases twenty-seven showed 100 c.c. or more of exudate at necropsy. The fluid was measured with the following results: ' ACUTE PERICARDITIS 639 TABLE 148.—AMOUNT OF FLUID IN PERICARDITIS WITH EFFUSION 100 c.c. in 7 Cases I50C.c. in 5 cases 200°C.c, In, ‘4 Cases aCOC.Cm in 1 Case 200-300 in 2 Cases 300 c.c. in 4 Cases 300-400 in I case 406 'CiC: 1m) “T Case OO... 1n _T Case 700 C.c. in TI case — 27 In addition to these, nineteen showed a “‘considerable,” fourteen a “moderate,” and two a “large” amount of fluid. In four cases the sac is described as ‘‘ distended” or “‘full.’”’ One contained “‘an excess,”’ and one “a quantity” of fluid. Together these make up sixty-eight out of 186 cases In which we suppose that an effusion possibly capable of producing physical signs was present. In the remaining 118 cases (or over three-fifths) the fluid is recorded as. “‘a small amount,” a “slight excess.” a “few c.c.,” or was absent and the familiar shaggy or “bread-and-butter”’ exudate was described. Of these sixty-eight cases 7 or 10% were recognized in life. The terms used at necropsy to describe these cases are: ‘“‘Distended”’ ‘““Markedly distended”’ ROO, Cee a “Considerable amount” oy BOONG.Cre e280 Clr 300 C:Ce In two other cases there was no excess of fluid in the pericardium at the time of necropsy, but this does not prove the prior diagnosis of effusion to be wrong. The evidence used for diagnosis was in all cases a wide percussion area in the third or fourth interspaces to the right and left of the sternum, aided in one case by an X-ray picture. Paradoxical pulse is mentioned in three of the nine cases. Its absence is once noted. Muffled or distant heart sounds are recorded in three other cases (also in one more with a diagnosis only of “dry pericarditis”). In one all heart sounds were replaced by murmurs. In some of the cases with the largest effusions (e.g. 700 c.c.) only friction was noted in life. 640 FACTS ON THE HEART Weakness or muffling of heart sounds was noticed in nine of the unrecognized pericardial effusions. Indeed in one of these the sounds are recorded as “‘inaudible.”” But the presence of pneumonia or other causes for poor heart action no doubt prevented these facts from suggesting pericarditis. Bacteriology.—I have already alluded to the well-known fact that acute pericarditis 1s not usually or primarily a local lesion, like a gum-boil or an inflamed hemorrhoid, but rather the manifestation of a general septicemia. This is shown by its frequent association with pneumonia, peritonitis, acute pleuritis, and arthritis. It is further evident from the frequency of positive blood cultures post-mortem. 113 out of 186 cases showed positive cultures, the details being as follows: TABLE 149.—ORGANISMS FouND IN BLOoD AT NECROPSY IN PERICARDIAL INFLAMMATION Streptococcus: dcce.. ¥ fea e Gesdlek ee ie One on ae een 39 Pneumococcus. ts Mer.chrde ool a ae eee auch eae anak, nr 33 Staphylococcus jdlireus:; 02S. 65.5 ieee See ee ee 14 Staphylococcus ‘albus: jee ese (9c - te pe ee eee 3 Staphylococcus unspecified ecm...) 672 asa Benes eee 4 Questionablevy owi.2. vba, ote coed eoeceeh cocker ee 9 Be COU Ses sins SR cos ae be aie lee che a ae net 3 Pseudo-Pnenumococeus sand colon 2.02 ett eee I Streptococcus and colon.) .saien0s ee ae) ce I Streptococcus and pnenumococcus.cug cult ers ee I Steptococcus and staphylocqccus?.<. 2. vk ony ee Streptococeus and smucosUS.\ FF kta ae se ewan 2 B. mucosus capsulatus..... Sind Opera b ow Maen Ma a Oe he 1 aie Culture nerative yg N50 ve en ae Pee Re Oey ante eet 73 186 The staphylococci were oftenest found in the cases of juvenile osteomyelitis with myocardial abscess, the pneumococci in the pneumonic cases, and the B. coli in those associated with ulcerative colitis. Murmurs in Acute Pericarditis—In seventy of these cases, murmurs, believed to be endocardial, not pericardial, were recorded. In sixteen cases the cause of these murmurs can naturally be put down as the valvular disease which necropsy showed was present in addition to the pericarditis. But there remain fifty-four in which this explanation will not hold. Of this fifty-four, thirty-nine showed only systolic murmurs. ACUTE PERICARDITIS 641 TABLE 150.—DIASTOLIC OR PRESYSTOLIC MURMUR IN ACUTE PERICARDITIS Chronic Heart passive Weight | conges- tion Murmurs Remarks Presystolic at apex. 465 + Chronic nephritis accounts for dyspnea (I yr.), cardiac hyper- trophy with congestion. Mitral 8.5 cm. but not deformed. | | | | General arteriosclerosis. Mitral Io cm. Aortic 8. ‘‘Atheroma- tous endocarditis and dilatation of aortic valve.”’ | | Pernicious anemia. Diastolic at base. 1668 50 M | Diastolic near left 610 (a) Chronic nephritis. General sternal edge. arteriosclerosis. Mitral FO.5; aortic 7.4. 3206 61 M Diastolic, left sternal 696 + Chronic nephritis. edge. 3603 18 M | Diastolic along left 566 + A cute glomerulonephritis. sternal edge. Chronic non-deforming endocar- ditis of aortic mitral and tricus- pid valves. _—— “| —— eS | Chronic nephritis. Faint diastolic at apex and base. eee ee ee ee eee SS ee ee See “ General arteriosclerosis. Fib- rous myocarditis. Soft diastolic at apex (transient). Diastolic at the base, General arteriosclerosis. Mitrai (2d right and 2d left Lie eaOrlicuso-3 ao tricuspiduil a: interspaces). pulmonic 9. 15 remain in which diastolic or presystolic murmurs were heard in cases without deforming valve lesions post-mortem. In six of these fifteen there were acute vegetations (g21, 1814, 2800, 3242, 3561, 3797) which may have played some part in producing the murmurs, though in four of these the acute vegetations were so small that it is hard to imagine how they could produce a presystolic or diastolic - murmur. (They are described as (1) ‘‘ Pin-point sized,” (2) ‘‘ Match- end sized,” (3) ‘‘Flat ulcers 5 X 8mm. across,” (4) ‘‘ Minute or small masses.”’ In at least 9 cases, however, there is nothing whatever in the endocardium to explain these murmurs. In Table 148 the facts are presented in detail. These nine cases include four of chronic nephritis and three of general arteriosclerosis, lesions very commonly associated with an 41 642 FACTS ON THE HEART hypertrophied and finally insufficient heart. In such cases presys- tolic murmurs at the apex (as in No. 233) have often been described. Diastolic murmurs might well be produced in the same way, though they have not been so often recorded so far as I know. In Necropsy 1038 (pernicious anemia) the murmur may perhaps be considered ‘‘functional.”’ I have elsewhere described such a murmur in association especially with the anemia of chronic nephritis. * In Necropsy No. 3693 a boy of eighteen previously well is taken with “‘grippe in the joints” five weeks before entering the hospital and, after this infection, has dyspnea on exertion but no acute respira- TABLE 151.—Main CAUSE OF DEATH IN ACUTE PERICARDITIS General 'Septicemia*: s4(050 5 cvinoee ds. Maral able park ee 50 Pnetimonia and*pneumococcus sepsis... 4./.--4s..-c ps ee Pe 37 Chronic He pnritis 3.4 Scr. thse terns hs ees pcan 32 Neoplasms (and '1 case of leukemia): .425.. 2.) oo. 95 see 18 Valvularcheart: disease;...2: 0. ew..0 Sree eee ss ane " Arterinsclérdsiss of 2. Rt es ee lee ee 3 AN@UrSIn Jey u ha es mieten ore ta eae 3 Syphilltic-ortitis,,. sees ae ae a ke 2 Tratima eee Tae i ks erage Seat oh ee 5 Meningitis! 0% 2 isteo. « Pema ye ee ae ee ‘2 Permicious anemiat oo. ¢e .ask Ono eae) ee ea 2 Hepatic cirrhosistis 2/0, tient ii ers esc leo cee Ri. Cardiat infarction. 0 ..<2s 34h nea aa ad oe ee 3 Acute and subacute nephritia® 7... 0 ea niere oro 2 : Appendicitis: 3) Vp eaGe oe Sa 2 sage ae et ye 3 Status lymphaticus. 27h. =)5 sete eae ee I Strangulated hernia s7texcgn See a ote oe eer I ActINOMYyCOSISAe oes~ kee » tag eae aes aM he eet ee ae I Pericarditis alone. «5 Jes ca ete ie Steen ek A 9 Pied Se ey Cd ees tg saga be aad ae SPIGA EE. GON EEN acca et se 2 186 *TI class here cases in which several serous sacs or other cavities were involved, i.e., peritoneum, pleura, joints, endocardium, with or without positive blood cultures. tory distress until two days before his death five weeks later. His entire illness thus covered ten weeks only. Examination showed pericardial friction and fluid (300 c.c. post-mortem) ; also a presystolic thrill and roll at the apex and a diastolic blowing murmur along the left sternal border. No murmur in the second right interspace. * Richard C. Cabot, M. D. and Edwin A. Locke, M. D. of Boston: On the Occurrence of Diastolic Murmurs without Lesions of the Aortic or Pulmonary Valves (Johns Hopkins Hospital Bulletin, May, 1903. Vol. XIV, No. 146). ACUTE PERICARDITIS 643 Pulmonic second accentuated. After five weeks of febrile illness with a leucocytosis of 12,700 to 3400 and a “‘picket-fence”’ tempera- ture he died. Necropsy showed in addition to the acute pericarditis a hyper- trophied and dilated heart (566 grams), chronic passive congestion, and ascites. There was a chronic non-deforming endocarditis of the aortic, mitral and tricuspid valves. (Mitral 8.5 cm., aortic 6.5 cm., tricuspid 12. cm., pulmonary 7.5 cm.) No. 3797 presents a good example of the simulation of valvular disease by this ‘“‘marplot’”’ pericarditis. In this case there was no pericardial friction and no evidence of fluid in the sac though both were searched for. There was a systolic murmur at the apex replac- ing the first sound and widely transmitted. A diastolic was heard in the second and third left interspaces near the sternum. One of our best diagnosticians signed the record as “Acute endocarditis, mitral stenosis and regurgitation, aortic regurgitation. Adherent pericardium (?).” Post-mortem there was acute endocarditis of the aortic and mitral valves, chronic and acute pericarditis, but no deformity of the valves. Cardiac Hypertrophy in Acute Pericarditis——In 117 out of 186 cases in this series cardiac hypertrophy is recorded after death. In thirty-four of these the hypertrophy is associated with chronic nephritis and in three with arteriosclerosis. Nine were associated with valve lesions, two with chronic pericarditis in combination with the acute process, and two with pernicious anemia. This accounts for 50 out of 117 cases, including all the largest hearts. In the remaining 67 cases there are only nine hearts over 520 grams. ‘The two largest weighed 664 grams (male aet. 67) and 602 (male aet. 50). Nineteen other hearts weighed between 400 and 483 grams. ‘Thirty-one weighed under 4oo grams. Eight are recorded merely as “‘large” or “rather large.” For the most part therefore it is only a moderate or a rather slight hypertrophy that we must try to explain in these cases. Twenty-two of these patients died of pneumonia, the pericarditis being presumably associated with this. Twenty-eight died of some form of septicemia associated with acute peritonitis, arthritis, ulcera- tive endocarditis, septic knee, urinary sepsis, etc. In five cases the chief cause of death seemed to be a neoplasm, in three cases infarc- tion of the heart, in two cases trauma, in one syphilitic aortitis, in one cirrhosis of the liver. In only five was the infection manifested in the pericardium alone. 644 FACTS ON THE HEART Twenty-eight of the 67 cases of cardiac hypertrophy without any traditional ‘“‘cause”’ were thus associated with nothing more definite than a wide-spread sepsis, and twenty-two with pneumonia, and re- main totally unexplained unless we can conceive that an acute infec- tion is itself a cause of cardiac hypertrophy, or unless we assume an earlier permanent hypertension. I do not see how the sepsis in the pericardium or elsewhere can produce hypertrophy of the heart. My best guess therefore would be that these 28 patients (like many others of the 67 above men- tioned) had previously suffered from a ‘‘primary”’ hypertension, had thus acquired cardiac hypertrophy, and had then caught a sepsis and died. The necropsy then shows evidence of two stories: (a) a long one in which ‘‘essential”’ hypertension built up some degree of cardiac enlargement, and (b) a short one of sepsis and death with acute pericarditis. These two stories need have no important con- nection with each other. Neither need we assume any connection between the pericarditis and the enlarged heart. (This subject is also discussed under acute endocarditis.) The details in nine of these.cases are shown in Table 152. TABLE 152.—CARDIAC HYPERTROPHY WITH ACUTE PERICARDITIS AND WITHOUT OTHER SUPPOSED ‘‘CAUSES”’ FOR CARDIAC HYPERTROPHY Age Nec- Duration | Chronic Heart : and ropsy e of fatal passive Remarks weight : Sex No. illness congest 19 M 3930 483 I week + Syphilitic aortitis with no in- volvement of the aortic ring. 50M} 2955 603 2-3 weeks ++ Traumatic death. Chronic inter- stitial orchitis. Angina pec- toris. Coronaries free. 48 M 2675 LU ea ON Peete ae ° iy 39 440 2 weeks ° Dire 2290 389 11 days ° ate 1711 420 10 days ° Beant 1231 480 1o days fe) SUMMARY 645 Plastic Pericarditis.—Out of 110 cases of this type, eighteen were correctly diagnosed in life. In nine more our diagnosis was of pericarditis without fluid though at necropsy a considerable effusion was found. A friction rub and nothing else was recognized in life. Diagnosis of Pericarditis in General.—In all we recognized the presence of some sort of pericarditis in forty-three cases or 23%. In thirty-three of these the evidence was friction alone, in three cases fluid, in seven cases both. The reason for our 77% of failures is in part the terminal nature of the process and its frequent occur- rence in surgical cases where attention was otherwise engaged. But this is not the whole, or I believe the main reason. Even when we expected pericarditis and sought for it again and again, we often failed to find it, though it was there at necropsy, and not always a recent affair either. I think we must conclude that in some, perhaps in most, cases, there are no physical signs, no friction rub or any evidences of fluid. From my own and others’ clinical blunders I know it to be a fact also that we often hear a friction rub and diagnose pericarditis when the necropsy, shortly following, proves that pericarditis has never occurred (See p. 684). Some of these frictions may be due to patho- logical dryness of the tissues (uremia or pyloric obstruction). SUMMARY 1. Acute pericarditis is three times as common in men as it is in women. Why this should be so it is hard altogether to explain. In part it is perhaps accounted for by the fact that chronic nephritis and arteriosclerosis—both commoner in the male sex—often lead to a terminal pericarditis. 2. Other cardiovascular lesions (except hypertension and its results) are not often associated with acute pericarditis. The disease occurs either alone or with chronic nephritis or arteriosclerosis. Acute endocarditis is a complication in only 8% of cases. 3. A quarter of the cases are afebrile, presumably because of low bodily resistance in terminal states. 4. Pericarditis itself was the main cause of death in only 9 cases out of 186. In most instances pericarditis is only one localization of a generalized septicemia (often with pneumonia), or else represents a terminal infection in chronic diseases such as cancer, or nephritis. 5. Organisms of the streptococcus-pneumococcus group can generally be cultivated post-mortem from the exudate or from the blood. The staphylococcus—especially in children with myocardial 646 FACTS ON THE HEART abscess and general septicemia—is not an uncommon ‘ invader (twenty cases in 186). 6. 117 cases of enlarged heart (hypertrophy and dilatation), with chronic passive congestion in sixty-six cases, were present in our 186 cases of acute pericarditis. 50 or about 1% of these cases are easily explainable by the other diseases present (chronic nephritis, etc.). But there remains a majority not so easily explained. It seems improbable that acute pericarditis is in and of itself a cause for cardiac hypertrophy and congestive heart failure.. An earlier unrecorded hypertension is more probably the explanation for these hypertrophies. | 7. Pericardial exudates of considerable size were present in 36% of cases. 8. Cardiac lesions are often wrongly diagnosed in acute pericar- ditis on account of murmurs believed to be of endocardial origin. Fourteen cases were of this sort. In these diastolic or presystolic . murmurs were heard or supposedly heard, though they can hardly be accounted for by anything found in the endocardium. When there is evidence or suspicion of pericarditis no diagnostic conclusions should be based on murmurs no matier how clearly they seem to be of endocardial origin. g. As I have previously proved in a smaller series of necropsies* we failed to recognize acute pericarditis during life in nearly four- fifths of the cases in which it was present post-mortem. It is also a fact, though not proved here, that a diagnosis of acute pericarditis is often made in life when none is present at necropsy. Errors of commission as well as of omission are frequent in the diagnosis of this disease. 10. Pericardial effusion was recognized during life in nine cases out of the sixty-five proved at necropsy. With more frequent use of radioscopy this record can be greatly improved. An extraordinarily wide area of transverse percussion dullness is our best diagnostic sign when X-ray evidence cannot be had. The character of the pulse and of the heart sounds gives but little aid. POINTS OF SPECIAL INTEREST TO THE WRITER 1. It seems at least possible that in a few cases of this series hypertrophy and dilatation and chronic passive congestion were due to the acute pericarditis itself, though it is always possible to class * Diagnostic Pitfalls Identified during a Study of 3000 Autopsies: Journal of the American Medical Association, December 28, 1912, Vol. LIX, 2295-2208. ACUTE PERICARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 647 these cases in the group of hypertensive cardiovascular disease with complicating or terminal pericarditis. 2. Pericarditis (acute or chronic) is a diagnostic mar plot when we are searching for valvular heart disease. 3. When there is no considerable effusion the diagnosis of acute pericarditis is so often missed or falsely asserted that its correct diagnosis may be said to be in many cases impossible. When effu- sion is present in considerable amount it should usually be recognized by the X-ray but not often otherwise. ILLUSTRATIVE CASES Necropsy 3418 An American painter of forty-four entered November 24. The complaints were swelling of the legs and heart trouble. His father died at fifty-six of heart trouble and dropsy, his mother at sixty-five after two years of “pleurisy.”’ A sister died of tuberculosis. The patient was living at home when the mother died. At thirty-two he had a small growth in the rectum the nature of which he did not know. There had been no recurrence. The same year he had an attack of lead colic characterized by sharp pain in the “pit of the stomach;”’ no paralysis or muscle weakness. He had *‘malaria’’ and rheumatic fever nine years ago, sore throat every winter, an ulcerated tooth a year ago. He had had a slight hacking cough all his life. His stools were black. He had never seen blood in them. He chewed one plug of tobacco every other day. He slept poorly. He did both inside and outside painting. He was not careful about washing his hands. His best weight was 210 pounds twenty-three years ago, his usual weight (one year ago) 170, his present weight 179. For nine years he had noticed that when he stood up all day his ankles were slightly swollen at night. Six years ago he noticed dyspnea on exertion. As the dyspnea progressed he became conscious of his heart’s beating. For the past two years he had © vomited after breakfast about once a week. The vomiting was preceded by a dull pain which it relieved. The vomitus contained no blood or food of the previous day. Sometimes during these attacks his eyesight was blurred. For the past two years he had nycturia, with marked urgency. One year ago he noticed that he stumbled in the dark, his eyes were more frequently blurred, he had edema below 648 FACTS ON THE HEART the eyes, and severe frontal and occipital headaches on waking, at times lasting several days and accompanied by nausea. His feet felt heavy. Six months ago the headaches obliged him to give up work. Since that time he had been at home, quiet, with no relief of symptoms. For six weeks his legs and abdomen had been swollen, with tenderness in the right upper quadrant. He now urinated eight times a day, five times at night. For the past two weeks he had had slight epistaxis in the morning. The dyspnea was now very marked. Examination showed a pale, slightly cyanotic man. Pyorrhea. Mucosae pale. The apex impulse of the heart was felt in the fifth space. The percussion measurements are shown in Fig. 125. The 8cm. rst rib He Eben Firs Bad Nipple 4.5 cm. TOseine as Te5e Cis Fic. 125.—Cardiac percussion records in Case 3418. aortic second sound was markedly accentuated. There was a slight musical systolic murmur at the apex, a low, faint systolic at base. The blood pressure was 200 /140-180/120. Theartery walls were palpable. The lungs were negative except for coarse sonorous rales. at both bases behind. The abdomen was held tensely. There was dullness in the flanks, shifting slightly. The liver dullness extended from the fifth rib to 3 cm. below the costal margin; the edge was just felt. There was edema and tenderness of both ankles. The knee-jerks were normal. The right pupil was greater than the left; both were irregular, reacted to light and distance. The temperature was normal except for an occasional rise to 100° in the later days of life. The pulse was 60-102. The respirations were normal. The output of urine was 40-90 ounces until December 26, when it fell from fifteen ounces to almost nothing. The specific gravity was 1.o10-1.012. There was a slight trace of albumin at all of five examinations, rare leucocytes at four; one finely granular _ cast at one; a few hyalin casts at one. The renal function was 6%. The hemoglobin was 55-80%. ‘The leucocytes were 6000—12,300, the reds 3,408,000-4,736,000, with marked variation in size, some in shape; no stippled cells or polychromatophilia. The polynuclears ACUTE PERICARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 6490 were 71%. Diminished voice, breath sounds and tactile fremitus. Rales. oe To OV my SS ae Sy: eH | Heart's impulse. Mase moving with respiration. 2 Fic. 130.—Chest signs in Case 4945, Aug., 1922. 28; September 21 there was slight achromia and an occasional polychromatophilic cell; September 27 slight achromia, anisocytosis. A. Wassermann was negative. The non-protein nitrogen was 30.3 mgm., creatinin 1.68 mgm. ‘The sputum showed no blood or tubercle bacilli; there were streptococci, occasional staphylococci, Gram-posi- tive and Gram-negative bacilli, and a small amount of pus. August 20 a chest tap in the eighth interspace over a very dull area near the posterior axillary line gave no fluid. Solid material was encountered, grating against the needle and causing pain. Another tap in the eighth interspace in the posterior axillary line gave 1o c.c. of bloody fluid which clotted rapidly. There were 912,000 red blood corpus- cles, 2100 leucocytes, 5% vacuolated mononuclears (pleural? tumor?), 55% polynuclears, 38% lymphocytes, 2% large mono- nuclears. A culture and a smear were negative. A blood culture showed staphylococcus albus. X-rays August 21 are shown in 656 FACTS ON THE HEART pact aa ad Fic. 131.—Forearm August 21, first admission, before treatment. Shows fusiform thickening of the middle third of the ulna, apparently due to proliferative changes in the region of the periosteum. Small but distinct ray formations on the outer aspect of the ulna. Soft tissues in region of involved area considerably thickened. No definite tumor outline visible. Bones show no evidence of atrophy or destruction. Fic. 132.—Chest August 21, first admission, before treatment. Large dense sharply defined shadows obscuring outline of heart and angle between it and diaphragm on both sides. Similar small shadows well out in periphery of lung. No evidence of cavity formation. Apices clear. ¥ : ACUTE: PERICARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 657 Figs. 131 and 132. A plate of the femur showed a line suggesting separation of the periosteum from the bone over the inner aspect of the middle third. No soft tissue changes were visible. August 28 a plate of the chest was difficult to interpret because of, motion. Apparently there was little increase in the size of the dull areas in the chest. The outline of the diaphragm was still visible. Sep- tember 5 and 7 there was no definite change in the appearance of the chest or the forearms. The vital capacity September 11 was 3060 C.c.; September 13 at a single reading only 1110. ‘The forced respiration caused such violent coughing that a second determination was not attempted. August 27 the patient was given neavy radiation. This was followed by severe reaction and the maximum rise in temperature, pulse and respiration. He required two grains of morphia in less than twenty-four hours. For two weeks he had dyspnea, marked cyanosis, and paroxysms of cough, usually unproductive. September 12 a biopsy showed an atypical specimen on which the pathologists disagreed. September 23 another X-ray treatment was given with no bad results. He had had four by September 29, and showed remarkable improvement. His nights were better than they had been at any time. October 3 the lungs showed about the same dullness to per- cussion as before, but striking absence of the showers of rales pre- viously heard. X-ray showed some lessening of the areas of involvement. October 6 he was discharged with advice for further X-ray treatment. After leaving the hospital he went for a month to the country, where his weight increased from 125 pounds to 143. November 24 his vital capacity was reported as 3200 c.c. On his return to the city he developed a “‘pleurisy”’ with severe pain in the left posterior chest, constant, but worse on deep inspiration or movements of the body. This persisted except for occasional remissions following X-ray treatments. From June 20 to 27 it became more severe and was associated with pain deep in the right thigh and knee joint, becoming so severe that he was given morphia. June 26 this pain made him cry out. June 27, 1923, he reentered the hospital. Upon examination he was poorly nourished, with flushed face, warm and moist skin, and cyanotic lips. There was brown pigmenta- tion over the chest, very marked on the left. The bone beneath the scar on the left forearm was roughened. There were pea-to- bean-sized firm non-tender cervical lymph nodes. The left lower 42 658 FACTS ON THE HEART chest bulged posteriorly. The left chest moved very slightly. The right was almost normal. The lung signs were as shown in Fig. 133. The apex impulse of the heart was in the fourth space 7 cm. to the left, not forceful. The midclavicle was 8 cm., the right border Emphysematous breathing Bronchovesicular breathing pebereye Dullnees, diffuse swelling and marked tenderness. Breath sounds very distant to absent. Fremitus diminished. Fic. 133.—Chest signs in Case 4945, June, 1923. Fic. 134.—Chest in July, eleven months after first admission, after X-ray treatment. Looks practically clear except for an area of somewhat increased density at the right base close to the heart border. Diaphragm on the left apparently high. Left costover- tebral angle hazy. of dullness 5 cm. The pulse was fair, the rate 110. The blood pressure was 116/66. The abdomen was very tense. The spleen was enlarged to percussion, the liver not enlarged. ACUTE PERICARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 659 The temperature was 97.3° to 103.5°; there was no elevation July 4 to 6 or 12 to 17. The pulse was go to r4o, the respiration 16 to 30. The output of urine was J 31 to 91, the specific gravity 1.010 to 1.024. The urine was alkaline at two of three examinations and showed the slightest possible trace of albumin at one, occasional leucocytes at one. The hemoglobin was 70 to 80%. The leuco- cytes were 12,200 to 8800, the polynuclears 80 to 91%, the reds normal except for slight anisocytosis at the first examination. The X-ray is shown in Fig. 134. A surgical consultant found no evidence of perinephric abscess. The patient improved before as well as after his first X-ray treatment. July 17 he was discharged, to return for X-ray treatment. July 23, two days after his third X-ray treatment, he suddenly developed ‘“‘shingles”’ involving the left side of the chest wall from spine to midline over a breadth of four inches. This lasted three Bronchial réles. felt on respira- tion. Grating sensation Flat. Absent 3 voice and fremitu Fic. 135.—Physical signs in Case 4945, Oct., 1923. weeks, and continuous pain and tenderness or hyperesthesia two or three weeks longer. September 15 he went to the country for three weeks, and felt well and active until three days before leaving. Then he developed dyspnea and a feeling of hardness in the left lower chest. He went home and rested. The dyspnea disappeared, but returned October 19. During the next few days he had severe pain in the right upper chest and shoulder on deep inspiration. His weight had remained the same; his appetite had been steadily fair. The left forearm swelled at times for no apparent reason, becoming swollen and firm with edema which in about a week subsided. Twice since his discharge he had very distressing dull aching pain in the outer thigh along the sciatic nerve (?) subsiding ina week or two. He had been told that the prognosis was hopeless. When the pains became too bad he took a pill with marked relief. Examination at his third admission, October 26, 1923, showed him emaciated, sweating profusely, lying on his left side in much respiratory distress, with occasional attacks of cough with little sputum. The skin over the left chest and abdomen was tense, shiny, 660 FACTS ON THE HEART and scaly. The left chest moved little with respiration. Two sub- sternal glands were felt, also glands in the left axilla and both groins. The lung signs were as shown in Fig. 135. The heart was apparently pushed to the right. The left border was not determined. The right border was 7 cm. to the right of mid-sternum. ‘The sounds were heard only to the right of the sternum. There was a to-and-fro rough murmur sounding likea pericardialrub. The belly-wall showed almost board-like rigidity in the upper quadrants and considerable in the lower quadrants. It was impossible to palpate through it. The superficial veins were distended. There was no tenderness. In the middle of the left forearm was an oval non-tender bony mass with a smooth surface, merging with the bone. The right thigh was slightly tender along the course of the sciatic nerve. The temperature was 99° to 96.3°, the pulse 118 to 140, the respiration 34 to 20. The amount of urine was normal. The urine Fic. 136.—Forearm October 5, three weeks before third admission, after X-ray treatment. was cloudy, the specific gravity 1.034. There was a very slight trace of albumin. The hemoglobin was 65%. There was 16,200 leucocytes, 85% polynuclears, 4,160,000 reds, slight achromia. The chest was tapped October 26 in the eighth interspace at the angle of the scapula and in the posterior axillary line. After an hour of manipulation of needle and position with strong suction, 30 c.c. of thick slightly viscous bloody fluid which clotted almost immediately was obtained. It showed 80% large mononuclears, 10% small fibroblastic (?) cell types, 5% polynuclears, 5% fragmented cells, many red blood cells, four mitotic figures, 36,000 leucocytes. The fluid clotted too quickly for a count of the red blood cells, but it must have been very high—z2,000,000-3,000,000. October 28 a tap in the eighth left interspace just below the scapula gave 2 c.c. of thick bloody fluid which clotted quickly. On manipulating the trocar it seemed as though there were adhesions along the chest wall. ACUTE PERICARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 661 The patient was propped up in bed and kept comfortable with morphia and caffein. October 28 he died. : Pre-operative Diagnosis (Sept. 12, 1922).—Tumor of ulna. Operation.—Local novocain. Incision made over middle of ulna. Bone partly solid, partly moth eaten, surrounded by thickened periosteum which did not appear characteristic of sarcoma, but sug- gested syphilis or chronic osteomyelitis. Specimen of periosteum and bone removed for examination. Wound closed. Fic. 137.—Chest October 5, three weeks before third admission, showing recurrence ; and displaced heart. Pathological Report.—Microscopic examination of small fragments of bone showing clusters of atypical cells suggesting osteoblasts, with fibrils and areas of osteoid tissue. Osteogenic sarcoma. H. F. HARTWELL. Bacteriological Report —Culture from bone negative. Clinical Diagnosis (from Hospital Record).—Osteosarcoma of left ulna with metastases to left lung and pleura. 662 FACTS ON THE HEART Dr. Richard C. Cabot’s Diagnosis —Osteosarcoma of the ulna with metastases in the chest. | Anatomical Diagnosis.—(Osteogenic sarcoma of left ulna.) Metastatic osteogenic sarcoma of lungs, bronchial lymph glands and paravetebral and retroperitoneal tissues. Acute pericarditis. Dr. RicHarpson: There was a large bulging area on the left chest just above the costal border, and the cutaneous vessels of the anterior wall of the thorax, the shoulders and along the sides of the abdomen were prominent. There was no particular deformity of the left forearm at the time of necropsy, and we were not allowed to go any further with the examination. The organs had to be replaced in the body. There was a little thin pale fluid in the peritoneal cavity. The mass had pushed down the stomach, spleen and intestines so that the lower border of the stomach was six cm. below the umbilicus, the small intestines practically in the pelvic cavity, and the transverse colon skirting along the top of the bladder. Below the diaphragm, except that this mass pushed down in the retroperitoneal tissues, there was nothing except that on the right side of the pelvic cavity there was a mass of new growth tissue similar to that in the lung. It was hemispherical, rather discrete, and measured 7 XK 344 cm. The diaphragm on the right was at the fifth interspace, on the left at the eighth rib. A mass of new growth tissue in the region of the left lung pushed the diaphragm down to within a few cm. of the crest of the ilium; down along the retroperitoneal tissues. It pushed the — spleen forward so that its long axis was parallel to the median line, and its lower pole only eight cm. above the crest of.the ium. There was no fluid in the pleural cavities, and no adhesions on the right; the left was bound down to the tumor in that region. The bronchial glands were slightly enlarged and some of them showed new growth tissue. In places in the new growth tissue there were pecu- liar rust-colored areas of necrosis. The right lung was voluminous and showed metastases here and there, some of them of pretty good size, but nothing in comparison with the other side. On the leit side the ovoid mass of new growth tissue measured 31 X 24 X 24cm. In some places the pleura was thickened and retracted, with possibly some streaks and areas of fibrosis lying along the tumor tissue. Scattered through the large mass of new growth tissue were in places large rust-colored areas of necrosis. ACUTE PERICARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 663 The pericardium showed acute pericarditis. The heart weighed 275 grams. ‘The left border was in line with the left border of the sternum, the right at a line perpendicular to the junction of the middle and outer thirds of the right clavicle. The valves and cavities were negative, the aorta and branches negative except that the ovoid mass flattened the ascending thoracic portion of the aorta markedly. The abdominal organs require no comment. The bones of the body, as far as dissection permitted, were negative. Microscopical examination ofthe kidney, liver, spleen, etc., was negative. | Dr. Casot: Have you any doubt that this man’s life was pro- longed by radiation? Dr. Hormes: No, I have no doubt of it. Without radiation he would have died sooner; but what is more important, he was able to carry on very comfortably until a very short time before death. Dr. Casot: It was a prolongation not merely of existence but of actual work. What seem to be the prospects for improving therapy in cases of this kind? We have had one or two cases where you had extraordinary temporary results in banishing from the chest great masses of tumor, but with recurrence. Do you look for gain? Do you think we are likely by the methods we now control to be able to hold this lesion off longer? Dr. Hormes: There is not a great deal of evidence that points towards cure, but I think that we are going to be able to make it easier for the patient while undergoing treatment; that there will be less Roentgen sickness. As for the actual prolongation of life, it does not look as though we were going to be able to accomplish a great deal once widespread metastasis has taken place. There are some interesting data in the recently published accounts of German clinics. In the clinics where the radiation treatment is con- trolled by the surgeon they are using radiation for all cases of malig- nant bone tumor rather than surgery. I think there is some question whether cutting into a tumor or even amputation of the primary tumor does not shorten the life of the patient. It is better to treat the primary growth with radiation rather than to remove it. It is possible that work along that line may enable us to carry these cases longer and more comfortably. Dr. MERRILL: Dr. Holmes told us that when that appearance was seen in the lung the question arose whether it was recurrence or fibrosis. Knowing as we do in this case that it was not fibrosis, but 664 FACTS ON THE HEART recurrence, in another similar case, were we not deterred, what would be the prospect of giving him another lease of life? Dr. Hormes: I think it would be pretty good. Dr. MERRILL: And even presuming that it was a condition of fibrosis and there still remained a question of recurrence, what would be the great harm in producing a condition of fibrosis? A man can exist with a large amount of fibroid change in his lung. Suppose we treated him, what harm would it do? Dr. Hormes: I do not know that it would do any. I think we were unduly scared. But there has been a good deal of experimen- tal work recently that has given us a rather bad scare. Some of the patients develop, for example, a Roentgen cachexia which goes on to death. So that we feel rather shaky about going ahead. I think perhaps if we had it all to do over again we should recognize we made a definite mistake in not doing it. Of course the mass that developed in the abdomen would probably have gone on and we should not have been able to control it. Other cases similar to this have developed metastases in the brain which we could not control. The lymphoma cases, which are much more susceptible to X-ray, we can control in the chest, but they die of metastases in the brain. So that I think with metastasis we are going to lose the patient anyway. Necropsy 4269 An American boy baby of four months entered October 11, 1921, for relief of constipation and vomiting. His parents had lost one child of pulmonary tuberculosis a year previously. The mother had had one miscarriage. The child was normally delivered at eight months, weighing less than five pounds. He was put at once upona formula. He occasionally regurgitated, and then began to have loose green stools. At seventeen days old he was taken to the Floating Hospital, where he remained for three weeks. On the boat he caught “‘impetigo.”’ At discharge he was still vomiting a little. His weight had increased from four and a half pounds at admission to five and three quarters. In a few days he began to vomit more and then to have eight or nine loose green slimy stools a day. By direction of a dispensary clinic he was put upon a different formula and was well for three days, then began to vomit again with great force, and one night had convulsions lasting five minutes in which the face and mouth twitched more than the rest of the body. -The temperature was 102°. He entered a hospital, from which he was discharged September 30 against advice. ACUTE PERICARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE ‘CASES 665 Upon his discharge from the hospital his bowels were constipated and his buttocks very raw. His mother started giving him an ounce or prune juice at night. Since that time he had been having two or three firm yellow stools a day until the day of admission when they were looser. October to he vomited with great force five minutes after each feeding and apparenly lost the entire feeding, which was sour and contained curds. . Examination showed a poorly developed and nourished baby with excoriations over the lower abdomen, buttocks and inner sides of the thighs. The mucosae were pale. There were white patches in the mouth. There was umbilical hernia. There was well formed rosary and slight enlargement of the epiphyses. The urine was normal, the hemoglobin 50%. The leucocytes gooo, the polynuclears 32%, the reds 3,232,000, six nucleated cells, moderate variation in size and shape. A Pirquet was negative on two occasions. A Wassermann was negative. On admission the child was put upon whole milk 15, water 15, 55 every four hours. The next day two tablespoonfuls of malt soup was added. He vomited once on each of the first two days, but not at all after that, and after the first day the green watery stools became soft solid. On the 18th the malt soup was increased to three table- spoonfuls. On the 2zoth he had nasopharyngitis, with a tempera- ture of 102.6°._ The right ear was opened on the 22nd. He vomited twice on each of the two days before discharge without apparent cause other than the otitis media. The stools, however, were normal. At admission the weight was 6 pounds g ounces, on discharge October 24 7 pounds Ir ounces. After the child’s discharge the mother was unable to get the malt soup, so she gave him whole milk 32, water 32, cane sugar 1 tablespoonful; 38 every three hours. The baby took all of it, did not vomit, had normal stools, and was well until November 20. That day he began to have snuffles, with a nasal discharge. He was very fretful and coughed. His temperature was about 103° the whole week. November 24 and 25 he was worse. His bowels were constipated. The night of November 24 he was given a dram of castor oil. He cried much of the time. He took the bottle well until the morning of admission, November 26. | Examination showed a well developed and fairly well nourished, very pale baby, not appearing very sick. The anterior fontanel was 3 X 4 cm., level. The head veins were large. There was slight craniotabes. The sclerae and mucosae were very pale. The ears, 666 FACTS ON THE HEART nose and mouth were negative. The lungs showed diminished resonance over the entire right back, more marked at the base, with bronchial breathing, increased voice sounds and fine crackling rales. The apex impulse of the heart was not seen or felt. The left border was 4)4 cm., the right border not made out. There was sinus arrhy- thmia. The epiphyses were enlarged. There was a suggestion of clubbed fingers. ‘The pupils and reflexes were normal. There was no Kernig or neck sign. The temperature and pulse were as shown in Fig. 138. The respirations were 84 to 46. The urine is not recorded. The hemo- globin was 60%. ‘There was 13,000 leucocytes, 66% polynuclears, 3,680,000 reds, slight achromia. The platelets were normal. A Pirquet was negative. The day after admission the temperature was 104.6° and the child seemed dried out. He did not eat well for the first time. The fontanel was depressed. After 300 c.c. of normal saline was given intraperitoneally he seemed much better. The morning of November 28 he seemed in good condi- tion. The temperature was 100.2°, the fontanel level, the lower lobe showed fewer rales. He did not however take his feedings well. At midday it was noticed that he was spitting up a little milk with foam and had a peculiar ash-gray look and rapid and labored breathing. His whole body was stiff, and the arms and hands twitched. The Fides Mere constantly. Lumbar puncture gave fluid under perature and pulse increased pressure, 2370 cells, 88% polynuclears; Sears aides globulin positive; Fehling’s not reduced. Gram- negative intra- and extracellular diplococci were found. 15 c.c. of antimeningococcus serum was given intraspinously and 30c.c. intrave- nously. The child stopped crying after it and seemed more comfort- able. He would not take the bottle, so was tube-fed. At midnight he began to fret again and breathed rapidly and with difficulty. The fontanel was again becoming tense. Another lumbar puncture gave 20 c.c. of fluid morecloudy than the first. 15 c.c. of serum was given intraspinously. Two minutes after the needle was withdrawn he began to have respiratory difficulty and was definitely sicker. The needle was inserted again in order to withdraw some fluid with the idea that the serum was causing increased pressure. Ser bite a, sgl fontanel had become tense and the child fretted ACUTE PERICARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 667 There did not seem, however, to be increased pressure, and the condi- tion did not improve. Artificial respiration was given, but the child died after a few breaths. Clinical Diagnosis (from Hospital Record)—Lobar pneumonia. Cerebrospinal meningitis. Anatomical Diagnosis —Fibrinopurulent pleuritis (influenza bacil- lus and pneumococcus). Fibinopurulent pericarditis (influenza bacillus and pneumococcus). Acute leptomeningitis (influenza bacillus). Dr. RICHARDSON: A well developed and poorly nourished infant. In the region of the anterior fontanel there was evidence of the puncture mentioned. The vessels of Willis, the sinuses, the middle ears, and the mastoids were negative. Was there a history of middle ear? Dr. TALszor: Yes. Dr. RICHARDSON: Apparently he had got over that at this time. The pia in the region of the convexities and scattered along the base was coated with a thin layer of pale yellowish exudate, and there was a small amount of thin cloudy fluid at the base, but there seemed to be no excess of fluid in the ventricles. The brain weighed 550 grams, and on section presented no lesions. Anatomically of course it was a leptomeningitis, extending down presumably into the region of the cord. In the anterior abdominal wall in the left lower quadrant there were two brown puncture-like spots. Dr. Tarsot: Normal saline had been introduced into the peritoneum. Dr. RicHArDsoN: On the back were the puncture spots mentioned. The subcutaneous fat was small in amount, the muscles were pale, the peritoneal cavity, appendix and gastrd-intestinal tract negative. The mesenteric and retroperitoneal glands were negative. The pleural cavities: on the right side there was a small amount of yellowish purulent fluid and much membranous yellowish fibrinous exudate. This was plastered over the visceral and parietal pleura; on the left side there was nothing. Other than for the sticking of the lung on the right by the fibrinous exudate there were no adhesions. The thymus gland was present, rather small, negative. The bronchial glands were negative. The lung tissue generally was pinkish, spongy, yielding con- siderable pale pinkish frothy fluid; negative. The pericardium contained much yellowish purulent fluid, and the two layers were thickly coated with membranous, opaque yellow- 668 FACTS ON THE HEART ish fibrinopurulent material. The circulatory apparatus generally was negative. There was nothing in the liver, gall-bladder, pan- creas, spleen, adrenals or kidneys. Dr. Casot: Those intracellular diplococci—what were thee Dr. RICHARDSON: They said they were not stained by Gram, and they were probably influenza bacilli. Dr. Tarsot: They must have been pretty small. Dr. RICHARDSON: They were. Clinically which do you think came first, the infection in the chest or in the meninges? Dr. Tarsort: I think the clinical description there was of a lobar pneumonia first, and although the description is not very detailed one might infer that it had cleared up and we had a pleuritis either with it or secondary to it, and that the meningitis came last. Dr. RicHArDSON: When you tapped him the first time you got the pus—it was pus the first time? 7 Dr. TAsBort: Yes. Dr. RIcHARDSON: Anatomically here we have no evidence to indicate which was first. Dr. Casot: You cannot swear that he had not had pneumonia and got over it? Dr. RICHARDSON: He probably did not. The lungs did not look like that. The condition found was infection of the pleura and pericardium. Dr. TALBot: How much fluid was there in the chest? Dr. RicHAarRDsON: A small amount. Generally speaking the character of the exudate in the pericardium and pleura resembled more that of the pneumococcus. The exudate over the meninges was different. It did resemble more, I think, the epidemic: form of meningitis than it did the pneumococcus. The condition there was not so marked. There was not so much membranous fibrinous exu- date as on the pleura and the pericardium. I have been trying to think if we have had a discussion before on an influenza meningitis. Dr. Casor: I think not. Dr. Tarsot: Of course we could not expect the antimeningo- coccus serum to do any good to influenza. Miss PAINTER: Why did the baby seem to be better after the first injection? Dr. TAtzot: J suppose the lumbar puncture relieved the pressure. | ACUTE PERICARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 669 Necropsy 4174 An Italian-American schoolgirl of ten entered March 2, 1g2r. She did not remember any illnesses or any attacks similar to the present one. ‘The morning before admission she had a stomach ache, which rapidly became worse and caused her to vomit. As the pain increased it localized more or less in the lower quadrants and more particularly on the left side. She continued to vomit during the day. The day of admission the pain was intense and the vomiting continued. Her bowels had moved on both days. Examination showed a well nourished girl with reddened and injected tonsils and slight cervical adenopathy. The lungs were clear and resonant. The heart was normal except for rapid action. There was exquisite tenderness in both quadrants and over the pubes, more marked on the left side. There was definite spasm of the muscle in the lower quadrants, while the abdomen above was soft. No organs or masses were palpable. The rectal examination was negative except for slight tenderness on movement of the uterus. The extremities, pupils, and reflexes were normal. The temperature and pulse were as shown in Fig. 139. The respirations were Peete eet areend normal until the evening of March 3, then pulse in Case 4174. 28-50. The amount and the specific gravity of the urine are not recorded. There was a trace to a large trace of albumin at both of two examinations, diacetic acid at the first. The hemoglobin is not recorded. There were 40,000 to 48,000 to 38,000 leucocytes, 89% polynuclears. The evening of March 3 the patient vomited and was delirious. A medical consultant thought the case might mean a crisis of pneu- monia, but was not typical. March 4 the patient looked worse. A medical consultant found no focus of pneumonia. He thought there was a little suggestion of dullness at the left base. Another consul- tant found some suppression of breath sounds over the right midlobe and inferior lobe, but said the pulmonary signs did not explain the temperature, etc. Fluoroscopic examination showed the lung fields 670 FACTS ON THE HEART clear. The right diaphragm did not move so freely as the left, especially in the inner half. The costophrenic angles were clear. The plate showed in addition a band of slightly increased mottled density in the right chest in the region of the base of the upper lobe. The child’s body was cold. She was not entirely oriented. There were three pulse beats to a respiration. There was no sweating. That night she was delirious and restless. A subpectoral was given. March 5 the abdomen was stiff and rigid and tender throughout. Late that evening operation was done. Clinical Diagnosis (from Hospital Record) —Idiopathic peritonitis. Ether. Incision and drainage of peritonitis. Fic. 140.—Costophrenic angles clear. A band of slightly increased mottled density in the right chest in the region of the upper lobe. Next day two subpectorals were given, and March 7 two more. A culture from secretions from the nose was negative. March 8 there was rapid breathing, the nostrils moving with each respiration. The general condition was growing worse. ‘There was considerable drainage. She retained a little rectal glucose. A sore was found on the left buttock, and two blue streaks in the same region. There was high color in her cheeks. March 9 she was distinctly worse. She roused and cried occasionally. In the middle of the morning she suddenly became cyanotic and had labored breathing. Next day she died. a nt x . v a * 5 : 3 me ACUTE PERICARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES O71 Dr. Hugh Cabot’s Diagnosis.—General septicemia with widespread generalized peritonitis. Possibly pleuritis, Possibly pneumonia, Possibly pericarditis. Anatomical Diagnosis.—General fibrinopurulent peritonitis. Empyema, double. | Acute pericarditis. Operation wound. Slightly defective closure of the foreamen ovale. Note by Dr. Richardson.—Culture from the peritoneal pus showed streptococcus. It is not uncommon in cases of general peritonitis to find a culture from the blood stream showing no growth. In this case a few diplo- cocci were recovered from the heart blood culture,—beginning septi- cemia. It is also not uncommon in cases of general fibrinopurulent peritonitis to find fibrinopurulent pleuritis. This infection of course comes either through the diaphragm or by the blood stream. At times it is difficult to say which is the avenue. In this case there are no definite lesions of the lungs,—only the empyema associated with the peritonitis. Further Discussion by Dr. Cabot—I am interested that Dr. Richardson finds a streptococcus, as this is the organism which is much more likely than any other to cause this picture. CHAPTER X CHRONIC PERICARDITIS Starting from the post-mortem facts as revealed in the 112 exami- nations of this series, we find that chronic pericarditis shows itself, in the first place, as the so-called “‘milk spot”’ or patch of superficial fibrous thickening of the pericardium to which we have no reason to pay any attention. When adhesions exist between the two layers of pericardium, they may consist (a) of slight cases in which the few loose bands of adhesions presumably do not interfere with the work of the heart and are essentially historical landmarks, witnessing the presence of some past infection. Next (b) we have the extensive cases in which the whole pericardium is adherent to the surface of the heart so that no pericardial cavity any longer exists. Here there is at least the possibility of interference with the work of the heart, though, as will be seen presently, it does not appear that such interference can always be demonstrated. Lastly, (c) we have the group of cases with mediastinitis in which, in addition to obliteration ot the pericardial sac, we have adhesions between the external surface of the pericardium and the mediastinal tissues,—pleura, sternum, diaphragm. As a source of interference with cardiac function, this group seems to be the most important. In the first of these groups, wherein the pericardial cavity is not altogether obliterated, we may find acute pericarditis associated with the chronic process, just as the two are linked together in the endo- cardium. Acute pericarditis with the chronic process was present in 5 of 112 cases. Indeed it seems quite possible that we may have a series of attacks or recrudescences of pericarditis, as we certainly do of endocarditis, the membranes becoming with each attack more extensively vascularized and therefore more subject to the invasion of bacteria. On the basis of these three types of pathological anatomy, we should expect to find more than one clinical type or picture of the disease, and as we run over the clinical histories corresponding with these necropsies, this is to some extent the case. Clinically there are three groups, I, Vestigial, II, Primary rheumatic, III, Secondary rheumatic. 672 CHRONIC VESTIGIAL PERICARDITIS 673 CHRONIC VESTIGIAL PERICARDITIS In the largest group (see Table 154) the typical case is that of an elderly man who has never had rheumatism, who complains of no symptoms which can be in any way referred to the circulatory system, but dies of cancer, of Addison’s disease, of urinary sepsis, pulmonary tuberculosis, or some other disease outside the heart. In the patients of this group no one suspects or ought to suspect pericarditis during life, and no one would look especially for it post- mortem. Only as a part of routine thoroughness in necropsy work it is discovered at all. In the 64 cases of this group brought together in Table 154, only 12 had any rheumatic history; more than 4% were of the male sex; the average age at death was 53, the average weight of the heart only 430 grams, most of the cases showing little or no hypertrophy. In view of all these facts one would expect that in this group of cases the pericardial adhesions found at necropsy would be few and far between, in other words that we are dealing in this group with some of the results of relatively mild attacks of the dis- ease. But in fact the number of cases with extensive, practically obliterating pericardial adhesions slightly outnumber those of the mild and incipient type. There are 36 of the obliterating type to 28 of the partial. Mediastinal adhesions, however, were present in only 8 out of 64 of this series and this is the essential point. - I have already pointed out that in this group we have had little or no evidence of cardiac disturbance during life. Only 20 of the 64 cases, or 14, showed any dyspnea or other cardiac symptoms during life. 6 of these patients had chronic nephritis, so that their dyspnea might easily be accounted for, either as a result of the cardiac hyper- trophy and dilatation which is linked with that disease, or as a uremic phenomenon. 2 others had pneumonia to explain dyspnea and 6 others were explainable without regard to the pericarditis. Only 16 of the cases showed evidences of chronic passive congestion, i.e. of poor heart function, post-mortem, while 48 showed none. 12 of these 16 had other lesions post-mortem which would account for the passive congestion without any relation to the pericardial adhesions. The other 4 cases, however, are not as easily explained and deserve some further description. One of these was a man of fifty-three whose heart at necropsy weighed 628 grams, although the pericardial adhesions were but slight and there was no nephritis or endocarditis to explain this hypertrophy. His history stated that he had had orthopnea ever since he was sixteen years old, an almost incredible assertion. He had marked evidences of stasis both before and after 43 674 FACTS ON THE HEART death. I suppose that he really suffered from the hypertensive type of heart disease though he happened to show only the chronic peri- carditis post-mortem. Another patient, strangely enough, had in her history the same curious statement about prolonged dyspnea, which in this case was said to have existed since the age of six. The patient, a woman of twenty-two, died of cancer of the stomach. The heart in this patient weighed 308 grams and was considered by the pathologist to be but slightly hypertrophied. The pericardial adhesions were extensive but there was no mediastinitis, no history of rheumatism, no valvular or other lesion to account for dyspnea, and no evidence of passive congestion at necropsy. The blood pressure was 110/50. Of 2 remaining cases one was a post-operative death, the other a crush. Leaving out of account these 4 cases we may say that this group is vestigial because chronic pericarditis is, in these instances, of no clinical importance, a mere vestige of some early and apparently harmless infection. It is merely an item conscientiously recorded in the complete post-mortem findings. PRIMARY RHEUMATIC GROUP Sharply contrasted with this group we find a smaller series of twenty-three cases, in almost all of which the pericardial disease constituted an important obstacle to the normal function of the heart. In 17 of these the pericarditis was clearly the main cause of death by passive congestion. 3 had no passive congestion, 2 died mainly of valvular disease, and 1 of pneumonia. The end of life came relatively early in this type of the disease, the average age at the time of death being twenty-eight years, contrasting with the average age, fifty-three, in the vestigial group. ‘There were 15 men to eight women. 18 out of twenty-three of these cases had a well-documented history of rheumatic fever, sometimes of many attacks. While in the ‘‘ vestigial group” described in preceding paragraphs, the adhesions were extensive in a little more than half the cases, they were extensive in 19 out of twenty-three of the group now under consideration. On the whole, then, we may say that these ‘‘ primary rheumatic”’ cases occur in young people and are characterized by exten- sive pericardial adhesions. Mediastinitis was present in 11 out of twenty-three. SECONDARY RHEUMATIC GROUP 675 That the pericarditis interfered with the work of the heart is strongly suggested by the cardiac weights. In the primary rheu- matic group the average weight was 655 grams. (Contrast this with the average weight in the vestigial group, 430 grams.) As will be seen in Table 155, this group contains some of the largest hearts seen in the whole series of our 4000 post-mortem examinations since 1896. In one case the cardiac weight, 1328 grams, was greater than in any necropsy of the whole 4000, and in three others, it was also extra- ordinary; 1205, 1150 and 1158 grams. ‘There was not a single case in the series in which the absence of hypertrophy was demonstrable. Moreover, 19 of the 23 cases showed no cause for cardiac hypertrophy except the pericardial adhesions. In the remaining four cases there was subacute nephritis in two, general arteriosclerosis in one, and in the remaining case stenosis of the mitral, aortic and tricuspid valves. SECONDARY RHEUMATIC GROUP Besides these two fairly well delimited types, our series contains an additional group of 25 cases characterized by the fact that other ‘“‘rheumatic”’ heart lesions probably played the chief part in bringing about death, while the pericarditis was of secondary importance. This group affected relatively young individuals, the average age of death being thirty-two years. There were 13 males and 12 females in the group, suggesting, for reasons above alluded to, a slight excess of females. The heart weights averaged 508 grams. The adhesions were extensive in 12 while in 13 cases they were slight. Mediastinitis was present in only 8 cases. The accompanying cardiac infections are seen in the last column of Table 156. AGE AND SEX Looking at the whole group of 112 cases we find that there are 32 females to 80 males, so that—as in acute pericarditis—the males make up 72% or nearly three-fourths of the whole series. The ages and the sex are shown in the following table. 676 FACTS ON THE HEART TABLE 153.—AGE AND SEX IN CHRONIC PERICARDITIS Females Obviously the disease affects women earlier than men. 42% of the males are over 50, while only 22% of the females exceed that age (provided the ages are correctly recorded). At the other end of the age scale, where there is perhaps less temptation to lie about it, we have 37+% of the women under the 31st year, while only 18+ % of the men are of this age. DIAGNOSIS It remains to inquire whether there are any signs or symptoms on the basis of which one may make the diagnosis of chronic pericar- ditis during life. In answer to this question, the outstanding fact is that in very few of these 112 cases was the diagnosis even sus- pected before death, and in only six was it actually made (Nos. 2297, 3009, 3290, 3345, 3520, 3648). In three cases acute pericarditis was the clinical diagnosis (1063, 3242, 3496) and in two cases this diagnosis was correct, though insufficient. Among the 46 cases in which some cardiovascular lesion was considered in the diagnosis, chronic valvular disease was most often thought to be present. This was the diagnosis in 22 cases. In 13 of these the mitral valve was DIAGNOSIS 677 accused (mitral stenosis 7, mitral regurgitation 3, both 3) and seven of these were right so far, since there was mitral stenosis as well as chronic pericarditis at necropsy. Myocarditis was the only diagnosis in 5 cases, all of them wrong. Acute and chronic endocarditis was predicted in 4 cases, all correct diagnoses as far as they went. Of acute endocarditis alone there were six diagnoses, all correct though partial. Arteriosclerosis was all we recognized in 2 cases and aneurism (correctly) in one. Thus we may say that in 66 or nearly 24 of the cases we failed to consider any cardiovascular lesion, that in the 46 cases remaining we got part of the diagnosis—the accompanying acute endocarditis, acute pericarditis or valvular disease—in 25. Systolic retraction of the interspaces near the heart or between the ribs of the left back is a sign of little or no value in the diagnosis of pericardial adhesions. It has been amply demonstrated by Tallant* and others that systolic retraction of interspaces is a common phenomenon in patients who show after death no evidence of pericarditis. Whenever a markedly hypertrophied heart is acting strongly within a relatively thin and elastic chest wall, the interspaces will fall in with each systole simply as a result of negative pressure. On the other hand we have searched in a number of these cases for systolic retraction of interspaces because we had some more or less distinct suspicion that adhesive pericarditis was present. But we usually failed to find it even when such adhesions were present after death. Radiologists tell us that pericardial adhesions can be recognized by the X-ray, in case they are associated with chronic mediastinitis and especially with diaphragmatic adhesions. In such cases we are told that the respiratory movements of the diaphragm and the contractions of the heart can be seen by the fluoroscope to be limited. All this may well be the case, but I have yet to see an instance in which a diagnosis of chronic pericarditis has been suggested by a radiologist and then verified post-mortem. Aside from these two signs, the falling in of interspaces and the limitation of cardiac or respiratory movement as seen by the fluoroscope, I know of no sign that even purports to give us any direct evidence of chronic pericarditis. But some suspicion of its presence may be aroused when, in a relatively young patient with a rheumatic history and evidences of cardiac hypertrophy and poor cardiac function, we are unable to account for them by any valvular * Dr. Alice Tallant: Some observations on the occurrence of Broadbent’s sign, Boston Medical and Surgical Journal, 1904, Vol. 151, p. 457. 678 FACTS ON THE HEART TABLE 154.—GroupP I. CHRONIC VESTIGIAL (“LANDMARK”) PERICARDITIS or x. Chronic passive Heart congestion weight Before | After death | death Rheumatism Mediastinitis Exten sive slight —) (Sex ~ Slight Pneumonia. S Slight Rh. 3 years ago. Goitre. = Extens. Slight Extens. Addison’s disease. General peritonitis. BW) ss < Slight Chronic nephritis® = Slight Very sl. General peritonitis. 5 Subac. Post-operative death. <| Shght Chronic nephritis. Bronchiectasis. Slight Obstruction. Cancer. =| s Slight Sl. hypertr. = Extens. Extens. M F Extens. Slight a Extens. = Extens. 4 Extens. Amyloid nephritis. = Extens. Chronic nephritis. s Extens. ; Arteriosclerosis. = Slight Duodenal ulcer. Chronic nephritis. s Extens. hy Extens. 5 Extens. Slight Slight Heart weight not ex- plained. : ““Orthopnea since 16.”’ a = Extens. Weight not explained. Yy Slight Cancer of sigmoid. < Extens. Slight s/s Slight - |Subac.glomerulo-nephritis. Slight DIAGNOSIS 679 TABLE 154.—Group I. Curonic VESTIGIAL (“LANDMARK”’) PERICARDITIS.—(Continued) Chronic passive Heart congestion weight Before} After death | death Rheumatism Extensive or Mediastinitis Coronaries occluded. Arteriosclerosis. Traumatic death. Calcified peric. Pn. Pneumonia. Syphilitic aortitis. Chronic nephritis. Arteriosclerosis. Chronic nephritis. Apoplexy. Subac. glomerulo-nephritis Arteriosclerosis. Pneumonia. Sudden death. Pneumonia. Phthisis. Streptococcus sepsis. Dyspnea since 6. Died of gastric cancer. Rheumatism 25 years ago. Gangrene of leg. Phthisis. Cancer. Operation, Sepsis. Aneurism. Cardiac In- farct. Streptococcus sepsis. Streptococcus sepsis. Acute nephritis. Prostate operation. ~ 680 FACTS ON THE HEART TABLE 155.—GRouP II. PRIMARY RHEUMATIC PERICARDIAL ADHESIONS Chronic passive congestion Extensive Heart weight Ante | Post No evidence of stasis ante or post mortem. + | Rheumatism + | Mediastinitis Hypertrophy Stenosis, mitral, aortic and and tricuspid. dilatation Hypertrophy _ and dilatation Hypertrophy Acute endocarditis. Sub- and acute nephritis. dilatation Hypertrophy + |. Rheumatism 4 years ago and ; and again six months ago. dilatation Subacute glomerular neph- ritis Acute endocarditis. Hypertrophy | Acute endocarditis and and pericarditis. dilatation General arteriosclerosis. Diagnosis made in life. + Acute rheumatism at end. Acute endocarditis at. end. + Mycotic aneurism. Acute nephritis. + Pick’s disease. Extensive + Diagnosis made in life. Extensive | + 600 4+ + Acute endocarditis. TABLE 156.—Grouvp III. Adhesions extensive? slight ? + | Rheumatism Slight Ext. Slight Ext. Ext. Sl. Ext. Ext. Sl. Ext. Ext: Extensive DIAGNOSIS 681 SECONDARY CHRONIC RHEUMATIC PERICARDITIS Mediastinitis Heart weight 315 Slight hypertrophy and dilatation 680 80 Hypertrophy and dilatation 360 567 558 170 640 Chronic passive congestion Ante | Post mortem Valve lesions, etc. Mitral stenosis. Acute pericarditis. Mitral stenosis. Acute endocarditis, aortic and mitral. Subacute nephritis. Chronic and acute endo- carditis. Ulcerative endocarditis. Mitral stenosis. Acute pericarditis (700 c.c. in sac). Mitral stenosis. Mitral stenosis. Mitral stenosis. Acute endocarditis. Mitral stenosis. Mitral stenosis. Acute endocarditis. Mitral stenosis. Mitral, aortic and tricus- pid. Stenosis. Mitral, aortic and tricus- pid. Stenosis. Mitral and aortic stenosis. Mitral and aortic stenosis. Mitral and aortic stenosis. Mitral, aortic, tricuspid and pulmonary stenosis. Mitral stenosis. Empyema, brain abscess. Subacute glomerulo-neph- ritis. Chronic and_ ulcerative endocarditis (aortic). Acute endocarditis. Mitral and aortic stenosis. Acute endocarditis. 300 c.c. in pericardium. 682 FACTS ON THE HEART lesion, by chronic nephritis, congenital heart defect,—in short by any- thing else except by supposing that the patient’s rheumatism has obliterated the pericardium. In a few cases, by this concatenation of facts, suspicions may certainly be aroused and those suspicions are strengthened when the patient shows an unexplained, predomi- nating, and recurrent ascites which, as has been pointed out by Pick and others, is occasionally associated with chronic pericarditis when the process works through the diaphragm to produce a capsular form of cirrhosis,—the so-called ‘‘ Pick’s syndrome.” This was recognized in one case of the present series and should have been recognized in another which I published a good many years ago.* There was very little pain in most of these cases, and when it was present there was no good reason to associate it with the pericarditis. Cardiac murmurs were present in 64 out of 112 cases. 27 of these could be accounted for by endocardial lesions. Not infre- quently, however, one sees post-mortem cases in which a well-marked diastolic or presystolic murmur has led to the diagnosis of valvular heart disease in life, yet in which post-mortem no valve lesion is found. DIAGNOSTIC MARPLOTS Leaving out the 27 cases in which systolic murmurs alone were audible, we have left 37 cases in which one could hear a presystolic or a diastolic murmur or both. At necropsy the endocardium was normal in 5 of these. These presystolic murmurs were best heard at the cardiac apex and the diastolics along the left sternal edge. These 5 cases constitute the deceptive group, the diagnostic mar plots of the series. There were 4 males, 1 female. Ages 18, 28, 37, 38, 58. There were diastolic murmurs in 4 of the 5 cases, presystolic alone int. The heart weights include the largest in our series (1328 grams) and average 749 grams. The adhesions were extensive in 3 out of 5. Mediastinitis was also present in one. To increase the diagnostic difficulty of these cases a palpable thrill accompanied the murmur in 2 cases. Acute pericarditis was also present in 2. Three of these cases were included in the group called Primary Rheumatic (above). ? * Obliterative Pericarditis a Cause of Hepatic Enlargement and Ascites, Boston Medical and Surgical Journal, May 19, 1898. DIAGNOSTIC MARPLOTS 683 TABLE 157.—DIASTOLIC AND PRESYSTOLIC MURMURS IN CHRONIC PERICARDITIS slight or extensive Acute endocarditis Necropsy number Rheumatism Age and sex Heart weight Mediastinitis Acute pericarditis Chronic passive congestion Blood pressure Murmurs Adhesions Systolic Extensive and diastolic Systolic and diastolic Systolic and diastolic Presystolic at apex Systolic 705 Slight 240/140 and diastolic The cause of these murmurs and thrills is a matter of speculation. We can class them with the ‘‘Austin Flint” group first described in connection with aortic regurgitation. But there was no evidence of aortic regurgitation in any of them. We can call them “functional” which merely covers up our ignorance of their cause. To me it seems best to stress especially their association with the hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart chambers, which is one feature of cases of chronic pericarditis. I believe that in the group of cases first noticed by Flint it was the cardiac enlargement and not the aortic regurgitation which was most clearly related to the murmurs. Other causes of cardiac hypertrophy, such as chronic nephritis, are also associated, now and then, with apical diastolic or presystolic murmurs. The only important conclusion seems to be that im cases of marked cardiac hypertrophy, apical or left parasternal murmurs, whatever their time, sometimes do not mean valve lesions and should be very cautiously interpreted when occurring without other evidence of heart disease. Arrhythmia was present in 25 cases out of 103 of this series, exclud- ing 11 cases of arrhythmia associated with valve lesions, but was of no special diagnostic significance in relation to the pericarditis. 684 FACTS ON THE HEART The pulmonic second sound was accentuated in 47 cases out of 82, the aortic second in 17. Feebleness of the heart sounds was recorded in 22 cases, but in the great majority there was nothing remarkable about them. Friction sounds were heard in g cases but in only one of these was any acute pericarditis found at necropsy. (cf p. 645.) We have no reason to believe that chronic pericarditis can of itself produce pericardial friction, since this sign is not infrequently recorded in our cases when post-mortem examination later shows no pericarditis, acute or chronic, and no overlying pleuritis such as might cause a pleuro-pericardial friction. In some of these cases of unex- plained pseudo-pericardial friction, there was an abnormal dryness of the tissues owing to persistent vomiting or other causes. Very possibly the heart within the normal but desiccated pericardium is capable of giving rise to friction sounds. Ascites was present post mortem in 38 cases. In nine of these it was probably the result not so much of the pericardial adhesions as of the accompanying valve lesions. In the remaining 29, the ascites was part of a general dropsy in 17 and in one of the remainder it was presumably due to a pancreatic cancer with metastases. Only in two cases of this whole series (Nos. 662, 1907) was there present at the time of necropsy any predominating or solitary ascites such as is seen in many cases of hepatic cirrhosis. Pick’s syndrome is rare in chronic pericarditis. The necropsy cultures were positive in 39 out of 112 cases, the streptococcus being found in 29, the bacillus coli in 4, the pneumo- coccus in 4, the bacillus mucosus capsulatus in 1, staphylococcus albus in 1. These cultures have no special connection with the subject under study and are to be regarded probably as evidence of a decrease in the general bodily resistance owing to the patient’s exhaustion with the approach of death. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS I. (a) Chronic pericarditis, especially when extensive and accom- panied by mediastinitis, may be the essential cause of an enlargement and weakening of the heart which results directly in death. Such cases are usually of known rheumatic origin and recur mainly in youths or young adults. (b) The pericardial adhesions may be part of cripppling rheumatic infection which attacks also and perhaps with greater damage the heart valves. CHRONIC PERICARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 685 (c) More often the pericardial adhesions may be found post-mor- tem in persons dying of some non-circulatory disease, so that the pericarditis is of little or no importance—a mere historical landmark or vestige of an earlier healed infection. To these three types of the disease I have given the names: 1. Vestigial. 2. Primary rheumatic. 3. Secondary rheumatic. The vestigial cases are mostly in elderly people (average age 53) and 46 of them were of the male sex with a relatively slight development of the pericardial adhesion and without mediastinitis. The primary rheumatic type averages 28 years at death. Two- thirds of the patients are of the male sex. In the secondary rheu- matic group the average age is 32 and the sexes are about evenly divided. It is in these two groups (which make up together 48 or nearly 14 of the 112 cases in this series) that the pericarditis is of importance, sometimes dominating, always contributing to the clinical picture. II. Only 6 cases in 112 of all three types were recognized in life; the X-ray thus far gives us no help. III. Diastolic and presystolic murmurs occur in many of the cases and lead to so many erroneous diagnoses that primary rheu- matic pericarditis deserves the name of a ‘“‘diagnostic marplot.”’ Most of these deceptive murmurs occur in patients with very large hearts. IV. Chronic pericarditis produces in young rheumatic patients the largest hearts known. V. Only in 2 cases out of 112 was the presence of ascites without general dropsy a notable feature. ILLUSTRATIVE CASES Necropsy 4502 An American of seventy, formerly a whaler and fisherman, for five years a laborer, entered March 15, 1923. One sister died of tuberculosis. Except for the usual diseases of childhood he could remember no illnesses. At fifteen he had a questionable chancre, rash, sore patches in the throat and pustular scabs on the tibiae. At thirty he had gonorrhea. For four months he had had dyspnea and weakness accompanying any emotion. Four weeks before admission his lower legs began to itch and he noted an eruption of small papules, and some time after 686 FACTS ON THE HEART this of weeping and scaling lesions on the anterior surface of the tibiae. This spread over the calves. Because of itching he pulled off the scabs and some pieces of dead skin. ‘The ulcerations had ®een in their present condition for three weeks. Since they had ulcerated he had been unable to walk or to take care of himself and had become very filthy. Slight efforts tired him, and the dyspnea and weakness on emotion were much worse. His feet swelled occasionally. His physician reported that a Wassermann by the State Board of Health was positive. Examination showed a thin man with dry, scaling and very hard skin (fish skin), somewhat pigmented. The lesions on the lower legs involved the superficial subcutaneous tissue. The edges, though ragged, were not undermined, but rather sharply punched out and precipitous. The shallow base was covered by desquamating dead skin, crusts of dried serum and yellow dry doughy material. The ulcerations were confluent and formed a large area extending around the leg from just below the knee to the middle of the tibia. Several narrow areas extended down the back of the leg to the heel. The lesions had a vile odor. The mucous membranes of the pharynx were injected and the tongue was covered with a dry brown coating. All the superficial lymph nodes were palpable. The apex impulse of the heart is not recorded. The measurements by percussion were, supraclavicular dullness 5 cm., right border 5 cm., left border 8 cm.; the midclavicular line was tocm. A loud systolic murmur was heard all along the left border and across the sternum radiating to the right axillary line, loudest at the xiphoid and stopping very sharply 5 cm. to the left of the sternum, not heard at the apex. ‘The veins in the neck and arms pulsated markedly at a different rate from that of the brachial artery. The latter and all the visible arteries were markedly tortuous and thickened. The blood pressure was 145/75. The lungs were not abnormal except for occasional crepitant rales at the apices and bases posteriorly. The abdomen was protuberant and very tympanitic. Dullness was found rather high in the flanks. The liver edge could be felt just below the costal margin, smooth, not tender. There was a moderate amount of subcutaneous edema over the back and chest, a slight amount in the legs. The extrem- ities showed slight tremor. The pupils were irregular, reacted to light and distance. The left was smaller than the right. The inferior turbinates (?) obstructed the breathing through the nose somewhat. The knee-jerks were equal. There was questionable Romberg; no clonus, Babinski or Kernig. CHRONIC PERICARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 68 7 The temperature was 96.7° to 100°, with a terminal rise and drop to 104.3°-100.4°. The pulse was 77 to 98, with a terminal rise to 120. The respiration was normal except for a terminal rise to 30. The output of urine was 32 to 30 ounces when recorded, the specific gravity 1.030 to 1.018. There was no albumin. A few leucocytes were seen at one of three examinations. The renal function was o. The hemoglobin was 85%, the leucocyte count 10,800 to 33,000, with 89% polynuclears. There was moderate anisocytosis. Two Wasser- manns were negative. After three days’ use of Dakin’s solution the odor from the ulcers had decreased remarkably. The application of the solution caused some pain. The lips appeared slightly cyanotic. Dyspnea was marked. All movements grew increasingly difficult. By March 20 the ulcers were quite clean and granulations were growing up from the surface with great rapidity. The edges were smoothing off and a delicate line of new epithelium was working over the sloping base from the edges. The next day the patient’s jowls were swollen. The potassium iodid was immediately decreased. That day the heart weakness was more evident than ever before. March 22 the patient was failing rapidly.. The edema of the face, hands, back and chest was somewhat increased. He was put in semi-Fowler position. The heart sounds were less clear and the action weaker. That afternoon he began to cough up frothy sputum, and moist bubbling rales were heard in the lower chest, especially over the bases laterally. He could not be moved without great discomfort, so the back was not examined. The liver was not tender. There was marked passive congestion of the lungs, but no pneumonic patches were noted. The abdomen was distended with gas. The patient improved a great deal after atropin and the respiratory discomfort subsided somewhat. An enema and stupes also helped. The night of March 25 the temperature rose suddenly. Nothing was found. The next morning however a rather cyanotic red area was found arising around the left ear and extending on the temple involving the left eyelids, part of the cheek, and all of the ear. The border was sharp and raised. ‘The area was tender. ‘The leucocyte count rose toits maximum. That day the patient died. Clinical Diagnosis (from Hospital Record).—Cardio-renal disease. Syphilis? Erysipelas. Dr. Richard C. Cabot’s Diagnosis —Chronic nephritis. 688 FACTS ON THE HEART Arteriosclerosis. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Erysipelas (streptococcus septicemia). Passive congestion of lungs, posssibly of liver. Pneumonia? Acute pericarditis? Anatomical Diagnosis. —Arteriosclerosis. Chronic adhesive pericarditis. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Chronic passive congestion, general. Serofibrinous pleuritis. Serofibrinous peritonitis. Fatty metamorphosis of the liver. Marked edema of the lungs. Chronic pleuritis. Obsolete tuberculosis of a bronchial gland. Tumor of right epididymis. Dr. R1cHARDSON: The legs were bandaged, and I did not remove the bandages. I have no doubt he had erysipelas and the other things on the surface of his skin. The peritoneal cavity contained 1500 c.c. of thin cloudy fluid and fibrin and some reddish fibrin scattered over the peritoneum. That is a serofibrinous peritonitis, terminal of course, in association with the other expressions of infection. In the right pleural cavity there was a serofibrinous pleuritis, another expression of the same thing, and’a few old adhesions besides. The left cavity was obliterated by old adhesions. The gastrointestinal tract showed congestion, and we can leave it that way. One bronchial gland showed obsolete tuberculosis, and there was a mass in one of the testes which was fibrocalcareous. And then the the question arises, is it tuberculosis or is it syphilis. He had tuberculosis somewhere else, and I think possibly that was an old tuberculosis. I could not make out any pneumonia in the lungs. There was congestion. The pericardium was obliterated by old adhesions,—chronic adhesive pericarditis, which occurred many years ago. The heart weighed 660 grams. The valves showed some of the usual sclerosis associated with age, but otherwise were out of the picture. The heart in general was hypertrophied and dilated. _—— CHRONIC PERICARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 689 The myocardium generally was rather thick, five mm. on the right, fifteen mm. on the left. Back of that all I found was arteriosclerosis. The sclerosis did not begin in the ascending thoracic, in fact was not observed until we came to the descending thoracic. From there on there was plenty of it. That distribution of course is rather against. syphilis. There were a few bands of adhesion between the liver and the diaphragm, perihepatitis and congestion of the liver, but no definite cirrhosis. The liver was a little enlarged, the vessels engorged. The kidneys weighed 340 grams,—certainly not those of chronic nephritis. Here the condition seemed to be chronic passive conges- tion. The vessels were a little prominent. There was a good width of cortex. The kidneys showed nothing that we could put our hands on except as mentioned. The prostate, seminal vesicles and testes were negative except for the fibrocalcareous mass mentioned. As a matter of fact I did try to decalcify that, and have some sections, but it would bother us a little to say whether the sclerosis present was the end result of tuberculosis or of syphilis. He had one tuberculous lesion, and I do not see why we should not let it go as old tuberculosis. I think the laboratory report of the kidney function must be wrong. Dr. Casot: We are accustomed to divide our post-mortem into three general groups, the underlying cause, the terminal infections supplying the factor necessary to turn the scale,—erysipelas, pleur- itis—and then the historical landmarks, things mentioned in a conscientious account of everything that was found, having nothing whatever to do with the case, such as this tuberculosis of the lymph glands. In old times pathologists used to try to be entirely dis- passionate and not arrange their findings at all,—put them in alpha- betical order. It seems to me we are trying to do better in trying to make these reports mean something and supply a basis for our efforts during life. Serofibrinous peritonitis was present. Nothing is said about tenderness or about spasm, which we so often see as part of an infec- tious process. We did not suspect in any way adhesive pericarditis, and we shall do just the same thing next time probably. We do not diagnose those things. The zero reading in the renal function test was probably due in part to failing absorbtion of the dye owing to edema. 44 690 - FACTS ON THE HEART Case 4475 An American slaughterhouse foreman of fifty-six entered January 19, 1923, for relief of weakness a year and a half in duration. His father and one son died of diabetes. An aunt died of tuber- culosis. His wife had three or four miscarriages. Several children died in infancy. Whooping cough was the only disease he remembered in childhood. At fifteen and again at thirty-seven he had inflammatory rheumatism, the first attack lasting two months, the second a whole winter. As long as he could remember he had had attacks of “‘biliousness,”’ formerly every two weeks, of late years rather infrequently. For two or three days before the attacks his skin and eyes became yellow and his urine very dark. The attacks began with dimness of vision, than severe pain over botheyes. Ina few hours he vomited green material and the attack was over. He had a cold sore removed from his lip seven years ago. One gland on the left side of the neck swelled occasionally. His bowels had always been constipated. He some- times urinated once at night. He took beer very moderately. Best weight 250 pounds, eight years ago; usual weight 230-240, weight a week ago 205. Four years before admission there was gradual onset of pain in the lower back, fatigue, and a feeling of fullness and discomfort in the epigastrium. This last was constant and was always made worse by food. With it was marked jaundice. His bowels were constipated. These symptoms lasted four months, during which time he did not work. Finally on account of increasing severity of the symptoms he went to an osteopath. After treatment the pain and jaundice disappeared and he went back to work. The pain had never reappeared. He was then entirely well for a year except that he hada very sore tongue for three or four months. Three years ago following domestic trouble he became very nervous and fretful and lost weight. The nervousness and also the domestic trouble had persisted more or less to the present time. He also began to have a feeling of weakness, bad for a year and a half. Fifteen months ago he began to have pain in midsternum, only after exertion or hard work. With this there was also pain in the left forearm from the elbow to the wrist. He was very weak, did not feel right, and he was told that he looked queer. He felt chilly easily and got out of breath on moderate exertion. After two months he recovered completely. Eight months ago the symptoms returned, and with them jaundice. Again after two months he was well. Very soon after this he had another CHRONIC PERICARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 691 breakdown from which he quickly recovered. From six months ago to four months ago he was well and worked every day. Four months ago the present attack began with jaundice, weakness, dyspnea and midsternal pain on exertion, palpitation and pounding in the ears. With this attack his fingers and toes were numb. For the past two weeks his appetite had been very poor and he vomited easily. For ten days he had been coughing and raising thick yellow sputum. Physical examination showed a well nourished white haired man looking exhausted. Scattered tiny petechiae on the upper chest. Small white round scars on the anterior chest wall. Pigmented scars on the left lower leg and a purplish depressed scar on the right lower leg. Skin and sclerae pale and yellow, the sclerae more yellow at the periphery and slightly injected. One petechia noted under the conjunctival surface of the lower lid. Slight pyorrhea. Tongue margins very smooth. Papillae atrophied on margin. Atrophied areas on under surface and a few petechiae. Moderate discrete enlargement of the cervical and axillary glands. Chest: abnormally wide intercostal angle with depression above a wide upturned xiphoid. Apex impulse of the heart not localized. Sounds of rather poor quality. Soft blowing systolic murmur all over precordia, loudest at apex and base. Blood pressure January 19, 108/35, January 209, 132/60, February 3,90/45, February 16,112/50. Electrocardiogram. Normal rhythm. Rate go. Diaphasic T:. Abdomen negative except for slight retraction in the epigastrium. Pupils normal. Fundi. Both showed pale, hazily outlined small hemorrhagic areas scattered throughout, some apparently absorbing, others darker and and fresher. Reflexes. Knee-jerks hyperactive, with clonic con- tractions. Poor position and motor sense in both legs and arms. Slight numbness of toes. Temperature 96.9°-100.8° except for two periods of elevation, January 19 102°, February 12-18 98.1°-106.5°. Pulse 71-160, rising with the rise of temperature. Respiration 16-29. Urine 3 25-80. Sp. gr. 1.015-1.020. Slight trace of albumin at one of two examina- tions, rare to occasional leucocytes at both. Blood January 10. Hgb. 40%, leucocytes 3200, polynuclears 56%, reds 1,030,000,— 1,120,000, marked anisocytosis and poikilocytosis, many large red cells well filled with hemoglobin, considerable variation in staining, many microcytes, platelets very rare, reticulated cells 1.9%. Jan- uary 23. Hgb. 40%, leucocytes 2200, reds 1,500,000, reticulated cells 1.7%. January 27. Before transfusion hgb. 40%, reds 920,000, reticulated reds 2%. After transfusion hgb. 40%, reds 1,300,000. 692 FACTS ON THE HEART February t. Hgb. 50%, leucocytes 4400, reds 1,320,000, reticulated reds 0.3%. February 7. Hgb. 60%, leucocytes 4100, reds 1,300,- ooo, reticulated cells 2.8%. February 10. Before transfusion hgb. 50%, leucocytes 6400, reds 1,350,000. After transfusion hgb. 60%, reds 1,750,000. February 14. Hgb. 60%, leucocytes 3500, reds 1,900,000, reticulated cells 1.1%. February 17. Leucocytes 2500. Serum dilution 1:60. Clotting time 18-25-24-24-20 minutes. Fragility. Hemolysis began at 0.46 and was complete at 0.26. Throat exudate examination on dark field showed no spirochetes or organisms of Vincent’s angina. Vital capacity 4300 c.c. Basal metabolism +21%. Gastric analysis. Fasting contents. 33 c.c. yellow-white mucous material. NofreeHCl. Totalacid5. Guaiac positive. 3-4 red blood cells and 2-4 leucocytes to a high power Fic. 141.—Pernicious anemia with hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Defin- ite increase in transverse measurement both to right and to left. Cardiac shadow not definitely abnormal otherwise. field. Test meal. 24 c.c. whitish bread remnants. No free HCl. Total acid 4. Guaiac positive. X-ray. Heart as in illustration. No evidence of pathology in.any part of the gastro-intestinal tract. February 17 left frontal sinus distinctly less radiant than the right. Antrum on this side also a little cloudy. : January 27 transfusion of 600 c.c. was done. There was very slight reaction after it. Next day he felt great subjective improve- ment which continued for several days. February 1o a second transfusion was done. Following it he had fever. February 16 he complained of sore throat and a very sore tongue. On the soft palate CHRONIC PERICARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 693 were several small areas of superficial ulceration. The right half of the tongue was markedly swollen, red, and extremely tender. The next day the tongue was more swollen and there were several very tender submaxillary nodes on both sides. During the day marked edema of the neck developed. The saliva showed many streptococci. That night he was much worse. The tongue filled the whole mouth and pharynx, causing obstruction controlled by a tube. Early the next morning, February 18, he died. Clinical Diagnosis——Pernicious anemia. Streptococcus septicemia ? Acute glossitis. Acute cellulitis, mouth and neck. Dr. Richard C. Cabot’s Diagnosis —Pernicious anemia. Streptococcus septicemia with glossitis. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Anatomical Diagnosis.—Pernicious anemia. Septicemia, streptococcus hemolyticus. Hyperplasia of bone marrow. Hematopoiesis of the liver and spleen. Chronic adhesive pericarditis. Arteriosclerosis. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Acute glossitis. Edema of epiglottis. Hemorrhagic edema of lungs. Wet brain. Fatty infiltration of the pancreas. Myoma of stomach. Chronic pleuritis, localized, slight. Obsolete tuberculosis of one bronchial lymph node. Cholelithiasis. | Dr. Oscar RICHARDSON: I think we can put the anatomical basis under most of the questions that have arisen. We examined the head in this case. The pia showed a little edema, but the vessels of Willis, sinuses, and middle ears were nega- tive, and the brain tissue outwardly showed no definite lesions.. The spinal cord outwardly showed nothing definite, but as Dr. Cabot said, things can look all right outwardly. In this case how- ever the cord showed no lesions either macroscopically or micro- scopically. The bone marrow of the femur showed the typical picture of the marrow of pernicious anemia. 694 FACTS ON THE HEART The skin showed a pale brownish-yellow sallow color, a peculiar color—something of the pernicious anemia color and a little bit more, but not what we should call a very definite jaundice. In the cubital spaces there were purplish spots,—the transfusion punctures. In a few places there were minute pale purplish spots. Just below the jaw on the right the subcutaneous tissues were slightly swollen. This man had a perfectly definite glossitis and a streptococcus septi- cemia. The culture from the heart blood showed a typical growth of the streptococcus hemolyticus. The mucosa of the stomach seemed a little pale; but we have been unable to demonstrate definite lesions in any of the examinations made on stomachs in pernicious anemia. The intestines and glands were out of the picture. There were a few old pleural adhesions on each side; no fluid in the cavities. The thyroid gland was negative. No thymic tissue was found. - The bronchial glands were slightly enlarged, and one on the right showed obsolete tuberculosis. The lungs were edematous, the tissue spongy, saturated with thin red bloody fluid which streamed from the section surfaces,—a frank hemorrhagic edema of the lungs such as is asso- ciated usually with a streptococcus infection. The pericardial cavity was obliterated by dense tough old mem- branous adhesions,—a perfectly clear cut chronic adhesive peri- carditis. The heart weighed 520 grams,—considerably enlarged. (Normally 200-400.) There were three factors here. (1) The chronic adhesive pericarditis. That inand of itself, with no associated chronic mediastinitis or pleuritis, would not be sufficient to produce a heart of 520 grams. (2) There was a little arteriosclerosis. (3) The third factor responsible for the hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart was pernicious anemia. The arteriosclerosis in this case was interesting. There was a slight amount in the aorta and great branches, but the coronary arteries showed well defined fibrocalcareous sclerosis with much thickening of the walls and some decrease in the lumen. The valves were negative except for increase of the circumferences. The liver was rather large and pale. The gall-bladder added another interesting fact in this case. It was moderately distended with bile and contained at least 200 small concretions. At the time of necropsy the bile ducts were free and showed no particular dilatation. The pancreas was of good size and on section was seen to consist of fatty tissue in which were embedded here and there islands of pancreatic tissue,—so-called fatty pancreas or lipomatous pancreas, > CHRONIC PERICARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 695 we used to think associated with sugar. We have got over that. There was a soft hyperplastic spleen, due in part to the septic process and for the rest to the pernicious anemia. The kidneys were rather large, weighing 480 grams (normally 200-400), but they were normal. The gastro-intestinal tract was out of the picture. Dr. Casort: Dr. Holmes, I should like to ask you, with the facts that you have on the fluoroscopic report and the X-ray plate here, do you see any evidence from which you might have suspected adhesive pericarditis? ! Dr. G. L. Hormes: In the note there is just one statement; that is the indefinite outline of the heart. The X-ray findings indi- cative of adhesive pericarditis are: (1) Limited respiratory move- ments; the left border of the heart as a rule does not move to the same extent that it normally does. That is not indicated on this tracing. Whether they were unable to get any motion or whether they failed to make the record I do not know. (2) The next important finding is the obliteration of the various chambers, so that we are unable to differentiate the auricle from the ventricle. (3) The third is the indistinct pulsation. Apparently they did get some of that. Dr. Casor: But as to the chambers you did not make any obser- vation. There is no reason why the respiratory mobility of this heart should be diminished? It was not hitched up to the pleura or mediastinum ? Dr. RicHArpDSON: No. The great pull comes when it is hitched up with mediastinitis and pleuritis. Dr. Cazsot: There is no reason why this heart should not go up and down as well as any other way? Dr. Hormes: I may be wrong about this. I have never had any definite proof. But I believe that as a heart moves up and downit rotates, and any adhesion to the surface of the heart would limit its movement. Dr. RICHARDSON: You say rotation. One would think it would lift up. Dr. Capot: Can you see the rotation in the fluoroscope? Dr. Hormes: We can see the change in shape which corresponds. So I should think this case would have given some evidence of limita- tions of respiratory movement. 696 ~- FACTS ON THE HEART Necropsy 3738 A physician of forty-seven entered March 30. One brother had an arrested case of tuberculosis. The patient had had no definite exposure. His general health had been good. For the past twenty- five years he had never been ill. Since March 3 he had had gradual onset of malaise, backache, and pain in the head, with chilly sensations and irregular tempera- ture, sometimes as high as 102°. He had been up and about most of the time, growing steadily worse. March 21 he went to bed. For the first three days his temperature was usually 1o1° to 102°, with occasional rises to 104° and frequent sweats. March 24 the leuco- cytes were 19,000. March 25 a Widal was negative (paratyphoids?). March 26 the leucocyte count was g,ooo. mrermoel23)9 Rs cla7b¢h7| ia outside the midclavicular line. The right border of dullness was 5.5 cm. to ope eS the right, the supracardiac dullness 6. 106° : : ; od Ba PE ae cm. The action was irregular, very rapid (168). Thesounds were snapping. The pulmonic second sound was accen- [loa5 tuated. An explosive systolic murmur _ |lgeol#lio ea We a was heard. A systolic thrill was felt at — {}2t0/F/100° INE: EB: UNS AU ENENA the apex. The pulses were normal. 44 BSENMC EYES i Hae, 100] Josefa SESE eg The artery walls were palpable. The Ma ESSERE blood pressure was 150/90 to 125/40 to Iho] logt_1a9¢ 4 44S 120/30. The liver dullness extended Ilo SERRE REE from the fourth rib to 5 cm. bélow the 150! |150 LL a ged eg ; wl kA Sa costal margin. The edge was felt. M0) )Mr~iriry——T—y— There was edema of the sacrum. The __ ||? 7 CUS RS ey genitals, extremities, pupils and reflexes = ne itm a were normal. 100 | {100 lig] DRS BS The temperature and pulse for the |] 90] | 90 Se Tt first week were as shown in Fig. 146. _ || 80 Afterwards the pulse was 89 to42. After |] 7} |” April 4 the pt at, was not above _~ © a ; ; Fic. 146.—Temperature and normal. The respirations were 47 to 15. pulse in Case 4470 (first entry). The output of urine was 22 to 63 ounces, the specific gravity 1.017 to 1.025. The urine was cloudy at three of six examinations, alkaline at three. It showed the slightest possible trace to a trace of albumin at all, was loaded with red blood corpuscles at the first, showed hyalin casts at two and a few large cellular casts at one. The renal function was 35 to 55%. The hemoglobin was 80%, the leucocytes 31,800 to 5400, the polynuclears 86%. A Wassermann was negative. A blood ul 71i0o FACTS ON THE HEART culture was negative. The non-protein nitrogen was 73.2 March 24, 39.6 April 7. The sputum was slightly bloody, with many disinte- grated red cells and occasional staphylococci in tetrads. The stool showed blood and a positive guaiac at one of four examinations. The patient showed marked orthopnea. Bleeding helped him more than anything else at first. It was found that he had taken digitalis for some time. By March 28 he was comfortable and his — color was good. April 5 he had hardly any dyspnea and looked like an entirely different man. Some edema of the ankles was developing which disappeared four days later after bandaging. Edema of the dorsum of the feet persisted, however, while the patient was abso- lutely at rest in bed. April 13 he was discharged. After leaving the hospital he lay in bed for over a week, then got up for his meals, then began to walk a little, and improved steadily for three weeks. After that he had to wait on himself more or less, and was worried. He soon found he felt weaker and had increased palpitation and dyspnea. His doctor ordered him 819 5 0146 - 334 Fic. 147.—Measurements by percussion. back to bed. May 20 he began to have trouble with his digestion, due he thought to eating a bad orange. May 21 he vomited his breakfast. That day he returned to the hospital. He was orthopneic, had palpitation very noticeably when he lay on his left side, and felt tired, weak, and slightly nauseated. He urinated once at night. Examination was as before except for the points noted. There was considerable dyspnea and orthopnea. The skin showed a slight yellowish tint. The mucous membranes were rather pale. There were some carious teeth; no pyorrhea. The lungs showed slight dullness and a few moist rales at both bases posteriorly. The dia- phragm excursion was equal. The apex impulse of the heart was diffuse, seen and felt in the fourth, fifth and sixth spaces as far out as the anterior axillary line. Percussion measurements in cm. are shown in the diagram. The action was rapid, absolutely irregular in force and rhythm. The sounds were not distant. The pulmonic second sound Was greater than the aortic second but not markedly accen- CHRONIC PERICARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES ype tuated. The sounds were difficult to make out because of irregu- larity, but there seemed to be a definite systolic murmur all over the precordia, loudest at the apex, a sharp first sound, no definite diastolic murmur, pulses equal, synchronous, of varying volume and tension. The artery walls were not palpable. The blood pressure was 130/75-110/60-135 /60. The temperature and pulse were as shown in the chart (Fig. 148) until June 3. Afterwards the temperature was 96.5° to 98.4”, the N} 3 Ni ne ote as le Se RV IY), f fd Sees aes) al OA Ga Se Oa ew OL [| Days of Month Ri 2a3sbyoshéla7 b39136/3/1 7 [2 [5 | Four-Hourly woe he ati eee g ard a Se ie Le | SA | eg [a] “Lee | ‘TORE e | loo fa if Vd WAT 170} | 96° tee eS ») ia Wah [ed ek a : -* e, wy, nT - : WN “~! UY - ~ 160 fae} 95° lene J Hiso| |150 PAES ERS SES Ba Pe 140} 1140 PAPO ES EEG iol ed Ge Ba ES a colblied Collet Sos Ws CSRS 3 120] fools i es | Bae 8 | | | ood OO a OIE bAC MN oN MIA OPW CeCe CNC IN #111 2 fos es | Joe Fic. 148.—Temperature and pulse in Case 4470 (second entry). pulse 62 to 92 except for one rise June 7. The respirations were not remarkable. The output of urine was 15 to 120 ounces, the specific gravity 1.026 to 1.008. The urine was cloudy or muddy at two of seven examinations, alkaline at two, showed the slightest possible trace to a trace of albumin at all, very rare red blood corpuscles at one, many at another, leucocytes at two, hyalin casts at two, granular at three, cellular at two. The hemoglobin was 80%, the leucocytes 712 FACTS ON THE HEART 13,200 to g600, the polynuclears 59%. The non-protein nitrogen was 53.4 mgm. A blood culture was negative. X-ray is shown in Fig. 149. In the left lateral position there was limited excursion of the left border of dullness and the maximum impulse; probably some fixation, but no retraction at the back. At the apex were a sharp first sound, a presystolic murmur, a high pitched early systolic, a rumbling middiastolic with split second sound, and a systolic thrill. By May 31 the patient felt well. The heart was still irregular but slower. There was less deficit. The exact part played by quinidine was felt to be uncertain. June 4 the pulse was down to 7o. OU eWlest Fic. 149.—-Heart shadow is very much enlarged and roughly triangular in shape. The greatest increase is in the region of the right auricle. There was headache, probably, it was thought, from digitalis, which was discontinued. By June 8 there was no more headache. The pulse was down and steadier and by June 12 there was no deficit, though there was irregularity at times. June 22 he was discharged relieved. | At his third admission, February 23, 1923, the history was unsatisfactory because the patient was in too poor condition to talk. Since his discharge he had been on his feet most of the day, but had not lost a day’s work until the onset of this attack. He had been taking pills given him by Dr. Paul White regularly until the attack. CHRONIC PERICARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 125 Two months before admission he found that he could not work so hard as formerly. He tired easily and was troubled in climbing stairs. He paid no attention to these symptoms however until the first of February, when he had to go to bed because of a cold in which the predominating symptom was a “‘tired feeling.” The second day of his illness he was found lying with his head thrown over the side of the bed, unable to speak, his right arm and leg paralyzed. Since that time the arm had slowly improved until at admission he could write with some difficulty. He could move his leg and could speak, also with difficulty. Since his ‘‘stroke’’ his memory had been poor, he had used three pillows instead of one, had been very dyspneic, had had cough with about a cupful a day of tenacious sputum, had urinated three times at night, and had felt his heart beat very force- fully at times and at other times apparently stop beating. Since his cold he had had edema of the legs. Examination showed an extremely weak, well nourished man propped up in bed, slightly cyanotic, dyspneic, coughing frequently, Wee Ne compression sigue ; in interscapular region Acute cardio- Dullness, dim- hepatic angle. Duliness, b 22, iS h inished breath- liver dullnese distant bron- SIS ing, decreased 5th rit above, fremitus, many moderate and coarse moist rfles,. absent fremitus,7| V many mediur and coarse moist rfles. SSS] Soa RTRWAS Sete ey ‘) Say Liver palpable at level of urbilicus, slightly tender. Fic. 150.—Physical signs in Case 4470 (last entry). raising sputum with great difficulty. He seemed to understand what was said and to be rational, but was unable to express what he wanted to say and had great difficulty in naming objects. The skin was moist and clammy, the face decidedly dusky. The mucous mem- branes were pale and slightly cyanotic. There were a few scattered glands in the cervical region. The apex impulse of the heart was diffuse and heaving, seen and felt in the third, fourth, fifth and sixth spaces, maximum in the sixth, 14 cm. from midsternum in the anterior axillary line. ‘There was a well marked systolic thrill at the apex. No diastolic was made out. No cardiac pulsation could be made out in the left back. In turning from the right to the left lateral position the apex impulse stayed in the same spot. The first sound at the apex was short and snapping but not very loud. There was a rather loud and reduplicated second sound. ‘The sounds were absolutely irregular in force and rhythm, very rapid (130). A loud 714 FACTS ON THE HEART high pitched blowing systolic murmur was heard at the apex following almost immediately after the first sound and filling most of systole, transmitted well out in the axilla. There was a questionable rumbling middiastolic at the apex. The blood pressure was 165/75 to 145/75. The lung signs and the abdomen were as shown in Fig. 150. There was moderate edema of the dorsal surfaces of the feet and slight edema of the ankles. Neuro- ‘Daraton logical examination showed in addition to " Deections | the previous findings normal fundi, ques- tionable slight numbness of the right side of the face, and weak grip on the right. The abdominal reflexes and the jaw-jerk were absent. The right triceps, biceps, radial and wrist reflexes were increased. The temperature and pulse are as shown in Fig. 151. The respirations were 22 to 4o. The output of urine was 4o to 33 ounces, the specific gravity 1.020. There | was a large trace of albumin at the single Re a examination, occasional hyalin casts and (70 mn RR red blood corpuscles and leucocytes. The PSBSBe | renal function was 15%. The hemoglobin ia EERE was 75 to 80%, the leucocytes 8800, the ed Pe id ff Td | polynuclears 68%, the reds normal. A Hien} {120 Ke r 1.43 | Wassermann was negative. The non- 110 [2] 0 ea protein nitrogen was 59.2 mgm. An too | 100 aaa electrocardiogram showed auricular fibrilla- YM VK | tion, ventricular rate 80 to 100, diphasic lbs T2; aberration as before. The sputum was Pyare i Toren ee eae mucopurulent. The presenting organism pulse in Case 4470 (lastentry). was a Gram-positive lanceolated diplo- coccus. There was an occasional strepto- coccus-like chain of Gram-positive diplococci slightly curved and well encapsulated. A few Gram-negative bacilli, moder- ately thick, were seen, a few Gram-positive bacilli, long and straight, and a few with a slightly narrowed center, a fair number of diphtheroids, a slight to moderate number of influenza bacill, extracellular, and one questionable endothelial phagocyte with phago- cytized bacteria. February 5 the heart rate was slower. ‘Two diastolic murmurs were audible, a soft blowing early diastolic along the left border of CHRONIC PERICARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 715 the sternum and a low-pitched rumbling middiastolic murmur heard best at the apex. The general condition was much improved. February 7 the temperature rose to 103° and the patient was much sicker. Throughout the whole right lower back were many moist rales different from the rales on the other side. There were no definite areas of consolidation. There was considerable abdominal distension. The abdomen remained distended in spite of strenuous measures. February 8 the right base was full of moist rales obscuring the respiratory sounds. A marked transmission of cardiac murmurs suggested consolidation at both bases. That afternoon he died. Clinical Diagnosis (from Hospital Record).—Rheumatic heart disease with mitral stenosis and regurgitation and aortic regurgitation. Adhesive pericarditis? Auricular fibrillation. Congestive failure. Dr. Richard C. Cabot’s Diagnosis ——Chronic endocarditis of the mitral and aortic valves with mitral stenosis. Acute endocarditis. Chronic adherent pericarditis? Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Cerebral embolism. Chronic passive congestion. Terminal pneumonia? Anatomical Diagnosis——Chronic endocarditis of the aortic and mitral valves. Chronic adhesive pericarditis. Thrombi in the right auricular appendix. Area of softening in the left cerebral hemisphere. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Chronic passive congestion, general. Infarcts of left lung. Wet brain. Edema of the ankles. Anasarca. Chronic pleuritis. Old infarcts of spleen and kidneys. Dr. RicHarpson: This man was poorly nourished. The pia showed marked edema and a slight excess of fluid in the ventricles. The brain tissue was negative except in the places to be mentioned, but generally wet. In the left cerebral hemisphere beginning in the region of the outer margin of the optic thalamus and extending along 716 FACTS ON THE HEART the basal ganglia for three cm. where at its anterior tip it touched the outer end of the internal capsule, there was a very pale circumscribed area of frank softening and disintegration about 2!4 X 2 cm. in the other dimensions reaching to within 214 cm. of the cortex. The vessels of Willis were all normal as far as made out, but the vessel that contained the embolus was lost in the area of degeneration. The pineal and pituitary glands were negative. The ankles were slightly swollen and pitted on pressure. There was no marked evidence of any edema elsewhere in the body. Much brownish granular fluid material run from the nose and mouth. There were brown-red spots in the left cubital space and some beneath the left pectoral. | The peritoneal cavity and appendix were negative. There was no ascites, no anasarca. The only edema was in the ankles. The stomach showed some passive congestion. The intestinal mucosa was rather pale. The mesenteric and retroperitoneal glands were negative. The liver at the time of necropsy was one finger below the costal margin. The diaphragm was at the fifth interspace on the right, on the left at the sixth. The right pleural cavity was obliterated by old adhesions infil- trated by much thin pale brownish fluid. That is, of course, the cavity was obliterated, but the fluid saturated the adhesions. Still on the left there were only a few c.c. of thin brownish fluid and a little fibrin. Both lungs showed a few old adhesions, but were otherwise free. The trachea and bronchi showed purulent bronchitis. There was typical chronic passive congestion of the lungs, and in addition to that, areas of bronchopneumonia at the time of necropsy, best marked on the right. The lower lobe on the other side was negative for areas of bronchopneumonia, but curiously enough on that side there was an infarct. The pericardial cavity was obliterated by thin membraneous adhesions; consequently there was no space for fluid. The heart weighed 917 grams. I think if I say that is an enormous heart I shall ° be excused. The myocardium was of good consistence, pale brown- red. The night ventricle measured four mm., the left thirteen; that is, of course, rather thickened. The foramen ovale was closed, consequently nothing could pass from one side of the heart to the other. Thecavities were greatly dilated. The mitral valvemeasured tr cm., the aortic 714 cm., the tricuspid 14 cm., the pulmonary 9 cm. These are all full-sized circumferences, the mitral measuring eleven CHRONIC PERICARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES ae | cm. although there were changes on it. The mitral curtain showed a moderate amount of diffuse fibrosis with thickening and shortening of the chordae tendineae. The free margin was thickened and a little nodular. In the region of the junction of the cusps there was a large fibrocalcareous plaque. On the anterior aortic cusp there was a small fibrocalcareous mass, and elsewhere fibrocalcareous change and deformity of the valve. No recent endocarditis was made out. The pulmonary and tricuspid valves were negative except that their circumferences were increased. In the right auricular appendage there were two small thrombi. So that we have here chronic endocarditis and chronic adhesive pericarditis. This combination of lesions gives us our largest hearts. The aorta and great branches were perfectly good. It rules out any question of arteriosclerosis playing a réle in the condition. The liver showed nutmeg markings. The bile-ducts, gall- bladder, pancreas, negative. The spleen weighed 190 grams, was plump, dark red and elastic,—chronic passive congestion. The sur- face showed an area of infarction. The kidneys weighed 485 grams. ‘The pelves, ureters, bladder, prostate, seminal vesicles, testes, were negative. The kidneys were large but negative except for small infarcts. Necropsy 3736 A metal worker of thirty-three entered March 27, 1917, for relief of vomiting and loss of weight. He had always been strong. For 6 3:5 9 Fic. 152.—Dimensions by percussion. seven years he had had painful hemorrhoids. For four or five years his skin had been yellow. In 1913 he had rheumatism involving several joints and later was told by his doctor that he had a “leaky heart.”’ A year before admission he was ill in a hospital two months with a severe attack of gastric ulcer with delirium and much abdom- inal pain. While convalescent he had an acute attack of articular rheumatism and was in the hospital again fora month. He had done 718 FACTS ON THE HEART no work for a year. Since an attack of gonorrhea eight months before admission he had been unable to retain his urine. In 1915 he weighed 134 pounds, his best weight. In the autumn of 1916 he weighed 128 pounds. Since his illness in 1916 he had felt ill and tired all the time. His bowels had been irregular. A month before admission he was in. bed for two days with sharp pain across the entire front chest. He had vomiting, which persisted. His appetite was poor. For a month he had had frequent chills, shaking all over, and felt cold all the time. Examination showed an emaciated man 5 feet 5% inches in height, weighing 9714 pounds. The skin and mucous membranes were pale, the former dry. There were hard, shot-like axillary, inguinal and epitrochlear glands. The apex impulse of the heart was felt in the fourth space 9 cm. from midsternum. The dimensions by percussion and by X-ray are shown in Figs. 152 and 153. The action 5.8 was regular, slightly rapid. The aortic second sound was slightly accentuated. There was a blowing systolic murmur transmitted to the axilla and the base, with a slightly musical quality over the lower sternum. There was a split second sound followed by a thrill and a short soft diastolic not transmitted to the axilla or the base but heard well 12 ————— over the body of the heart. The artery Fic. 153.—Dimensions by X- = ray. Diameteratbase11.2. Ques- Walls wereslightly palpable. The blood teats Er ce eae of the pressure was 95/45 to105/50. Theliver dullness extended from the fourth space to the costal margin. ‘The rest of the examination was negative. The temperature was 94.3° to 104.8° usually elevated, the pulse 70 to 160, the respiration 20 to 36. The amount of urine was 9g to 35 ounces, the specific gravity 1.022 to 1.012. There was the slightest possible trace of albumin at the last of seven examinations. One specimen showed cellular and granular casts, two showed pus. The hemoglobin was 85%. There were 18,800-5200-52,700 leucocytes, 89 to 70% polynuclears, 3,840,000 reds, slight variation in size and shape, no stippling. A Wassermann and a Widal were negative, a gonococcus fixation test strongly positive. For nearly a month the patient showed little change. The temperature oscillated between 98° and 104.8°. Lead was reported CHRONIC PERICARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 719 in the urine and stools April 8.* Vomiting and chills persisted. April 23 he had an attack of sharp substernal pain with marked pallor. There was no change in the heart murmurs. From this time on he complained of pain in the apical region. May 3 a pericardial rub was heard. (See Fig. 154.) Thoracentesis yielded no fluid. Pericardicentesis was done next day in the fourth left and right spaces next to the sternum, and in the third space 3 cm. to the right of the sternal border. Blood was obtained in the third Dull. Bronchial breathing and egophony, distant. Tactile fremitus Pericardial rub, Dull. to flat. Fic. 154.—Physical signs in Case 3736. and fourth right spaces, nothing at the fourth left space. The heart was felt at the end of the needle at each puncture, and the patient complained of pain at each. May 3 X-ray showed the chest as in the illustration. A Widal was negative. May 12 the pericardial rub was faint, obscured by a 7°5 7-5 13 20.5 FIG. 155. loud systolic murmur at the base. There was much pain in the side and over the precordia. ‘The measurements by percussion are shown in Fig. 155. May 21 there was a systolic murmur at the apex and the aortic area, dullness at both bases, more on the right, with diminished breath sounds and coarse rales. That day he died. Clinical Diagnosis (from Hospital Record).—Ulcerative endocarditis. Cardiac failure. Dr. William H. Smith's Diagnosis—Chronic endocarditis of the mitral valve. *The finding of lead in the urine and stools may explain his epigastric pain. This emphasizes the importance of associating occupation (metal worker) with abdominal pain. W. H. Smith. 720 FACTS ON THE HEART Presumably acute endocarditis of the mitral and aortic valves. Dilatation of the heart. Pericarditis, with little if any effusion. Passive congestion. Possibly acute glomerulo-nephritis. Anatomical Diagnosis ——Ulcerative endocarditis of the aortic valve. | Chronic endocarditis of the mitral valve (stenosis). Chronic adhesive pericarditis. 4 sm Fic. 156.—May 3. Shows a shadow over the lower two-thirds of the left base, higher in the axillary than in the median line. The shadow of the diaphragm is obliter- ated. The heart shadow is very much enlarged. Its shape suggests fluid in the peri- cardium. Pulsation is diminished. Conclusion: fluid in the left chest and probably fluid in the pericardium. Septic aortitis with thrombus formation. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Septicemia, streptococcus. Suppurative infarcts of the spleen with abscess formation. Infectious nephritis. Acute glomerulo-nephritis. Foci of pneumonia. Fibrinopurulent pleuritis, left. ~ ae > = a | CHRONIC PERICARDITIS—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 721 Chronic passive congestion, general. Decubitus. Slight chronic pleuritis. Dr. RicHARDSON: There was not a luetic but a septic aortitis with thrombus formation in this case. The heart weighed 315 grams. There was some dilatation of the right cavities. The man was slender and rather short. A normal heart for him would weigh about 260 grams, so that the hypertrophy and dilatation was slight. The condition at the mitral valve was a chronic one that occurred years ago. There was fibrosis of the curtain and a shortening of the chordae tendineae, with decrease in the circumference of the valve. The endocarditis of the aortic valve was an acute process. Then an area on the wall of the aorta was attacked and a septic aortitis was set up, with formation over it of a large thrombus mass. The inter- esting point about this is that it shows that some of the cases of aor- titis may not be luetic but may be due to some of the other micro-organisms. There was a thick layer consisting of fibrous strands in the pericardium. In the anatomical record I described it as a thick, edematous layer. That means there is fluid there, and some coagula- tion of the fluid, at least at the time of death. Sometimes with transudates we get a fibrin clot; that may be the case here. There was a layer of fibrous adhesions there, but much of the thickness was due to the edema. There was fibropurulent pleuritis on the left, perhaps too c.c. of purulent fluid material. The right side was negative. The infarct in the spleen came from the masses washed out either from the aortic valve or else from that thrombotic material in the situation of the septic aortitis. The spleen in this case was repre- sented by a large ovoid mass about eight inches in diameter. That is a pretty good-sized spleen. There was little splenic tissue left, and that was wrapped around this large abscess filled with broken down, necrotic material and pus. In the kidneys there were some foci of infectious nephritis. The cultures were taken from the blood of the inferior vena cava because of the mass of thrombotic material on the aortic wall. We obtained a profuse growth of a fine streptococcus which is more closely related to the pyogenic than it is to the hemolytic strep- tococcus. From the spleen we obtained a few streptococci and a profuse growth of the staphylococcus aureus. ‘There was probably a double infection which would account for the large abscess in the 46 722 FACTS ON THE HEART spleen and possibly for the small areas of infectious nephritis present in the kidneys. Here again we have the end result of an infection of years ago illustrated by the chronic endocarditis of the mitral valve and the chronic adhesive pericarditis. Besides that we have acute endocardi- tis at the aortic valve, septic aortitis, the condition in the kidney, pneumonia, and abscess of the spleen. One very interesting thing was the septic aortitis. CHAT DERI] THYROCARDIAC DISEASE 1. THE OVER-DEMONSTRATIVE HEART One of the earliest cardiac manifestations of thyrotoxicosis and one which, if we are on the watch for it, may give us the signal to look deeper and so to identify the disease itself, is the extraordinary demonstrativeness of the heart. It makes its presence strikingly, to the patient distressingly, obvious to sight, to touch and to hearing. There seems to be a great deal of the heart in contact with the chest wall, so that (for example) a heart weighing only 365 grams bangs against the ribs in the anterior axillary line and shakes the whole thoracic cage. When we feel of this shock, we are amazed at its violence and prone (mistakenly) to believe that we are feeling a systolic or pre-systolic thrill. When we listen over it, the sounds are almost painfully loud, louder than in any other condition except one, presently to be mentioned. These surprisingly loud heart sounds, with or without a systolic murmur, should always make us suspect thyroid poisoning. All this sound and fury is due presumably to the irritation of the cardiac mechanism by the perverted thyroid secretion, com- bined with the lowered vascular tension. These influences are shown in the large pulse pressure (often a true ‘‘Corrigan pulse’’) the capillary pulsation, jumping arteries and loud arterial sounds, as well as in the flushing and sweating from which some patients suffer much. The only condition, so far as I know, that simulates the over- demonstrative heart of thyrotoxicosis, is the so-called ‘‘effort syndrome”’ (soldiers’ heart, neuro-circulatory asthenia) which is the cardiac manifestation of great nervousness. By cardiovascular examination alone the two diseases may be indistinguishable, but luckily the history and the metabolism test—high in thyroid poison- ing, normal in effort syndrome—make it easy to distinguish them in almost every case. 723 124 ‘FACTS ON THE HEART 2. EARLY CONGESTIVE HEART FAILURE IN THYROID DISEASE In spite of the seemingly desperate exertion of the racing thyroid heart, cardiac failure is rare in the acute exophthalmic goitre of young persons. Even when the organ seems actually driven to death, there is usually no sign of passive congestion before death orat necrospy. It is usually'a toxic, not a congestive death. There are but three cases of our series to illustrate congestive failure. In necropsy 425 we were studying the organs of a patient who three years earlier (1896) had been treated in our clinic for “‘rheuma- tism’’? and for some supposed cardiac result of it. The thyroid disease, if it existed, passed altogether unnoticed until six months later when after her second period of hospital treatment (214 years before her death) the diagnosis was changed to ‘“‘exophthalmic goiter with chronic endocarditis.” She gave the history of an illness interpreted as “‘rheumatic fever’? which had occurred a few months previously and stated that every August for as long asshe could remember she had had a peritonsillar abscess. With this history, with an extension of cardiac dullness to one inch outside the nipple line and with a loud apical systolic murmur, it was natural enough to consider the case one of rheumatic endocarditis with valvular deformity. But one point should have made us suspect that we were wrong. ‘The record states that “the heart sounds were very strong, sharp, quick and regular.”’ Six months later (January, 1897) when the thyrotoxicosis had been recognized, the record reads: ‘‘Cardiac impulse in the 5th interspace, 3 fingers’ breadth outside the nipple, the right border of dullness one finger to the right of the sternum. Pulse rapid, easily compressed, regular. Rough blowing systolic murmur at the apex, transmitted to the axilla. Pulmonic 2nd accentuated. Bruit de galop in the 2nd right interspace.” Two and a half years after this—at her 3rd and last hospital entry—the cardiac apex was in the anterior axillary line (5th inter- space). Otherwise the heart was as before. Necropsy, however, showed no hypertrophy or dilatation of the organ (weight 365 grams) although there were a few old pericardial adhesions in addition to the thyroid poisoning. ; In this case—and in only one other of our series (No. 3180, page 729) there were signs of passive congestion before death and after it. Ascites had developed and the abdomen was tapped three times for its relief during the year preceding her death. The legs were edematous during this period. Post mortem the spleen and kidneys showed the TOXIC DEATH spel passive congestion especially well. The heart showed no myocardial or valvular lesions and if the ‘‘rheumatism”’ of 1896 affected her heart at all, it was in producing the pericarditis still recorded in the localized adhesions found at necropsy. No metabolism measurements are recorded in this case but the continued fever without evidence of infection post mortem, the exophthalmos, tachycardia, goitre, tremor, muscular twitchings, insomnia and vomiting, leave little doubt as to the diagnosis. 3. TOXIC DEATH Toxic death is much commoner than congestive failure in acute, _ primary, exophthalmic goiter. In Hamilton’s* series there were but seven congestive deaths among 18 fatal cases. The rest were toxic. In our series there were 6 toxic to 2 congestive failures— almost the same proportion. In these patients who died a toxic death, the appearance of cardiac enlargemeni during life, though necropsy showed none, was sometimes as striking as in those ending by congestive failure. The records contain such data as this: t. (No. 2077) A woman of 24. Apex 6th interspace, 1 finger’s breadth outside the nipple. Dullness 2 fingers’ breadth to the right of the sternum. Necropsy: Heart weight 260 grams. No enlargement. Normal myocardium and valves. Persistent thymus. Bronchopneumonia. Streptococcus sepsis. 2. (No. 3468) A woman of 29. Transverse dullness 27 cm. Supracardiac dullness 9 cm. Necropsy: Heart weight 220 grams. Myocardium and valves normal. No enlargement. Status lymphaticus (with persistent thymus). Purulent pleuritis. Purulent pericarditis. Pigmented skin. 3. (No. 3731) A woman of 23. “Heart greatly dilated’’ just before death (from lobar pneumonia). Necropsy: Heart weight 270 grams. Myocardium and valves normal. Hypoplasia of the aorta. 4. (No. 3825) A woman of 20. Impulse diffuse and forceful. Sounds loud and snapping. ‘‘ Blowing systolic murmur and systolic thrill at apex.”’ Necropsy: Heart weight 315 (considered to be slightly enlarged, as the patient was a girl of 20). Valves and myocardium negative * Hamilton: Journ. of the A.M.A., Aug. 9, 1924. 726 FACTS ON THE HEART (note the mistake about the ‘‘thrill”). Status lymphaticus (with persistent thymus). In two other patients of this group (exophthalmic goitre with toxic death) there was no apparent cardiac enlargement in life and none post mortem. All these six patients had the typical manifestations of fever, vomiting, diarrhoea, sweating and extreme tachycardia. In one, the motor restlessness was so extreme that the skin had become hyperaemic and morphia was needed to prevent her wearing it through and forming bed sores. Status lymphaticus with persistent thymus was present in five out of six cases, a finding noted by many writers but ignored by , many clinicians. The characteristically high pulse pressure was well shown in one of this group, a woman of 38, with very acute toxaemia leading to a toxic, non-congestive death, four weeks from the first symptoms noticed. The pulse averaged 166 but was regular. The blood pressures, recorded three times in the 12 days of her life in the ward, showed: 160/60, 170/65, 155/85. 5. (No. 3705) An American woman of 58 had noticed exophthal- mos ever since her first pregnancy 20 years ago. Last summer she noticed goiter, three months ago her daughter noted that her pulse was usually above 120. Four weeks ago she had a sudden attack of tachycardia, dyspnea and vomiting. Two weeks ago a fine tremor of the hands appeared. She had been very nervous. Examination showed moderate exophthalmos with lid lag and diminished reflex winking. Moderate general thyroid enlargement with a systolic bruit. The pulse was rapid (120-150) and absolutely irregular, with sharp heart sounds and a soft systolic at the apex. Slight edema of the legs with coldness and no pulse in the dorsalis pedis. Fibrillation persisted despite rest and digitalis and she died in 12 days. Necropsy showed a sclerosis of the left coronary with marked decrease in its lumen, slight fibrous myocarditis, general arterio- sclerosis, thrombosis of the left auricular appendage and embolic occlusion of the abdominal aorta. Streptococcus sepsis. No general passive congestion. This is probably a purely toxic case without heart failure though the cardiovascular system (through thrombosis and embolism) was immediately responsible for her death. TOXIC ADENOMA AND EXOPHTHALMIC GOITER 727 4. LATE CONGESTIVE FAILURE IN TOXIC ADENOMA AND EXOPHTHALMIC GOITER Plummer, Boothby, Hamilton,* Coller,f and others, have recently aroused a much needed interest in another clinical picture long ago described by Kraus tf as ‘‘Gotter heart.’”’ This term means the development of cardiac failure in persons (usually women) who have long had a goiter (or a small hyperfunctioning thyroid with- out visible goiter) but no considerable symptoms until cardiac manifestations appear. In Hamilton’s 50 cases (34 of primary hyperthyroidism and 16 of adenomatous thyroid with secondary hyperthyroidism) 42 were women with an average age of 50 (but look- ing much older). 41 of the 50 had a history of severe prolonged heart failure, confining them to bed or to a chair for months or years and resisting treatment. ‘The heart rate was usually high, often 180-200, falling below too with rest and digitalis in only 14 cases. Stubborn tachycardia was thus a feature of 36 cases. Goiter and exophthalmos were noticeable in only afew. Emaciation was notable in 43 (average weight 1og pounds despite edema) and even in the other seven, there had been a loss of 30 pounds or more. Pigmentation of the skin local or general was present in 48 of 50 cases, mental apathy or exhaustion in 28. 48 out of 50 had auricular fibrillation. The metabolism tests, which one might expect to be quite characteristic, are not so in fact for, though they show marked increase (16+ to 125++, average 61.8+), similarly high figures can be obtained in non-thyroid heart failure. We have here a clinical picture, the great importance of which (despite its rarity in non-goitrous districts$) is obvious because operation seems to offer some possibilities of relief and even of cure. I venture to say that by most clinicians it is still overlooked; yet in goitrous districts it is not rare, as the studies of Coller make apparent. In 300 cases of endemic goiter without toxic symptoms, occurring in persons past the 2oth year and with normal metabolism,|| Coller records the following valuable observations: * Hamilton: Op. cit. { Coller: Journal of the A.M.A., May 31, 1924. t Kraus, F.: ‘Uber Kropfherz: Wien Klin. Woch., 1890, XII, 416. § Hamilton found but 50 cases of this type among goo patients with thyrotoxicosis at a Boston clinic. || Not over 15+ or15—. ‘These are selected non-toxic cases. About 14 of Coller’s hospital cases of thyroid adenoma, between 30 and 50 years of age, show increased metabolism. ‘ 728 FACTS ON THE HEART TABLE 158 Pulse Cardiac A necntte Palpi Signs of rate* over| enlarge- P Dyspnea tracheal fibrillation] tation I0o ment pressure Age 20-30 18% Age 31-40 36% 24% 26% * Counted at the heart’s apex during sleep. In view of Hamilton and Coller’s findings it certainly behooves us all to study more closely our cases of unexplained cardiac failure in elderly women, especially when they are of the apathetic and pig- mented type, not improving as one would expect under rest and digitalis and maintaining a persistent tachycardia with fibrillation. In our series there are a few which, though not recognized in life as belonging to the thyrocardiac group, may perhaps retrospec- tively be placed there. So far as I know, very few post mortem examinations are yet recorded in cases of this type; therefore it seems worth while to give our results in some detail. t. (No. 2067) A woman of 47, seen in 1908, had noticed a goiter since she was 11 years old. It enlarged with each of nine pregnancies and grew somewhat smaller again between them, but on the whole gradually increased in size. For the past two years she had been growing ‘“‘nervous”’ and felt too warm much of the time, so that she preferred cold weather. Tremor of the hands had been noticed for six months. Examination showed slight exophthalmos, considerable emacia- tion, marked tremor and goiter (1614 inches circumference), a very rapid heart with a presystolic roll at the apex, a congested liver and swollen legs. ‘The urine three times examined showed a gravity of toro to 1012, traces of albumen and, in one specimen alone, a few hyalin casts. She died in five days, the heart rather suddenly giving out a few hours before the end. Necropsy showed a heart weighing only 405 grams but considered the seat of hypertrophy and dilatation. ‘There was also hydrothorax, hydropericardium, ana- sarca and general passive congestion, with a thyroid adenoma and a chronic glomerulo-nephritis (the latter an astonishing feature in view of the negative urine). Possibly the congestive failure in this case TOXIC ADENOMA AND EXOPHTHALMIC GOITER 729 may be attributable to the nephritis and its effects on the heart, rather than to the thyroid. 2. The other congestive failure of this series was in a woman of 32; heart No. 493 grams. In 3189 the heart was not at all enlarged (285 grams). But the clinical picture was characteristically one of very considerable cardiac enlargement. ‘Though the heart was not enlarged post mortem the apex impulse was “‘heaving”’ and extended 3.5 cm. out- side the nipple linein the 5th interspace. There was also visible systolic pulsation along the left sternal margin and in the 2nd right interspace, as is often the case in exophthalmic goiter. This is due inpart, per- haps, to the lack of normal pulmonary expansion, the heart’s surface being less covered by lung than normal. This patient had auricular fibrillation during the three days of her life inthe hospital ward. There was also a loud rough apical systolic murmur and a very loud tst sound, with great accentuation of the pulmonic 2nd. Yet the valves were negative at necropsy and there was no evidence of the cardiac dilatation and hypertrophy which had seemed so obvious in life. This patient was 45 years old, had had goiter for 17 months, exophthalmos and “nervousness”? for two years, tremor for 7 months. In 214 years her weight had fallen from 140 pounds to 86 pounds. Her skin was generally pigmented. Palpitation had been noticed for two months and diarrhoea for the same period. Histologically the thyroid showed tubular elements of varying size formed of cylindrical cells, sometimes with short papillary ingrowths. No colloid. 3. (No. 3739) A negress of 50 was seen in May, 1918, complaining that for years she had had a bad heart and at times been disabled by it, but never so severely as in the past six months when her dyspnoea increased toorthopnoea. Dropsy appeared a few weeks ago. On examination she was found to be poorly nourished, cyanotic, with evidence of much edema in the lungs, legs, liver and subcu- taneous tissues generally. There was moderate symmetrical thyroid enlargement. The heart’s dullness reached 10.5 cm. to the left and 5.5 cm. to the right of mid-sternum; its action rapid and regular. A rough systolic murmur and a suggestion of a presystolic was heard at the apex. The pulses and artery walls normal. The pulse ranged from 110 to 200 during 10 days’ observation, usually above 150. The systolic blood pressure 170, diastolic 80. At times there was fibrillation. Necropsy showed a heart weighing 280 grams but as the woman was but 4 feet, 1034 inches high, this weight was considered 730 FACTS ON THE HEART about 60 grams beyond her normal, i.e., moderate hypertrophy and dilatation. The aorta was capacious, fibrous and inelastic and in its abdominal portion there were some fibrous and fibrocalcareous areas. The myocardium and valves were normal except for slight fatty degeneration in the myocardium, such as is often associated with infection or anemia (both of which were absent). The rest of the body showed nothing, except general passive congestion, to explain the death, although there was a slight degree of chronic interstitial hepatitis, obsolete tuberculosis in the bronchial glands and a few small foci of fibrosis in the kidneys—not sufficient to affect their function. Mitral stenosis and regurgitation and possibly a similar lesion at the aortic was the diagnosis in life, with chronic hyperthyroidism and auricular fibrillation. Possibly an operation on the thyroid early in this patient’s illness might have saved her from the fatal decompensative attack. 4. (No. 3961) A woman of 46 gave in 1919 the history of a goiter which she had noticed for 15 years, increasing and decreasing in — size. Her eyes, she said, “chad always been prominent.” ‘Two years ago she began to notice dyspnea and palpitation; later edema of the legs and loose cough. For six months she had had diarrhoea (3-5 movements daily). For nine weeks she had been orthopneic and for four weeks vomiting had occurred almost every day. Recently tremor of the hands, increased circumference of the neck, increased edema of the feet, nervousness and restlessness had been noticed. In five weeks her weight had fallen from 145 pounds to 100 pounds. Examination showed poor nutrition, nervous restlessness, a warm moist skin, a questionable slight exophthalmos and lid-lag, a smooth elastic enlargement of the thyroid, more marked on the left but without thrill or bruit, and coarse tremor of the fingers. The heart showed no enlargement or arrhythmia; rate 77-131; a snappy first sound and a slight systolic murmur. At this time there was no evidence of passive congestion in the lungs, liver or legs. Two weeks after entrance she became drowsy and ate but little. Next day auricular fibrillation began and persisted until death a week later. There is no record of a metabolism test. At necropsy the left ventricle showed slight hypertrophy. There was a suppurative nephritis (of which there was no evidence’ in life), regarded by the pathologist as a terminal infection. No signs of passive congestion so that the death in this case probably THYROCARDIAC DISEASE—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 731 belongs in the toxic-infectious group, though earlier in the disease swollen legs and loose cough suggested congestive failure. These necropsies suggest: 1. That in the toxic deaths of fulminating or untreated thyro- toxicosis, the toxemia is apt to be associated with infection, as is the case of most of the ‘‘toxic”’ death in diabetes, in uremia, and cholemia. Terminal acute pericarditis (two cases), acute endo- carditis and suppurative nephritis and streptococcus sepsis were among the infections found. / 2. That chronic passive congestion is a relatively rare cause of death in thyrotoxicosis. 3. That characteristic, cardiovascular change is not here demon- strable either in the toxic or the congestive deaths. The heart is very slightly, or not at all, hypertrophied or dilated, the valve orifices are seldom relaxed. The myocarditis demonstrable in one case was in all probability due to coronary sclerosis rather than to the thyrotoxicosis. 4. Persistent thymus, with or without status lymphaticus (found in six out of our ten necropsies), is doubtless a factor in the symptomatology. 5. Two cases were markedly pigmented at the time of necropsy. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS 1. In exophthalmic goiter the characteristic cardiovascular changes are an over-demonstrative heart, which seems enlarged but usually is not, and a low peripheral blood pressure. 2. Congestive heart failure is rarely the cause of death. Most deaths are toxic, infectious, or mechanical. 3. In long standing quiescent goiters of the adenomatous type heart symptoms of the congestive type may gradually develop and though resistant to treatment by rest and digitalis may be greatly benefited by operation. Post-mortem no definite pathology is established. ILLUSTRATIVE CASES Autopsy 3189 A widowed American book-keeper of forty-five entered May 3 for relief of diarrhea, edema of the legs, and skin eruption. Her husband had died of tuberculosis. She had been well except for malaria ten years ago. 732 FACTS ON THE HEART Until the present illness her micturition and catamenia were normal, her bowels somewhat constipated. Her weight was 140 two and a half years ago, 115 a year ago, 86 two weeks ago. Two years ago she began to feel nervous, her neck began to swell, her eyes to become prominent, and her heart to beat so that she could feel it. She developed a great desire for cold fluids, and still has it. She began to have frequency, sometimes a A year and a half ago she began to have tremor. Two months later she entered a hospital and had an operation. After it the tremor increased, her heart became more rapid, and she developed edema of the legs and feet. After four months in the hospital she went home to the country for five months. All the symptoms persisted. In September she began to have dull to sharp pains, first in the right arm, then in both, worse on lying down. She entered the hospital again. By December the pains left, and had not returned. In February she went to a convalescent home. Her eyes, twitching, and nervousness improved, but the tachycardia remained the same. The middle of February she had a “‘relapse,’’ developed a cold in the head, and had ever since had cough with sputum, several times blood- tinged. She had also had persistent diarrhea, at first 12-15 watery stools a day, more recently 7-8. Swelling of the legs and feet also developed and persisted. For two months she had had brown spots on her legs. She had been dyspneic for a month. Ten days ago she left the hospital, feeling no better. The night before admission her legs began to get red. The patient was a wild-eyed, fluttering, emaciated wreck of humanity with a brownish pallor. The skin of the legs, chin, etc., showed scattered shallow brown blister-like lesions the size of a dime, several showing scratch-marks. Over the lower abdomen and the inner aspect of both thighs, most marked over the veins, were numer- ous uniform red-blue areas of capillary stasis. The general nutrition of the skin seemed impaired; a subcutaneous injection of morphia gr. 16 caused a wheal to form rapidly. Sclerae were injected, the mucosae pale. ‘Tongue dry, rough, and pale, with a white coat. Marked exophthalmos, loss of convergence and lagging of the lids. Brownish circles of pigmentation about the eyes. Thyroid very much enlarged, the right lobe more than the left. Marked thrill. The apex impulse of the heart was heaving, in the 5th space. There was visible impulse, systolic, in the 2nd space at the right sternal margin. ‘There was absolute irregularity. The first sound was loud, ® THYROCARDIAC DISEASE—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 733 P. accentuated. There was a rough high-pitched double murmur at the apex, probably not endocardial; the action was too rapid to differentiate. ‘The pulses were rapid, thready, irregular in force and rhythm. The lungs were negative. The abdomen was tympanitic except for induration in the wall of the left lower quadrant at the margin of the discoloration. ‘There was some tenderness over this area. ‘The liver dullness extended from the 5th rib to two cm. below the costal margin, where a smooth, rounded, insensitive edge was felt. The genitals were not examined. Extremities: The hands showed nodular enlargement of the finger-joints and fine tremor. The legs showed a good deal of edema and induration, with the discoloration described. The pupils were normal. The reflexes were not attempted. T. 104.4°, falling to 100.2°.- P. 132-160. R. 28-40. Urine: Amount normal. Sp. gr. toro. A very slight trace of albumin at both of the examinations, a very rare red blood corpuscle and hyalin 8 4-5 o Sue ers. 5 Fic. 157.—Percussion dulness in cm., Case 3189. cast at the first. Blood: Hgb. 65%, leucocytes 5700, polynuclears 87%, reds 2,824,000, showed considerable achromia. Wassermann negative. Stools, (two examinations): All elements undigested. No ova or parasites. Guaiac negative. Report of skin consultant: “The lesions on the legs might be specific or traumatic. I cannot make a positive diagnosis or suggest treatment. The left thigh shows subcutaneous extravasation of blood. This might also be traumatic.”’ Report of surgical consultant: “I am inclined to think the skin picture is part of the circulatory disturbance associated with the goiter, possibly posterior mediastinal in location.”’ Following the application of ice-bags to the heart and cold com- presses to the left leg and lower abdomen there was a fall in tem- perature and rapid improvement. ‘The edema of the legs decreased. The diarrhea was less evident. Morphia had, however, been given to the physiological limit (gr. 14 two doses; gr. 14 one dose). In spite of sedatives the patient grew more and more excited and had ideas of persecution, until finally she required restraint with sheets. She was given another dose of morphia gr. 1, and triple bromides gr. 30, hyoscin gr. 1499, atropin gr. 1490, caffein gr. ii without effect. 734 - FACTS ON THE HEART She went into coma, the bronchi filled with numerous coarse audible rales, and May 6 she died. Clinical Diagnosis (from Hospital Record).—Exophthalmic goiter. Thrombosis of the pelvic veins. Dr. Richard C, Cabot’s Diagnosis —Thyrotoxicosis. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Anatomical Diagnosis.—1.Chemi- cal or physical origin of. fatal Exophthalmic goiter. illness. [ Septicemia, pneumococcus. Amyloid nephritis. Slight chronic interstitial hepa- titis, with fatty metamor- phosis. Serous atrophy of the fat tissue of the pancreas. Hypertrophy of the spleen. | Double hydrothorax and slight ascites and anasarca. Hypoplasia of the adrenals. Foci of pigmentation of the legs. Punctate hemorrhages in the skin of the left thigh. ( Old salpingitis. 3. Historical landmarks. | Cicatrices of operation wounds. Myomata of the uterus. The heart weighed 285 grams and showed no hypertrophy or dilatation, no myocarditis. | The eyeballs protruded. On the anterior aspect of the neck and extending from the larynx to the suprasternal notch and to the sternocleidomastoid muscles on each side was a bulging firm tumor mass beneath the skin. The thymus was absent. The tumor mass beneath the skin showed on section of its inferior portion near the suprasternal notch a grayish translucent firm tissue as well as some hard calcareous matter. A piece of the former was taken for microscopical examination. Microscopical examination. Thyroid. The tissue was com- posed chiefly of tubular elements of varying size and formed of cylindrical cells. Sometimes a tubule showed short papillary ingrowths. There was no colloid. 2. Secondary or terminal lesions. -_ sal THYROCARDIAC DISEASE—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 735 Necropsy 3468 A married American woman of twenty-three entered November 28, 1908, for the relief of recurrent attacks of tonsillitis for several years. Her tonsils and adenoids were removed. She became very cyanotic during the operation, and her pulse was of very poor quality, so that shock treatment had to be given. The temperature was 98.4° to 100°, at discharge 97°. The pulse was 109-145-120. She was discharged relieved December 4. The Out-Patient Depart- ment records show at this time she had tremor and swelling of the neck. In February two years later she had had a “‘cold”’ all winter with slight expectoration, occasionally blood-tinged. The sputum was negative. May 8, 1915, she reentered for the relief of pain and swelling in the neck and nervousness. She now gave a history of the diseases of childhood, including scarlet fever. Ten years ago she had ‘“‘ malaria,” and ‘‘rheumatism”’ in one joint of the hand. She had tonsillitis every winter. She had one child, in good health. She had had one miscarriage. Her best weight was 110 pounds, her usual weight 100, her present weight 7614. She had always been nervous and weak, and had tired easily. Since girlhood she had had “‘sour stomach,” sour eructations, and a slight burning sensation in the epigastrium after eating. For ten years she had had paresthesia, a numb “‘creepy”’ feeling starting in her left thumb and in the course of two or three hours extending over the hand and arm and the left side of the face and sometimes down the other side. The arm felt dead, and when lifted dropped heavily. After an attack she had a dull, heavy feeling in her head. For eight years she had at times been so nervous that she shook all over and had to take to her bed. For the same period she had had a bilaterial swelling in the front of the neck, varying slightly in size and hardness. Occasionally she had had sharp, severe pain starting in this swelling and running up into her head, beginning and ending suddenly, apparently brought on by excitement or over-fatigue. For seven or eight years she had had attacks of diarrhea brought on by fatigue, excitement or chill and lasting from a few days to four weeks. For seven years she had had rapid heart on emotional disturbance, with sometimes the dropping of a beat; fine tremor of the hands; and when very nervous, tremor of the lips and lower jaw; at times a little protrusion of the eyes. She occasionally had sick headaches, rarely vertigo. For four years her hair had been coming out. She urinated every fifteen minutes by day and three or four: 736 FACTS ON THE HEART times at night. For two months her skin had been growing browner all over the body. During the past month she had lost twenty pounds. She perspiredagreatdeal. Lately she had had someitching. Examination showed a poorly developed woman weighing 7614 pounds, yellowish-pale, with brown pigmentation around the eyes, which showed marked exophthalmos, imperfect convergence, and Von Graefe’s sign. Except over the face the skin was markedly pigmented, most deeply on the lower abdomen. The tongue pro- truded with coarse tremor. There was a large pulsating thyroid tumor measuring 33.5 cm., moving on deglutition and showing marked thrill and a loud venous systolic hum. The apex impulse of the heart was in the fourth space. The left border of dullness was 13.5 cm. from midsternum, the right border 3.5 cm. to the right. The supracardiac dullness was 9 cm. The first sound was sharp and ringing. The rate was 126. A roughened systolic murmur was heard at the apex, along the left border of the sternum, and over the pulmonic area. The blood pressure was 130/70. The lungs, abdomen, rectal and vaginal examinations were negative. The arms showed evidence of muscular atrophy, and the fingers fine tremor. The pupils were slightly irregular. Their reactions and the other reflexes were normal. Until operation the temperature was usually normal, with occasional rises to 99°—99.8°. The pulse was 80-125. ‘The respira- tion was normal. The output of urine was normal. The urine was cloudy, alkaline at entrance, acid later. The specific gravity was 1.016-1.010. ‘There was the slightest possible trace of albumin at one of three examinations. The hemoglobin was 70 to 80%, the leucocytes 7600, the polynuclears 45%, the reds 4,560,0c00- 5,348,000. The smear showed slight variation in size and shape, an occasional large stippled cell, an increased number of plates, and one normoblast. A Wassermann was negative. The stools were negative to guaiac at three examinations. Bile was present at three of eight examinations, many fatty acid crystals at seven. The patient was given hydrobromate of quinine gr. v t.i.d. from entrance, changed May 21 to tincture of opium gr. v t.i.d. p.c. She grew quieter, but had marked diarrhea, and by May 21 had lost three pounds in spite of a tremendous appetite and extra diet. May 21 X-ray treatment was started. May 23 she took 6550 calories, though she weighed only seventy-four pounds. Dr. Means found the basal metabolism + 63. The diarrhea and the pigmenta- tion persisted. Nothing was found to account for the latter except THYROCARDIAC DISEASE—-ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 737 the thyroid. June 2 tannalbin gr. v and fel bovis gr. iv were given t.id. They stopped the diarrhea so effectually that the tannalbin had to be omitted after two days because of constipation. June 14 the left superior thyroid vessels were ligated under novocain anesthesia. The patient was much excited after the opera- tion, but was quieted by bromides. Next day she was very nervous, but in fair general condition. The temperature was 99.5° the evening of operation, then normal until the second operation. ‘The pulse was 120 June 14, 86 June 19, 120 June 21. By June 21 the general condi- tion was good. June 22 the right superior thyroid vessels were ligated under gas and oxygen. The breathing stopped during the early part of the operation, but was restored after a little artificial respiration. The patient became cyanotic after the operation and could not be aroused. The pulse was rapid and irregular. She was given morphia freely. Her color gradually cleared up, and the pulse became of better quality, but she was very restless. The next morning she seemed a little better, but by night was worse, very restless and weak, with a pulse of 208. She was given digitalis intravenously. Next morning she was found very cyanotic, with feeble and irregular pulse. The right border of the heart was out. After being bled ten ounces her color cleared up and the pulse became of better quality. June 24 she was semiconscious and died. Clinical Diagnosis.—Exophthalmic goiter. Mitral disease. Acute dilatation of the heart. | Ligation of the superior thyroid vessels. Dr. Richard C. Cabol’s Diagnosis.—Thyrotoxicosis. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Anatomical Diagnosis ——(Exophthalmic goiter and ligation of the superior thyroid vessels.) Status lymphaticus. Purulent pericarditis and pleuritis. Pigmentation of the skin. Chronic appendicitis. The heart weighed 200 grams and showed no hypertrophy or dilatation and no myocarditis. There is no pathological report on the thyroid. The neck was covered with a surgical dressing which was not removed. The thymus gland was present in the form of an elongated flat- tened mass about 8 cm. in greatest length. On section it was found to be composed of a grayish, translucent, fairly firm tissue. 47 . CHAPTER XII CONGENITAL HEART DISEASE In our four thousand necropsies which include a good many in children, there were but seven cases of congenital defects or lesions such as seemed of actual or possible damage to the circulation. These comprise three cases of pulmonary stenosis, one complicated by an interventricular septal defect and another by an apparently independent post-natal endocarditis on the tricuspid. There were four cases of septum-defect alone, three between the ventricles, one between the auricles.* The diagnosis of some congenital lesion was suggested by the presence of clubbed fingers in one case and by a deep, unexplained cyanosis in another. The rest were unrecognized. The details are given in the case-reports to follow. For this book the chief importance of these scattered data is to show how rare congenital lesions are in a twenty-three-year hospital experience. Only seven in a series that comprises 1906 cases were of the congenital type. Unless seen in infancy or childhood, these lesions then are naturally very rare. Their ages, seven, nine, nineteen, twenty-two, twenty-four, thirty, forty-nine, are what one might expect. But these early deaths are not due wholly to the severity of the cardiac lesion since four of the seven patients died of disease unconnected with the heart, and passive congestion was found at necropsy in only three cases, two of which showed post-natal (rheumatic?) valve lesions as well. So that in only one case of the seven was death due clearly to the congenital lesion. The cases are too few in number to justify any conclusion except the rarity of congenital lesions after early infancy. Detailed histories follow. * Beside the seven cases there were five with harmless anomalies of valve-cusps: In two cases the aortic had but two cusps, in one case it had four. In another case the cusps were slightly fenestrated. In a fifth case the pulmonary valve had four cusps. I may also mention here the 19 cases of hypoplastic or small-sized aorta. Ten of these apparently produced no effect on the heart. In nine others there was cardiac hypertrophy, occasionally very considerable. 738 CONGENITAL HEART DISEASE—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 739 ILLUSTRATIVE CASES Necropsy 106 A mentally defective girl of nine was brought to the Accident Room March 17. She had had measles and chickenpox, and had always been nervous and easily excited. She did not walk well until she was four. She had always complained much of pains in the legs. For the past three weeks she had had cough. Five days before admission she began to feel stupid and to complain of pain in the stomach. March 15 she had a little vomiting of watery material with the cough, which was very severe. The night before admission there were several blood spots on her pillow. The night of admission she had a hemorrhage of liquid and clotted blood and some fecal material from the bowels, fully a quart altogether. An hour later she had another movement of about the same amount. Examination showed a pale, fairly well nourished child looking older than her years, tossing about on the bed with sighing respiration and convulsive movements of the hands, head and facial muscles but no suggestion of exhaustion. She was said to do this commonly, especially when excited. There was a loud systolic murmur at the apex of the heart transmitted to the axilla, and heard also all over the back and at the aortic area transmitted upward. At the apex was a presystolic murmur. The pulmonic second sound was accentuated. The abdomen, pupils and reflexes were normal. The output of urine was not recorded; the findings were normal. The child had two bowel hemorrhages in the first night and early the next morning, perhaps five ounces in all, with a few clots and some loose fecal material. She continued to have slight hemorrhages for the next three days. She was very nervous, and screamed with- out apparent cause. She had troublesome cough at first which improved. April to she was discharged relieved. After leaving the hospital she was well until the morning of June 6, when she had another intestinal hemorrhage (amount?). She was brought to the hospital that day, pale, restless, and frequently crying out, with scarcely perceptible pulse. The heart action was rapid. There was a loud systolic murmur heard everywhere over the chest and back. The day of admission she had a hemorrhage of about sixteen ounces, during the night another of eight ounces, and next day one of five ounces. Just before each hemorrhage she cried out and threw herself about on the bed. Her respiration varied greatly. Sometimes it was quick and short, sometimes.sighing. Restlessness 740 FACTS ON THE HEART was the most marked feature of her condition. June 7 her pallor was much greater than at admission. That afternoon she had two movements of the bowels containing considerable fecal material mixed with blood. Her pulse was very poor. Her respirations grew more rapid and the pallor extreme. She became, however, less restless. The evening of June 8 she was much weaker, with Cheyne- Stokes respiration. Just before the infusion of eight ounces of salt solution the heart sounds were short and no murmurs could be heard. Twenty minutes later the general condition seemed better and the murmur was heard again. She seemed better during the rest of the night, with fair pulse and quiet respiration. Early the following morning when apparenly in good condition she suddenly collapsed and died. Clinical Diagnosis.—Intestinal hemorrhage. Anatomical Diagnosis——Congenital malformation of the heart (partially defective interventricular septum and defective mitral valve). Chronic mitral endocarditis? Slight cardiac hypertophy. Fatty degeneration of the myocardium. Bronchopneumonia and atelectasis of the inferior lobe of the right lung. Purulent bronchitis. Meckel’s diverticulum with localized dilatation of the ileum lead- ing to *Intestinal hemorrhage. General anemia. Old pleural adhesions. The heart was somewhat larger than normal, weighing 163 grams. The left ventricle had a capacious cavity with rather thick pectinate muscles. In the ventricular septum just below the insertion of the mitral valve and under one of the cusps of the aortic valve was a semicircular defect in the muscle tissue, its convexity pointing down- ward toward the apex and measuring 18 by 12mm. This defect was filled up by an irregular membrane of yellow fibrous tissue which in places was diaphanous and separated the cavities of the ventricles. This membrane of fibrous tissue seemed to represent and to be con- tinuous with one of the curtains of the tricuspid valve. The mitral valve opposite the defect in the ventricle over a length of 3.5 cm showed a marked shortening and almost obliteration of its curtain in an irregularly crescentic form with the convexity upward. The CONGENITAL HEART DISEASE—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 741 edges of the valve along this defective portion were markedly thick- ened but smooth. The median portions of what remained of the valve were attached to the margin of the defect in the septum by short branching chordae tendineae. The remainder of the valve seemed normal and was not thickened. At the extremities of the crescentic shortening of the valve were long rather thick chordae tendineae. The mitral valve measured 9 cm. in circumference, the tricuspid 9 cm. ‘The wall of the left ventricle was 1 cm. thick, the right 4-5 mm. The myocardium generally was pale yellowish brown with fine mottling of the pectinate muscles of the left ventricle. The endocardium of the left auricle showed yellowish irregular fibrous Fic. 158.—Congenital, defective interventricular septum and defective mitral valve. (Photograph by Lewis S. Brown. Dr. Oscar Richardson.) patches. The foramen ovale was closed. In the pericardium there was some clear fluid with fibrinous clots. The bowel bleeding which was the main cause of death, is not clearly explained but was apparently connected with the Meckel’s diverticulum. Necropsy 238 A Swedish cook of nineteen entered March 15, 1898. She said she had never been ill before. The friend who came with her however said that at twelve years of age she was in bed a year with bloody vomiting and great epigastric pain. For the past two months she had felt weak, had often vomited after eating, and had gradually 742 FACTS ON THE HEART become pale, losing appetite and some weight. ‘Two weeks before admission she had severe sore throat. After being in bed a week she was up for four days. March 12 her legs began to swell and were so painful that she could not walk. Her hands also swelled and were painful. She still vomited after eating and had some epigastric pain. Her bowels were very constipated. Examination was negative except for extreme pallor, an occasional faint systolic murmur at the apex of the heart and over the pulmon- ary area, and swelling, heat, and tenderness of both ankles. The temperature was 102.8° falling steadily to 97.7°, the pulse 115-88, the respiration 28-32. ‘The output of urine is not recorded. The specific gravity was 1.037. There was a slight trace of albumin at the single examination. The hemoglobin was 45%, the leuco- cytes 20,000, the reds 3,248,000. The patient vomited everything taken by mouth. She com- plained of great pain in the arms. On examination nothing was found but tenderness. The evening of March 16 she started to vomit and very suddenly died. Clinical Diagnosis (from Hospital Record)—Acute articular rheumatism. Anatomical Diagnosis.—Ulcer of the stomach. Anemia. . Verrucose endocarditis of the mitral valve. Acute degeneration of the myocardium. Partial defect of the ventricular septum. Slight acute hyperplasia of the spleen. Small cysts of the right ovary. Dr. RicHarpson: The skin seems to have been noticeably pale and waxen. The brain and meninges were frankly negative. There were some old adhesions in the peritoneal cavity and some of these were about the stomach. The heart showed slight hypertrophy. There was a partial defect in the interventricular septum just below the aortic cusp and some acute degeneration of the myocardium. On the mitral valve there was a row of minute granulations. Other than that the heart, the aorta and great branches were negative. : The liver, spleen, and kidneys called for no mention, and the microscopic examination of the kidney was negative. That brings us to the gastro-intestinal tract. About midway between the cardia and the pylorus in the posterior wall was an ulcer, rather deep, five to six mm., and the other dimensions two by three CONGENITAL HEART DISEASE—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 743 cm. On the peritoneal aspect there were adhesions, and at the base of the ulcer the pancreas was visible. ‘There was no evidence of new growth. It was frankly an ulcer of the stomach. Dr. Casor: Of course she died of the gastric ulcer. Those mitral granulations were terminal things and not the cause of all this anemia? Dr. RICHARDSON: I should think so. Necropsy 303 An Italian housewife of twenty-two entered April 20. She had had two children and one miscarriage. She had had no cata- menia for four months, and during that period had had dyspnea and cough. For the past two weeks the cough had been worse and she had had bad color, pains in the joints and very little urine. Examination showed cyanosis of the whole body, marked about the lips, cheeks, tongue, ears and nails. The hands and feet were cold. There was slight glandular enlargement. The lungs were normal except for slightly harsh respiration at the left apex. The apex of the heart was in the fifth space in the mammillary line. The left border of dullness was just to the left of the nipple line, the right border three finger-breadths to the right of the sternum. There was no thrill, but a duplicated impulse was felt. At the apex was a harsh systolic murmur transmitted to the axilla and heard over most of the cardiac area. Just at the end of the murmur two short sharp sounds were heard faintly. At the base the sounds were very feeble, with accentuation of the pulmonic second. © The liver extended to a hand’s breadth below the costal margin and was somewhat tender. No enlargement of the uterus was made out. There was slight edema of both legs. _ During her thirteen days in the hospital she ran an irregular temperature, 97-101.5° with one drop to 95.6°, followed by two days of subnormal temperature. The pulse was 83-113, the respira- tions 22-36. The output of urine was 13-70 ounces, the specific gravity 1.013-1.028. All of three examinations showed albumin 1449-16%. The sediment at one examination showed a few abnormal red blood cells. There is no record of the blood except “leucocytes 8200.”’ Under rest and purgation the patient made marked improvement. The edema decreased, her color improved, and the liver became smaller. May 2 she was discharged relieved. After leaving the hospital she was fairly well until early in June, when edema of the legs and dyspnea returned. At her readmission 744 FACTS ON THE HEART to the hospital June 22 she was unable to use the right half of the body. Examination showed her very cyanotic, with right hemiplegia. The whole surface of the body was cool and the extremities cold. The left pupil was larger than the right and the left eyelid opened wider than the right. The face was drawn slightly to the right, and in laughing the muscles of the right side of the face were more active. Over the back and the sides of the chest was a brownish maculo-papular eruption. The bases of the lungs showed edematous rales and the left apex slightly harsh respiration. The apex impulse of the heart was felt in the fifth space two inches outside the mamil- lary line, forcible and very diffuse, coinciding with the left border of dullness. The right border was three finger breadths to the right. The systolic murmur was heard all over the cardiac area except in the aortic region. Over the tricuspid area it seemed to have a higher pitch. The heart sounds were confused, rapid, and at long intervals intermittent. The pulse was rapid and very slightly intermittent. The liver dullness extended to a hand’s breadth below the costal margin. The right leg was much more edematous than the left. No knee-jerks were obtained. The temperature was 97.7-—99.7°, the pulse 80-107 until July 3, then July 4 and 5 swinging from 53 to 108, dropping to 67 the day of death. The urinary output was 10-33 ounces except one day when it reached 45 ounces; cloudy, specific gravity 1.025-1.009. The sediment showed leucocytes at both examinations and a few red blood corpuscles at one. The edema and hemiplegia gradually decreased and the cyanosis cleared a little. The cardiac condition remained unchanged. July 4 the patient’s sister died of heart trouble. July 7 the patient insisted upon going home. After leaving the hospital she grew more cyanotic and became. blind except for recognizing light. Pain developed about the liver and she became unable to lie down. Upon examination at her third admission, July 29, she showed exter- nal strabismus of the right eye and internal strabismus of theleft. She could bring the eyes to the median line but not to the left side. She appeared wholly blind. The pupils reacted to light. The lungs were negative. The cardiac impulse was very weak, scarcely felt. The percussion measurements were as before. The systolic murmur was faint at the apex, transmitted into the axilla. At the tricuspid area was a faint systolic blow of higher pitch than the apex systolic. CONGENITAL HEART DISEASE—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 745 The pulmonic second sound was slightly accentuated. The sounds were much fainter than at her last stay in the hospital. The base sounds were very weak. The liver was three finger breadths below the costal margin, hard, somewhat tender. The legs showed no edema. The left upper thigh was larger than the right, tender along the femoral vein, hard, resistant. The patient cried out with pain upen pressure over Scarpa’s triangle. No paralysis was made out, merely equal sided weakness. The rash was generalized over the body. No urine could be obtained for examination. The blood is not recorded. During her three days in the hospital she ran a temperature of 101.3°-103.4-, the pulse 120-130, the respirations 30-15. The day after admission the tenderness and swelling over the left femoral vein had largely cleared up. The general condition however was worse. There was much more cyanosis. The systolic murmur was large at the apex. She gradually failed, became purple, yet showed no edema of the lungs, abdomen or legs. July 31 she died. Clinical Diagnosis —Mitral regurgitation. Congenital heart lesion. Dr. Richard C. Cabot’s Diagnosis ——Chronic endocarditis of the mitral and tricuspid valves. Mitral stenosis. Embolism and thrombosis. Anatomical Diagnosis.—Stenosis of the pulmonary valve of the heart (congenital malformation ?). Verrucose endocarditis of the tricuspid valve. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the right ventricle and the right auricle. Partially patent foramen ovale. Thrombosis of the right auricular appendix, of the right ventricle, and of the left ventricle. Infarctions of the kidneys. General chronic passive congestion. Dr. RICHARDSON: There was no edema of either upper or lower extremities. There was some ascites, moderate hydropericardium, no fluid in the pleural cavities. There was some congestion of the lungs, and old pleural adhesions on the right side. The liver was one hand down. The heart weighed 631 grams,—marked hypertrophy. The right ventricular wall measured from twelve to fifteen mm., the left 740 FACTS ON THE HEART ventricular wall ten mm. There was slight dilatation of the right ventricular cavity, much dilatation of the right auricle. Dr. Casot: That is, the right ventricle was actually thicker than the left? That is extraordinary! Fic. 159.—Stenosis of pulmonary valve (congenital?). (Photograph by Lewis S. Brown. Dr. Oscar Richardson.) Dr. RICHARDSON: The wall of the right auricle was four to five mm. thick; the left negative. There was slight dilatation of the left cavities. The aortic and mitral valves were negative. There were mural thrombi in the left ventricle. On the tricuspid valve there were a CONGENITAL HEART DISEASE—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 14] few small firm fibrous granules,—the so-called verrucose endocarditis The cusps of the pulmonary valve generally were fused, thickened, a smooth fibrosis, and from them three bands extended on the pulmonary artery, the whole process producing pulmonary stenosis, congenital. There was also a partially patent foramen ovale. There were mural thrombi in the right ventricle and night auricular appendix. The liver, spleen, and kidneys showed chronic passive congestion. From the mural thrombi on the left side there were infarcts in the kidneys. The mucous membranes were markedly purple. Dr. Casot: Pulmonary stenosis is one of the severe congenital lesions. I do not believe for a moment that that child had failed to show cyanosis and heart murmurs much earlier. I entirely believe that if we had got a decent history here I should not have gone so entirely wild as I did. Necropsy 2453 A boy of seven who had been found deserted and starving in a tenement was brought tothe hospital October 5. Nothing was known of his history except that he had been ill about a week. Examination showed a fairly well developed, poorly nourished, sick looking child with marked rosary and prominence of the super- ficial veins of the chest and abdomen. The tonsils were somewhat enlarged. Therewere slightly enlarged glands in the neck and groins. The precordia showed slight prominence. The apex impulse of the heart was barely palpable in the fifth space just outside the nipple line, 214 inches from midsternum, corresponding to the left border of dullness. There was no enlargement to the right. The action was regular and slow. A loud harsh blowing systolic murmur was heard all over the precordia entirely replacing the first sound, loudest in the third and fourth spaces to the left of the sternum, transmitted deep into the axilla and into the vessels of the neck. © The pulmonic second sound was accentuated and louder than the aortic second, which was also accentuated. The pulses were poor in quality. Both testes were undescended. ‘The fingers were some- what clubbed, the nails cyanotic. Examination was otherwise negative. The child lived only a day in the hospital. His temperature rose from 98.4° to to1.9°. The pulse and respirations were not remark- able. The urine was normal except for a trace of albumin. The 748 FACTS ON THE HEART hemoglobin was 100%, the leucocyte count 26,000. Early the morning after admission he vomited and immediately stopped breath- ing. After fifteen minutes of artificial respiration the breathing began again, deep, slow, stertorous, of the air hunger type. During the artificial respiration vomitus was expressed through the mouth and nose. The type of breathing suggested the possibility of thymus —though no thymic enlargement could be determined—or of some ~ metabolic or some central nervous affection. Air hunger breathing continued for about three hours. The respirations ceased before the heart. Clinical Diagnosis.—Congenital heart disease. Aspiration of vomitus. Persistent thymus? Anatomical Diagnosis—Abscess of brain (streptococcus). Leptomeningitis (streptococcus). | Stenosis of the pulmonary valve (congenital). Incomplete closure of the interventricular septum. Dilatation of the heart. Right ventricular hypertrophy of heart. Chronic pericarditis. — Chronic perihepatitis. Chronic tuberculosis of the mesenteric lymph glands. Dr. RICHARDSON: The age is given here as five. At the base of the brain there was frank meningitis. On the left side—the absolute boundary is not given, but I should think about in the left parietal region—there was a large abscess which extended into the left lateral ventricle,—frank abscess of the brain and leptomeningitis at the base, the organism streptococcus. The skin and mucous membranes were purplish, the fingers slightly clubbed. The heart weighed 135 grams. The organ was not remarkable except for a congenital stenosis of the pulmonary valve and a per- foration, incomplete closure of the interventricular septum, rather a common type of congenital condition. Culture from the heart blood yielded streptococcus. There was some slight chronic tuberculosis of the mesenteric lymph glands. Dr. Cazot: How do you feel about the air-hunger? What caused it? ) Dr. FREMONT-SMITH: I think he had increasing intravenous pressure. ee ee ee ee ae, een er ee eee ee ee. CONGENITAL HEART DISEASE—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 749 Dr. Casort: That is, he did not have any air-hunger, he had breathing mistaken for that. Dr. RICHARDSON: The thymus gland was present and weighed four and a half grams,—negative. Necropsy 2599 A Nova Scotian housewife of forty-nine entered April 25. She | remembered no serious illnesses or injuries. She passed the meno- pause six years before admission. Three weeks and a half before admission while working in a factory her hair was caught in some machinery and her scalp torn almost completely off. Twenty min- utes after the injury she was taken to a hospital where the wound was dressed without ether. The pain had increased somewhat but had not been unendurable. Examination was negative except for: obesity and the injured area, which was covered with healthy looking granulation tissue with fresh epithelium growing in about its edge. There was no pus and not even a red angry look. The heart was not enlarged. The action was regular, the sounds clear and of good quality. No murmurs were heard. The pulses were of fair volume and tension. The patient slept fairly well and complained of nothing. — April 30 a Tiersch skin graft was done under spinal anesthesia, skin being taken from the thighs. The patient stood the operation well and returned to the ward in good condition. Except that some of the grafts at the back of the head floated off with pus she seemed to be doing very well until May 7, when she suddenly became very cyano- tic, with extreme air hunger and thready pulse. She failed to respond to stimulation or artificial respiration and died that day. Clinical Diagnosis.—Avulsion of scalp. Pulmonary thrombosis. Anatomical Diagnosis ——Absence of the scalp (avulsion) with granulation tissue formation and skin graft. Thrombosis of the posterior tibial veins, left and right. Embolism of the right auricle and the pulmonary arteries, right and left. Perforate interventricular septum. Open foramen ovale. Fatty metamorphosis of the liver. Fibromyoma of the uterus. 75° FACTS ON THE HEART Heart: Weight 314 grams. The epicardium contains abundant fat. On section the cavities of the left side empty. Myocardium brownish red and limp. Wall of left ventricle 1.4, of right 0.4 cm. in thickness. Mitral valve 9.6, aortic valve 6, pulmonary valve 6, tricuspid valve 10.5 cm. in circumference. Depth of left ventricle 9.3 cm. The aortic curtain of the mitral valve contains several small, smooth, yellowish patches; the endocardium and valve curtains otherwise normal. The interventricular septum at a point 3 cm. below the anterior curtain of the aortic valve shows an oval depres- sion about I cm. across, at the bottom of which is an opening 0.2 cm. across; a probe introduced into this passes obliquely downward and to the right, emerging in the cavity of the left ventricle at a point 5 cm. above the apex. Coronary arteries contain small, soft, yellow- ish patches. At the site of the foramen ovale, along the anterior border of the membrane, is a slit-like opening about 1 cm. long, well guarded.* Dr. RicHARDSON: This case was examined by the Medical Examiner, and we have the anatomical diagnosis and a note through the courtesy of Dr. Magrath. There was a thrombosis of the posterior tibial veins, left and right. That of course is the important statement, because that is the prob- able source for the pulmonary embolism which was present. Dr. Casot: How much did the congenital heart lesion enter in? Do you think it is of any importance? Dr. RICHARDSON: Not as a cause for death. Dr. Caport: She would have got along all right with that? . Dr. RicHarpson: Yes. It is not a thing we like to have in a heart, but we should not expect death to result from it. It was an additional load, but the death here was due to frank pulmonary embolism, and the only source we have for it is in the thrombosis of the posterior tibial veins. Dr. CHURCHILL: It would look as though the skin-grafting might have been the cause of death rather than the avulsion. They took the skin from the thighs according to the record. Dr. Casot: Why should that bring about a thrombosis in the leg veins? Dr. CHURCHILL: There is no reason whatsoever. There is no mention made of sepsis, and the wounds of a skin graft are really intradermal. | * The anatomical data in this case are furnished through the courtesy of Dr. George Burgess Magrath, Medical Examiner of Suffolk County, Massachusetts. CONGENITAL HEART DISEASE—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 752 Dr. RICHARDSON: Except as mention of the vein is made. The thrombosis is due to something. Dr. Casort: It is hard to see how a skin-graft in the thigh could do that. Dr. RicHarpson: Unless. there was some infection. There | certainly was infection higher up. Dr. CHURCHILL: Is it possible that in a patient with a congenital heart lesion there exists some mechanical] situation which would favor thrombosis? Dr. Casot: I do not know any reason to think so. Necropsy 2753 An American of thirty, who had been working intermittently as a salesman, entered December 22. His father died of kidney trouble. Since infancy the patient had at times been blue, especially when he was chilled, and had always had dyspnea on exertion. At four he had measles followed by ‘‘dropsy.”’ Until the age of twenty- one he had frequent mild nosebleeds. At twenty-three he was confined to bed for seven months with rheumatism—fever and pain in the joints. For six months he thought his dyspnea on exertion had been worse. He had had a slight cough. A month before admission he had a cold for a week, with nasal discharge and chilly feelings. Four days before entrance he had chills followed by severe headache and pains all over the body, especially in the right chest upon deep inspira- tion, with cough, and for three days a good deal of white frothy spu- tum, now blood-tinged. Although feeling feverish and unwell he had tried to do a little business. For a few nights he had urinated twice. There had been some general pain low in the abdomen. At entrance from the Accident Room his hands, face, and ears were very cyanotic, the pulse only moderately rapid. He complained of being chilly. Examination showed a fairly developed, poorly nourished man with rapid breathing frequently interrupted by a short cough, and with the cyanosis mentioned. The throat was very red. His nervousness and garrulity suggested toxic delirium. The apex impulse of the heart was seen and felt over the outer region of the precordium and as far as 3 cm. outside the nipple line in the 5th space, with a very slight suggestion of impulse in the sixth space, nipple line. The upper border of dullness was at the 4th rib, the lower in the sixth space. No enlargement to the right was made out. 752 FACTS ON THE HEART The action was somewhat rapid, occasionally intermittent, forceful. The first sound at the apex was replaced by a low-pitched blowing systolic murmur transmitted towards the axilla, heard best in the ard and 4th left spaces. The second sound at the apex was rather weak. At the base P. was indistinct, fairly forcible but’ not loud, rather obscured by systolic murmurs (sic). A, wasnot heard. At the aortic area was a higher-pitched systolic murmur transmitted to the region of the arch, the subclavian and carotid arteries on both sides. A systolic murmur was heard also in the axilla and back. The pulses were of fair volume and tension, regular except for occa- sional intermissions. The artery walls were palpable. Lungs: There were sharp crackles and a few moist rales at the base of both axillae, slightly exaggerated bronchovesicular breathing with increased whisper and voice but no rales, at the anterior right upper lobe. The voice from the posterior apex to the spine of the scapula was slightly increased. Expansion was slightly restricted. The abdomen was held rigid. The pupils and reflexes were normal. Temperature 104104.5°, pulse 8g-101, respiration 22-25. Systolic blood pressure 105-85, diastolic not recorded. Urine: Amount and sp. gr. not recorded. Cloudy. A trace of albumin; many brown granular casts with occasional red blood corpuscles attached; a few free red blood corpuscles; leucocytes. Blood: Hgb. 90%. Leucocytes 17,700-20,300. Reds 5,800,000, slight achromia,, considerable variation in size, slight.poikilocytosis. Sputum: Prune juice; predominating organism pneumococcus in pairs and in chains, occasionally intracellular. The day of admission dullness, bronchial breathing, broncho- phony and numerous coarse moist rales developed over the right upper and middle lobes. The heart remained as at admission except for a sharp and reduplicated first sound at the apex suggesting a presys- tolic murmur. A fairly definite presystolic thrill was now felt at the apex. At the base was a loud systolic murmur apparently of dif- ferent pitch and quality from the apical one, heard equally well over the aortic and pulmonic areas. During the day the patient became very delirious, at six p.m. showed a pulse of poor quality, and at eight p.m. began to hiccough spasmodically, the pulse becom- ing very weak and intermittent during the attacks. The patient grew steadily worse, the chief complaint being irregular and super- ficial breathing. Next morning he died. Clinical Diagnosis (from Hospital Record).—Lobar pneumonia. Chronic mitral endocarditis. CONGENITAL HEART DISEASE—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 753 Congenital heart disease. Dr. Richard C. Cabot’s Diagnosis.—Mitral stenosis. Aortic stenosis. Lobar pneumonia. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Possibly some congenital heart lesion. General passive congestion. Anatomical Diagnosis.— (Lobar pneumonia, right lung. Stenosis of the pulmonary { valve, congenital (?). | Fibrous endocarditis of the tri- ' cuspid valve; slight stenosis. Hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. Chronic passive congestion, | general. | Chronic pleuritis, right. 3. Historical landmarks. Defective closure of the fora- men ovale. The heart weighed 430 grams. The myocardium on section was of good consistence, firm and pale red. The wall of the right ventricle generally was markedly thickened measuring from 10 to 15 mm. The right auricular wall was thickened The left ventricle wall was 14 mm. The columnae carneae were markedly thickened in the right ventricle and fairly well marked in the left. The cavity of the right auricle was enlarged. The other cavities of the heart showed no definite enlargement. The mitral valve measured ro cm. in circumference, not remarkable. The aortic valve measured 514 cm. The cusps were slightly thicker than usual but otherwise the valve was not remarkable. The tricuspid valve measured 10 cm. The circumference was decreased. The curtain showed a moderate amount of diffuse fibrous thickening which in places was slightly nodular. The pulmonary valve was about 514 cm. in diameter and about 17 mm. in circumference. The orifice of this valve just about admitted the passage of an ordinary lead pencil. There were three cusps. The cusps were small but rather deep. The walls of the cusps showed generally a moderate amount of diffuse fibrous thicken- ing which was slightly nodular in places. There wassome fusion of the contiguous cusp margins. The pulmonary artery and its primary branches were small but the branches in the lung were of good size. 48 1. Primary fatal lesions. ( 2. Secondary or terminal lesions. 754 FACTS ON THE HEART The coronary arteries were free. Each coronary was rather capa- cious, the right showing more increase in size. The intima of the coronary showed a few small plaques. The foramen ovale presented an oval defective closure about 6 mm. in greatest diameter. The aorta and its great branches were small. The intima of the aorta showed a few yellowish fibrous plaques here and there. Vena cava not remarkable. Note by Dr. Oscar Richardson.—The stenosis of the pulmonary valve in this case is regarded as being probably congenital. The cusps were small and the character of the fibrosis present was not definitely that of endocarditis. In support of the hypothesis that the lesion was congenital are the facts that the pulmonary artery and its primary branches were small and that there was an oval defective closure of the foramen ovale 6 mm. in diameter. Against this hypothesis is the mentioned fibrous endocarditis of the tricuspid valve. This however was slight in amount and apparently bore no relation to the process in the pulmonary cusps. Necropsy 2997 First Eniry—An unmarried American working-girl of twenty-four entered December 13. Her father had died of ‘‘heart trouble.”’ She had had measles in infancy, “‘dropsy”’ at eight, and pneumonia at ten. As a child she was never able to run and play because of dyspnea. For the last four years she had been unable to do much work on account of dyspnea and occasional edema of the legs. She had also had a slight hacking cough with occasional white sputum. She slept with three or four pillows. For six weeks she had been especially dyspneic and orthopneic. The physical examination was as at the second entry, except for a less marked general anasarca. X-ray showed a mass which did not pulsate at the right of the heart. The pulsations of the heart itself were very indistinct. The outline of the heart shadow with the poor pulsation suggested pericardial disease. There was extensive mottling extending out from both lung roots. The apices were slightly involved on the left. Temperature, 96° to 100°. Pulsations, 61 to129. Respirations 23 to 33. Urine: Specific gravity. 1013-1010... Slight tracesmar albumin at three of five examinations. Blood: Hemoglobin 95%. Leucocytes 17,900 to gooo. Two Wassermanns positive, one strongly. Gonococcus fixation test positive. CONGENITAL HEART DISEASE—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 755 The patient improved in general condition. The heart condition did not change. The vaginitis cleared up under douches and stock vaccines. The sputum was negative for tubercle bacilli. January 10 she was discharged. | Second Entry.—-February 3 she returned, having been in bed since her discharge with much dyspnea, oliguria, orthopnea, increasing edema of the legs and abdomen, and a troublesome cough. Her physician reported that twice lately he had found her very cyanotic, gasping for breath, frothing at the mouth, with relief from morphia and nitroglycerin. Physical examination showed a poorly nourished girl with yellow and cyanosed skin, cyanotic mucosae and yellow sclerae, breathing heavily. The lungs, and abdomen showed evidence of passive Marked thrill over entire left precordia, most marked over pulmonic region, “also at apex. lst sound at apex loud, snapping, pre- ceded by roll, followed by short rough systolic murmur. Vany re moist rales. Occasional dry squeak SY O55 Dulness, diminished SSN y | Many fine moist Liver edge breathing and fremitus. SSYY) rales. Slight — amooth, farm, Numerous coarse moist rales dulness with dim- slightly tender] SJ ,,-7>. : ; inf'shed breathing. 5 cm. below Cetaie dulness, Lungs— poor expansion, costal margin. fluid wave. move about equally. ~——-—- — -, '. Fic. 160.—Necropsy 2997. Clinical signs in a case of mitral stenosis, congenital defect in the interauricular septum, defective closure of the foramen ovale. hypertrophy and dilatation of the heart. congestion. Marked systolic thrill over the precordia, most marked over pulmonic region, also at apex. 1st sound at apex loud, snap- ping, preceded by a roll, and followed by short rough systolic murmur. The pulses were of fair volume and tension. The artery walls were not felt. There was marked edema of the legs and ankles, and some over the sacrum. The fingers and toes were clubbed. The pupils and reflexes were normal. Temperature 96.4° to 97.8°. Pulse, 120° to° 125. Respirations, 30 to 44. Systolic blood pressure 100. Urine not recorded. Blood: hemoglobin 90%. Leucocytes 11,000, polynuclears 77%. The day after entrance the patient was more cyanotic and complained of more precordial distress. The right border of the heart had moved out slightly. The heart sounds were very irregular and poor in quality. After digipuratum gr. iss had been given intravenously and again six hours later intramuscularly, there was 756 FACTS ON THE HEART some improvement in the character of the sounds. That night 4 vi of blood were withdrawn. After this the sounds became more regular and better in quality, and the right border came in a little. That night the patient died. The heart weighed 665 grams, enlarged. On section the myo- cardium was of good consistence and pale brown red. The right ventricle wall measured 6 mm., the left ventricle wall 9 mm. The columnae carneae, the papillary muscles and the pectinati on the right side were enormously thickened. The columnae carneae on the left side were fairly well marked. The cavities of the right side were enormously enlarged. The cavities of the left side were only slightly enlarged. The mitral valve circumference was 7 cm. The curtain showed much diffuse fibrous thickening with irregular ridge- like thickening of its free margin which was somewhat nodular in places and showed small areas of roughening and minute to small projecting fibrous tags. The chordae tendineae showed much shortening, thickening and fusion. All of these changes deformed the valve and decreased its circumference. The aortic valve meas- ured 5 cm. The cusps were slightly thickened but otherwise were not remarkable. The tricuspid valve measured 18 cm. The valve showed some thickening and the circumference was very greatly increased. The pulmonary valve measured 10 cm. The cusps were greatly enlarged and showed some thickening. The circum- ference was increased. The foramen ovale presented an oval shaped defective closure 1 cm. in greatest diameter. The upper border of the foramen ovale appeared as a strongly-marked, smooth-surfaced, rounded ridge above which there was a defect in the interauricular septum which easily admitted the passage of the middle finger. The endocardium in the region of the defect was perfectly smooth and shining. The superior and inferior cavae were as usual, but only two pulmonary veins were made out and they were much larger than usual. One of the veins emptied into the left auricle near the region of the defect in the interauricular septum. The auricular appendices were not remarkable. ‘The right side of the heart was engorged with current jelly-like blood clot. The coronary arteries were free and the intima was smooth. The aorta was rather small but other- wise not remarkable. The great branches were not remarkable. The venae cavae were not remarkable. The other features of the necropsy beside the mitral stenosis and the defect in the interauricular septum were: CONGENITAL HEART DISEASE—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 757 Chronic passive congestion, general. Infarct of the left lung. Hydropericardium. Hydrothorax. Ascites. Anasarca. Slight acute glomerulo-nephritis. Scoliosis. Old infarct in one kidney. | Note by Dr. Oscar Richardson.—In this case there was a defective closure of the foramen ovale 1 cm. in greatest diameter and just above the foramen border there was a defect in the interauricular septum which easily admitted the passage of the middle finger. The margins of the defect were smooth and shining. Taking the open foramen ovale and the defect in the auricular septum together there was a rather large channel of communication between the two auricles, sufficient to interfere with the circulation. Case LXIX An unoccupied Bavarian-American of twenty-one entered September 2 for study. His mother had one child stillborn. An uncle died of tuberculosis. The patient had measles and pertussis in childhood. For six years he had had regularly intermittent periods of coughing. The present one was of two months’ duration. He raised sputum, occasionally slightly bloody, chiefly on getting up. Two years before admission he had tonsillitis. The spring before admission he had severe nosebleeds lasting three or four hours. Alto- gether he bled about three glassfuls. He had had two or three heartburns and occasional indigestion and headaches. He was deaf in the left ear. He sometimes urinated once at night. Three years before admission he weighed 138 pounds, his best weight. His usual weight was 130. He had not worked for two years and a half, but had lived quietly out-of-doors all day. His mother said that except for slight dyspnea on exertion he seemed normal in every way until he had pertussis at four years. Then for the first time after an attack of coughing he became cya- notic. The cyanosis had persisted, with remissions of a few hours. It became more marked on exertion or excitement, and sometimes when he was quiet, usually in such cases after meals. He had dyspnea on slight exertion. Medicine never helped him. His condition was about the same as it always had been. 758 FACTS ON THE HEART Examination showed a well-nourished man with dusky, moist skin and prominent veins. The mucous membranes were very cyanotic, the sclerae injected. The chest showed an anomaly of the fourth and fifth ribs in the left nipple line. The apex impulse of the heart was not found. The percussion borders were 9 cm. to the left of midsternum, 3 cm. to the right, the supracardiac dullness 5.5 cm. The sounds, action, and pulses were normal. A roughsystolic murmur was heard over the whole precordia, loudest at the pulmonic area. Electrocardiogram showed marked right ventricular prepon- Fic. 161.—Cardiac shadow in Case LXIX. (Roentgenological Department, Massachusetts General Hospital.) derance. The blood pressure was 118/80 to 105/75. Thelungs were negative. The liver edge was just palpable on inspiration. There was marked clubbing of the fingers and toes. The genitals, pupils and reflexes were normal. The temperature was 96.2° to 99.6°, below 98° every morning but three. The pulse was 63 to 105, usually 80 to 1oo. The respirations were normal except for two rises to 29-31. The venous pressure was 21cm. water. ‘The amount of urine was 27 to 63 ounces, the specific gravity 1.010 to 1.020. There was a slight trace of CONGENITAL HEART DISEASE—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 759 2 albumin at three of four examinations occasional leucocytes at one. Tests for urine albumin before 8 a.m. on two days showed 0; between Io a.m.and 1 p.m., two tests on two days, the slightest possible trace; Stic caebinicaailalinavenii a | { BSc i ai ai ti ied bn ot fon Se I WONT Te ST Cn SOOO Ie ae RE ae ces NYS OR Swe ae e a a iLs NS Oe eee scald Fic. 162.—1. Shin in Case LXIX. 2 and 3. Shins of syphilitic patients. 4. Normal shin.—No. 1 shows distinct thickening of the cortex of the bone (c). There is also some waviness of outline (a), and a periosteal proliferation (b) at the lower end of the tibia, signs seen also in syphilis, as in No. 3 (e, f; the spot near the middle e, however, is a defect in the plate). No.1 differs from No. 2 in that the thickening of the cortex in No. 1 is equally distributed over both the posterior and anterior surfaces, (c, c) while No. 2 shows marked thickening in the anterior surface only (d). The thickening in No. 2, as in No. 1, is at the expense of the marrow cavity. This equal distribution of thickening on both anterior and posterior surfaces has been observed at the Massachusetts General Hospital in only four cases out of about 100 syphilitic tibiae. (Dr. G. W. Holmes.) Dr. Edwin A. Locke, whose studies of pulmonary osteoarthropathy have made him an authority on the subject,* agrees that it is not possible at present to say that equal distribution of the thickening of the cortex is indicative of this condition. In his opinion it would be impossible from the X-ray alone to distinguish No. 1 from a syphil- itic bone. (Roentgenological Department, Massachusetts General Hospital.) at 3.30 p.m.o. Ona fourth day the morning urine hada shade less than the evening. The renal function was 40 per cent. The hemo- *See his article, Secondary hypertrophic osteoarthropathy, etc. Arch. Int. Med., May, 1916, Vol. XV, Part 1, p. 659. 760 FACTS ON THE HEART globin was 150 to 145% (Sahli). There were 10,000 to 8000 leuco- cytes, 70 to 58% polynuclears, 30 to 42%, mononuclears, 9,390,000 to 8,688,000 reds, appearing normal at two examinations, universally large and massed at the third. The blood nitrogen was 61 mg. per 100 gm. blood. The coagulation time was 84 minutes. A Wassermann was negative. A stool was negative. The sputum showed no tubercle bacilli at two examinations. Examination of the fundi showed the retinal veins extremely dilated, tortuous, and cyanotic, the arteries somewhat so, the discs very red. X-ray of the tibiae (see Fig. 162) showed notable thickening of the cortex at the Fic. 163.—Case LXIX. P.—Projection often seen in congenital heart disease. S— Thickened interlobar septum. (Roentgenological Department, Massachusetts General Hospital. ) expense of the medullary portion, and well-marked periosteal proliferation. The skull, hands, and feet were not remarkable. The lungs (see Fig. 163) showed an area of mottled opacity between the fourth and fifth right ribs in the nipple line. The shadow of the lung root was much thickened on this side. There was also evidence of thickening of the interlobar septum. The patient was kept in bed, with the usual house diet and no medicine. He showed no change during his stay. ‘The visiting physician noted a systolic thrill, felt with difficulty, and found the 7 CONGENITAL HEART DISEASE—ILLUSTRATIVE CASES 7601 murmur late systolic and the pulmonic second sound diminished. September 16 the patient was discharged relieved. Dr. Richard C. Cabot’s Diagnosis.—Congenital deformity of the heart. (Probably pulmonary stenosis and interventricular septum defect.) Polycythemia (symptomatic). Osteoarthropathy affecting the long bones. Interpretations of X-rays—Tibiae: The process is quite definitely specific. Lung: Lesion is pneumonic in type; may be a localized infection. Syphilis should be considered. Heart: Slight enlargement of the left side of the heart; some bulg- ing in the region of the left auricle. SUMMARY OF THE BOOK I AS REGARDS HEART DISEASE AS A WHOLE 1. Over ninety per cent of all cases of genuine* heart disease fall under one of the three types here called “rheumatic,” syphilitic, and hypertensive. This knowledge is of value because by narrowing the field, it focusses our attention. 2. The only other type occurring with any considerable frequency is acute and subacute endocarditis ordinarily due to a streptococcus. This made up a little less than 10% of the present series, if one includes the terminal and probably insignificant cases and those quite overshadowed by a primary septic malady, such as perforating appen- dicitis with peritonitis. Without these, the primary and recurrent types of the disease amount only to 102 cases in 1906 or 5%. 3. Of the three main types of heart disease, the ‘‘rheumatic” usually begins in early youth, and the hypertensive after the fiftieth year, while syphilitic heart is commonest between thirty-five and forty-five. Heart disease in a young woman is almost always rheu- matic (mitral stenosis). In a middle-aged man without rheumatic history a valvular lesion is apt to be due to syphilitic aortitis, producing regurgitation at the aortic valve. In an elderly man previously free from heart trouble, circulatory disease is usually of the hypertensive type. 4. Each of these three diseases has not only its own characteristic time of life, but attacks a particular part of the heart. (a) Rheumatism usually affects the mitral valve. (b) Syphilis falls upon the aortic arch (aneurism, angina pectoris) or the aortic valve. (c) Hypertensive disease enlarges the whole heart, leaving the valves intact. Thus one gets from the physical examination hints as to the type of disease and from the type of disease, as revealed in the history, hints as to what physical examination will show. But the history is of value chiefly in this way and not by delineating a characteristic * Most diagnoses of heart disease, whether made by physicians or suspected by the patient, are in my experience wrong. In such cases the heart is usually sound. 762 HEART DISEASE AS A WHOLE 763 symptomatology. ‘‘Heart symptoms” are mostly those of passive congestion (lungs, legs, liver especially), whatever type of heart disease produces it. Only the age, the sex, and the negative or posi- tive history of rheumatism or syphilis give us much help. 5. Affections of the aortic valve are usually in males. ‘This applies to syphilitic aortitis, to rheumatic aortic stenosis and regurgitation (with or without mitral trouble as well), to acute and subacute endo- carditis, and to the non-deforming aortic scars. 6. Within the field of the three main types in which our diagnostic inquiries move, hypertensive heart disease occupies by far the largest area. It is so much commoner than any other type that if we know that we have a case of heart disease to study, we know at the same time that it is probably of the hypertensive type, that we shall prob- ably find a chronic elevation of blood pressure and that there will be nothing else very notable in our cardiovascular examination. This relative predominance of hypertensive trouble will presumably increase in proportion as the measurably preventable types—rheu- matic and syphilitic—are diminished by public or by private effort. 7. Most of the other types of heart trouble (acute endocarditis, acute and chronic pericarditis, congenital defects, thyrotoxic disease) are for one reason or another practically unimportant as well as relatively rare. The congenital effects are almost never seen beyond childhood; in childhood they are usually obvious (‘‘blue baby”) or very difficult to identify. Pericarditis in either of its forms we usually cannot diagnose and its effect in weakening the heart is in most cases slight. The remaining deleterious and occasionally diagnosable cases can probably be classed as rheumatic. Non-deforming chronic endocarditis does not produce symptoms or signs and has therefore no clinical significance. Acute and subacute endocarditis is by no means unimportant but runs most of its course with infectious rather than with cardio-vascular symptoms. Its unsusceptibility to treatment is notorious, so that its recognition is important mainly for prognostic ends. 8. The focussing of attention on three main types of heart trouble is aided both by realizing the rarity of the remaining types and by clearing the ground of lesions not clinically recognizable, such as myo- carditis and mitral regurgitation. This is especially important with fashionable diagnoses which, like the two last mentioned, do much to blur our knowledge. There is no justification for making these diagnoses any longer. 9. Each of the three types—rheumatic, syphilitic, hypertensive 764 FACTS ON THE HEART usually occurs alone. Rheumatism and syphilis almost never affect the same heart and a combination of hypertensive disease with either of these infections is rare. The practical importance of this fact is that if we have satisfactorily identified one of them—e.g. syphilitic aortitis, with aortic regurgitation—we can be practically certain that the others are absent and the other valves sound. II AS REGARDS RHEUMATIC VALVULAR DISEASE t. Rheumatic fever (with Sydenham’s chorea and tonsillitis) is the only infection clearly related to deforming lesions of the mitral valve. When the aortic is diseased, syphilis is the only other cause to be considered. (I am excluding here the cases of acute and sub- acute endocarditis.) Our series contains no good evidence that scarlet fever, pneumonia, tuberculosis, typhoid, influenza, gonorrhea or any other infection, except rheumatism and syphilis, can deform the heart valves. 2. The non-deforming scars or scleroses—often called “chronic endocarditis’? in necropsy protocols—are harmless landmarks and should not be confused with the deforming lesions. | 3. Rheumatic disease affecting the mitral valve alone (almost invariably stenosis) is commoner in women than in men, 64 to 5o. But when the aortic and the mitral are both affected, males strongly predominate and when the disease is confined to the aortic, not women but elderly men are the sufferers in eight-ninths of the cases. . 4. Rheumatic heart disease is predominantly a malady of young girls and young women. Somewhere between three-fourths and nine- tenths of all cases begin before the thirtieth year. 5. Mitral stenosis is the usual rheumatic lesion. In over one-half the cases it occurs without any other valve lesion. On the other hand no other valve is often affected alone. Not once in our whole experience has the pulmonary or the tricuspid been affected alone by a clearly rheumatic endocarditis and the aortic alone has been the seat of rheumatic disease only 28 times as compared with 107 solitary lesions of the mitral. 25 of these 28 cases occurred in men. 6. The only notable peculiarity in the symptomatology of mitral rheumatic disease is the relative frequency of an early and prolonged palpitation, corresponding presumably to auricular fibrillation. This type of arrhythmia seems to be twice as common in solitary stenosis of the mitral as in cases complicated by aortic disease and shows a tendency to appear “‘early or never,” i.e. the patients who are aware Aw Te - _ RHEUMATIC VALVULAR DISEASE 765 of any palpitation at all have usually been aware of it among their earliest and most constant symptoms. 7. Possibly the greater frequency of palpitation in “‘pure” mitral disease may be connected with another peculiarity of that affection, namely, that zm the ‘‘ pure”’ cases uncomplicated by any other valve lesion, the stenosis is ordinarily of greater duration and of greater degree than in the cases with aortic or other valve lesions in addition to the mitral lesion. The more prolonged and more stenosing endocarditis perhaps involves the auricular walls more extensively and thus sets up the fibrillation which thereafter is usually constant because it does not stop without treatment. 8. But it is notable that the degree of narrowing at the mitral orifice bears no other relation to the kind or severity of the complaints or to the physical signs. The most extreme stenoses are not corre- lated with the severest symptoms of passive congestion. 9g. When fever and leucocytosis occur they are usually due either to a complicating acute endocarditis or to an auricular thrombus. to. Over half the cases of mitral disease do not die of passive conges- tion, but of some intercurrent infections, of trauma, operation, etc. This is especially true of the patients who get by the second decade. In them the disease remains latent for many years and is compatible with long life. tt. In the minority of cases when death zs due indirectly to the valvular disease itself, it may be produced not by heart failure (pas- sive congestion) but by an implanted acute endocarditis with septi- cemia or by an embolism of leg, arm or brain from a loosened bit of auricular thrombus which our statistics show is present in a quarter of the decompensated fibrillating cases. Hence the clinical picture of the final illness may be not at all that of heart disease, but rather of a peripheral gangrene, a hemiplegia or a septicemia. In such cases heart disease may be never suspected and the heart never carefully examined. , 12. These facts and also the fact that death may be very sudden account, in part, for the small number of correct diagnoses made before death in the cases of this series. Over half the cases of mitral disease were not recognized in life. I doubt if the percentage of success is any greater in other institutions or in private practice. 13. Recognition would be more frequent if physicians realized that the characteristic mid-diastolic or presystolic murmur is not always to be heard unless one takes special measures (exercise, amyl- nitrite inhalation, special positions of the body, auscultation at differ- 766 FACTS ON THE HEART ent times of day) which may bring out the important evidence. Well directed search for mitral stenosis will be undertaken oftener if we remember that it is a latent possibility, especially under the following conditions: (a) In cases of cerebral or peripheral embolism occurring in rela- tively young persons and so presumably not due to arteriosclerosis. (b) In arrhythmic decompensating heart disease without evidence of syphilis or hypertensive cardiovascular trouble, and especially if there is a rheumatic history. (c) With evidence of an acute endocarditis (since a chronic endo- carditis usually underlies this lesion). (d) In the presence of a sharp first sound and a dull or feeble second sound at the apex; of a doubling of the second sound (or a third heart sound) along the left sternal margin; of absolute arrhy- thmia without known cause in a young person. 14. Mitral regurgitation without stenosis was apparently present in seven out of the 19c6 necropsies of this series, three of them doubt- ful. It is obviously, therefore, one of the rarest of lesions discoverable post-mortem. During life there are no signs by which it can be recognized. Itis nota clinical entity. III. AORTIC STENOSIS 1. On the whole it seems most probable that our twenty-eight cases of solitary aortic stenosis belong with the rheumatic group. Their history and the post-mortem findings incline us to this belief. On the other hand the age and sex distribution is a strange one if the lesion is a rheumatic one, for whereas in most rheumatic heart disease the typical patient is a girl or a young woman, in aortic stenosis it is an elderly man. These facts make us think first of that disease most characteristic of elderly men—arteriosclerosis; but there is strong evidence against this in the pathological anatomy. Only in one doubtful case out of this whole series did arteriosclerosis appear to the pathologist to have produced an aortic lesion. Some stray considerations make me consider the question whether the cases of ‘‘pure” aortic stenosis (the other valves remaining untouchea) may represent healed cases of subacute streptococcic endocarditis. These considerations are: (a) The presence in the necropsies on cases of aortic stenosis of an unusual number of o/d renal infarcts, possibly thrown off during an earlier attack of vegetative endocarditis. AORTIC STENOSIS 707 (b) The fact that while in most rheumatic lesions an old complica- ting pericarditis is often shown by the presence of pericardial adhesions, these adhesions are rarely found in aortic stenosis (one case in twenty- eight) or in subacute endocarditis. (c) The fact that the male sex is the commoner in both these diseases. Admittedly these stray facts are not important evidence; they only suggest a possibility which is not negatived by the excessively fatal nature of acute and subacute endocarditis, since it is demon- strable that some of these attacks do get well. 2. In its clinical picture aortic stenosis is peculiar not only in its proneness to occur in elderly men, but also in the frequency of pre- cordial pain, of faintness on exertion, and of angina pectoris. 3. The contour of the rigid valves, fixed in a position neither open nor shut, seems to compel us to believe that there is regurgitation as well as obstruction of the blood stream. Yet in nearly half the cases no diastolic murmur is detected. 4. Another strange fact is that even in a case with rigid and immovable valves the aortic second may be not only audible but may be actually accentuated and the systolic blood pressure high. How physiologists would account for this I do not know. 5. The classical quartette of signs (systolic murmur and thrill in the second right interspace, with a diminished or absent aortic second sound and a flat-topped pulse wave) were not often present as a complete group in this series. Indeed Corrigan’s pulse, the oppo- site of which we expect, is recorded in six out of twenty-eight cases, and a characteristic thrill is often wanting. Yet it can be said that it is still by these four signs (some or all of them) that we can recognize the lesion if we recognize it by any physical signs at all. But reasoning helps. When a diastolic murmur and other evi- dence of regurgitation are found in a case with a rheumatic history, it is safe to assume the presence of aortic stenosis also, since only in rare cases does rheumatic disease produce regurgitation, alone and with stenosis. In this way we can often reason ourselves to a correct (though not very important) diagnosis, which direct observation could not make. 6. The average amount of cardiac hypertrophy is greater in aortic stenosis than in any other valve lesion except syphilitic aortitis with aortic regurgitation. 7. Even when the aortic orifice is reduced to a mere slit, an abnor- mally high systolic and diastolic blood pressure may in rare cases 768 FACTS ON THE HEART be maintained in connection with the complicating nephritis such as was present in over one-third of the cases of this series. 8. If the disease is rheumatic and begins like most rheumatic heart disease in youth, the advanced age attained by most patients would imply that they live longer than in any other type of heart disease. 9. Death in six out of twenty-eight cases was notably sudden. - In most, however, it was due to chronic passive congestion. IV SYPHILITIC HEART DISEASE 1. Aside from a single case of myocardial gumma, the lesions here studied were all in the aorta. 2. Here manifest syphilitic aortitis shows itself clinically as aneu- rism, as aortic regurgitation, as angina pectoris or as some combination of these three troubles. The manifest and harmful cases number about one-fifth as many as those of rheumatic valvular disease and about one-ninth as many as those of hypertensive heart disease (see page 419). : 3. So far as the aorta is concerned, the disease probably remains latent and harmless for fifteen to twenty years after the original syphilitic infection. In many, perhaps most, cases it is merely a historical landmark in the post-mortem examination. 4. It is six times as common in men as in women and usually makes itself felt between the thirty-fifth and the fiftieth year, a little later than most rheumatic and a little earlier than most hypertensive cases. An isolated aortic-regurgitant lesion in a man under forty- five is Usually syphilitic. 5. Though it may be latent and symptomless for many years, it usually leads to death within two years of its first clinical manifesta- tion. 6. There is no evidence that the disease attacks any valve but the aortic. There it produces in about one-half the cases a regurgitation. The larger portion of the valve remains flexible and capable of good function, but at the contiguous margins where two valves touch each other, a fibrous process binds them back against the aortic wall so that they cannot spread out to support the column of blood during diastole. Hence the regurgitation. The heart walls, especially the left ventricle, undergo so great an hypertrophy that the heart’s weight is greater in this type of disease than in any other except in adhesive pericarditis with mediastinitis. HYPERTENSIVE HEART DISEASE. 769 7. When the syphilitic process attacks the aorta higher up, above the valves, and leaves the latter normal, no hypertrophy and ordinarily no weakening of the heart occurs even though the aortic wall may be weakened so that aneurism results. Aneurism does not produce cardiac hypertrophy. 8. Angina pectoris is a common feature of the disease. It may occur (a) in association either with narrowing of the coronary orifices by the syphilitic process in the aorta, or () without any change either in these orifices or in any part of the coronary artery. Angina pectoris before the forty-fifth years should arouse a suspicion of syphilitic aortitis. g. The diagnosis of syphilitic aortitis should be relatively easy when angina pectoris or an isolated aortic-regurgitant lesion appears in a young or middle-aged man with a history of syphilitic infection fifteen to twenty years earlier and without any rheumatic history. The Wasserman reaction—which is positive in at least 80% of cases— may assist the diagnosis. to. When the disease produces aneurism without angina or aortic regurgitation, it may not be discovered or suspected for a good while unless accidentally shown up by an X-ray taken for some other purpose. For it is only when symptoms of pressure on adjacent structures, (symptoms such as pain, hoarseness, abnormal pulsation of the chest wall) happen to occur that the patient is led to seek an examination. Allsuch pressure symptoms may be absent. tr. On the other hand when definite evidence of an aneurismal tumor is obtained, it may be safely assumed to be of syphilitic origin. There is no good evidence that aneurismal tumors are due to any other cause. The so-called “dissecting aneurisms”’ and “‘mycotic aneur- isms” do not produce a tumor or any other recognizable signs. Clini- cally they are negligible. Arteriosclerosis often enlarges the whole aortic arch but does not weaken it, does not produce a tumor, and does no harm of any sort, so far as our cases show. V HYPERTENSIVE HEART DISEASE t. The commonest of all types of heart disease with decompensa- tion is that here called hypertensive. In fact it is commoner than all the other types put together. 2. Under this heading are grouped in the present study all cases of enlarged heart* without valve lesions or chronic pericarditis, even * (But see no. 12, page 771.) 49 77° . FACTS ON THE HEART though the proof of hypertension was not always obtained, the cases being studied only at the end of life. 3. Whether nephritis and arteriosclerosis are to be regarded as causes, as results, or as diseases independent of hypertension, is not clear. ‘The impressions derived from the cases studied in this book are (a) that arteriosclerosis has little or no tendency to enlarge the heart, (b) that nephritis does exert such a tendency, but (c) that hypertension (with its results in cardiac enlargement and final cardiac failure) is a common disease independent of any nephritis or arteriosclerosis. 4. Hypertension and the associated cardiac hypertrophy last in many cases for years without producing any considerable discomforts or limitations in the individual’s activity. It is discovered ordinarily in the course of a physical examination undertaken for some other purpose (e.g. life insurance). High blood pressure is then the sub- stance of the finding, for the cardiac enlargement is often difficult to make out unless with the aid of the X-ray, and murmurs and arrhythmias are usually absent at this relatively early stage of the disease. 5. In many, perhaps most, cases, cardiac failure never occurs at all and the patient dies of some other disease or of some extra-cardiac manifestation of hypertension, such as cerebral hemorrhage. 6. As the disease progresses it may show itself in slight dyspnea on exertion, in a “‘pounding”’ of the arteries of the neck and head and in an awareness of the cardiac impulse. Still, it bothers the patient little unless he is alarmed by what he is told about the disease. 7. At this latent stage it may, nevertheless, contribute to death in case the patient is prostrated by infection, trauma, toxemia or surgical operation. 8. Less often—in about one-third of our cases—the heart itself weakens and death occurs from passive congestion. In such cases the hypertension may continue to the end or may disappear. 9. In these cases death usually follows within a year from the first serious evidences of stasis, shown as in other types of heart trouble by arrhythmia, tachycardia, pulse-deficit and passive congestion. Systolic (and occasionally diastolic) murmurs may be present at the base or at the apex of the heart, but are of no diagnostic value; the same is true of an accented aortic second sound. Diagnosis rests on the presence or history of a chronic hypertension, on the cardiac enlargement, and on the lack of evidence pointing to valvular disease, chronic pericarditis or thyrotoxicosis. Hypertensive ACUTE AND SUBACUTE ENDOCARDITIS Tia disease is often wrongly diagnosed as myocarditis, mitral regurgita- tion, “‘cardiorenal disease” or ‘‘the senile heart.” to. The degree of cardiac enlargement discoverable post-mortem is usually moderate; the extreme hypertrophies resulting from chronic pericarditis or from disease of the aortic valve were not seen in hyper- tensive cases of this series. gro grams was the weight of the largest heart. t1. The disease is more than twice as common in men as in women and appears usually about the fiftieth year, though no decade of life, except the first, is exempt from it. 12. The disease is to be distinguished from the cardiac hyper- trophies which occur almost constantly in pernicious anemia and in leukemia. These diseases are associated with low or normal blood pressure. VI. MYOCARDITIS 1. Fibrous myocarditis is an item of post-mortem anatomy usually associated with other and more important cardio-vascular lesions, such as arteriosclerosis, nephritis and hypertension in elderly men.. 2. It is not recognizable clinically and should be left out of diag- nostic terminology, although its pressure may be vaguely suspected when evidence of cardiac infarction Is present. VII. ACUTE AND SUBACUTE ENDOCARDITIS 1. The labors of Libman and others have gone far to separate out a recognizable group of cases to which the name of “‘subacute bacterial endocarditis” is given. Very possibly this is a separable disease entity. In our series, however, its distinction from rheumatic, septic and terminal cases of endocarditis is not clear. It has seemed better, therefore, to group together here all cases showing soft vegetations on the valves and then to attempt clinical-pathological sub-groupings as follows: (a) Those in which the soft endocarditis and its results constituted apparently the whole of the disease, before and after death (the so- called ‘‘ primary” cases, 36 out of 180). (b) Those identical with the above except that an old hard endo- carditis accompanies the soft acute process (“recurrent primary”’ cases, 66 in 180). (c) Those in which a septic process (such as purulent peritonitis) outside the circulatory system seemed at necropsy to be the starting 1/12 FACTS ON THE HEART point and main body of the disease (pyemic cases with or without an old endocarditis, 44 in 180). (d) Those in which some non-septic disease—such as cancer or nephritis appeared to be the main cause of death, (‘terminal endo- carditis,” 34 in 180). In each of these groups there have been cases with bacteria found in the circulation (usually some type of streptococcus) and cases in which none were found. In each there have been cases clinically acute and others clinically subacute. On a histological basis alone, it is doubtful whether one has a right to make time-distinctions. The relation of the soft endocarditis to the hard valve lesions which were also present in 102 of 180 cases is problematic. Are we correct in speaking of the soft process here as recurrent, i.e., a return of the same disease which produced the hard lesions? Or is it another disease which has supervened, as pneumonia may invade a previously tuberculous lung? I do not see how an answer can as yet be given. In the “primary” groups of cases (a and 0 above) the coincidence of hard and soft lesions attains 64%. 2. It is a disease prone to attack both sexes equally and especially young adults (twentieth to fortieth year). But possibly in children it gets well or becomes arrested and so is not reckoned with in statistics which like these deal only with fatal cases. 3. The mitral valve is affected in over three-fourths of the cases. It is the only valve attacked in nearly one-half. In general the fre- quency with which the different valves are attacked is about the same as in chronic (‘“‘rheumatic”) endocarditis with deformity. The tri- cuspid is rarely attacked (13 in 180). 4. We have never found the gonococcus or the influenza bacillus in the blood or in the lesions. 5. Clinically the disease is recognized when symptoms of sepsis (fever, leucocytosis, chills, anemia, jaundice, bacteriemia) are com- bined with evidence of a valve lesion and of embolism. But the latter is discovered clinically in only one-third of the cases, though at necropsy embolism is shown in two-thirds of the primary cases (a and 6 above). The skin, spleen, kidneys, brain and lungs are oftenest hit by emboli. 6. A palpable thrill and an increasing anemia have been to me the most helpful diagnostic signals. 7. Nephritis occurred in thirty to fourty per cent of the cases, but acute pericarditis, which one would suppose would be a common com- plication, was found here in only nine cases out of 180 or five per cent. ACUTE PERICARDITIS PES 8. In many instances the diagnosis is masked by evidences of passive congestion, associated in nearly 40% of our cases with cardiac enlargement. This enlargement is usually explainable by chronic lesions (valve deformities or hypertension), but occasionally seems to be produced by the acute endocarditis itself. g. The duration is usually weeks or months, sometimes years. to. Evidence of a healed (perforating) lesion is sometimes found. VIII. ACUTE PERICARDITIS t. As already said, we can recognize this disease in only one-fifth of the cases and then can usually do nothing to cure it. Its clinical importance is therefore small. 2. This clinical insignificance is the more striking if we realize that it is the main cause of death in less than 5% of the cases in which it occurs. Usually it is only one localization of a general septicemia, or is a terminal event in nephritis, neoplastic disease, etc. 3. Other cardiovascular lesions (except hypertension and its results) are rarely found with an acute pericarditis. Hence if we are sure of that lesion, we can usually exclude endocarditis, acute or chronic. 4. Organisms of the streptococcus-pneumococcus group can usually be found in the blood or in the pericardial exudate; in children the staphylococcus once freed from a local lesion, such as osteomyelitis, is prone to attack the pericardium as well as to produce myocardial abscess. | 5. Enlargement of the heart is present in two-thirds of the cases and passive congestion in one-third. Over one-half of the enlarge- ments are not explained post-mortem and while a previous hyperten- sion probably accounts for some, it seems possible that an acute or subacute pericarditis can itself produce cardiac enlargement. 6. Effusion in considerable amount is found in about one-third of the cases, only 13% of which were recognized in life either by the X-ray or by the presence of an extraordinarily wide percussion area. 7. Like chronic pericarditis, the acute form is “a diagnostic mar- plot” in that it produces sounds indistinguishable from intracardiac murmurs. But since (as above said) endocarditis and pericarditis seldom occur together, the former should usually be excluded if we are sure of the latter. ¢ 774 FACTS ON THE HEART IX. CHRONIC PERICARDITIS 1. When extensive and associated with mediastinitis in young rheumatic subjects, this disease produces the largest hearts known (1328, 1158, 1150 grams in uncomplicated cases) and leads to death from passive congestion (28 cases out of 112). 2. In only 20 cases of 112 was the disease associated with a chronic endocarditis. Most cases are “vestigial,” that is, are evidence of a previous acute pericarditis but produce no passive congestion; the patients (mostly elderly men) die of some non-circulatory disease. 3. As in acute pericarditis males overwhelmingly preponderate. 4. Diagnosis is rarely possible (6 of 112). Thus far X-ray has given us no help. 5. Diastolic and presystolic murmurs are often heard, especially in cases with large hearts, and lead to false diagnoses of endocarditis. X. THYROCARDIAC DISEASE 1. In most thyroid intoxications the heart is noisy and demon- strative; it is apparently but not actually enlarged and if death occurs it is from the self-poisoning, not from passive congestion. 2. In old non-toxic goitres and in toxic adenomata, congestive heart failure with fibrillation may after many years supervene. Operation appears to be of benefit in some cases. No constant cardiac lesions are found post-mortem. XI. ANGINA PECTORIS AND CARDIAC INFARCT 1. Angina pectoris if distinguished from the symptoms accom- panying cardiac infarct has no constant anatomical basis. 2. Coronary disease and macroscopic changes in the aortic arch are often absent in cases of angina pectoris, and still more often pres- ent without angina. 3. Angina may cease when passive congestion is established, but in most of our cases this is not true. 4. When a coronary is blocked by clot or sclerotic changes, and cardiac infarction follows, we may find a characteristic clinical picture corresponding: intense, usually epigastric pain lasting for hours, often with pulse failure and fainting. The symptoms are not produced by exertion or emotion and are not relieved by rest or nitrites. . 5. Coronary occlusion, acute or chronic, with or without cardiac infarction, may be symptomless. INDEX ABSCESS, myocardial, 527 Adams, Louis M., 343, 344, 457 Adrenalin, 89 Allbutt, Sir T. Clifford, 123, 418, 499, 550 Anemia in acute endocarditis, 572 Anemia, pernicious, see Pernicious. Aneurism, 27; abnormal area of pulsation in, 333; arteriosclerosis in, 336; asthmatic type, 335; cardiac, 534, 537; illustrative cases, 537; complica- tions in, 336; diagnosis of, 334; dis- secting, 412; dysphagia in, 335; edema in, 335; inequality of pupils in, 334; mycotic, 412; nephritis in, 336; paralysis of recurrent laryngeal nerve in, 334; physical signs of, 334; pres- sure signs of, 335; ruptured, 399; symptoms of, 333; systolic murmurs | in, 334; systolic thrill in, 333; tracheal tug in, 333, 334; valvular lesions in, 3360; with acute endocarditis, 336; with non-deforming endocarditis, 336; with myocarditis, 336; with pericarditis, 336; with rheumatic valve lesions, 336; X-ray examina- tion in, 334 Angina pectoris, 548, 774; and aortic stenosis, 218, 554; and blood pressure, 555; and myocarditis, 554; and syphilitic aortitis, 552; cessation of with passive congestion, 555; with- out coronary narrowing, 550; with fibrous myocarditis, 552; with perni- cious anemia, 554 Angina, Vincent’s, 96 Aorta, arteriosclerosis of, 434; gummatous focus in, 372; hypoplasia of, 23, 26; hypoplastic, with cardiac hyper- trophy, 423; hypoplastic, with chronic passive congestion, 23; mural thrombus of, 487 Aortic disease, types of, 257; regurgita- tion, see Regurgitation; stenosis, see Stenosis; wall, spirochetes of syphilis In, 373 Aortitis, see Syphilitic. Apocynum, 106 Arrhythmia in acute endocarditis, 574; in chronic pericarditis, 683; in mitral stenosis, 47 Arsphenamin, 355 Arteriosclerosis, 23, 26, 416, 417; and nephritis, heart weights in, 427; degree of, 424; of aorta, 434; pul- monary, 23; pulmonary with chronic passive congestion, 23; with aneu- rism, 336; with chronic passive con- gestion, 23 Arteriosclerotic degeneration of kidney, 23, 20, 428; with chronic passive con- gestion, 23 Arthritis, 31 Atropin, 89 Auricular fibrillation, 83, 101; flutter, 83, 109 Austin Flint murmur, 683 BACTERIOLOGY in aortic stenosis, 217; in acute endocarditis, 578; in acute pericarditis, 640 Barry, John W., 224, 225 Blood in aortic stenosis, 217 Blood pressure in angina pectoris, 555; diastolic, in myocarditis, 500; sys- tolic, in myocardial infarction, 515 Bock, Arlie, 142, 702 Breed and White, 294 Brown, Lewis S., 166, 167, 168, 180, 181, 250, 345, 377, 378, 591, 698, 699, 741, 746 Casot, Hugh, 194, 349, 464, 480, 518, 534, 671 Cactus, 107 Caffein, 89, 387, 539 Caffein sodium benzoate, 126 Cardiac abscess, 527; aneurism, 534; aneurism, illustrative cases, 537; disease, frequency of, 17; failure in thyroid disease, 724; failure, septic, 775 770 with dropsy, 637; hypertrophy, asso- ciation with dilatation, 436, see also Heart disease. Cardiac hypertrophy and dilatation, 23, 25, 26, 52, 53; arrhythmia in, 449; enlargement in, 449; cardiac failure in, 436; casual lesions, 422; etiology of, 421; chronic passive congestion in, 449; correlation of, with various diseases, 417; degrees of, in various lesions, 432; heart sounds in, 449; heart weight in, 449; in acute endo- carditis;! 503,065 75;, 12 acute, -peri- carditis, 643; in chronic non-deform- ing endocarditis, 632; in myocardial infarction, 515; in myocarditis, 497, 499; mode of death in, 437; murmurs in, 449, 451, 452; palpitation in, 449; relation of nephritis to, 416; type of nephritis in, 449; with acute endo- carditis, 423; with acute nephritis, 451, age in, 451, blood pressure in, 451, chronic passive congestion in, 451, duration of, 451, heart weight in, 451, Murmurs in, 451, 452, Sex IN, 451, type of nephritis in, 451; with acute pericarditis, 423; with arteriosclero- sis, 23, 423, 424; with chronic pas- sive congestion, 23; with chronic non- deforming endocarditis, 423; with chronic nephritis, blood pressure in, 448, sex in, 448; with chronic peri- carditis, 423, 433; with hyperten- sion, 423; with hypoplastic aorta, 423; with leukemia, 423; with myo- carditis, 423; with nephritis, 423, 426; with nephritis and arteriosclerosis, 427, age in, 446, blood pressure in, 448, chronic passive congestion in, 447, duration in, 446, heart weight in, 447, murmurs in, 447, sex in, 446, type of arteriosclerosis in, 447, type of death in, 448, type of nephritis in, 446; with pernicious anemia, 423; with rheumatic valvular disease, 423; with subacute nephritis, 450, chronic passive congestion in, 450, duration of, 450, heart weight in, 450, mur- murs in, 450, sex in, 450, with syphi- litic valvular disease, 423, without nephritis or arteriosclerosis, 428 Cardiac infarction, diagnosis of, 516; physical signs of, 515 INDEX Cardiac murmurs, 17, 55, 59; in acute endocarditis, 563, 575; in aortic stenosis, 213; in acute pericarditis, 640, 641; in cardiac hypertrophy and dilatation, 449; in chronic nonde- forming endocarditis, 631; in chronic pericarditis, 683; in hypertensive heart disease, 443; mid-diastolic, 105; with subacute nephritis, 450 Cardiovascular lesions, 21, 24; manifest, 23; relative frequency of, 26 Chorea, 30, 41, 312; illustrative cases, 315 Christian, Henry A., 404 Chronic passive congestion, see Passive congestion, chronic. Coller, Frederick A’) 727, 728 Congenital heart disease, see Heart disease, congenital. Convallaria, 103, 106 Cor bovinum, 432 Coronary narrowing without angina pectoris, 550; orifices, blocking of, 520; sclerosis, without angina pectoris, 549; thrombosis, 556; thrombosis with pain, 556; thrombosis without pain, 556 Davis, Lincoln, 346 Death, cause of in acute pericarditis, 641; congestive, 25; mode of, in aortic stenosis, 219, in mitral and aortic stenosis, 149, in mitral disease, 77; in myocarditis, 502; toxic, in thyroid disease, 725 Degenerations, 24 Diagnostic expectations, 682 Digifolin, 89, 175 Digipuratum, 282, 286, 466, 481 Digitalis, 106, 107, 108 Diuretin, 117 17; marplots, EpsALL, David L., 705 Effort syndrome, 17, 723 Electrocardiogram, 83, 89, 101, 106, 109, T15,° 132, 171, 188, 355, 405) 5005 523, 616, 691, 714, 758; in auricular flutter, 186 Embolic deaths in mitral stenosis, 78 Embolism in acute endocarditis, 563, 567, 568 Emerson, Haven, 26 Emphysema, 421 INDEX Endocarditis, acute, 23, 24, 26; acute and subacute, 561; 775; age in; 563; anemia in, 572; arrhythmia in, 574; associated lesions in, 579; bacteri- ology in, 578; cardiac enlargement in, 563, 575; cardiac murmurs in, 575; constitutional sepsis in, 572; diagno- sis of, 582; distribution of embolic lesions in, 567; duration of, 580, 581; embolism in, 563, 567; embolism recognized in life in, 568; dyspnea in, 575; edema in, 575; foci of sepsis in, 570; heart weights in, 577; illustra- _ tive cases, 583; initial, 565; leucocy- tosis In} 573; mental state in, «572; murmurs in, 563; nature of, 567; nephritis in, 563, 569; primary, 562; pyemic, 565; recurrent, 565; sex in, 563; skin hemorrhages in, 5609; tenderness of fingers and toes in, 569; terminal, 565; thrill in, 576; types of, 561; underlying disease in, 571; valve affected in, 563; with aneurism, 336; with chronic passive congestion, 23; with meningitis, 570 Endocarditis, chronic non-deforming, 20, 23, 24, 26, 628; age in, 629; aneurism in, 3363; associated lesions in, 631; cardiac complaints in, 633; cardiac hypertrophy in, 632; cardiac mur- murs in, 631; etiology of, 629; sex in, 629; valves affected in, 632; with chronic passive congestion, 23 Endocarditis, terminal, 571 Endocarditis, type of, 32, 309 Endocarditis, verrucose, 200 Error, probable, 20 FEVER in acute pericarditis, 636; in myo- cardial infarction, 515 Fitz, Reginald F., 490 Fremont-Smith, Maurice, 142, 196, 197, 261, 265; 748 Frey, Max von, 108 GARLAND, Joseph, 63 Goiter, see Thyrocardiac diséase. Gumma, cardiac, 322 HAMILTON, Burton E., 725, 727, 728 Hartwell, Harry F., 661 Heart defects, congenital, 23; chronic passive congestion, 23 with i id Heart disease, congenital, 738; illustra- tive cases, 739 Heart disease, hypertensive, 18, 416, 410, 769; age incidence in, 420; arterio- sclerosis in, 440; blood pressure in, 440; cardiac enlargement in, 444; cerebral symptoms in, 443; diagnosis in, 443; duration of symptoms in, 439; false pericardial friction in, 443; heart weight in, 421, 441; illustrative cases, 454; latent, 420; murmurs in, 441, 443; nephritis in, 441; physical signs in, 444; pulse pressure in, 441; Sexi, 2426 Heart disease, imaginary, 17; latency of, 24; manifest, 24; manifest or latent, 419; predominating lesion in, 24; pseudo, 17; rheumatic, see Rheumatic heart disease; syphilitic, 322, 768; valvular, 24 Heart, maximum weight of, 429; over- demonstrative, 723; rupture of, 546 Heart muscle, gumma in, 375 Hemorrhages of skin in acute endocar- ditis, 569 Hoffman, Frederick L., 403 Holmes, George W., 242, 389, 596, 663, 695, 759 Hypertensive cardiovascular disease, see Heart disease, hypertensive. ILLUSTRATIVE Cases: cardiac aneurism, 537; chorea, 315; combined valve lesions, 160; endocarditis, acute, 563; hyper- tensive heart disease, 454; myocardial abscess, 529; myocardial infarction, 521; myocarditis, 454, 505; pericardi- tis, acute, 647; pericarditis chronic, 685; regurgitation, aortic, 257; re- gurgitation, mitral, 296; stenosis, aortic, 221; ‘stenosis mitral,.080; stenosis, mitral and aortic, 150; syphilitic aortitis, 337; thyrocardiac disease, 731 Infarction, myocardial, see Myocardial infarction; splenic, 94 JAUNDICE, in aortic stenosis, 211, 218, in mitral stenosis, 49; in rheumatic heart disease, 63 KARELL diet, 156 Kidd, Frank, 532 778 INDEX Kidney, amyloid degeneration of, with chronic passive congestion, 23; see Arteriosclerotic degeneration and Nephritis. Kraus, F., 727 Lek, Roger I., 290 Lesions, combinations of, 25; multiple, 21; single, 25, 26 Leucocytosis in acute endocarditis,. 573; in acute pericarditis, 636 Leukemia, 23, 26; with chronic passive congestion, 23 Lewis, Sir Thomas, 108 Locke, Edwin A, 759 Lung, gumma of (?), 405 Lymphoma, malignant, simulating aneu- rism, 360 MACKENZIE, Sir James, 293 Magnesium sulphate, 227, 491 Magrath, George Burgess, 750 Means, James Howard, 398, 736 Mediastinitis, 432 Meningitis, and acute endocarditis, 570 Merrill, Adelbert S. 399, 410, 663, 708 Mitral disease, arrhythmia in, 47, 61; auricular thrombi and arrhythmia in, 72; blood pressure in, 62; latent, 77; nephritis and other complications in, 66, 72, sex in, 40; urinalysis in, 66; See also Stenosis, mitral. Mitral orifice, size of, 75, 76 Mitral regurgitation, see Regurgitation; stenosis, see Sienosis; valve, fibro- calcareous mass in, 204 Morphia, 234, 268, 286, 387, 410, 466, 493 Murmurs, see Cardiac murmurs. Myocardial abscess, 527; coronary arteries in, 529; embolism in, 528; illustrative cases in, 529; local septic processes in, 528; physical signs of, 528; symptoms of, 528 - Myocardial infarction, 512, 515, 516; cardiac hypertrophy in, 515; chronic passive congestion in, 513; coronary arteries in, 514; duration of attacks of pain in, 514; epigastric localization of, 514; fever in, 515; illustrative cases, 521; intracardiac thrombi in, 515; pulse failure in, 514; recurrent type, 520; site of pain in, 514; sudden faintness in, 514; syphilitic aortitis in, 515; systolic blood pressure in, 515; types of, 518; with symptoms in life, 521 Myocarditis, fibrous, 23, 24, 26, 29, 494, 771; age in, 500; angina in, 490, 554; arrhythmia in, 499; associated lesions in, 497; blood pressure in, 499, 500; © cardiac hypertrophy in, 497, 490; chronic nephritis in, 503; coronary sclerosis in, 497; diagnosis of, 498; extreme diffuse, 501; good cardiac function in, 501; illustrative cases, 454, 5053, infectious disease in, 497; main factors in death, 503; mode of death, 502; pulse pressure in, 500; streptococcus sepsis in, 503; sex in, 500; slight cases, 502; syphilitic, 322, 496, 552; thrombi in, 500; with aneurism, 336; with chronic passive congestion, 23; without cardiac hyper- . trophy, 497; with syphilitic aortitis, 552 | NEOSALVARSAN, 383 Nephritis, 26; acute, 23; acute with cardiac hypertrophy, 151; amyloid, 23; and arteriosclerosis, heart weights in, 427; chronic, 23; chronic, in myocarditis, 503; heart weights in, 426: in acute endocarditis, 563, 569; in aortic stenosis, 218; in hypertensive heart disease, 441; in mitral disease, 66; subacute, 23; subacute in cardiac hypertrophy 450; type of in cardiac hypertrophy, 449; with chronic pas- sive congestion, 23; with aneurism, 336 Neurocirculatory asthenia, 723 Nitroglycerin, 289, 466, 524 OLIVER, E. Lawrence, 586 Ophuls, William, 417 Osler, Sir William, 292 Oxygen, 387 PALPITATION in mitral stenosis, 47 Passive congestion, chronic, 23, 24, 217, 637; with acute endocarditis, 23; with acute pericarditis, 23; with amyloid degeneration of kidney, 23; with aortic regurgitation, 23; with aortic stenosis, 23; with arteriosclero- sis; 23; with arteriosclerotic degenera- = INDEX tion of kidney, 23; with cardiac hypertrophy, 23; with chronic non- deforming endocarditis, 23; with chronic pericarditis, 23; with com- bined valve lesions, 23; with congeni- tal heart defects, 23; with hypoplasia of aorta, 23; with leukemia, 23; with mitral and aortic stenosis, 23; with mitral regurgitation, 23; with mitral stenosis, 23; with myocarditis, 23; with nephritis, 23; with pernicious anemia, 23; with pulmonary arterio- sclerosis, 23; with syphilitic aortitis, 23; with toxic goitre, 23; with tuber- culous pericarditis, 23 Pericardial effusion, 638 Pericarditis, acute, 23; 24, 26,'28; 635; 773; age in, 635; associated lesions in, 636; bacteriology in, 640; cardiac hypertrophy in, 643; diagnosis in, 636, 645; fever and leucocytosis in, 636; illustrative cases, 647; main cause of death in, 641; murmurs in, 640, 641; sex in, 635; with aneurism, 336; with chronic passive congestion, 23; chronic, 23, 24, 26, 430, 672, 774; age in, 675; arrhythmia in, 683; ascites in, 684; diagnosis in, 676; friction sounds in, 684; illustrative 779 Regurgitation, 31; aortic, 20; aortic, illustrative cases, 257; aortic, pure, 23; aortic, rheumatic type, 252; aortic, with chronic passive conges- tion, 23; aortic with arteriosclerosis, 256; aortic without stenosis, 254; mitral, 289; mitral, diagnosis in, 293; mitral illustrative cases, 2096; mitral, pure, 23; mitral with chronic passive congestion, 23 Rheumatic heart disease, 19, 28, 30, 746; age at time of death, 38; anasarca in, 63; anginoid attacks in, 73; ascites in, 63; blood cultures in, 75; cardiac murmurs in, 55; cardiac hypertrophy in, 50, §2; cyanosis in, 50, 63; dilata- tion of cavities in, 53; duration of life in, 35, 36; embolic and thrombotic lesions.in,.70; fever in, 67; frequency of certain symptoms in, 48; heart sounds in, 56, 57, 58; hydropericar- dium in, 63; hydrothorax in, 63; infarcts in, 69; infections other than rheumatism in, 43; jaundice in, 63; leucocytosis in, 50, 68; liver in, 65; positive post-mortem cultures in, 74; pulse in, 61; spleen in, 65, 66; thrill in, 60; thrombus feveri n, 67; tuber- culosis in, 43; weight of heart in, 52 cases, 685; murmurs in, 683; primary | Rheumatism, 31, 41 rheumatic, 674; 680; secondary rheu- | Richardson, Maurice H., 518 matic, 675, 681; sex in, 675; vestigial, | Richardson, Oscar, 129, 137, 139, 140, 142, 673, 678; with aneurism, 336; with cardiac hypertrophy, 433; with chronic passive congestion, 23; tuberculous, with chronic passive congestion, 23 153, 157, 100, 167, 168, 173, 176, 178, 180, 181, 189, 191, 196, 199, 223, 224, 225, 230, 241, 247, 250, 251, 261, 264, 271, 276, 279, 302, 315, 342, 343, 344, 345, 353s 357s 359, 304, 368, 377, 378, 387, 393, 397, 401, 406, 410, 415, 456, 457, 462, 470, 473, 477, 483, 493, 507, 512, 526, 530, 534, 540, 543, 587, 591, 601, 606, 619, 624, 662, 667, 671, 688, 693, 700, 708, 715, 721, 741, 742, 745, 746, 748, 750, 754, 757 Riesman, David, 563 Rupture of heart, 546 Pernicious anemia, 23, 26; with angina, 555; with chronic passive congestion, 23; with cardiac hypertrophy, 469 Pick’s syndrome, 682 Pneumonitis, chronic, 421 Polyarthritis, 31 Polygram, 113 Pratt, Joseph H., 585 Pulmonary arteriosclerosis, 23 Pulmonary artery, gummatous focus in, 374 SALICYLATES, 273 Putnam, James J., 546 Salt-free diet, 4091 Salvarsan, 301 Scudder, Charles L., 178 Sepsis, foci of in acute endocarditis, 570; RECURRENT laryngeal nerve, paralysis of, pneumococcus, 197; streptococcus in 334 myocarditis, 503 QUINIDINE, sulphate, 83, 84, 108 780 Septic deaths in mitral stenosis, 78 Septic heart failure and dropsy, 637 Shaw, H. Batty, 418 smith; “William: -H*1o% 5125)-5s0s 7 250, 286, 305, 364, 376, 380, 393, 473; 479, 506, 539, 590, 601, 698, 699, 719 Sodium nitrate, 524 Status lymphaticus in thyroid disease, 726 Stenosis and regurgitation, 31 Stenosis, aortic, 23, 147, 205, 766; age in, 206; angina pectoris in, 218, 555; anginal pain in, 211 ; aortic second sound in, 215; arterial walls in, 217; bacteriology, 217; blood in, 217; blood pressure in, 216; cardiac en- largement in, 208, 212; cardiac mur- murs in, 213; cardiac weights in, 213; with chronic passive congestion, 23, 217; complications in, 218; cough in, 211; Cyanosis in, 211; dizziness in, 211; dyspnea in, 211; edema in, 211; estimated duration of, 218; etiology of, 205; fever in, 212; gastric symp- toms in, 211; hydrothorax in, 211; illustrative cases, 221; infarcts in, 210; jaundice in, 211; leucocytosis in, 212; mode of death in, 219; mur- murs in, 214, 215; nephritis in, 218; nutrition in, 212; palpitation in, 211; pulse in, 216; size of aortic aperture in, 209; symptoms of, 210, 2117; thrill in, 215; tightness across chest in, 211; type of endocarditis in, 209; urine in, 217; weakness in, 211 Stenosis, mitral, 20, 23, 32; age of onset in, 33; chronic passive congestion in, 23; Corrigan pulse in, 61; diagnostic errors in, 79; diastolic murmurs in, 59; duration of life in, 34; earliest cardiac symptoms, 45; embolic deaths in, 78; etiology in, 41; hoarseness and aphonia in, 63; illustrative cases, 80; jaundice in, 49; mode of death in, 77, 78; nutrition in, 49; palpitation in, 47; physical signs, 49; pulse in, 60, 61; septic deaths in, 78; sex in relation to age of onset in, 33; sudden death in, 78; symptoms, 44, 45 Stenosis, mitral and aortic, 23, 148; age in, 145; arrhythmia and palpitation in, 146; diagnosis in, 147; dilatation of cavities in, 146; dyspnea in, 145; fever and leucocytosis, 148; heart INDEX weights in, 146; illustrative cases, 150; infectious pulmonary complica- tions in, 148; mode of death in, r4o; nephritis in, 148; nutrition in, 146; passive congestion in, 23, 148; physical examination in, 146; posi- tive cultures in, 148; rheumatism in, 145; sex in, 145; symptomatology of, 145; thrombi in, 148; with chronic passive congestion, 23 Stenosis, mitral, aortic, and tricuspid, 159; mitral, aortic, tricuspid and pulmonary, 159; mitral and tricuspid, 159; pulmonary and tricuspid, 159 Streptococcus sepsis in myocarditis, 503 Streptococcus viridans, 139, 185 Strophanthin, 199, 279, 286 Strychnia, 140 Syphilis, spirochetes of, in aortic wall, 373 Syphilitic aortitis, 19, 23, 26, 29, 422; age of manifestation, 324; aneurismal type, 323, 338; angina in, 332, 552; arteriosclerotic lesions, in, 326; asth- matic type, 331; cases with aortic regurgitation, 323, 328; cases without regurgitation, 323, 3293; cause of death, 333; diagnosis in, 326; dysp- nea in, 331; four types of, 323; general cardiac symptoms of, 331; heart weights in, 330; illustrative cases, 337; IM negroes, 325; latentjeaoa occasions of discovery, 325; position of disease in aorta, 326; sex in, 325; Wassermann reaction in, 327; with aortic stenosis, 323; with chronic passive congestion, 23; with myocar- dial infarction, 515; X-ray diagnosis In, 327 Syphilitic heart disease, 322 TALBOT, Fritz Bi, 667 Tenderness of fingers and toes, 569 Terminology, 30 Thrill in acute endocarditis, 576 Thrombosis, coronary, 556; in myocardial infarction, 515; in myocarditis, 500; mural of aorta, 487 Thyrocardiac disease, 23, 26, 723, 774; heart failure in, 724; illustrative cases, 731; status lymphaticus in, 726; toxic death in, 725; with chronic passive congestion, 23 Tileston, Wilder, 383 INDEX Tonsillitis, 41 Tracheotomy in aneurism, 363; in nephri- tis, 482 Tuberculous pericarditis, 2 T-wave, inversion of, 115 URINE in aortic stenosis, 217; in mitral disease, 66 VALVE measurements, 20 Valvular lesions, 26; combined, 23, 150; diagnosis in, 159; etiology in, 150; illustrative cases, 160; necropsies in, 159; symptomatology in, 159; with chronic passive congestion, 23; de- forming, 20; multiple, 145; with aneurism, 336 781 Venesection, 481 Ventricular contractions, ectopic, ror, 106; escapes, 83 Vincent’s angina, 96 WartTain, A, S., 322 Wearn, Joseph T., 512 Welch, William H., 322 White; Paul-D.,/63, 71, 83, 105, .239, 479, 705, 712 : Whittemore, Wyman, 652 Work-hypertrophy, 421 Wright, James Homer, 235, 370, 373, 375 Younc, Edward L., Jr., 180, 530, 546, 623 PEGG ik bpadaedastdsesiidegsh bth ‘hy UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS-URBANA HANIA Ul _3 0112 059513900 | | | See dine regia ly rear rt rete Ve pdt Oe pee H ET Ca A Mancha, Mu ME NLR Zire NMrAPD-vinp FMS RIT ORT PH AIGT Ch Tiat TS LG Spe te erm POTD GL See ES eet ieksa Laden sSe ete ete a Laer Tt Coe Set OO Be ney i FEUER HEAT PREELRRTE RTA FEily TE ee HHH Ltd Hit} pan fei