CHORION WITHOUT AMNION OR CYEMA. 61 



easy to determine, even histologically, whether or not cyemic remnants are present, 

 for it is sometimes impossible to decide whether a small hyalin or webbed mass 

 contained within the chorionic vesicle is or is not a remnant of the cyema itself. 

 Then, too, some of the specimens included in this group contain clumps or small 

 accumulations of erythroblasts, which probably had their source in the blood- 

 vessels of the body of the embryo, although they may also have come from the 

 vessels of the cord or of the chorionic membrane itself. In most instances these 

 cells really are cyemic remnants, yet their presence has not excluded the specimens 

 from this group of empty vesicles. Moreover, in another instance (No. 663), 

 considerable remnants of the yolk-sac were found, although nothing could be 

 positively identified as a remnant of either embryo or amnion. In other cases 

 either of the last two structures or both may be represented by a very degenerate 

 fragment, which is merely a so-called shadow or (better) gossamer form. Indeed, 

 the entire chorionic vesicle is sometimes reduced to a mere gossamer form, as 

 illustrated by No. 606 shown in figure 11. 



From these things it is evident that group 2 nevertheless includes chorionic 

 vesicles which contain free erythroblasts within their cavities or remnants of the 

 yolk-sac and even of the amnion itself. However, since all specimens in the first 

 three groups differ from each other only in the degree of destruction of the embryo 

 and fetal membranes, this overlapping is a matter of no serious consequence for 

 any except statistical deductions. Moreover, since the whole of a specimen is 

 examined only seldom in a complete series, it foUows that some of them will be 

 classified incorrectly for this reason alone. No. 771a, for example, contains an 

 undoubted remnant of the amnion, and hence belongs in the next group. No. 644 

 is composed of villi only, and therefore falls into group 1. Since No. 663 was 

 found to contain numerous undoubted remnants of the yolk-sac, it is not at all 

 unlikely that some embryonic masses which could not be identified certainly as 

 such were nevertheless contained in this specimen, which would then be classified 

 in group 4. This particular specimen is contained in a very degenerate hyalin 

 abortus measuring 35 by 15 by 10 mm. The conceptus is composed of an extremely 

 folded and almost structureless chorionic vesicle and of included and isolated 

 cyemic remnants. As so often is the case, this abortus was much larger than the 

 contained chorionic vesicle, which measured only about 5 by 3 mm. in section. 



Hence, if Nos. 29, 664, and 771a are excluded from this group, only 40 uterine 

 specimens remain, to which must be added three transferred from other groups. 

 It is stated that in one case (No. 970) the specimen was obtained at autopsy, 

 and in another (No. 865) at hysterectomy, and that in a third the abortion was 

 induced. 



In three instances (Nos. 71, 278, and 77 la) it was stated that the patients had 

 a chronic endometritis, and in one case (No. 865) the patient was said to suffer 

 from "an old pelvic inflammation, " but showed "no evidence of venereal disease. " 

 In two cases reported as having a chronic endometritis (Nos. 71 and 278) the clini- 

 cal diagnosis was confirmed by microscopic examination. In the case in which an 

 old pelvic inflammation but no venereal disease was said to have been present, 



