324 Renal Edema [Dec. 



been discussed at greater length in one of the previous papers. 

 What the exact röle of the kidney lesion in the Symptom complex 

 is is not known. That the renal involvement is an indispensable 

 factor was surmised some time ago and has been further demon- 

 strated by the experiments of Pearce and others. According to 

 Senator the same poison which damages the blood vessels also affects 

 the kidney. The structure of this organ, characterized by a double 

 set of capillaries closely interwoven with the glomeruli and tubules, 

 lends probability to this theory. On the other band H. Strauss 

 would reverse the process and claims that the blood vessels become 

 diseased because of the retention of urinary products following the 

 onset of nephritis. This theory is also within the limits of possi- 

 bility. 



A generation ago renal edema was thought to be due to the com- 

 bined action of hydremic plethora, a blood vessel lesion and a 

 diseased kidney. Receht experiments have strengthened and ampli- 

 fied this idea essentially but have not succeeded in elucidating it 

 completely. 



