252 BLOOD. 



becomes richer in saline constituents, and especially in chloride of 

 sodium. (Poggiale and Plouviez.*) 



Zimmermannt has found in five experiments made on men, 

 and one observation on a horse, that there is always a larger 

 quantity of soluble salts in the last portion of the blood of one and 

 the same venesection, than in the first portion ; and that this 

 augmentation is chiefly due to the alkaline chlorides, the other salts 

 being diminished. 



In diseases the alkaline salts of the blood undergo considerable 

 fluctuations ; but on this point most of the blood -analyses hitherto 

 made are very imperfect ; this much only is certain, that in severe 

 inflammations these salts are very much diminished, and that in 

 the acute exanthemata and in typhus they are very much increased. 

 Moreover, C. Schmidt has especially noticed that there is a con- 

 siderable diminution of the soluble salts in the serum of cholera 

 blood, and an augmentation in dysentery, Bright's disease, and all 

 kinds of dropsy and hydrsemia. Finally, it has been found by 

 Leonard and Folley, as well as by Salvagnoli and Gozzi, that the 

 salts are often increased to twice their normal quantity in several 

 endemic diseases, namely, dysentery, malaria, the malignant forms 

 of intermittent fever, scurvy, &c. 



It would be highly important to know the amount of gases 

 contained in the blood in different physiological and pathological 

 conditions ; indeed we hold that it is from this point that a 

 rational investigation of the blood should commence, if we wish to 

 take a philosophical view of its general constitution. All conclu- 

 sions which we think we can draw from blood-analyses, remain 

 mere conjectures so long as each individual case is not tested by an 

 accurate determination of the gases contained in the blood. Any 

 one desirous of instituting a good analysis of the blood, will not 

 fail to find the means of determining quantitatively the gases of 

 the blood in different diseases; if such an analysis be difficult, it 

 is, at all events, not impracticable, unless physicians adhere to 

 what is now regarded the e ' rational treatment/' and abstain 

 altogether from prescribing venesection. At present we have no 

 certain knowledge on the subject, beyond the results quoted in 

 page 191, for which we are chiefly indebted to Magnus. 



We have still to notice some of the more uncommon constituents 

 of the blood, or such as occur in mere traces. We have already 

 mentioned that svyar is an integral constituent of the serum. In 



* G'oinpt. rend. T. 25, pp. pp. 109113. 

 f Heller's Arch. Bd. 3, S. 522 530. 



