THE MICROSCOPE IN DIAGNOSIS. 311 



kidney. ' Blood-disks usually form a reddish-brown de- 

 posit. The microscope will generally exhibit the disks, 

 unless they are greatly disintegrated, when we must be 

 guided by the quantity of albumen and other tests. 

 Blood in urine may proceed from some general disease af- 

 fecting the bloodvessels generally, or from some poisonous 

 agent acting on the kidneys, as cantharides, turpentine, 

 creasote, and alcohol, or from some local affection of the 

 urinary organs and passages. Of course the general symp- 

 toms of the patient must be considered, but sometimes 

 the kind of epithelium present may be a guide to the 

 source of the haemorrhage. 



SPERMATOZOA. 



Spermatozoa, resembling tadpoles with elongated tails, 

 are not uncommon in perfect health, but nervous patients 

 are often deluded by quacks on account of them. Of 

 course, when present habitually and in large numbers 

 they may afford evidence of spermatorrhoea. 



Bacteria and vibriones often appear in alkaline and 

 decaying urine. The sugar fungus (Torula), or yeast plant, 

 is developed when there are even minute traces of sugar. 

 Other fungi with branching growths are also frequent. 

 Some of these may resemble tube-casts. Spores of globular 

 shape may be mistaken for blood-corpuscles. Sarcime, or 

 minute cubic organisms, dividing into groups of four and 

 its multiples, are sometimes found in the urine of dyspep- 

 sia. 



TUBE-CASTS. 



In many cases of congestion and inflammation a coagu- 

 lable material is effused into the tubes of the kidney, 

 forming a cast or mould of the tube. This may be ejected, 

 bringing with it pus, blood, epithelium, or other material 



