XII, B, 4 Lowell: Treatment of Cholera Patients 201 



this same period there were also admitted 6 cases whose condi- 

 tion was such that the pregnancy showed no signs of being 

 interrupted, and they all were discharged with their foetuses 

 intact. French (4) agrees with Basil (i) and states that con- 

 valescence is delayed when the pregnancy is interrupted, but 

 in the strict sense of the word none of these cases was inter- 

 rupted, but the mother was simply helped to remove the dead 

 foetus, which, if she were left alone, would have in all probability 

 taxed her strength to the limit to have delivered it later, and in 

 the meantime she would have absorbed its toxins to her own 

 detriment. 



■ From the facts narrated above, it is evident that the speedy 

 termination of attempted abortion, or the removal of the dead 

 foetus, is not only justified but indicated. Even if the number 

 of cases experimented upon may seem to be small, I think it is 

 sufficiently large when considering the results obtained. The 

 almost immediate urination following and the general change 

 in the condition for the better after the delivery were at times 

 nothing short of marvelous. 



This method seems to be original, as I am unable to find any 

 mention of it in the literature available, with the possible ex- 

 ception of Davis, (3) who advocates the speedy termination of 

 the labor if it should start, but says nothing about removing 

 the dead foetus when abortion is not threatened. 



CONCLUSIONS 



1. Pregnant cholera cases have a higher mortality than non- 

 pregnant cases, if left to their own resources. 



2. The later the pregnancy the graver is the prognosis for the 

 mother. 



3. There is some factor other than mechanical which kills the 

 foetus very early in the disease in the majority of the cases. 



4. Abortions occur in most of the cases, and the older the 

 foetus the greater is the tendency to abort. 



5 Most of the pregnancies come to a fatal termination. 



6. Abortion is nature's therapeutic measure in aiding the 

 mother in her fight for life. 



7. The essential factor in the treatment of pregnant cholera 

 cases is to remove the dead foetus as soon as possible and in the 

 manner best suited to the mother's condition, because it shortens 

 the period of convalescence, preserves the strength of the mother, 

 and reduces the mortality to about that of the nonpregnant cases. 



149232 3 



