SCIENCE- GOSSIP. 



269 



also been detected in the pelvis, either in the rectum 

 or the bladder, but satisfactory radiographs of this 

 part of the body are more difficult to obtain than 

 some others. Stones have frequently been localised 

 in and removed from the bladder and the kidneys, 

 and of these the vesical calculi do not generally offer 

 any great difficulty ; but owing' to the position of the 

 kidneys, close to the vertebral column, the depth of 

 the cavity and the thickness of the overlying tissues, 

 radiographs of renal calculi are less satisfactory. 



In the spine also foreign bodies have been detected 

 and removed. A case in point was reported from 

 New York, where a revolver bullet struck the thyroid 

 cartilage and, after passing through the neck, lodged 



ing any pain, and it will generally reveal a foreign 

 substance, if such is there, or the condition of the 

 fractured bone. If however lead lotion or iodoform 

 has been used in the bandages, the latter will have 

 to be removed, as the former are impervious to the 

 rays. In cases where a fracture is attended with 

 rapid swelling, X-Ray observations are particularly 

 useful. Instances of these are fractures about the 

 elbow or of the patella, or knee-cap. These, unless 

 seen at once, are often impossible to examine for 

 several days by ordinary methods. It may almost be 

 said that under these circumstances a radiogram of 

 the swollen part is absolutely the only means of 

 exact diagnosis at the command of the surgeon. For 



Fig. 23. Fracture of Left Collar-bone. 



in an unknown part. A radiogram showed a dark 

 spot in the fourth cervical vertebra, and with the 

 knowledge thus gained the surgeon was enabled to 

 operate successfully. The ball had struck the hard 

 lamina of the vertebra and flattened out, after which 

 it had barely penetrated the canal. 



It is perhaps the surgeon who has derived the 

 greatest benefit from the application of the X-Rays. 

 They have been invaluable in surgery in the detec- 

 tion and examination of fractures of the various bones 

 about the body. Very frequently the condition of 

 the patient is such as to render it impossible for the 

 surgeon to make any ordinary investigation, whereas 

 a radiograph can immediately be taken without caus- 

 instance, the damage may be of such a kind as to 



demand prompt excision. At any rate, the radiogram 

 will indicate what form the fracture has taken. 

 Figures 23 and 24 show some very interesting 

 cases of fractures. The first of these is the radio- 

 graph of a thorax showing a fracture of the left 

 collar-bone. The ribs and other bones are clearly 

 defined, as are also the lung cavities. The history 

 of fig. 24 is well known. It is a radiograph of the 

 foot of Holocauste, the French horse that accident- 

 ally broke its leg during the race for the Derby in 

 1899. The fracture is well seen, and will be appre- 

 ciated by many of our readers, in consequence of the 

 widespread interest taken in the event by several who 

 are not in the " racing world." 



Where a fracture has ended in a fibrous union, 



