1907.] Fats, and its Relation to Caisson Disease. 371 



accidents were reduced to nil* Presumably, therefore, the body tissues 

 were not so fully saturated with nitrogen in the shorter as in the longer 

 period. On the other hand, Hill and Greenwoodf found that on exposing 

 themselves to a pressure of 30 to 45 lbs., their urine became saturated with 

 the theoretical amount of nitrogen in 10 to 15 minutes. This quicker 

 saturation must be due to the blood-flow through the kidney being much 

 more rapid than that through the spinal cord, and very much more rapid 

 than that through adipose tissues. Even if it were as rapid through 

 fat-containing tissues as through the kidney, the fats, in virtue of their 

 greater solvent power, would take longer to become fully saturated than the 

 fluids of non-fatty tissues. 



Conclusion. 



At body temperature, fats dissolve more than five times as much nitrogen 

 as an equal volume of water or blood plasma. 



The special tendency of the fat-containing tissues (such as subcutaneous 

 tissues, spinal cord and peripheral nerves) of caisson workers and divers to 

 suffer injury from the liberation of gas bubbles after rapid decompression is 

 dependent on this great solubility. 



* See Paul Bert's " La Pression Barometrique," Paris, 1878, p. 404. 

 t Hill and Greenwood, 'Koy. Soc. Proc.,' B, vol. 79, p. 21, 1907. 



