1904.] On Heat Regulation and Death Temperatures. 369 



4. That rises and falls of temperature are relatively of the same 

 frequency to each other at all periods of life. 



Part II. 



As in so many physiological controversies the various theories fall 

 under two headings, firstly the inanimate, in which the question is 

 examined from the point of view of chemistry, physics, etc., and 

 secondly the animate, which deals with the phenomena of living tissues, 

 so also in the subject of pyrexia there is found a similar condition of 

 affairs. The inanimate theories deal with the ratio of the production 

 and the loss of heat to each other, the disturbances of which must 

 lead to change of temperature. The first question to be discussed is 

 how the approach of death affects the interchange. 



(a) It seems hardly rational to expect that the capacity for the 

 production of heat will increase as the body approaches death. The 

 physiological processes of the body become less and less active until 

 they cease. In diseases such as tetanus, in which tremendous con- 

 vulsions take place, there must be an enormous production of heat, 

 and yet in this condition there is usually no pyrexia. Towards death 

 the frequency of the convulsive seizures may somewhat subside, and 

 after this change there is often an elevation of temperature. Under 

 such conditions the increase in temperature may be brought about by 

 an excess of heat production over heat loss. The majority of the 

 other cases of death rises of temperature cannot be accounted for in 

 this manner. Again, curari causes muscular paralysis by suspending 

 the activity of the neuro-muscular system and, as a result, a fall in the 

 temperature of the body occurs ; but during the convulsions which 

 are first caused by the drug the temperature rises.* 



With regard to the falls of temperature at the approach of death, an 

 explanation which is very tempting to urge, is that with the loss of 

 the activity of the bodily processes a diminution also occurs in heat 

 production. In support of this view may be put forward the fact 

 that the greater the duration of the illness the more frequent is there 

 a sudden depression of temperature. For, in diseases which are of 

 long duration, the capacity of the organism for heat production is 

 much more likely to become diminished than in illnesses lasting only a 

 short time. 



(b) The heat loss as deatlr approaches must be diminished in almost 

 all cases by the slowness of the circulation, shallowness of respiration, 

 suppression of urine, etc. These changes would tend to cause a rise of 

 temperature. Such an event'would naturally be expected to be more 

 frequent when the illness is short and the organs of heat production 



* Pembrey, 'Text-Book of Phsiology,' 1898, edit, by Schafer, vol. 1, p. 841; 

 Bernard, ' Lecons sur la Ctialeur Animale,' 1876, p. 157. 



