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Scientific Proceedings (108). 



of absorption. This difference in resistence may be due either 

 to the higher or lower vitality of the embryos themselves or to 

 the amount of radium which passes the placenta. In another 

 case the fetuses, although injured, were carried to full term and 

 among 6 young of one litter we found two normal and four showing 

 hemorrhagic spots on head, face and along the dorsal midline. 



In one very remarkable instance the female had been treated 

 22 days previous to conception and yet the fetuses, approximately 

 1 6 days old, showed areas of extravasation (one of considerable 

 size shown in figure) . These lesions were much more widely 

 distributed than in previous cases, extending over both lateral 

 and dorsal surfaces (figure shown). These results cannot be ex- 

 plained at present. It would seem as if the treatment of the 

 mother previous to conception had lessened the faculty of the 

 later embryos to form proper endothelial walls. The wide distri- 

 bution of the lesions would seem to substantiate such a view. 

 This is in accordance with findings in adult animals treated with 

 radium in which the extravasations in the organs are due not only 

 to increased blood pressure, as would seem at first, but to the 

 actual breaking down of the endothelial tubes. In other words, 

 the effect of radium on endothelium might be selective. 



When the radium was injected intravenously (group III) 

 instead of subcutaneously, the same lesions resulted along the 

 vascular channels. Females of about 19 days pregnancy were 

 injected intravenously and the young, born dead 24 hours later, 

 showed the hemorrhagic lesions along the dorsal midline (figures 

 shown). In one case we found a striking difference in the size of 

 the placentae of different fetuses. One fetus, for instance, had 

 a markedly enlarged placenta completely filled with blood, so 

 that it had the appearance of a large hemorrhagic sac. This 

 fetus did not show any hemorrhagic lesions, while their pla- 

 centae were of normal size and moderately filled with blood. 

 It would seem as if in the first case the placenta functioned as an 

 effective "shock-absorber," while in the other cases the radium 

 emanation passed through the placentae to the fetuses. 



Lately Bagg exposed pregnant females, near full term, directly 

 to the action of 7-rays (group IV). This radiation of the fetuses 

 in utero, through the abdominal walls produced hemorrhagic 



