10 
ALB U M I N O U S U KINK. 
the kidneys: but these organs, instead of converting it into the 
lithate of ammonia — permit it to pass unchanged. That this is a 
first view of the matter, cannot, I think, be doubted; for if the chyle 
was properly converted into blood, this fluid, and not chyle, ought 
to be thrown off by the kidneys. On the other hand, it may be 
stated as an argument in favour of the notion that the kidneys are 
affected, that chyle has often been found in the blood when the urine 
was entirely free from albuminous matters ; shewing that, in the 
healthy state of these organs, even though chyle does get into the 
sanguiferous system, it is not necessarily ejected, or, if it is, that it 
undergoes the usual changes in passing through the kidneys. This 
affection of the kidneys, however, like that in diabetes, does not 
seem to amount to organic disease, at least to such as is cognizable 
by the senses. 
Dr. Elliotson, in his Lectures*, expresses himself as follows on 
the subject before us : — “With regard to the albuminous state of 
the urine, we are indebted to 
Dr. Bright for the fact, that, in organic disease of the kidney, 
the urine is generally in this albuminous state ; that is to say, 
contains serum.” 
ANDRAL, in his “Chemical Reports,” had previously mentioned 
a case where he found the urine albuminous and the kidney in a 
granulated state. He simply mentioned the fact. He had no more 
facts, and he came to no general conclusion, nor would he have 
been justified in doing so. But Dr. Bright has collected a large 
number of cases, and he has found that, when the kidney is in a 
disorganized state, the urine is generally albuminous. He does 
not say (so far as I can understand his book), that when the urine 
is albuminous the kidney must be in a state of organic disease ; 
for he says, that sometimes he has seen it only gorged with blood. 
But still, even here, the kidney was affected . 
Some have gone further than this, and, I think, without any 
reason whatever. They would have us believe that nobody can 
have albuminous urine without organic disease of the kidney. 
Now I really cannot subscribe to this assertion; and for this reason : 
I have seen patients who were perfectly well a day or two before, 
but who have got wet through : symptoms of inflammatory dropsy 
have come on ; the urine has become albuminous ; but on bleeding 
them the dropsy has presently been got the better of, and the urine 
has recovered its healthy appearance. Why these poor people 
should be supposed to have had diseased kidneys merely because 
they had albuminous urine for a week, I cannot imagine. It is a 
mere assumption, I think. I could not open them, to ascertain 
whether their kidneys were diseased; but as they are in perfect 
* Edited by Dr. Rogers, and published in 1839. 
