Gr. H. F. Nuttall 
(39 
IV. SOME OTHER PATHOLOGICAL EFFECTS ATTRIBUTED 
TO LICE. 
The penetration of lice beneath the skin. That lice may occur 
beneath the skin is contested by He bra, but Rust, Forestus, Schenck, 
Wilmot, Clocquet and others state that lice do occur in this situation. 
Landois (1865, pp. 501-502) supposed that the lice bored themselves 
into the skin by their “suckers,” and mentions how the jigger, mites, 
etc., are occasionally found in a similar situation. The supposition 
of Landois is erroneous, for lice possess no suckers and cannot be com¬ 
pared to jiggers and mites. He quotes Kurz (1832, p. 99) verbatim; 
this author describes the case of a poor anaemic woman in Vienna, 
who suffered from rapidly forming swellings, which, on bursting, freed 
innumerable lice. Landois cites a similar case of a Pole, described by 
Gaulke. In this instance the lice occurred in large numbers and had 
“bored themselves into the skin,” giving rise to “covered louse-ulcers,” 
which, on opening, liberated the contained lice. Kurz also described 
the case of a Corsican woman who suffered from a cutaneous disease 
accompanied by serous discharge which formed scabs under which lice 
were present in large numbers. A number of similar cases are described 
in the older literature under the name of “Phthiriasis” or “Lause- 
sucht,” the condition being regarded as a specific disease due to lice. 
Alt attributed the affection to a distinct species of louse ( P. tabescen- 
tium Alt 1824), but he was mistaken, for the insect he described was 
merely the body-louse occurring in excessive numbers. Murray (1861) 
described a somewhat similar case. 
That the irritation produced by lice may lead to various cutaneous 
lesions, has already been mentioned, violent scratching can accomplish 
a good deal and doubtless the effects here described may be attributed 
in part to the lice alone and partly to secondary invasion of the tissues 
with various microorganisms. As stated, Hebra denied that lice 
could occur beneath the skin, but it may be a rare occurrence which 
that distinguished dermatologist had no occasion to observe. Railliet 
(1895, p. 828) has seen Haematopinus form real subepidermal nests in 
an old horse. 
Prurigo senilis, Urticaria, Eczema and Porrigo. Nettleship (1869, 
p. 435), Squire (1869, p. 549) and Hebra whom he cites, as well as an 
Editorial (1869, p. 612), referred prurigo senilis to the presence of lice. 
Nettleship found body- or head-lice present in 52 out of 55 cases. No 
relation existed between the number of lice upon the person and the 
