Vol VII, No 2 (1899)

In every science, in every period of its development, you can always find a whole series of controversial issues that are at the moment, so to speak, next in line and await their final resolution. Especially many such questions arise at a time when the well-known science enters a new period of its development, when new ways are outlined in its progressive movement, new theories are put forward, new methods of research are proposed. In such a case, the abundance of controversial issues that appear on the stage indicates only that the previous provisions, dominating in the sciences, turned out to be untenable, the existing views obsolete, the old theories - shaky, unusable. The known degree of revitalization in the scientific development of the most urgent questions, the overwhelming passion during their discussion and decision, the usual enthusiasm and mistakes - all this characterizes sufficiently each new direction in science, all this is observed with the emergence of each new school.

Of the diseases caused by the use of food or other plant substances, latirism is one of the most interesting, in terms of the clarity of the clinical picture, the purity of the nervous phenomena and the comparative simplicity and stereotypicality of symptomatology. This disease is far from uncommon in some exotic countries, in former times and in Europe, it required quite a few sacrifices, but nowadays it is relatively rarely observed in our latitudes, for all this, many questions, especially regarding its pathogenesis and pathological anatomy, are still awaiting clarification

The question of the relationship of the borderline trunk of the sympathetic nerve to the central nervous system is almost completely undeveloped until the present time, and only recently, thanks to the improvement of methods for studying nerve fibers, it became possible for a more accurate further development of this issue.

The question of the finest structure of nerve cells over the past years has attracted the attention of many histologists and neuropathologists. In this direction, very interesting studies have already been carried out in various types of invertebrates and vertebrates, and only regarding birds, as far as I know, there has not yet been more or less detailed research on this topic. True, in the works of some authors there are brief references on this issue, but there are very few such references and these works relate almost exclusively to the period preceding the last studies by Nissl and other authors, who shed new light on the structure of nerve cells.

Among the numerous symptoms, which are expressed by the functional and organic lesions of the nervous system, contracture of the masticatory muscles, trismus, occupies far from the last place, arising under the influence of very different conditions. Most often, it develops on the basis of general neuroses and in such a case it differs for the most part in a transient character. Quite often, we can also observe the reflex origin of this contracture, especially with irritation of the sensitive nerves of the trigeminal nerve; known ex. cases when a minor dental operation in nervous subjects had as its result the reduction of the jaws, which lasted up to three months (observation of Travers'a).

Recently in Paris, a new book appeared on sale under the written title, compiled by two French psychiatrists. One of the authors (Ch Vallon) is the senior physician of the hospital for the mentally ill near Paris (Asile d'alienes de Villejnif), and the other (Ar. Marie) is the physician-director de la colonie familiale de Dun-sur-Aaron (Cher). Both authors were official delegates to the international congress of doctors in Moscow in 1897 and took this opportunity to inspect all the main psychiatric institutions in Russia, moreover, this task was also included in the program of their business trip. This book thus represents a kind of report on their business trip, and this report concerns only the results of the examination of psychiatric hospitals and clinics.

Having noted in the beginning of his article the importance of the issue of changes in nerve cells during artificial overheating and during feverish processes, the author briefly informs the literature on this issue. Goldscheider and Flatau, making experiments with artificial overheating and studying the nervous system, for the first time noted the fact that the first cells undergo changes, consisting in swelling of cells and processes, dissolution of chromotophilic elements and diffuse color. Lugaro, with his research, confirmed the research of Goldscheider and Flatau, but could not only agree with them that the chromatophilic substance of the cell, as if it does not play any role either in its life or for its function. The author of the article notes in this regard that he personally has already more than two years adhered to the view of chromatophilic elements, as an essential part of the cell, necessary for its function. But with changes in the nervous system, you must also take into account the number of changed cells, as well as the qualitative aspect of the changes.

Having described four cases of congenital changes in the central nervous system, the author comes to the following conclusions.

Russkiy Listok "from March 31 informs, E. G. Ragozhina donated 3000 rubles. to the Aleksyev Hospital for the mentally ill. In the hospital of St. Panteleimon, at the Udulnaya station near St. Petersburg, a mentally ill peasant suddenly broke the board from the table and hit him on the head of his neighbor, also mentally ill, so badly that the unfortunate died a few hours later (Novoye Vremya, March 24).

On Wednesday, April 28, in the second hour of the day, the first general meeting and the solemn opening of the 7th Congress of the Society of Russian Doctors in memory of N.I. Pirogov took place in the building of the city theater.

It was chaired by prof. N.M. Popov with the secretary V.V. Nikolaev, there were: honorary member of the Island I.M.Dogel and Mr. acting members: V. S. Boldyrev, V. I. Vorotynskiy, G. A. Klyachkin, M. M. Maevskiy, N. A. Mislavskiy, I. I. Naumov, V. N. Obraztsov, L. A. Serguev , D.A. Timofeev, N.N.Toporkov, A.E. Yanishevskiy and guests of Dr. Kalyanin, Rimovich, Romanov and a man about 100 people.