Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1878-07-08
Swallowing Needles and Pins.
From the journal des Denars.


Here is a singular case and, for all that il is
case mat Is not absolutely rare. Ills known
lnal there are some epiCureS who have a de-
Siued taste Tor needles. They swallow them
| by The dozen like oysters, some with an appS-
rent passion. Tor cases are cited of persons
MILO nave swallowed hundreds OF needles
Ihere are Others who prefer pins, little white
pms Win round heads. Pins and needles
travel all through the tissues. They work their
way almost with ease through the body much
n,9tS surely Than living creatures Their mi
OF less long. AT the end OF several months,
ana often alter several years, the needles
i if ;ils SILL and they are taken out some
t IA tI'e same manner that pin is pucked
from pm cushion. No doubt the thing seems
improbable, but il is absolutely tTue
we ma lovers Of needles not only among
lunatIeS, but even among peopIe SounJ in h,dS
and mind. AT La SalpetTeire especially tbars
nave netn patients who have swallowed hun
N!CuS Oh needles Sllyy makes special mention
OF Woman IN the fun eniuNmeDt of All her
faculties who had passion for devouring pinS
anu hetueS. Al the autopsy " her body 80
ol Them were found i'm various organs Fab
lice de Hlluen tells of lady fun of health VIM
III her moments "t cHnui swallowed Minis which
. came oui through the skin six years after
Their introduction. NiarS repnrfS fha casa ~
young woman Of - wears who i'm NM
months turned out more that 2El needles anJ
pms swallowed two years before These liftIa
strangers came out through the hands ina
mus. the armpiiS the abdomen and syan tba
kLetS, and all upon the left side The ninS
advanced more rapidly than the need a. ia
la ter being ONidiZed. NV
Dr. otto of Copenhagen cities another case
not less curious The observation thai he was
thdOitd 10 make was I'm ease of a Young ,rirI
Who, IN nj, had probably swallowed a larrs
quantity OF needles. Dr. otto saw 2gI of tnrIn
come out from different parts OF her body
Ii lie pimpleS formed themselves on the SnT
lace of the skin in bunchas-perfecI nests ~
extracted. w"
IN: Gillette, hospital surgeon who has inst
pGnil>hed very Interesting note on this sub
lect. StaieS that in January, Isl, Dir Rirrer
!l'eI an ANALOGOUS case before the Irish Spcie-
" oil Surgery. Over $40 needles were found in
the body OF nurse in Whitworth UoSniTaI
One of the needles penetrated the elbow ana
Tie nurse died AT the RiChmGad Hospital IN
could not exactly be aSCeTtained how they had
been Ia ken into the body, but everything tends
10 The belief, says Dr. bigger that they mad
Teen swallowed. We have ourselves recently
mentioned, according TO DIR. Camara TahraI
The case of a young girl sixteen wears old an
eplleptc, from different parts OF whose body
over 80 needles We're taken.
nr. Gillette has Just referred TO a case Of a
similar nature IN Paris with young girl of %
WHO gave out from different parts OF her body
several needles, which appeared under the
skin, ana, perforating it, could easily be- taken
out with the fingers. or with little pinrherS
heir coming out was not accompanied by any
How OF blood. On being questioned on this
SUBJECT The young girl remained silent as TO the
body 0'o' IA "oi
SGspecting that the thing was mere trick.
NJ. Lepaulmler watched the patient closely ami
Vas himself able TO witness the coming 6uf Of
The needles. In eighteen months more than
81 appeared. They were all put into A little
Hahhtl needle case. For the most part they
were oNIdiZed and black. The greater Dorrioy,
were complete; others were broken and were
taken out IN fragments more or less long.
these needles came out from different parIs
of The body, al irregular intervals aud taking
parallel course myariable the same Tins
IRON the 18th TO the 9TH of September, = APP
peared, ana from the 9th 10 the 10th of Noyan-
Der, ltH Ii often happened that a great num-
Der appeared in a single day. In October, lS7I-
there came out q, 81, 81 and ~ day. The
greatest quantity appeared lust above th.
right breast: but they were found in the legs
lhe arms, the temple, and the right cheek
strange phenomenon preceded the issue forth
OF these foreign bodies. The patient eNpeTi-
enced several hours i'm advance singing pains
which produced fever well marked Then
she LETT sensation as of sudden projection
OF shock within the tissues, followed 10y A
prlcknng sensation. The young girl then eS-
ahmed the part of the body which had been
the seal OF ms momentary sensation and She
saw the head of a needle outside the skin Ia a
sufficient length to be caught hold of and nuIIed
out. All the needles came out head foremost
NJ. Lepaulmier took out 3ls Six were extracted
Uy The patient herself. There We're no traces
OF Inflammation at the parts from which they
came out.
The girl never having displayed any over
nervous excitement, MeSSrS Leaaulmier and
Gillette came TO the conclusion that the
needles had been voluntarily swallowed by
me young girl with view TO committing
suicide She never gave any EXPLANATION
further than to say that while She was at
school one of her comrades, who several times
had tried to play ugly tricks upon her must
have put the needle into sweets. which She
was particularly fond of. This explanation
seems difficult To admit. Even up TO the
present day needles from time TO time make
their appearance through the body of the
young lady.
D. Similar cases might he multiplied. 1t is suf-
T hclem Tor US 10 have shown that the exit of
needles and pins through the skin is a positive
TACT. Ihr preceding details go 10 show beyond
doupt that pms can often be swallowed with
OUT any serious consequences, and that there
Is no need Tor serious alarm when one has ac-
cldehtally been swallowed. AT the same time
Tie above cases have also shown that il is pru-
dent 10 abstain from iiriS aid needles as artt-
cles ol lo"d. HENRI DE PARvILLE.