The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1881-06-18
Wandering Needles.

The London Lancet observes that the
vagaries of needles which have been in
PRODUCED in the body, and have escaped
immediate removal, have in all ages
attracted the attention of collectors OF
the marvellous in medicine. Hildanus
related an instance of a woman who
swallowed several pins and passed them
six years afterward; but a more remark
able instance of prolonged detention was
recorded by Stephenson, of Detroit
that of a lady, aged seventy-fve, who
last year passed a pin which she had
swallowed while picking her teeth with
it in the year 1885 forty-two wears pre-
viously. Occasional pain in the throat
was the immediate symptom, but in 1916
she was seized with severe gastric pain,
which passed away, and she had no
symptoms until h@maturia in 1876.
This curious tolerance of such foreign
bodies exhibited by the tissues is often
observed in lunatic asylums. M. Silvy
recorded some years ago the case of a
woman who had penchant for pins and
needles so strong that she made them,
in effect, part of her daily diet, and after
her death 1,400 or 1900 were removed
from various parts of the body. An
other case almost striking has been
recorded by DR.. Gillette-that of a girl
in whom, from time to time, needles
were found beneath the skin, which they
perforated, and were removed by the
fingers or forceps. Concerning the way
in which they had got into her system
no information could be extracted from
her. She was carefully watched, and in
the course of eighteen months no less
than 800 needles were extracted, all be-
ing of the same size. Most were black
and oxidized, but none had retained
their polish. The majority were I'M
broken. They passed out of various
parts of the body above the diaphragm
at regular intervals, but in q sort of
series and always in the same direction.
The largest number which escaped in a
single day was sixty-one. A curious
phenomenon preceded the escape of
each needle. For some hours the
pain was severe, and there was consid-
cradle fever. She then felt sharp pain,
like lightning in the tissues, and
on looking at the place at which this
pain had been felt, the head of the
needle was generally found projecting.
The needles invariably came out head
foremost. No bleeding was occasioned,
and not the least trace of inflammation
followed. The doctor in attendance ex-
tracted 31S. They were sometimes held
firmly, and seemed to be contained in a
sort of indurated canal. 1t was con-
iectured that they had been swallowed
with suicidal intentions; but, on the
other hand, the way in which the needles
escaped in series, and their direction
with the head outward, suggested that
they had been introduced through the
skin.
That little weight is to be attached to
the pace at which the needles escape as
proof of their mode of introduction is
evident from case recorded by Villars,
of girl who swallowed large number
of pins and needles, and two years af-
terward, during period of nine months,
200 passed out of the hand, arm, axilla,
side of thorax, abdomen and thigh, all
on the left side. The pins, curiously,
escaped more readily and with less pain
than the needles. Many years ago a
case was recorded by DR.. Otto, of Co
penhagen, in which 495 needles passed
through the skin of hysterical girl, who
had probably swallowed them during a
hysterical paroxysm; but these all
emerged in the regions below the level
of the diaphragm, and were collected
in groups, which gave rise to inflamma-
tory swellings of some size. One of
these contained 100 needles. Quite re-
Gently DIR. Bigger described before the
Society of Surgery of Dublin case in
which more than 800 needles were re-
moved from the body of awoman who
died in consequence of their presence.
1t is very remarkable in how few cases
the needles were the cause of death, and
how slight an interference with function
their presence and movement cause.
From time to time their detection by a
magnetic needle is proposed as a novel.
ty; but, as DR.. Gillette reminds us, this
method was employed by Since nearly
forty years ago, and has often beer
adopted since.