South Branch intelligencer. [volume] (Romney, Va. [W. Va.]) 1830-1896, 1881-08-05
Wandering Needles.

troduced in the body, an6 haze escaped
immediate removsb Aase in all ages a..
tracted tue attention of collectors Of the
marvellous in medicine. Hildanus rela-'
ted an instance Of woman who swal-
lowed several pins and passed them six
years afterHard; but 3 more remarka-
Bile instance of prolonged detention was
recorded by Stephenson, Of Detroit
that Of lady, aged seventy-6ve, who
last year passed BY the urethra, after
some months symptoms of vesical irri=
tation, pin which she had swallowed
while picking her teeth With ii in the
year 1s35-for:y years. previously.
TpccafionaI pain in the throat was the
immediste symptom, but in l845 sue
was seized with severe gastric pain,
which passed away, and she had no
symptoms until hGmaturia in 1876
This curious tolerance Of such foreign
bodies exhibited by thy tissues is often
observed in lunatic asylum'. IL. Silyy
recorded some years ago tho case Of q
woman who had pcnchant for pins and
needles so strong that sue made them,
in effect, part OF Ter daily diet, and after
her death l,I00 or 1900 we're removed
from various parts Of the body.
Another Case almost ms striking has
been recorded by DR.. Gillettc-that Of n
girl in whom, FROM time to time, needles
were found beneath Tie skin, which they
perforated, and were removed by the
fingers or forceps. Concerning Tue 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
THAI $50 needles were extracted, all be,
ing Of tue same size. Most were black
and oxidized, but some had retained
thcir polish. The majority were unbro.
ken. They passed out cF various parts
Of the body above tue diaphragm a. re =
gular intervals, but in q sort Of series
and always in the same direction. The
largest number which escaped in SIN
gle day was G1. a curious phenomenon
preceded the escape Of each needle
For some hours the pain was severe,
end there was considerable fever. She
then felt n sharp pain, like lightning in
tho tissues, and OF locking at the place
at which this pain had been felt, the
head OF the needle was generally foand
projecting. The needles invariably came
out head foremost. No bleeding was
occasioncd, and not the least trace Of
Inflammation followed. The doc,or in
attendance extracted 3lS. They we're
sometimes hell firmly, and seemed 10
be contained in q sort OF induratcd ca
nal. 1t was conjrc:ured that they had
been swallowed with suicidal intentions;
but, on the other band, tie way in which
the needles escaped in series, and their
direction With the head outwards, sug-
gested That they had been introduced
through the skin.
That little weight is to be attached TO
the pace a. which the needles escape as
proof Of their mode OF introduction is
evident froul case recorded by Villars,
Of a girl who swallowed large number
Of pins and needles, and two years al
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 q
case was recorded by DI. Otto, OF Co
penbagen, in which 4Jj needles passed
through tue skin Of hysterical girl,
who had probably swallowed them dur.
ing o hysterical paroxysm but these all
emerged in the regions below the level
of the diaphragm, and were collected in
groups, which gave rise 10 indamm atory
swclIjngs of some size. One Of these
contained 100 needles. Quite recently
DR.. Bigger described before the Society
of Surgery Of Dublin a case in which
more than 900 needles were removed
from the body Of woman who died in
consequence of tbcir presence. It is
very remarkable In Low 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 Hy 4
magnetic needle is proposed as novel;
ty; but, as DR.. Gillette reminds US, this
method rps employed BY 6mce nearly
forty years ago, and has often been a.
dopted since.