The Cecil Whig., 1881-06-11
WANDERING NEEDLES.

The London Lancet observes that the
varieties of needles which have been in
troduced in the body, and have escaped
immediate removal, have in all ages at
tracted the attention of collectors of the
marvellous i'll medicine. Uiidanus related
an instance of a woman who swallowed
several Plus and passed them six years
atterward: but a more remarkable in
stance Of prolonged detention was re-
corded by Stephenson, of Detroit-that
Of a lady, aged seventy-tive. who last
months symptoms Of veSical irritation. a
pin which she had swallowed while pick
ing her teeth with it in the year 1885
torty-two years previously. Occasional
pain in the throat was the immediate
symptoms. but in 1915 she was seized
with severe gastric pain, which passed
away, and She had no symptoms until
hrmaturia, in 1876. This curious toer-
ance of such foreign bodies exhibited by
the tissues is often observed in lunatic
asylumS. VI. Silvy recorded. some years
ago, the case Of Il woman who had pen
chant for pins and needles so strong that
she made them, in effect, part of her daily
diet, and after her death l, 400 or l.500
were removed from various parts of the
body.
Another case almost as striking has
been recorded by DR.. Gillette-that of 4
girl i'll whom, from time to time, needles
were found beneath the skin. which they
perforated. and We're removed by the fin
gers 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
32O needles were extracted, all being Of
the same size. Most We're black and oxi-
died, but some had retained their pol
ish. The majority were unbroked. They
passed out of various parts of the body
above the diaphragm at regular intervals,
y
same direction. The largest number that
escaped in a single day was 81. \ curl
Gus phenomenon preceded the escape of
each needle. For some hours the pain
was severe, and there was considerable
fever. She then felt sharp pain. like
lightning in the tissues. and on looking
,t hn ,1npn ut which thix r,ni, laI haa,,
felt, the head of the needle was generally
found projecting. The needles invaria-
bly, came out head foremost No bleed
ing was occasioned, and not the least
trace of inflammation followed The doc
tor in attendance extracted 3lS. They
were sometimes held firmly, and seemed
to be contained in a sort of indurated
canal. 1t was conjectured 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, sug-
geSted 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 evi-
dent from case recorded by Nillars, of
a girl who swallowed large number of
pins and needles, and two years after
ward, during n 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 case
was recorded by Dr. Otto of COpenha-
gen, i'll which l95 needles passed through
the skin of Il hysterical girl, who had
probably swallowed them during hys-
terical paroXyism: but these all emerged
IN the regions below the level of the dia-
ghragm. and We're collected in groups.
which gave rise to intammatory swell
ngS 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 800 needles
were removed from the body of a woman