The Warner weekly sun. (Warner, Brown Co., Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1885, 1884-10-24
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Death Of q Young Man from Eiephantiasta
Something About the Disease.
From the Cincinnati Enquirer.

From the Cincinnati Enquirer.
One of the most remarkable invalids
in the city, Joseph Bacciocco, died yes
terdaJ morning, aged 10 years. The
u of his death was ~elephantiasis.
From this complaint his right leg was
enlarged to a fearful extent, and at the
calf was three feet four inches In circum-
ference. He was familiar to a great
many people of Cincinnati, who had no.
ticed him on the streets and wondered at
the enormous development of his limb.
To such an extent had the disease grown
on him that the boy weighed nearly
300 pounds, atleast one-half of this be-
ing confined to the one limb. 1t is said
he was the only victim of the disease
on record in this city. DIR. August
Ravogli, his physician, who has attend
ed him for the last two years, called
yesterday with a photographer to have
portraits taken of the leg in different
portions for the benefit of the medical
fraternity but the relatives positively
declined. Though under such q terri
bic disadvantage, the boy always man
aged to get about with ordinary activity,
could walk at a rapid gait, enjoyed
different sports, and was. in fact, too
fond of exercise for his own safety.
Too much exercise a few DAYS ago, DIR.
Ravogli say, produced inflammation
and fever which caused his death.
When asked to define what the dis
ease was, the Doctor said last night to
an Enquirer reporter. ut is very rare
in this country, and is indigenous to
warm climates, such as Egypt, Africa,
Asia, India and Italy. I have seen it,
and treated it in clinics in the old coun-
try. It was known among the ancients,
and for a time record Of it was nearly
lost. In the middle ages there was the
elephantiases of the Arabs and the ele-
phantiases of the Greeks. The latter
was a sort Of leprosy, and the same
names for the different diseases caused
q confusion in the medical literature
that was very hard to ~unravel, and was
often most annoying. 4 The enlargement
is caused by the hypertrophy of the
connecting tissue of the skin, and the
primary cause, the origin Of all the
trouble, is the lack of proper cir
culhtlOu Ox Tue DAOOu. LIE en-
largement Il caused by infammas
ton Of the Emphatic vessels
About every six months, or perhaps
oftener, inflammation occurs and the
leg swells. When the fever goes down
the swelling still remains, and thus the
leg continues to grow larger. Cut in
and you find an enormous mass OF q
substance which looks like lard
Squeeze this and a fatty fluid is exuded,
which solidifies when II comes togeth-
er. The bone develops with the swell
ing, and q mass OF bone forms, and the
veins and tissues ell keep up with the
abnormal development. Baccioco might
have lived much longer, but he exer-
cised too violently and brought about
inflammation. Then the absorption OF
the Emphatic element from the dis
eased member into the system caused
his death, makingit sibrinous absofp-
ton His foot was normal. The
swelling began at his ankle and contin-
ued to the abdomen, being the largest
[forty inches) at his calf. The develop
ment began q few months after his
birth. The epidermis Of the patients
leg was discolored and mottlea.sn