The Ypsilanti daily press. (Ypsilanti, Mich.) 1928-1962, 1942-06-16

changes and, in fact, many ami
mails do not possess ssgallbladder
at all.
Structures of this kind which
do not play an active, necessary
part in life's processes are very
subject TO disease and derange-
ment and the gallbladder is no ex-
ception to this rule. 1t is probably
as commonly diseased as any other
structure in the body in the per-
sons of people over 40 years old.
Most of its various derange-
ments are due to infection and
this is not surprising since all Of
the blood from the intestine, which
is loaded with bacteria and toxins,
goes through the liver and is ex-
GREETED in the bile and comes to
rest for a while in the gallbladder.
After this has happened for 80
or 40 years, there are very few
people who escape some degree Of
gallbladder infection.
Effect of Childbirths
As we also pointed out yester-
day, pregnancy cause stasis in the
gallbladder and prevents its nor
NAL emptying so it is not surpris-
ing to find that women who have
gone through two or three child
births are more subject TO gall
bladder disease than men.
The changes which gallbladder
may undergo are bewildering in
their variety. They progress from
stage to stage or they may stop
at any stage and become quiescent,
but they produce the whole gamut
Of human symptoms and illness.
The early stage is a mild ca
tarrhal inflammation. At this time
bacteria and mucous will be found
in the bile which will be thicker
than normal in the gallbladder.
This may go on either to pus for
nation or to the formation Of gall
stones. After gallstones occur,
they may be silent or they may
begin to move down the duct, caus-
ing collie. jaundice and indigestion.
The innovation Of the gall
bladder is mostly from the auto
matte nervous system which has
O connection with the stomach.
This nerve supply is of great i'm
portance in explaining the SYM
tomatology in gallbladder disease
for the symptoms are often re-
ferred to the stomach or to the
heart or lower chest. In fact, in
study Of several thousand pa
tients, it was found that gall
bladder disease causes dyspepsia
Of some type in 20 per cent Of all
cases. This is a higher percentage
of dyspepsia than would be found
in an equal number Of people who
had ulcer OF the stomach. cancer
of the digestive tract or appendi-
citis.
Most patients with gallstones,
therefore, do not have q frank
gladstone collie or attack, but are
bothered for years with dyspepsia
and gas which they treat with BIZ
carbonate Of soda and other rene
dies without even knowing that
the real cause Of their distress is
in the gallbladder.
Chills, fever, jaundice, lack Of
appetite, loss of weight and ane-
mia are all possible signs Of gall
bladder disease. Melancholia sim
ply means black bile and the old
physicians thought that when q
man was melancholy his black bile
was in the ascendancy. So the
diagnostician must consider care
fully before pronouncing judg-
ment on what kind of gallbladder
disease is present. Fortunately
with the Graham dye test we have
a more reliable, positive sign for
gallbladder disease than we ever
had before.
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
W. E.:-What is a systolic heart
murmur? Would exercise be bad
for it and would it be possible for
a heart doctor not to discover it
during an examination?
Answer: A systolie heart mur-
muir is a murmur that comes with
the contraction Of the heart. II
occurs in all sorts Of conditions and
is, in fact, the commonest form of
heart murmur. 1t usually does no
harm to take exercise with q sys-