A system of practical medicine. By American authors. Vol. 2 : $b General diseases (continued) and diseases of the digestive system
Science
A system of practical medicine. By American authors. Vol. 2 : $b General diseases (continued) and diseases of the digestive system
Medicine -- Practice
But qualitative testing is not sufficient during the treatment of a
case of diabetes. The percentage of sugar and the quantity discharged
in twenty-four hours should be determined occasionally. The process is
done as follows: Place 10 cubic centimeters of Fehling's solution in a
porcelain capsule, and dilute it with 40 c.c. of distilled water. Fill
a Mohr's burette with the urine, which, if it contain more than 1 per
cent. of sugar, should be diluted with nine times its bulk of distilled
water. Slowly heat the contents of the capsule to boiling, and then
allow a little of the diluted urine to run in from the burette;
continue the cautious addition of urine and the gentle heating until
the blue color is completely removed from the Fehling's solution. To
determine the exact moment at which this takes place requires a little
experience, but its recognition is facilitated by carefully tilting the
capsule after each addition and stirring, so that its clear white
surface may be seen through the edge of the fluid and contrasted with
the latter. The number of cubic centimeters of urine used should now be
read off from the burette, the number of c.c. of undiluted urine
calculated therefrom, and each c.c. multiplied by .005 grm. The result
indicates the quantity of sugar in grams in the urine employed, whence
the percentage of sugar is determined, and also the twenty-four hours'
quantity, the amount of urine passed in that period being known.
The Fermentation Test.--A very simple and easy method of determining
the proportion of sugar is by Roberts's fermentation method, which,
although not so precise as the volumetric process, is still {213}
sufficiently so for clinical purposes. A small piece of German yeast or
a teaspoonful of liquid yeast is added to about four ounces (120 c.c.)
of the urine, which is kept lightly stopped, at a temperature of 20° to
30° C. (68° to 80° F.), for about twelve hours; at the end of this time
the sugar will have been converted into alcohol and carbonic acid. The
latter will have passed off, and the urine lost in weight because of
the destruction of sugar; while the difference between the specific
gravity before and after the fermentation indicates the number of
grains of sugar per fluidounce. Thus, suppose the specific gravity
before fermentation to have been 1040, and afterward 1025; there will
have been 15 grains of sugar to the fluidounce, whence, again, the
twenty-four hours' quantity can be calculated. If the metric system is
used, each degree of specific gravity lost will correspond to .2196
grams of sugar in every 100 c.c. of urine.
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