A text-book on hygiene and pediatrics from a chiropractic standpointCraven, J. H. (John Henry)
Science
A text-book on hygiene and pediatrics from a chiropractic standpoint
Craven, J. H. (John Henry)
Children -- Diseases; Chiropractic; Sanitation
The average chest measurement of the child at birth is from thirteen
to thirteen and four-tenths inches; thus it is seen that at birth the
circumference of the chest is about a half inch less than that of
the head. The circumference of the abdomen is about equal to that of
the chest. The transverse diameter is practically the same as that
of the antero-posterior, but as time goes on and the child develops,
the transverse diameter increases more rapidly until about ten years
of age when the shape of the thorax becomes about the same as that
of the adult. The diameter of the chest increases at the rate of
about one inch per year until the average of thirty inches is reached
at about the age of fifteen. During childhood the thorax should be
carefully observed for deformities.
Subluxations in the upper dorsal region may result in faulty
postures, which in turn will result in various deformities of the
thorax. If this faulty posture is not corrected and the child is
permitted to grow into adult life with the deformity, it can readily
be seen that such deformity will become permanent. In such cases
the dorsal subluxation should be adjusted early in life to overcome
the faulty posture. Innate will then take care of this temporary
deviation from the normal shape of the thorax. Deformities of the
thorax often indicate Pott’s dis-ease, curvatures of the spine,
rickets, emphysema, empyema and cardiac disturbances. In such cases
a very careful analysis should be made and the subluxations adjusted
to remove the cause of the condition to which the deformity is
adaptative.
ABDOMEN
The abdomen of the infant is very large in comparison with its
proportion in later childhood. Up to about two years of age the
circumference is the same as that of the chest, after which the
chest develops more rapidly and the abdomen gradually assumes
the proportions of the adult. However, the abdomen remains
proportionately large up to the age of puberty. Unless this fact
is recognized by the practitioner, he may suspect an abnormal
enlargement of the abdomen. There are conditions in which an
enlargement of the abdomen is typical, such as in various intestinal
disorders and especially in rickets. In rickets the abdomen becomes
gradually extended and is known as pot belly, but with this there
will be other symptoms of the dis-ease. If the abdomen seems
abnormally large the chiropractor should carefully analyze the child
to determine whether this is the result of some incoördination or
whether it is simply an idiosyncrasy of the child.
WALKING
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