Aids to Forensic Medicine and Toxicology — John Shaqi
Aids to Forensic Medicine and ToxicologyRobertson, W. G. Aitchison (William George Aitchison )
Science
Aids to Forensic Medicine and Toxicology
Robertson, W. G. Aitchison (William George Aitchison )
Medical jurisprudence; Poisons
It is much more difficult to decide whether certain symptoms are due to
a real disease which is present, or whether they are merely
exaggerations of slight symptoms or simulations of past ones. The miner,
after an injury to his back, recovers very slowly, if at all. He is
suffering from 'traumatic neurasthenia'--a condition only too often
simulated, and a disease very difficult to diagnose accurately. The
miner takes advantage of our ignorance, and continues to draw his
compensation. A workman during his work receives a fracture; instead of
being able to resume work in six weeks, he asserts that the pain and
stiffness prevent him, and this disability may persist for months. Such
cases as these frequently come before the courts when the employer has
discontinued to pay the weekly compensation for the injury. Medical men
are called to give evidence for or against the injured workman.
=Epilepsy= is often simulated. The foaming at the mouth is produced by a
piece of soap between the gums and the cheek. The true epileptic,
especially if he suspects that a fit is imminent, takes his walks abroad
in some secluded spot, whilst the impostor selects a crowded locality
for his exertions. The epileptic often injures himself in falling, his
imitator never; one bites his tongue, but the other carefully refrains
from doing so. The skin of an epileptic during an attack is cold and
pallid, but that of the exhibitor is covered with sweat as the result of
his exertions. In epilepsy the urine and faeces are passed involuntarily,
but his colleague rarely considers it necessary to carry his deception
to this extent. In true epilepsy the eyes are partly open, with the
eyeballs rolling and distorted, whilst the pupils are dilated and do not
contract to light; the impostor keeps his eyes closed, and he cannot
prevent the iris from contracting when a bicycle-lamp is flashed across
his face. A useful test is to give the impostor a pinch of snuff, which
promptly brings the entertainment to an end.
=Lumbago= is often feigned, and the imposture should be suspected when
there is a motive, and when physical signs, such as nodes and tender
spots, are absent. A simple test is to inadvertently drop a shilling in
front of him, when he will promptly stoop and pick it up. The same
principles apply to spurious sciatica.
=Haemorrhages= purporting to come from the lungs, stomach, or bowels,
rarely present much difficulty. The microscope is of use in all cases of
bleeding. Possibly the gums or the inside of the cheeks may have been
scratched or abraded with a pin.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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