The sexual life of woman in its physiological, pathological and hygienic aspectsKisch, E. Heinrich (Enoch Heinrich)
Science
The sexual life of woman in its physiological, pathological and hygienic aspects
Kisch, E. Heinrich (Enoch Heinrich)
Gynecology; Menstruation; Women -- Diseases
Young men who have previously suffered from gonorrhœa and who wish to
marry, must, unless they wish to cause unspeakable misery, undergo an
exact and thorough examination; not only must the physician inquire as
to the presence of certain symptoms, such as smarting during
micturition, adhesion of the lips of the urethral meatus, “clap-threads”
in the urine, etc., but during a considerable period of time repeated
microscopical examinations of the urine must be undertaken, and the
filaments, if present, must be examined for gonococci. The physician
will also have to determine whether any vestiges remain of epididymitis,
and whether the quality of the semen has been impaired by the attack of
gonorrhœa. Unfortunately, it is not yet within our power absolutely to
forbid marriage to a man exhibiting all the symptoms of chronic
gonorrhœa; but it is the duty of the physician to explain to such a man
the scientific views regarding this matter that now prevail, in order to
furnish him with the grounds for a decision.
It is not possible, when discussing the hygiene of married life, to
preserve silence respecting the extremely pressing question of the use
of measures for the prevention of conception, for in recent years their
use has become extraordinarily general, chiefly, indeed, in the upper
and middle classes of society, but to some extent also among the
working-class population. Although we devote a special chapter to this
topic, we must here express the opinion that, except in certain
instances in which their employment can be justified on carefully
weighed and well-established medical grounds, the use of any mechanical
or chemical means for the prevention of conception must be
discountenanced as injurious to health. The wife who wishes to preserve
her psychical purity and moral chastity, which is not only possible in
marriage but also greatly to be desired, must not concern herself much
with the technique of the sexual life, but must give herself up to
sexual enjoyment only as the result of a delicate and immediate bodily
and mental desire. Not only for reasons of national economy regarding
the means of providing for the family, but also for well-grounded
personal reasons regarding the wife’s health, must the latter be spared
an unduly rapid succession of pregnancies and confinements. And this
should be effected by a certain degree of continence and by the
observation of extensive periods of sexual quiescence.
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