She had abrupt vertical abdominal movements,
so strong as to cause her to plunge and sway from side to side.
Her breasts were enlarged, the areolae dark, and the uterus
contained an elastic tumor, heavy and rolling under the hand. Her
abdomen progressively enlarged to the regular size of matured
gestation; but the extrauterine pregnancy, which was supposed to
have existed, was not seen at the autopsy, nothing more than an
enlarged liver being found. The movement was due to spasmodic
movements of the abdominal muscles, the causes being unknown.
Madden gives the history of a primipara of twenty-eight, married
one year, to whom he was called. On entering the room he was
greeted by the midwife, who said she expected the child about 8
P.M. The woman was lying in the usual obstetric position, on the
left side, groaning, crying loudly, and pulling hard at a strap
fastened to the bed-post. She had a partial cessation of menses,
and had complained of tumultuous movements of the child and
overflow of milk from the breasts. Examination showed the cervix
low down, the os small and circular, and no signs of pregnancy in
the uterus. The abdomen was distended with tympanites and the
rectum much dilated with accumulated feces.
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