Clarke reports the case of a Hindoo of twenty-two, under
treatment for ague, who, without pain or vomiting, suddenly fell
into collapse and died twenty-three hours later. He also mentions
a case of rupture of the stomach of a woman of uncertain history,
who was supposed to have died of cholera. The examination of the
bodies of both cases showed true rupture of the stomach and not
mere perforation. In both cases, at the time of rupture, the
stomach was empty, and the gastric juice had digested off the
capsules of the spleens, thus allowing the escape of blood into
the abdominal cavities. The seats of rupture were on the anterior
walls. In the first case the coats of the stomach were atrophied
and thin. In the second the coats were healthy and not even
softened. There was absence of softening, erosion, or rupture on
the posterior walls.
As illustrative of the amount of paralytic distention that is
possible, Bamberger mentions a case in which 70 pounds of fluid
filled the stomach.
Voluntary Vomiting.--It is an interesting fact that some persons
exhibit the power of contracting the stomach at will and
expelling its contents without nausea. Montegre mentions a
distinguished member of the Faculty of Paris, who, by his own
volition and without nausea or any violent efforts, could vomit
the contents of his stomach.
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