Embryology - 19 Apr 2024 Expand to Translate
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Chidester FE. An abnormal human foetus. (1908) Anat. Rec. 2: 257-265.

An Abnormal Human Foetus

By

Floyd E. Chidester.

From the Biological Laboratory, Clark University.

With Nine Figures.

Through the kindness of Prof. C. F. Hodge, I was permitted during the past winter to dissect an interesting seven months' foetus presented to him by Mr. W. B. Fox, of the Harvard Medical School. Deformities of the limbs are quite common in human embryos, but complete absence of one leg is not so frequent.

Fig. 1. View from the front, showing the single lower extremity. Fig. 2. View from the side, showing the peculiar shape of the left hand.

For the benefit of those who might be interested from an obstetrical point of view, I give the following history of the case:

Mother, housewife; general physical condition, good; number of pregnancies, two; labor began, October 24, 1907; first visit, 1.15 p, m.^ same day; presentation, vertex; position, occiput left anterior; cervix, taken up; OS uteri, wholly dilated; foetal heart, could not be heard; pulse of mother before, 86; after, 76; temperature before, 98.8; after, 99.2°; membranes ruptured, 9 a. m., October 24, 1907; child born, 1.30 p. m., October 24, 1907; placenta delivered, 3.10 p. m., October 24, 1907; condition of placenta when delivered, intact; perineum, intact; length of cord, twenty inches ; duration of labor, seven hours ; sex, male ; age, seventh foetal month; weight, 3% pounds; length, fourteen inches.

Fig. 3. Rear view, showing the lungs and the (slit) oesophagus, etc.

The right leg was absent, the left leg being almost a continuation of the spinal column. As can be seen from Fig. 1, the penis was turned a little to the right. The left hand was singularly foot-like in appearance, and the left thumb was attached only to the first finger by a flap of skin.

On receiving the specimen in weak formalin about a week after delivery/! injected the brain and spinal canal and the body cavity with 10 per cent formalin.

At the end of about two weeks I opened the skull and examined the brain, hoping to find it well enough preserved for study. Unfortunately, in the few days elapsing between birth and its receipt and injection, decomposition had rendered any neurological study impracticable. Though kept in strong formalin for over six weeks afterward, the brain did not harden.

Fig. 4. Front view, showing the heart, liver, left lung, and coiled intestine.

My attention was next turned to the internal organs, which were singularly undeveloped. Fig. 3 shows the lungs, which, instead of being three-lobed and two-lobed respectively, have but a single lobe each.

It is interesting to note that, not only was there no stomach, but that on cutting open the oesophagus, no thickening of the walls was found in the region normally occupied by the stomach. A blind sac, indicated in the preceding figure, occupied a position just below the left lung. This was opened and found to be empty, and to have no opening to the exterior. It was attached by mesentery to the intestine

Fig. 5. View of the viscera from below.

Fig. 6. Rear view of tlie lumbar and sacral nerves.

Examination of the wall of the sac revealed the presence of the characteristic mucous, sub-mucous, muscular and serous coats of the digestive tract. This sac, or pouch, may have started as the stomach.

The heart was about one-fourth larger than normal. The liver was rather large, but normal in position. There were no kidneys, no spleen, no pancreas, and no appendix vermiformis. The intestine was otherwise norma), except that, as before stated, it was continuous with the oesophagus. The anus, however, was imperforate for about one and a half inches. The right testis was undescended.

Fig. 7. Front view of the lumbar and sacral nerves.

Since preparation of the brain was impossible, I proceeded to dissect the spinal nerves, and while doing so discovered the absence on the right side of the body of not only the femur, but also the ilium and ischium. This will be mentioned later.

The spinal ganglia were all present on both sides of the cord, but, beginning with the first lumbar, the ganglia on the right side were mucli smaller than those on the left.

Fig. S. Skiagraph of the pelvic region, rear view,

The great sciatic nerve on the right side (Fig. 6) passed down into the scrotum and ramified as fine nervelets. All the lumbar and sacral nerves on the right side were distinctly smaller than the corresponding ones on the left side.

The anterior crural nerve on the right side (Fig. 7) sent oflE five branches, the main trunk continuing into the scrotal tissue, where it, like the great sciatic, ramified cutaneously.

Fig. 9. Skiagraph of the arms.

The small sciatic nerve and the proportionately large piidendic nerves also ramified in the scrotum.

One of the most interesting features of the anatomy of this fcetus was the fact that the bones of the pelvis, as well as those of the extremity, were completely absent on the right side. The accompanying skiagraph (Fig. 8) indicates this clearly.

Careful dissection of the pelvic region confirmed the idea that there was not even cartilage in the place of these bones. The skiagraph shows plainly that the ilium and ischium on the left side are separate in this seven months' foetus.

The right arm and hand were perfectly normal. The left arm was normal down to the elbow. This was stiff. Fig. 9 indicates the deformity there present. The ulna was completely absent, and the radius and humerus formed a large, stiff joint.

The carpal bones of both hands do not show in the skiagraph, but dissection disclosed the fact that although unossified they were present as very soft cartilage. The left first metacarpal bone was absent.

The thumb was not in its normal position on the left hand. Instead, a ball of flesh containing one cartilaginous phalanx lay in the palm between the first and second fingers. It was attached by a small flap of skin to the second phalanx of the flrst finger. A nail was present on the dorsal aspect of this "thumb" as it lay in the palm.

I wish to acknowledge my indebtedness to Prof. C. F. Hodge for the opportunity to work on this interesting specimen and for his many helpful suggestions concerning it. The photographic plates were made by Mr. Newton Miller, Clark University, and the skiagraph plates by Dr. Philip Cook, City Hospital, Worcester, Mass.

Summary

The following abnormalities were discovered :

1. Lungs uni-lobed.

2. Heart one-fourth larger than normal.

3. Kidneys absent.

4. Vermiform appendix absent.

5. Pancreas absent.

6. Spleen absent.

7. Stomach, as such, absent ; a blind sac not in the normal position of the stomach may have originated as a stomach.

8. Anus imperforate for one and a half inches.

9. One testis undescended.

10. Bony structure which might be interpreted as belonging to a right leg completely absent.

11. Left thumb misplaced, with no first metacarpal bone on the left hand.

12. Ulna of the left forearm absent.

Cite this page: Hill, M.A. (2024, April 19) Embryology Paper - An abnormal human foetus (1908). Retrieved from https://embryology.med.unsw.edu.au/embryology/index.php/Paper_-_An_abnormal_human_foetus_(1908)

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