H——, J. C.a machine readable transcriptionSusan C. LawrenceKenneth M. PriceKenneth J. Winkle2011med.d1e16670Civil War WashingtonUniversity of Nebraska–LincolnCenter for Digital Research in the Humanities319 Love LibraryUniversity of Nebraska–LincolnLincoln, NE 68588-4100cdrh@unlnotes.unl.edu2011
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Kenneth M. PriceAJ HowellMatthew BosleyElizabeth LorangStacey BerryElisabeth TraceyThe Medical and Surgical History of the War of the Rebellion.
(1861–65.)Surgeon General Joseph K. Barnes, United States ArmyWashington, D.C.Government Printing OfficePart 1Volume 21870264Medical and Surgical History of the War of the Rebellionon special wounds and injuries of the headwounds and injuries of the headgunshot woundsgunshot fractures of the cranial bonestrephining after gunshot fractures of the skulltrephining practiced, fatal terminationconoidal ball entered lower occipital bone, fractured and depressed inner table,
lodged in diploë, plugged lateral sinus on right side of brainsymptoms of compression, convulsions caused by depressed portion of bone and
pressure of ball on brainautopsydisorganized pulpy condition of posterior lobe of brain, emitted offensive
odorfracture extended from entrance to foramen magnum. The ball found in posterior lobe of cerebrumblessedadded figure encodingadditional proofing of transcription and encoding, edited
and added keyword termsadditional proofing of transcription and encodingcase text extracted and transformed from larger
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CASE.—Corporal J. C.
H——, Co. E, 2d New Jersey
Volunteers, aged 37 years, was wounded at the battle of Spottsylvania Court-house, Virginia, May
14th, 1864, by a conoidal ball, which entered the lower part of the occipital bone,
fractured and depressed the inner table, and lodged in the diploë, plugging up the
lateral sinus on the right side of the brain. He was admitted on the same day to the hospital of the 1st division, Sixth Corps,
and thence, on the 19th, sent to the Harewood Hospital, Washington, D. C. On the 21st, the parts were in a healthy condition,
with a moderate amount of suppuration, and the patient's constitutional condition was
remarkably good. Surgeon R. B. Bontecou, U. S. V., applied the trephine, but did not remove
the ball, for fear of hæmorrhage from the lateral sinus and immediate death. The
patient did not exhibit any symptoms of compression until the 26th, when he was seized with convulsions, caused by the
depressed portion of bone and the pressure of the ball on the brain. The trephine was again
applied, and the depressed bone was removed, but the ball had receded from sight, and could
not be found. After the operation, the convulsions ceased, a passive delirium supervened and
continued until the 4th of June, 1864, when
death occurred. The autopsy revealed a disorganized pulpy condition of the posterior lobe of
the brain, emitting an extremely offensive odor. The fracture extended from orifice of
entrance to the foramen magnum. The ball was found in the posterior lobe of the cerebrum, at
the depth of about two inches. The specimen is a large section of the cranium with a
conoidal ball suspended in a perforation of the occipital bone. The opening measures one
inch by one and one-fourth inches, and is partly caused by the operation of trephining. A
fissure passes down ward and inward to the foramen magnum. The specimen and history were
contributed by Surgeon R. B. Bontecou ,U. S. V. and are further illustrated in the Surgical
Photograph Series, A. M. M., Volume VII, page 1.