Posts tagged organs

Effects of influenza on the respiratory system

Left: Acute hemorrhagic and ulcerative laryngotracheitis
Right: Right lung - showing consolidation, grey hepatization (lower lobe), and congestive edema (upper lobe). There is a large hemorrhage in the center of the hepatized lobe.

Happy Flu Season!

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again - even if the flu is just a few days of misery for you, it’s often far more serious than you might think for many others out there. It’s worth making sure you get the vaccine every year so you don’t spread infection, and, if you do get infected, stay the hell at home.

Hepatization is the conversion of a tissue or organ to a “liver-like” substance. In the lungs, this occurs when they become engorged with effused matter, such as red blood cells, neutrophils, and fibrin, which clog up the alveoli to the point that the lungs are impervious to air, where this has occurred. Grey hepatization is the second stage in lung hepatization - at this point, the red blood cells have broken down, leaving only the fibrinogen exudate and dead tissue behind.

Laryngotracheitis is an inflammatory response in the larynx and trachea. The trachea is lined with the same epithelial cells as much of the bronchial tree, and all influenza strains are able to infect those cells. This is why, whether you have a “light” case of the flu or a deathly-serious case, coughing and throat pain still occur. When the infection is bad enough, the coughing can lead to ulceration of the tissue below the epithelium, which can lead to bleeding into the lungs, or coughing up blood.

In cases involving “consolidation”, there is generally an opportunistic pneumonia taking hold. The bacterial exotoxins and sometimes the patient’s own immune system, break down epithelial cells that separate and define the alveolar sacs. The surface area given by these epithelial layers is what allows a high volume of oxygen to be absorbed with each breath we take. When those cell layers are destroyed, the oxygenation of blood is severely decreased.

Pathology of Influenza. Charles Winternitz, Isabel Wason, and Frank McNamara, 1920.

missdanidollie: biomedicalephemera: Interior appearance of a cadaver showing constriction and displacement due to corsets The author notes the particular problems with kidney function when the abdomen is constricted like this - while all of the visceral organs have some degree of flexibility when it comes to where they’re pushed around, the ureters (the tubes that take urine from the kidneys to the bladder) are especially prone to constriction blockage, and subsequent kidney and bladder stones. Medical Gynecology. Howard A. Kelly, 1913. whoooooooooo this has been disprooooooved Don’t site shit from fucking 1913 as fact Psst…that’s why it says “THE AUTHOR NOTES”. I don’t present this shit as current medical evidence, man. I started this blog to point out the weird, bizarre, errant, and interesting beliefs and practices of the past. Also, it’s not like all evidence of tight-lacing causing problems has been disproven; only the “evidence” that was supposedly supporting the claim that ALL corsets caused damage has been shown to be total bunk. The claims of damage to the ureters are largely untrue (though women who tight-laced tended to forgo liquids when they were seeking less bloating, and dehydration certainly harms the bladder and kidneys), but the stomach, liver, and uterus are all affected by this practice. I’m not for or against it, I’m just stating what science has shown. If you tightlace with gallbladder problems, gallstones are more common. If you have dyspepsia to begin with, it will probably get worse. The claims of uterine damage to non-pregnant females don’t seem to be supported or rejected by the evidence available to me, but pregnant females can experience problems with the womb pressing against other organs if they continue to tight-lace for any significant length of time into their pregnancy.

missdanidollie:

biomedicalephemera:

Interior appearance of a cadaver showing constriction and displacement due to corsets

The author notes the particular problems with kidney function when the abdomen is constricted like this - while all of the visceral organs have some degree of flexibility when it comes to where they’re pushed around, the ureters (the tubes that take urine from the kidneys to the bladder) are especially prone to constriction blockage, and subsequent kidney and bladder stones.

Medical Gynecology. Howard A. Kelly, 1913.

whoooooooooo this has been disprooooooved

Don’t site shit from fucking 1913 as fact

Psst…that’s why it says “THE AUTHOR NOTES”. I don’t present this shit as current medical evidence, man. I started this blog to point out the weird, bizarre, errant, and interesting beliefs and practices of the past.

Also, it’s not like all evidence of tight-lacing causing problems has been disproven; only the “evidence” that was supposedly supporting the claim that ALL corsets caused damage has been shown to be total bunk.

The claims of damage to the ureters are largely untrue (though women who tight-laced tended to forgo liquids when they were seeking less bloating, and dehydration certainly harms the bladder and kidneys), but the stomach, liver, and uterus are all affected by this practice.

I’m not for or against it, I’m just stating what science has shown. If you tightlace with gallbladder problems, gallstones are more common. If you have dyspepsia to begin with, it will probably get worse.
The claims of uterine damage to non-pregnant females don’t seem to be supported or rejected by the evidence available to me, but pregnant females can experience problems with the womb pressing against other organs if they continue to tight-lace for any significant length of time into their pregnancy.

biomedicalephemera

Internal organs of the Chicken

Internal organs of the Chicken

Dioctophyme renale, or, the Giant Kidney Worm, in the kidney of a dog

Dioctophyme renale is the largest parasite to infect humans, though its natural host is wild carnivores. Humans can contract the parasite by eating raw or undercooked fish or dog meat, and infection is most prevalent around the Caspian Sea and Iran.

Significant pain around the lower back, loin, and groin is often endured by those afflicted, though the fact that generally only one kidney is infected means that their kidney function is not completely lost.

As the female worms lay eggs, those eggs are excreted in the urine, which ends up in local waterways, and eventually in the environments of fish once again, re-starting the cycle of infection. The eggs in the urine are also how doctors diagnose infection with Dioctophyme renale. Once diagnosed, surgical removal is the only cure - if one leaves the worm in there indefinitely, their maximum lifespan is 5 years, and they will decompose and destroy local tissue once they die.

Images:

Top: The Principles of Pathology. J. George Adami, 1912.
Bottom: Dioctophyme renale removed from medium-sized dog, Vetnext.com.

Interior appearance of a cadaver showing constriction and displacement due to corsets The author notes the particular problems with kidney function when the abdomen is constricted like this - while all of the visceral organs have some degree of flexibility when it comes to where they’re pushed around, the ureters (the tubes that take urine from the kidneys to the bladder) are especially prone to constriction blockage, and subsequent kidney and bladder stones. Medical Gynecology. Howard A. Kelly, 1913.

Interior appearance of a cadaver showing constriction and displacement due to corsets

The author notes the particular problems with kidney function when the abdomen is constricted like this - while all of the visceral organs have some degree of flexibility when it comes to where they’re pushed around, the ureters (the tubes that take urine from the kidneys to the bladder) are especially prone to constriction blockage, and subsequent kidney and bladder stones.

Medical Gynecology. Howard A. Kelly, 1913.

Internal View of Lumbar Region Thanks to the thick, protective mesentery and sheer mass of the intestines (not to mention the consequences if they’re damaged), many surgeries of the pelvic and lumbar organs are performed by opening the back, instead of the abdomen. You can clearly see both the ascending and descending colon and the kidneys in this dissection. Anatomy, Descriptive and Surgical. Henry Gray, 1911.

Internal View of Lumbar Region

Thanks to the thick, protective mesentery and sheer mass of the intestines (not to mention the consequences if they’re damaged), many surgeries of the pelvic and lumbar organs are performed by opening the back, instead of the abdomen.

You can clearly see both the ascending and descending colon and the kidneys in this dissection.

Anatomy, Descriptive and Surgical. Henry Gray, 1911.

Sweat glands in the human epidermis:

Diagrammatically represented (top)
Isolated vertical cross-section (Right)
Isolated horizontal cross-section (left)

Staying cool this ridiculous summer, fellow North Americans? Even if you’re hot and miserable and sweaty, your body knows how to keep its organs at the optimal temperature - that’s why you sweat in the heat in the first place!

Unlike other mammals that sweat for thermoregulation (such as oxen and horses), humans largely sweat from their eccrine sweat glands, which are not directly connected to hair follicles. Eccrine sweat glands secrete mostly water, with a few electrolytes (mostly NaCl, which is why sweat tastes salty). The amount we sweat is regulated by the hypothalamus and the contraction of cells surrounding the eccrine glands, and is influenced by hormone release and internal body temperature.

The water secreted by the eccrine sweat glands utilizes a process called evaporative cooling to reduce the surface temperature of the skin, which in turn reduces the temperature of the blood flowing through the expanded arterioles near the skin surface, and that blood flows through the body and keeps the organs and muscles at a relatively constant temperature. Sweat glands are coil-shaped, with a bulbous sac at the bottom that filters blood plasma to produce sweat. When the cells surrounding the sac and coil are triggered, they contract, pushing that sweat to the surface of the skin.

We also have apocrine sweat glands (the only functional thermoregulatory glands in horses and other sweaty mammals), but they’re largely restricted to the armpits, areola, and perianal region. Their secretions are not as simple as eccrine sweat glands - they’re typically milky-white and contain hormones and additional components of blood plasma that bacteria *love* to chow down. Those bacteria produce stinky excretions of their own, and that’s what causes smelly armpits!

When you use deodorant, the substance you apply works by breaking down the components excreted by bacteria that cause the smell, and masking any residual stink that can’t be broken down. Antiperspirants function by plugging the openings of the sweat pores, so that sweat can’t escape. This is usually done with small particles of aluminum. Despite misconceptions, blocking the sweat glands does not cause breast cancer, though some people experience adverse effects due to allergies to aluminum or other ingredients.

Images:

Top: Anatomy, Descriptive and Applied. Henry Gray et al, 1910.
Bottom: Diseases of the skin; a text-book for students and practitioners. J.M.H. Macleod, 1920.

Internal Anatomy of the Grass Frog [Genus Litoria] As different as frogs are from you and I, you can clearly see how similar vertebrates are to each other when you dissect one. One heart, two lungs, a stomach, liver, spleen, gall bladder, intestines, kidneys, bladder, and gonads are visible in this particular dissection, as well as the extraordinarily strong leg muscles. Brehms Tierleben, Bd. 1. Alfred Brehms, 1911.

Internal Anatomy of the Grass Frog [Genus Litoria]

As different as frogs are from you and I, you can clearly see how similar vertebrates are to each other when you dissect one. One heart, two lungs, a stomach, liver, spleen, gall bladder, intestines, kidneys, bladder, and gonads are visible in this particular dissection, as well as the extraordinarily strong leg muscles.

Brehms Tierleben, Bd. 1. Alfred Brehms, 1911.

That's one of the reasons why I tink the liver is just one of the coolest organs. Metabolizes drugs, helps with digestion, can regrow... the list goes on. I'm probably going to have to go with the typical answer and say the brain. Just thinking about how much it does day and night baffles me. Dreaming, emotions, pain, involuntary muscle actions... just one organ that controls all of that. Fascinating. — Asked by taramarkovs

As much as I love the brain, and am amazed by its powers of rewiring and re-building itself after disaster or to accommodate new input, I’m still more a fan of the liver. The metabolism of toxins is so fascinating…plus there’s the whole “starfish-y” aspect of it, which is nifty as hell.

So what's YOUR favorite organ, and why?

I’m a fan of the liver. It is the starfish of organs.

Angeiographie Vascularization of the organs and muscles. The viscera requires an amazing amount of oxygenated blood to do its job properly, which is one of the many reasons you don’t want to get shot in the gut. Note the inclusion of the veins that go from the intestines to the liver in the top right quadrant of this plate (the image with the blue vessels) - the hepatic portal vein is not a “true” vein, in that it does not take deoxygenated blood back to the heart and lungs, but it takes nutrient-rich blood from the GI tract into the capillary beds of the liver for processing.  Anatomie Methodique, ou, Organographie Humaine. Jean-Baptiste Sarlandière, 1829.

Angeiographie

Vascularization of the organs and muscles. The viscera requires an amazing amount of oxygenated blood to do its job properly, which is one of the many reasons you don’t want to get shot in the gut.

Note the inclusion of the veins that go from the intestines to the liver in the top right quadrant of this plate (the image with the blue vessels) - the hepatic portal vein is not a “true” vein, in that it does not take deoxygenated blood back to the heart and lungs, but it takes nutrient-rich blood from the GI tract into the capillary beds of the liver for processing. 

Anatomie Methodique, ou, Organographie Humaine. Jean-Baptiste Sarlandière, 1829.

Splanchnographie General anatomy of the abdominothoracic region and its organs, including the female generative organs. Anatomie Methodique, ou, Organographie Humaine. Jean-Baptiste Sarlandière, 1829.

Splanchnographie

General anatomy of the abdominothoracic region and its organs, including the female generative organs.

Anatomie Methodique, ou, Organographie Humaine. Jean-Baptiste Sarlandière, 1829.

Infarction of the spleen Occlusion of the splenic artery or any of its branches can lead to splenic infarction, which is the necrosis of tissue due to oxygen deprivation (necrosis can occur for numerous other reasons - infarction is simply a term for a specific type of necrosis). Though ruptured spleen, hemorrhage, or pseudocyst formation can occur, the spleen is generally not removed, even if large areas are necrosed. Because the body can often rebuild the destroyed tissue (or simply break down the dead tissue and only use the remainder of the organ), and there’s an overwhelming level of post-splenectomy infection, splenectomy is rarely indicated. A Text-Book of Pathology. W. G. MacCallum, 1916.

Infarction of the spleen

Occlusion of the splenic artery or any of its branches can lead to splenic infarction, which is the necrosis of tissue due to oxygen deprivation (necrosis can occur for numerous other reasons - infarction is simply a term for a specific type of necrosis).

Though ruptured spleen, hemorrhage, or pseudocyst formation can occur, the spleen is generally not removed, even if large areas are necrosed. Because the body can often rebuild the destroyed tissue (or simply break down the dead tissue and only use the remainder of the organ), and there’s an overwhelming level of post-splenectomy infection, splenectomy is rarely indicated.

A Text-Book of Pathology. W. G. MacCallum, 1916.

The deep muscles and vessels of the abdominal cavity. Look, if you’ve wanted to cut a guy in half just to see what it looks like inside, you don’t have to. This is what it looks like! Well, it is after taking out all the viscera, intestines, and more superficial organs (which, don’t forget, does not mean they’re organs that are vain and vapid, simply that they’re organs closer to the surface). The Dissection of the Human Body. George Viner Ellis and G. H. Ford, 1891.

The deep muscles and vessels of the abdominal cavity.

Look, if you’ve wanted to cut a guy in half just to see what it looks like inside, you don’t have to. This is what it looks like! Well, it is after taking out all the viscera, intestines, and more superficial organs (which, don’t forget, does not mean they’re organs that are vain and vapid, simply that they’re organs closer to the surface).

The Dissection of the Human Body. George Viner Ellis and G. H. Ford, 1891.

Visceral Hemorrhage in Newborn This can be caused by trauma during birth, such as if the infant gets stuck and needs to be extracted with forceps. If you look at the liver (lowermost organ), you can see the necrotic tissue on the right-hand side. You can also see necrosis within the kidney cross-section, spreading from the renal pelvis. An American Text-Book of the Diseases of Children. Louis Starr, 1900.

Visceral Hemorrhage in Newborn

This can be caused by trauma during birth, such as if the infant gets stuck and needs to be extracted with forceps. If you look at the liver (lowermost organ), you can see the necrotic tissue on the right-hand side. You can also see necrosis within the kidney cross-section, spreading from the renal pelvis.

An American Text-Book of the Diseases of Children. Louis Starr, 1900.