Phosphorus hydrogenatus

Volume III — Main text

Phosphorus hydrogenatUSi phosphoretted hydrogen, phosphene, PH3.

II. Poisonings. — i. Dr. Brennar, after inhaling the gas during 3 mo. while preparing hypophosphites, noticed flickering points in his field of vision, which rapidly enlarged, and in four weeks rendered it impossible to fix his vision upon any object, especially in reading. At the same time a diarrhoea developed, with weakness and unsteadiness of arms, that gradually rendered it very difficult for him to write. The unsteadiness of the lower extremities was associated with recurrent shooting pains in them and in abdomen, and his gait became very tottering. The teeth also, both healthy and carious, began to crumble, without any pain. There was no headache or vertigo ; no sensitiveness of

• " The fatty degeneration produced by Ph. appears to depend on a more rapid splitting up of albuminous tissues, along with deficient oxidation. This was shown by Voit and Bauer, who produced fatty degeneration of the organs by the adminj. stration of Ph. to dogs absolutely deprived of tood, where the fat found after death could neither have come from food nor from fat deposited in other parts of the body, as that had all been absorbed before the drug had been commenced. It must therefore have been formed or situ from the decomposition of albuminous substances, and these were shown to have split up more quickly than usual by the amount of urea in the urine being increased, while oxidation was shown to have diminished by the amount of oxygen absorbed and carbonic acid given off being lessened." (fiaUNTON, op. cit. The investigations of Lebert and Wyss, Panum and Storch, gave similar results.)

t Several other facts of the same kind are given or cited by Sorce {op. cit.).

spine, no disturbance of hearing or of the mental powers. At last ataxia of muscles of articulation became apparent, so that it was necessary to make strong voluntary effort to pronounce a wished-for word ; swallowing also became somewhat difficult. The patient exhibited a complete picture of ataxia. He stood with extremities separated ; co-ordinated movement (as walking) was impossible ; when eyes were closed, patient would stagger and fall. There was no anaesthesia of skin or muscles ; the electric irritability of the muscles was indeed extraordinarily increased ; there was also no muscular atrophy. The optic nerve was extremely irritable ; reflex optic symptoms could be obtained not only through the trigeminus, but from nape of neck, from lower angle of scapula, and often from upper arm. The auditory nerve was normal, though showing some symptoms of hyperesthesia. Patient gradually recovered under electricity. (Schmidt's Jahrb,^ cxxvii, 163; from Allen.)

Volume IV — Appendix

PHOSPHORUS HYDROGENATUS.

(See vol. iii, p. 605,)

■In. I. Hugo Schulz, after 13 experiments on animals, arrives at '* following conclusions :

<t. Ph. hydr. has a narcotic cerebral action, like that of Ph. itself. "|.^ 4>. Its action on the spinal cord is also that of Ph. The author

^ ^^ observed motor paralysis, arising from the spinal motor centres ; ^^■^tfceraesthesia, depending on the spinal centres of sensibility j excita-

^^*^ of sexual and vesical irritability i shivering; tremor. ^«^ c. He has not noticed any marked alteration in the blood, or in the y^ Nominal organs. The fulness of the abdominal vessels was very ^•^iable.

d. The lungs nearly always showed lesions of inflammatory ure. {Rev. Horn. Belge^ Fevr., 1891.)