Health, Public and Personal (Paperback)

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1922 Excerpt: ...the condition of the urine throws a great deal of light on the body's activities. It often warns of dangers that are not easily detected otherwise. For example, an analysis that shows the presence of sugar in the urine indicates that the sugar storage process of the liver is failing. The kidneys are not adapted to keeping back sugar in large quantities. When there is more than about.2 of one per cent in the blood, it GERM INFECTIONS 151 is not the kidney's fault if some of it is lost. The presence of albumin in the urine is a warning that must be heeded immediately, as has been shown above. The kidneys are pretty faithful and able servants, but if we put on them more than they can do, we must blame ourselves and not our kidneys if things go wrong. What may a physician learn of a patient by an analysis of his urine? Give two examples. How may we reasonably hope to avoid these two ailments? Germ Infections.--Germs which get into the blood stream, such as tuberculosis, sometimes lodge and grow in the kidneys. Infected kidneys sometimes recover without an operation. Yet it is occasionally necessary to remove a kidney. If one of the kidneys is destroyed, it throws double work on the other. The destruction of both kidneys is fatal. Not many kinds of germs are likely to work up the urethra to the bladder and thence up the ureter to the kidneys. Some do, however, and it is a serious matter. Some of the toxins of germ diseases are very hard on the kidneys, rendering them incapable of doing their work well. This is an added reason for keeping ourselves as much as possible from infection and contagion. By what two avenues may disease germs reach the kidneys? How may certain germ diseases attacking other tissues harm the kidneys? CHAPTER X THE SKIN Bone and Skin, two m...