A System of midwifery : including the diseases of pregnancy and the puerperal state . lines, have reference to children bornduring th« specified period, whether alive or dead, the figures in thethird line, of children born during month, refer Pig the eighth and ninth only to children born dead. The reason of the greater varietyof presentation in the early monthsis sufficiently obvious. Not only isthe child at this period smaller rel-atively to the cavity which is pre-pared for it, but the form of thecavity itself is such, as compara-tively to encourage changes of thepresentation. CJntil the si
A System of midwifery : including the diseases of pregnancy and the puerperal state . lines, have reference to children bornduring th« specified period, whether alive or dead, the figures in thethird line, of children born during month, refer Pig the eighth and ninth only to children born dead. The reason of the greater varietyof presentation in the early monthsis sufficiently obvious. Not only isthe child at this period smaller rel-atively to the cavity which is pre-pared for it, but the form of thecavity itself is such, as compara-tively to encourage changes of thepresentation. CJntil the sixth month,the cavity of the cervix not bavin**been as yet encroached upon, in theprocess of development, the childis contained in the cavity proper ofthe uterus, or rather of the body ofthe uterus. Most anatomists agreethat, up to this period, the cai it\ isround, and qoI oval, so that, as in the annexed diagram ( Fig. 73) ;1 foetus of live months may move muchmore freely in any direction than is possible at the full time, when itis closely embraced by the pyriform or ovoid Uterina o»Yltj »t the ttfih no >nth. 132 DEVELOPMENT OF THE EMBRYO AND FCETUS. [CHAP. It must be confessed, however, that the causes which lead to the pre-sentation of the head constitute a subject still shrouded in no little ob-scurity. The fact being clearly established, we see no need to pin ourfaith exclusively upon a Bingle theory, particularly as it is more thanprobable that most, if not all of them, point to individual causes which,acting successively, or in concert, produce the effect which we have beenconsidering. No theory quite satisfactorily accounts for the fact that theembryo assumes its ovoid form at so early a date of development. Weknow, of course, what Harvey first taught, that all animals, while theyare at rest or asleep, fold up their limbs in such a way as to form an ovalor globular figure. This has been ascribed by modern physiologiststo the greater muscular tone and contra
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1870, booksubjectobstetrics, bookyear1
