Dusée: His Forceps and His Contemporaries.

Abstract

A LARGE and valuable collection of obstetrical and gynaecological instruments, formerly the property of the Olhstetrical Society of London, has been prcsented t o the Royal College of Surgcons by the Royal Society of Medicine.I t includes a great part of the celcbrated series exhibited at a conversazione held by the Obstetrical Society at the Collcge of Physicians in 1866.Among them are a formidable array of ccphalotribes, an instructive set of obstetric forceps from Dude-Palfyn's and Levret's, devised in the middle of thr eighteenth century, to Simpson's, Aveling's, Barnes's, and Matthews Duncan's, in use when ihe series was exhibited, and many contrivances invented by foreign obstetricians, such as the elegant pelvimeter made by Professor Rizzoli, of Bologna (" Nuovo Pelvimetro-isterometro," Memorie Chirurgiche ed Ostrtriche del Professore Rieeoli di Bologna.1869).Dr. David Davis's ingenious contrivances, asymmetrical forceps, the blades being me\-en, orteotomists, etc ., also come under the same category; their use is explained in Dr. Davis's Operative Midwifery, a fine illustrated work which appeared in 1846.A considerable number of obstetrical and gynmological instrument? were presented during the past year by Xr.Penrose Williams, of Uridgmater.Among them are certain contrivances.like Marion Sims's guarded tumour hook and several 6craseurs for fibroids, of relatively recent invention, now all but obsolete owing t o the great progress which has been rnade in the surgery of fibronlyoma of the uterus.Xr. W. Dunnett Spanton has likewise added t o the collection, since the last annual show, some interesting gynaxological instruments, amongst which are a few antiquated pessaries .