HEALTH NOTES.

Otago Witness, Issue 3312, 5 September 1917, Page 60

HEALTH NOTES.

TENDER FEET. In hot weather a large number of people suffer badly from tenderness of the feet, often associated with excessive perspiration, sometimes of an offensive kind. In many of these cases there is some actual malformation of the foot, such as flatfoot, in which the arch of the foot, on which the weight of the body rests, gives way, and an unnatural and undue etrain is thrown on the muscles and ligaments of the foot. But in many cases there is no such natural explanation, and the blame must be borne by the victim himself or herself. Narrow or ill-fitting boots or shoes, thin and cramping socks or stockings, a habit of clumsy and inelastic walking, all help to explain the unhealthy and unpleasant condition to which T. have referred. When the condition has actually snown itself active measures should at once bo taken. The strength of the foot muscles should be developed by various exercises; thick socks or stockings should be worn, wide and pronerly-shaped boots or shoes should be procured. The feet should be soaked in hot water twice daily for 10 nunutes._ and washed with formalin soap, and a little powdered boracic acid should be dusted over the feet and into the stockings in the morning. The stockings themselves should be changed daily. . EMPHYSEMA. Emphysema of the lungs is a condition in the human akin to " broken wind " in the horse. It consists of a loss of elasticity of the walls of the colls of the lungs, with loss of power in the walls of the lung itself. It is often produced by the occupation, wherever this latter calls for muscular effort with the lungs distended, and such people as glass-blowers, cornet-players, and porters employed in lifting heavy weights are the usual sufferers. The muscular contraction of the walls of the chest, combined with the prolonged retention of the breath, overstrains the cells of the lungs, and their contractile power becomes lessened. ' Indirectly emphysema may bo acquired by such persons as omnibus and cab drivers, and others whose work involves much exposure to wet and cold, as these conditions frequently lead to bronchitis and bronchial catarrh, and these to severo cough and consequent emphysema. Certain diseases are very likely to lead to emphysema—in particular, whoopingcough and chronic bronchitis. In those the violent efforts to "get the breath" cause extreme over-distension of the lungs. Asthma _ also often produces it, and, qt course, its occurrence is greatly assisted by any condition, such as valvular disease with its chronic congestion, which diminishes the natural elasticity of the lungs. Old age, which limits the elasticity of all the tissues, acts unfavourably in this disease also. Emphysema may occur at any i.ge. Even quite young children are affected, and indeed show marked examples. The variety which is due largely to loss of muscular power in the walls of the lungs is, on the other hand, usually met with in old or elderly people. Chronic emphysema, besides being occas'oncd in many cases by bronchitis, also tends to produce bronchitis. The over-dis-tended cells of the lungs obstruct the circulation of the bronchial and pulmonary vessels, and the mucous membrane of the bronchial region becomes congested and inflamed. The heart is also sometimes affected, its position in the chest being altered by the, altered pressure exerted upon it by the diluted lung. Tt lies lower in the chest, and is more nearly horizontal. The liver, kidneys, stomach, and brain all suffer from the condition of congestion set up by the lack of air in the injured lungs. The symptoms of emphysema are rarely discovered by the patient himself, as they are few in number and not very noticeable. Breathlessness is the chief of them, but as it is slight at first, and generally felt only on walking uphill it goes unmarked. The breathlessness increases, however, till, in bad cases, it may prevent movement altogether. This difficulty in breathing is usually increased by anything which interferes with the descent of the diaphragm the muscular layer round the waist—such as flatulent distension of the intestines or stooping or sitting in a low chair after a meal. The lungs being muscularly weakened are unable to expand against this mechanical obstacle, and breathlessness results. The appetite~ in patients with this condition is usually small, and there may be headache and drowsiness, due to the deficient aeration of the blood.