THIS Symptom from the Womb, happens Four different Ways; to wit, either by the Vessels, which run to the Neck of the Womb; or by Those, which tend to the Body and Cavity of the Same; or by Those, that adhere to the Membrane call’d Chorion, and to the Infant, by which it attracts its Nutriment; or by Those, that Nature hath reserv’d for a Superfœtation, or the Necessity of expurging this Blood when it chances to be Superfluous.
WHATEVER way this Flux happens, its Cause is Three-fold; and proceeds, either from an Apertion of some of the mentioned Uterine Vessels; or from their Dilatation; or from a Rupture of those Vessels.
THEY are open’d by a Redundancy or Superfluity of Blood; which Wise Nature takes this Method of fiercing and throwing-off, the Natural Evacuation being stopped. They are dilated by the Acrimony of the Humours, or by their own rarefy’d and thin Contexture, And, in fine, they may be bursten or broken, by a great Variety of Accidents; such as Running, Leaping, Falling, Striking, Lifting a heavy Weight, violent Motion, Coughs, great Pains, Vapours, Costiveness, Looseness, immoderate Heat, or Cold; as also by any violent Perturbation of Mind.
THE First Case (being the Work of Nature) happens with great Ease, and without any Pain or Trouble; it flows moderately and regularly, is of short Continuance, and not attended with any immediate Danger, so long as the Woman enjoys her Health, and continues well-colour’d in Complexion.
THE Second Case is called an Anastomosis; and what happens by such irregular Dilatations, falls Drop by Drop away; and is All Acid, Ill-colour’d, Stinking, Thin, Pale, Serous Stuff.
THE Third Case is known by an immoderate and irregular Flooding, as it were in Heaps; attended with Pains of the Groins, Loins, &c: And at last aggravated with Faintings and Convulsions. The true State of which Case is particularly noted in Sect. V. Chap. 7. Only give me leave to add here, that the Procatarctick Cause, is always sufficiently known, from the Relation of the Patient.
BUT however, it is also proper to know in all the above-mention’d Cases, from what Place, and by what Vessels this Flux happens: Which may be rightly thus distinguished; for if from the Neck of the Womb, it flows orderly and moderately; as it likewise does, if it comes from Vessels no ways adhering to the Infant: but if it arises from the Bottom of the Womb, it flows in less Order, and greater Quantity; and if it happens, in fine, from the Vessels fixed to the Infant, and the Chorion, then it does flow most irregularly of all, and in very great Quantities.
THE Prognosticks of this SYMPTOM are, either a[[74]] weak debilitated Infant, or an approaching Abortion: But besides also, it sometimes portends a hard, laborious, and protracted BIRTH, perhaps even to the 11th Month.
WHICH Prognosticks are indeed founded upon sufficient relative Reasons: The First, because the INFANT is not able to convert the whole of the superabundant Blood, to its Aliment: The Second, because the INFANT (tho’ perhaps Strong and Able enough) is depriv’d of its requisite Sustenance: The Third, because (according to Hippocrates, &c.) a sickly Gestation always indicates a difficult and laborious BIRTH: And besides the reason of a protracted Birth (beyond the ordinary Time) is very plain and perspicuous; because, if a strong healthy CHILD requires two Months, to recover itself after the first Onset or Attempt of the 7th Month, (as is more amply explain’d in Chap. 34. of this Section) it is but highly reasonable to think, that a weak sickly One, requires a longer Time of Gestation.
THE first Case of this SYMPTOM, seems to be the most favourable of the Three; yet I would advise such Sanguine or Plethorick Women, to guard against one ill Consequence, which I have known sometimes to happen in the same burthensome Condition: Namely, that from too great a Plenty or Superfluity of Blood, it sometimes runs through the interiour Veins into the Cavity of the Womb, which renders the Case by far the most dangerous; because this Blood[[75]] (being out of its proper Canal or Center) irregularly extravas’d, immediately corrupts and suppurates; which corrupted Blood, in Concert with the INFANT, (whose Aliment is thereby impair’d) always obliges the Womb, to dilate and yield up its Contents: So that, in short, this particular SYMPTOM[[76]] is, in all its different Cases or Conditions, the most Pernicious and Dangerous.