Excerpt from Thrombosis and Embolism There is no difficulty in producing thrombi experimentally by injury, either mechanical or chemical, to the vessel-wall; or by the introduction of foreign bodies into the circulation. If the early for mation of such a thrombus be observed under the microscope in the living mesenteric vessels of a dog, as was done by Eberth and Schimmel busch, it is seen that the first step consists in the accumulation of blood platelets at the seat of injury. These plates, in consequence of their viscous metamorphosis, at once become adherent to each other and to the wall of the vessel, and thus form plugs which may be subsequently washed away into the circulation, but which sometimes so increase in size as to obstruct the lumen of the vessel completely. Red and white corpuscles may be included in the mass of platelets; but their presence at this stage is purely accidental; they are not to be regarded as essential constituents of the thrombus in its inception. The microscopical examination of young experimental thrombi confirms the results of these direct observations, and afi'ords information as to their further development. To obtain a clear idea of this develop ment, thrombi should be examined at intervals of minutes from their beginning to those half an hour old or older. I reported the results of such an experimental study in 1887. The material composing the youngest thrombi formed from the circulating blood appears macroscopically as a soft, homogeneous, gray, translucent substance of viscid consistence. Microscopically it is made up chiefly of platelets, which are seen as pale, round, or somewhat irregular bodies, varying in size but averaging about onequarter the diameter of a red corpuscle. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.