De hydrope theses

XIX.
The signs of Tympanitis are: the abdomen is distended more than by other species, while the remaining parts of the body are emaciated. There is less mass than in ascites and less heaviness. It is little fluctuating but murmurs with rumbling. When struck, the top of the belly rings like a drum. The face recedes less from its natural state. The urine is quite thin. The pulse is swift, frequent, and hard. The Aphorism of Hippocrates, Section 4, II, must be referred to here.

XX.
The most certain sign of Ascites is if, when they are moved from side to side, the sound of flowing water is perceived. The swelling prepares a way for itself to the thighs and feet and sometimes into the scrotum. Sometimes it settles in the space of the chest. The urine is very scarce, almost thick and reddish. The pulse is small and frequent, consisting more of water than of flatulence.

XXI.
In Anasarca, the whole body languishes as if enervated and swells almost evenly, but most of all in the feet and shins toward night. The trace of an impressed finger remains for some time, according to Alexander. In the morning and through rest, the swelling often dissipates and vanishes for the most part. The belly is here least inflated, as it is in ascites, yet the touch experiences thickness. The patient has flesh very similar to a dead body. A nearly slow fever accompanies it. The urine is thin, white, and thick when poured. The pulse is small.

XXII.
With the cause and signs commemorated, it is next not inappropriately asked: which species of dropsy, existing from diminished digestion in the liver, is the most dangerous?