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With an anatomical case and a clinical case, the authors describe the pygomelus, a very rare monstruosity. Legend and reality are often mixed in the description of literature. It is difficult to classify this monstruosity either in the simple monster or in the twin monsters.
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Explore the source record for details and available documents.
A large number of duplication monstrosities have been observed in cattle, sheep, pigs, horses, goats, cats and dogs, ever since the publication of the famous woodcut of a swine double monster by J. S. Brant in Basel in 1496, better known as the "wunderbare Sau von Landser im Elsass". Albrecht Dürer also made a woodcut of this double monster in front of the village Landser in 1496. A picture of a deer double monster was published in 1603 by Heinrich Ulrich in Germany. In the monograph De monstrorum causis, natura et differentiis ..., published by the Italian Fortunius Licetus in 1616 pictures of double monsters being half man half dog are found. These fantasy figures have been popular for a long time and were supposed to be really in existence. Apart from these fantasy figures many pictures are known from real veterinary double monsters. U. Aldrovandus described in 1642 in his Monstrorum historia, besides many fantasy figures, also real human and veterinary double monsters and he gave also good pictures of them. In the 19th century examples of veterinary duplication monstrosities were published by I. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire (1832-37), E. F. Gurlt (1832), W. Vrolik (1840) and C. Taruffi (1881); they proposed also concepts concerning the etiology. In the second volume of his famous handbook of teratology (1907), E. Schwalbe described many veterinary double monsters and discussed the theories of the genesis of congenital malformations. Various theories concerning the genesis of double monsters have been given since Aristotle (384-322 B.C.). ...
We studied a life-saving method for the unaffected twin in two recent patients who had acardiac monster in twin pregnancy. We succeeded in blocking the umbilical blood flow of the acardiac monster in utero as radical treatment for this abnormality in one of the patients. In case 1, tocolysis and amniocentesis with puncture to the cyst of the acardiac monster were performed to prevent premature labor. However, the patient underwent premature labor at 27 weeks of gestation, and the newborn died. In case 2, fetal treatment was given: A steel coil was placed in the umbilical cord close to the abdominal wall of the acardiac monster under ultrasonographic guidance at 23 weeks of gestation to block blood flow. As a result, no enlargement of the acardiac monster was observed, and the cardiac function of the unaffected fetus improved. At 38 weeks of gestation, the patient delivered a normal baby weighing 2,237g and an acardiac monster weighing 110g. There were no complications in either the mother or newborn. There has been no report describing blockage of the umbilical blood flow of an acardiac monster in utero. Our method is considered efficient and less risky to the mother and the unaffected twin.
Nineteen cases of dermatofibroma associated with monster cells are reported. The term "monster" (an animal with a strange or terrifying shape, one unusually large for its kind) implies a strikingly atypical cell with an extremely large nucleus. Except for monster cells, these 19 lesions had all of the typical histopathological findings of dermatofibroma. The clinical diagnosis for 16 of these lesions was dermatofibroma (or histiocytoma). Three lesions were submitted without any clinical diagnosis. Eighteen of 19 lesions occurred on the extremities. One was on the back. Monster cells are seen in the early, histiocytic stage of dermatofibroma when lipophages and/or siderophages are usually present in large numbers. Only rarely were mitotic figures seen in dermatofibromas with monster cells, and they were neither numerous nor atypical. It is important for histopathologists to distinguish dermatofibroma with monster cells from cutaneous malignant fibrous histiocytoma and radiation sarcoma. The criteria for differentiation concern primarily the architectural pattern of the lesion rather than its cytological features.
Heteropolar doublets of the hypotrichous ciliate Oxytricha fallax can encyst, as can monster cells containing multiple copies of at least part of the ciliature. The resulting cysts excyst as heteropolar doublets or monster cells, respectively. Transmission electron microscopy of resting cysts derived from monster cells and from singlets, however, indicates a complete loss of the ciliature - all kinetosomes, ciliary axonemes, and microtubules. Thus, the determination of each ciliature of a monster cell cannot be attributed to the persistence of any visible part of the ciliature. Transmission electron microscopy of monster and singlet cysts suggests that the information for a ciliature may be related to the system of cyst wall grooves and possibly to differentiations in the inner cell membrane which separates the cyst cytoplasm from the cyst wall. The redevelopment of heteropolar doublets upon excystment indicates that the anterior-posterior polarity is independently determined for each ciliature and is maintained through cystment. This polarity is not, however, reflected in a recognizable anterior-posterior polarity of any visible structure of the resting cyst. The number of adoral zones of membranelles (AZMs) may increase or decrease in some excysting monster cells compared with that observed in the encysting cells. Possible explanations for these changes are offered in the Discussion.
Gila monster venom (1-300 micrograms/ml) is shown to inhibit completely the binding of [125I]VIP to human and rat intestinal epithelial cell membranes. In both models, the venom inhibits [125I]VIP binding and stimulates adenylate cyclase with a maximal efficiency that is similar to that of VIP and a potency that is 10000-50000 times lower than that of the peptide, on a weight basis. At maximal doses, VIP and Gila monster venom do not exert an additive effect on adenylate cyclase, suggesting that the activation of the enzyme by the venom occurs through VIP receptors. As is the case for VIP, adenylate cyclase activation by Gila monster venom requires the presence of GTP in the incubation medium. Finally, no VIP-like immunoreactivity was detected in the venom using an antiserum raised against mammalian VIP. All these data suggest the presence in the venom of the Gila monster, of a new substance which behaves as a VIP agonist in human as well as rat intestine.
We report a case of a 64-year-old woman with a giant dermatofibroma on her back with the unusual histologic feature of monster cells. The firm, exophytic, 3-cm nodule had purple and yellow components with surface telangiectasia. Histologic examination demonstrated characteristic findings of a dermatofibroma, including rete ridge flattening and bridging; a stroma containing scattered, large, round, eosinophilic collagen bundles; and a polymorphous dermal infiltrate of spindle and xanthomatous cells with scattered siderophages. Some xanthomatous cells demonstrated features consistent with monster cells, including huge bizarre nuclei and one or more nucleoli. Immunohistochemical staining for factor XIIIa was positive. A diagnosis of giant dermatofibroma with monster cells (DFMC) was made. Giant dermatofibromas are rare, with monster cells being an uncommon finding in dermatofibroma. To our knowledge, this is the first report of DFMC.
Venom from Gila monster (family Helodermatidae) contains a pancreatic secretagogue. In dispersed acini from guinea pig pancreas, the venom increased enzyme secretion to the same extent as did vasoactive intestinal peptide, secretin, or PHI. The abilities of vasoactive intestinal peptide and Gila monster venom to stimulate enzyme secretion were not altered by boiling but were abolished by incubation with trypsin or chymotrypsin. Like vasoactive intestinal peptide, secretin, and PHI, the venom caused a 50- to 60-fold increase in cellular cAMP and inhibited binding of 125I-vasoactive intestinal peptide to its membrane receptors on pancreatic acini. The action of venom on enzyme secretion was inhibited by [Gln9]secretin-(5-27), a vasoactive intestinal peptide receptor antagonist, but was not altered by atropine, a cholinergic receptor antagonist, or by dibutyryl cGMP, a cholecystokinin receptor antagonist. Gila monster venom contained no immunoreactive vasoactive intestinal peptide by radioimmunoassay. These results indicate that venom from Gila monster contains a peptide that can stimulate pancreatic enzyme secretion by interacting with vasoactive intestinal peptide receptors on pancreatic acinar cells and thereby activating adenylate cyclase and increasing cellular cAMP.
The stimulatory effect of Gila monster venom on adenylate cyclase activity in rat pancreatic membranes was compared to that of porcine secretin and porcine VIP. The maximal effect exerted by the venom was identical to that of VIP but significantly lower than that of secretin. The effect of Gila monster venom could, however, be attributed to its interaction with secretin receptors rather than with VIP receptors, at variance with its previously described action on guinea pig pancreatic acini. Adenylate cyclase activation by both Gila monster venom and secretin in rat pancreatic membranes was, indeed: (1) dose-dependently inhibited by two secretin fragments secretin-(4-27) and secretin-(7-27), and (2) more severely depressed than VIP stimulation, after pretreating pancreatic membranes with dithiothreitol (DTT).
In tune with an Enlightenment sensibility that focused on the search for order and regularities, monsters were given a marginal position in eighteenth-century medical works. By contrast, they had an important place at the Royal Society during the second half of the century. This article first focuses on the general interest in monsters within the context of the natural historical agenda and corporate activity of the Society and then addresses the medical understanding of monsters by members of the Society. Finally, it discusses some of the moral and social implications of their medicalization in eighteenth century England.
PURPOSE: A large number of children had fits while watching the animated cartoon television (TV) program "Pocket Monster." To elucidate the seizures associated with the TV program, we administered a questionnaire survey in Aichi Prefecture, Japan. METHODS: The questionnaires were sent to 75 hospitals located in and around Aichi prefecture. The presence of epileptic seizures and the types of seizures were determined by three pediatric neurologists. RESULTS: Sixty-one hospitals responded to the questionnaire survey. Among 95 patients living in Aichi prefecture for whom enough information on seizure manifestations and EEG was available, < or =93 patients were considered to have epileptic seizures while watching the TV program. Most seizures occurred at a scene in which red and blue frames alternated at 12 Hz. Sixty-nine (74%) patients had no history of epilepsy. Thirty-nine patients had generalized seizures, and 49 patients had partial seizures. Partial seizures occurred more frequently in the younger age group than did generalized seizures. The EEG revealed a photoparoxysmal response (PPR) in 43% of patients. PPR was present not only in patients with a history of epilepsy (54%) but also in those with no history of epilepsy (38%). CONCLUSIONS: Almost all seizures induced by the TV program "Pocket Monster" were epileptic, and partial seizures were induced more frequently than generalized seizures. The incidence of this "Pocket Monster"-induced seizures was roughly estimated as > or =1 in 4,923 individuals aged 6-18 years.
A case of basal cell carcinoma with "monster cells" is reported. Clinically, the lesion presented as a red nodule on the forearm of a 58-year-old male. The histologic picture was striking, with large, "monstrous" nuclei scattered throughout a well defined nodule. Basal cell carcinoma with monster cells appears to represent a histologic variant of nodular basal cell carcinoma. The prognostic significance of the monster cells remains to be established.
A legal dispute broke out in Eupen near Aachen, 1873, and was to be protracted through 14 years. The case was about a twin monster that had died at or after birth. A physician in Eupen, at the same time public servant in the local government, was aware of Virchow's interest in collecting cases. He obtained the two interconnected dead bodies from the parents and promised the latter a sizeable amount of money, obviously assuming that Virchow had at his disposal funds for compensation, as had been the case with Rudolphi and Müller, some time before. The twin monster was sent to Berlin, but no money showed up. The parents sought legal counsel with their local police commissioner who also held the post of local attorney. The attorney opened an investigation, and the district commissioner got involved. The physician was officially reproved by the Aachen government for having trespassed his authority in obtaining the twin monster. Two questions were now cropping up in Eupen: Did Virchow pay money to the local physician? If so, why did the latter fail to pass it on to the parents? This might be a case for civil action. The police commissioner promised the parents to see Virchow in Berlin and to ask him for clarification. The father, when interrogated, insisted that one of the children had definitely lived for a short time after birth. This would entail a penal case on the physician and a charge of law-breaking. But this could be averted. The police commissioner managed to go to Berlin not before 1887. Hoping to have a legal claim to embezzled money even after 14 years, he intended to call on Virchow for questioning. Yet, he missed him and left behind a letter with a request for information on those past developments.
A binovular triplet pregnancy with a normal fetus and bicephalic monster was diagnosed by ultrasound after 19 weeks of amenorrhoea. After selective amniocentesis and genetic studies the diagnosis led us to kill the double monster in utero by injecting hypertonic saline into its aorta. The healthy twin went on growing normally in the following weeks. Premature vaginal delivery resulted in the expulsion of a macerated double monster and the birth of a baby weighing 1,650 g in blood health. This case history leads us to discuss the value of ultrasound in multiple pregnancies and the ability to carry out intra-uterine procedures in these special cases.
This paper explores the fantasy, widespread among women, of giving birth to a monster, particularly a psychological monster. The author hypothesises two central intrapsychic issues underlying these fears: monsters are viewed as 'incest babies' or as reflections of maternal aggression--evil, destructive parts of the mother passed on to the infant. Shame about femaleness is postulated as a third factor in the fear of producing something monstrous. Mary Shelley's novel, 'Frankenstein', is an iconic literary representation of these themes. The author presents and discusses some psychobiographical material about Mary Shelley, speculating on her motives for writing this novel and tracing the intrapsychic concerns about incest and aggression as reflected in the novel itself. Some recent feminist and psychoanalytic critical readings of 'Frankenstein' are referenced as they reflect on the novel's concern with themes of female sexuality and procreation. Clinical material from the author's own practice is presented to illustrate these fears, so similar to those with which Mary Shelley was dealing. A discussion, citing some relevant literature, follows.