A CRITERION OF HEMORRHAGIC DIATHESIS IN EXPERIMENTAL SCURVY

1. The degree of scorbutic change in the vessels of animals with experimental scurvy can be roughly measured by establishing the amount of negative pressure required to produce petechial hemorrhages in the skin. 2. The test shows that the hemorrhagic diathesis in experimental scurvy develops earlier than any other known sign of the disease and that it persists in some degree throughout. 3. The response of the blood vessels to the administration of antiscorbutic substances is extremely rapid as shown by the test, but it varies with the amount of antiscorbutic given and its method of administration. 4. The changes in the resistance of the vessels follows a curve which rises towards recovery during the end of the 1st week on a scorbutic diet, reaches a peak in the 2nd week and then falls steadily during the remainder of the course of the disease. This indicates that the course of the disease is not constant and progressive. 5. The test may have clinical value in the diagnosis of scurvy.