Word: bowel
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...disease of the large bowel that kept Secretary John Foster Dulles bedfast in Walter Reed Army Hospital last week (see NATIONAL AFFAIRS) was considered rare until the turn of the century. Since then, with X-ray techniques constantly improving, it has become clear that diverticulosis is one of the commonest disorders of the aging, though often it gives no trouble. But diverticulitis severe enough to send the victim to a hospital has become a routine diagnosis...
...diverticulum (Latin for a small bypath) of the large bowel is a little pouch or sac formed by pressure inside the gut, forcing the inner layer (mucosa) through a weak spot in the outer, muscular layers. It may be no bigger than a BB shot, or it may be the size of a plum with a stalklike neck. If the neck is extremely narrow, fecal matter forced into the diverticulum will stay there, setting up an ever-present threat of infection and making the condition harder to detect since the barium used to get X-ray contrast may not penetrate...
...diagnostician's biggest concern is to distinguish an acutely inflamed diverticulum from cancer of the colon, and this was especially important in Dulles' case since he had had a 1¾-in. piece of cancerous tissue removed from the large bowel two years ago. The danger of recurrence was, of course, great. Fortunately, in most cases, X rays taken after a barium enema show a distinctive picture of one or the other. In Dulles' case there was a characteristic, unmistakable diverticulum...
Peace & Quiet. With no sign of recurring cancer, and no indication that Dulles' diverticulum had perforated (which would spill the bowel contents into the abdominal cavity, set up a life-threatening infection), the doctors saw no need for surgery. They gave Dulles antibiotics to knock out the infection in the diverticulum and an antispasmodic to keep the gut still, put him on a low-residue diet to reduce its work. Beyond that, all the Secretary needed was bed rest and some unwonted peace and quiet...
...surgeon, Dr. Jordan deliberately narrowed her field from the broad specialty of internal medicine to the new subspecialty of gastroenterology. In working days of 14 to 18 hours, she devoted her seemingly inexhaustible energy to the diagnosis and treatment of indigestion, peptic ulcers (in stomach, duodenum and small bowel), upset gall bladders (usually with stones), and ulcerative colitis...