An article from a publication on Percival Potts' (1714- 1788) literary career on medical texts.
Number Of Parts
1
Provenance
Acquired from the Academy of Medicine; source: Mrs. B.W. Vale, Archivist, Toronto Western Hospital.
Material
Paper
Inscriptions
On front: "BIOGRAPHICAL BREVITIES // "POTT'S FRCTURE" // It is an old saying that "it's an ill // wind that blows no one good," and // this is especially true of an acci- // dent that happened to Percival Pott. // He was born in 1714. He was surgeon to // St. Bartholomew's Hospital, London, from // 1744-1787. One day he fell in the street // and sustained a fracture of the fibula. // While confined to his room he took to // writing as a defence against ennui. Once // launched upon the sea of authorship he // produced rapidly and voluminously. Many // of his works have been called masterpieces // by discriminating authorities. In 1756 // he wrote a treatise on Hernia. This was // followed by others: Head injuries in 1760, // Hydrocele in 1762, Fistula in Ano in 1765, // Fractures and Dislocations in 1768, an // account of chimney-sweep's cancer in // 1775, and he reached his pinnacle in 1779 // with his renowned brochure on caries of // the spine with its resulting palsy. // Pott was a many-sided man. .... Percival Pott died in 1788 at the age of // sevety-four years. T. S. W."
Pott's fracture is a break to the lateral (outside), medial (inside), malleoli. These are the bony protrusions on either side of the ankle. Mechanism of injury is the same as an ankle sprain. As a result, it may be difficult to tell apart initially.