RÔLE OF THE PERIPHERAL CIRCULATION IN PNEUMONIA IN CHILDREN

There is a diversity of opinion regarding the relative importance of the various factors concerned with circulatory failure accompanying the more serious attacks of lobar pneumonia. Of these factors, much stress has been laid on a fall in the systolic blood pressure and a persistently rapid heart rate. Gibson¹ maintained that if the blood pressure as measured in millimeters of mercury falls below the pulse rate the prognosis is bad. In contrast to Gibson's observations are those of Newburgh and Minot,² who noted that the blood pressure curve in fatal cases of pneumonia does not suggest that there is a failure of the vasomotor center. The results obtained by Newburgh and Minot clearly indicated (1) that the systolic pressure of patients with fatal attacks is continuously above the systolic pressure of persons who recover, (2) that the diastolic pressure of patients who recover show a slight but progressive