Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume VII.djvu/250

 242 FISK FISTULA situated on Fishkill creek, a small affluent of the Hudson, about 5 ra. N. E. of its mouth, and contains four churches, a weekly newspaper, and a national and a savings bank. The town also contains the villages of Fishkill Land- ing, Glenham, Matteawan, Carthage Landing, Hughsonville, and a part of Wappinger's Falls. Fishkill Landing is situated on the Hudson, near the mouth of Fishkill creek, and is con- nected by ferry with Newburgh; pop. 2,992. It contains an iron foundery and machine shop, several factories, a national bank, two news- papers, and three churches. Glenham, Mat- teawan, and Wappinger's Falls are also impor- tant manufacturing places. The Dutchess and Columbia division of the New York, Boston, and Montreal railroad extends through the town from E. to W., and connects with the New York and Harlem and the Connecticut Western railroads at Millerton. FISK, Wilbnr, an American clergyman and educator, born at Brattleboro, Vt., Aug. 31, 1792, died at Middletown, Conn., Feb. 22, 1838. He was educated at the grammar school in Peacham, Vt., at the university of Vermont, and at Brown university, where he graduated in 1815. He then began the study of law, but in 1818 entered the itinerant ministry of the Methodist Episcopal church. In 1823 he was presiding elder of the Vermont district. The following year he left the itinerant work to devote himself to the cause of Christian educa- tion. At the date of his entering the ministry there was not a single literary institution of importance under the auspices of the Methodist church in America. In connection with others he founded the academy of Wilbraham, Mass., of which he became principal in 1826. In 1828 he was elected bishop of the Canada conference. The following year he was chosen at nearly the same time president of La Grange college, Alabama, and a professor in the university of Alabama. The Wesleyan university, Middle- town, Conn., was founded in 1830, and Dr. Fisk, having declined all other appointments, was elected its first president. In the general conference of 1832 he was foremost in advoca- ting the establishment of the Oregon mission. On account of impaired health, he made the tour of Europe in 1835-'6. During his absence he was elected bishop of the Methodist Epis- copal church, but declined the office, to con- tinue that work in which he had become the representative man of his church. His chief works are : " Sermons and Lectures on Uni- versalism," " .Reply to Pierpont on the Atone- ment," "The Calvinistic Controversy," and " Travels in Europe." His life has been writ- ten by the Rev. Joseph Holdich (1842). FISTULA (Lat., a pipe), an ulcer in the form of a narrow canal, more or less deep and sinu- ous, lined by a pale false mucous membrane, indolent and indisposed to heal, kept up by some local pathological condition of the soft parts or bones, or by the presence of some foreign irritating body, and leading or not to a suppurating cavity. There may be a single external or internal opening, or there may be a communication between the skin and the mu- cous, serous, or synovial cavity. Some writers restrict the term fistula to such of the above lesions as take their origin from some natural cavity or excretory duct, while those commu- nicating with abscesses and caused by foreign bodies or disease of the bones are called fistu- lous ulcers or sinuses ; but the distinction is of little importance, as the pathological conditions and the principles of treatment are the same. Fistulas arise when abscesses are not thor- oughly healed from the bottom, when any irri- tating substance (as a ligature or a piece of dead bone) remains in the tissues, or after wounds of excretory ducts. If superficial and of recent origin, fistulas may heal of them- selves; but if deep-seated or chronic, they generally require surgical interference. They are usually rather tedious and annoying than dangerous ; but when large, deep, with several openings and profuse discharge, they may pro- duce hectic fever and fatal exhaustion. The principles of treatment are : to remove any ir- ritating cause, as a piece of dead bone or foreign body ; to prevent the accumulation of matter, by counter openings, if necessary, and by prop- erly directed compression ; and to excite ad- hesive inflammation by pressure, stimulating injections and applications, setons, caustic, and, as a last resort, incision of the fistula, that the soft parts may have an opportunity of healing from the very bottom of the wound ; the con- stitution should also be strengthened by nour- ishing diet and tonic medicines. The most common varieties are the anal, lachrymal, sali- vary, and urinary fistulas. Anal fistula is situ- ated by the side of the sphincter ani muscle, and is difficult to heal both on account of the constant muscular contractions and the passage of faecal matter into it. There may be an open- ing into the bowel internally and externally, either or both ; according to Brodie, this affec- tion always begins by an ulceration on the side of the rectum into which the ftecal matter escapes, causing abscess and consequent fistula ; but in some cases there is no opening into the bowel, the sinus reaching only to its outer coat ; this affection is frequently a painful com- plication of consumption. The simple and ef- ficient remedy for this fistula is division of the walls from the internal opening to the skin, so as to prevent muscular contractions ; after this operation the introduction of lint allows the wound to heal by granulation from the bottom. This affection is considerably more common in males than in females. Lachrymal fistula is situated at the inner corner of the eye, and communicates with the lachrymal sac ; it be- gins by an obstruction of the nasal duct, fol- lowed by inflammation, abscess, and fistulous opening. Besides the usual remedies for acute and chronic inflammation, the obstructed duct may be restored by the introduction of a me- tallic or elastic style. In a similar manner the