Owing to decreased humidity of the skin there is greater resistance to the galvanic current. Metabolism is considerably and constantly impaired (Magnus-Levy), showing only 50 to 60 per cent. of healthy values. This, however, may be at once improved by specific treatment..
As a matter of course, sexual development never occurs and entirely corresponds with the general condition. Even in adult age, patients show complete infantilism.
Mental behavior corresponds to the physical. As early as at the age of six months complete apathy is noticeable in these infants, who lie motionless with a cretinal expression and without evincing any interest in their surroundings. They fix upon no special object, do not know their environs, sleep alniost continually, are always dirty, and learn neither to sit nor stand, much less talk.
In the most severe cases this condition may- last forever, but even in the apparently' most favorable cases certain expressions merely betray training and not independent thought. Absence of intellect and conse quently of coiirdination of movements prevent their standing and walk ing at a time when the conditions of the bones, articulations and muscles would have permitted their use long ago.
At the same time, there are degrees in the extent of absent intellect just as there are in physical cachexia, and they even run a parallel course.
Thus, a child of inferior physical development and moderately cretinic liabitus, may learn to walk in the fourth to sixth year, even if very clumsy and constantly stumbling; like a moderately intelligent animal lie niay intelligently react to certain irritations, distinguish his surroundings tolerably well and express joy or anger by grimaces and unarticulated sounds. Here and there he may learn to pronounce a few simple words, but lie will never learn a whole sentence or song, like a normal parrot, or understand and correctly carry out orders, like a moderately intelligent clog. In most cases walking is learned before the eighth, tenth or fifteenth year, or not at all, and patients mentally and physically cachectic will not reach the level of a normal child one and one half to two y-ears olcl. Figs. 124 and 126 will illustrate these cases better than any description.
Aside from thyreoaplasia, or congenital absence of the thyroid, there also occurs, but much less frequently,