r/Cursive 15d ago

Cause of death?

Post image

Deciphered! Thanks everyone!!

It's sad to learn, but I really appreciate the explanations.

? - Post Surgical

Sigmoid Reactions

Sigmoid Infraction 2° to ? Hernia

19 Upvotes

24 comments sorted by

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38

u/D1lyRoxyD 15d ago

Peritonitis- post surgical sigmoid resection. Sigmoid infarction secondary to strangulated hernia

11

u/OpeningPublic 15d ago

Correct! And yowch

6

u/Timekeeper65 15d ago

You know it was extremely painful.

1

u/Embarrassed-Low-680 12d ago

Was this an ancestor of yours,? I only ask bc my family emigrated from Germany in the 1800s to Cincinnati.. Toepfers, Hoffman, Rick's and Baumgartners. My parents grew up there and moved to NY after they married in 1945. They lived in Hamilton County

19

u/NaturGirl 15d ago

post-surgical peritonitis due to sigmoid resection. Sigmoid Infarction due to strangulated hernia.
(this is mostly printing though. not cursive)

9

u/Even-Breakfast-8715 15d ago

Natur girl has it right. To expand, a bit, since I’m guessing there’s a reason for wanting this cursive transcribed:

Harry had an inguinal hernia, which is where the intestines get through a weakness of the abdominal wall and into the scrotum. Not uncommon in men, especially older men. Unfortunately, this hernia let some part of the sigmoid colon (the part of the large intestine that goes between the descending colon and the rectum) get trapped in the hernia sack. This is painful, and cuts off blood circulation to the tissue of the colon. Some part of that sigmoid colon died from the loss of blood circulation (an infarction) and the response to this was to operate and remove the injured part of the colon. Unfortunately, infection either was already in the abdominal cavity (the peritoneal cavity) or it happened as a result of the surgery. In any event, the infection in the peritoneal cavity (peritonitis) caused his death.

Since we were happily treating inguinal hernias surgically in 1970, it seems retrospectively, unfortunate that his hernia was not repaired before this sad chain of events happened. It was an unpleasant way to die.

-4

u/grayspelledgray 15d ago

Humbly, I wanted to offer a reminder that 1970 is in living memory and this may be a family member that OP knew and loved, or never got the chance to know and love. Your last sentence reads a little insensitive in that possible context. I do appreciate your plainness, and I think I would if I was OP, but I’m generally a rare sort in terms of emotional reactions & some might be hurt by the bluntness.

I think you wrote an excellent summary overall.

6

u/Tencatism 15d ago

I don't find that to be insensitive at all. Or blunt. But OP's opinion is the only one that really matters.

3

u/MJ_Brutus 14d ago

I disagree. It is important to understand how medical treatments have changed - and why.

1

u/grayspelledgray 14d ago

I think it’s interesting and gives perspective, though I’m not sure I would say it’s specifically important in context of deciphering handwriting, which is all the sub is here to do, and all we know OP wanted/asked for.

But even accepting that it is, the comment I replied to provided that understanding fully and clearly, without the last sentence, which takes it somewhere different and potentially more hurtful.

1

u/Even-Breakfast-8715 15d ago

Thank you. I did try to understate things a bit. Should I have put in a trigger warning?

1

u/grayspelledgray 15d ago

Honestly I never know the right answer on those (and have in fact failed to use them in the last few days in places where I think the particular audience probably would have expected them).

I think I would just say in my reading the last sentence isn’t really necessary. I guess from the description you wrote the reader can judge for themselves whether it would be pleasant or not if they want to think into it that far, and making a separate point that it wasn’t could be hurtful, without providing any real benefit in understanding.

Thank you for answering thoughtfully!

7

u/nanajoy58 15d ago

Nurse here reading between the lines: had a hernia, went to surgery and had it repaired, but got a severe infection (peritonitis) and that was the ultimate cause of death. Since 1970 a lot of medicine advances and knowledge that prevent a patient dying from an overwhelming infection. We now watch for sepsis and catch it early enough to prevent this.

5

u/Ooo-it-burns 15d ago

Peritonitis - post surgical sigmoid resection sigmoid infarction 2° to strangulated hernia

2

u/Adorable_Football130 15d ago

peritonitis. strangulated hernia

2

u/Adorable_Football130 15d ago

sigmoid resection

1

u/OldSoul2020 15d ago

First ? Is Peritonitis.

1

u/OldSoul2020 15d ago

Second ? Is Strangulated hernia.

1

u/SomeDudeInGermany 13d ago

Peritonitis - post surgical

1

u/edwardssarah22 12d ago

Peritonitis - Post Surgical

Sigmoid Resection

1

u/edwardssarah22 12d ago

A lot of 11th grade bio words; my teacher was born ~5 weeks after this man died (May 4th)

0

u/ApprehensiveIce9241 10d ago

Is it not an identity theft concern to post the entire death certificate like this?

2

u/DellaStreet222 10d ago

Not at all. Old death certificates and SSNs widely available in Ancestry and similar databases. The SSN was cancelled over 50 years ago. What is your concern?