The changes that the blood undergoes in renal disease have of recent years received much attention, especially since the methods for examination of small quantities of blood for the nonprotein nitrogen fractions have been very ingeniously improved by various American scientists. The estimation of functional capacity of the kidneys as well as the art of prognosis and diagnosis have been much aided by these investigations. It is noteworthy, however, how comparatively slight is the attention that has been paid to the protein and lipin fractions of the blood of nephritic patients.
The first reliable estimation of the serum proteins was made in 1845 by Becquerel and Rodier, who reported that the total protein content was lessened in cases of Bright's disease, cardiac disease with edema and severe puerperal affections. C. Schmidt found the protein content much increased in cholera and diminished in nephritic individuals.
In normal subjects, the ratio of