Somatoscopy

SOMATOSCOPY (from Greek soma-body and skopeo-I look), a method for studying variations in body structure based on examination and detailed description, as opposed to the measurement method, or somatometry. S. is a general biological method equally applicable to organisms of different species, but this method has received the greatest development in its application to humans; therefore, the term S. is practically equivalent to the term anthroposcopy (just as somatometry and anthropometry). The necessity of using somatoscopic techniques along with more precise measurement methods is due to the fact that even very numerous measurements cannot give an idea of certain details of structure and the general impression of form: the latter is determined by the combination of many elements, including those that do not fit between the reference points of various measurements. For S. to acquire the significance of a scientific method, it must satisfy a number of conditions. The main ones can be formulated as follows: 1) separate consideration of each varying property, e.g., when examining the chest, separate accounting of shape, absolute dimensions, inclination of the wall, etc.; 2) precise fixation of observation conditions—front view, profile, from above, from below, etc.; 3) attribution of variations to certain, pre-established types—two, three, five, etc.; the use of any other terms is impermissible; the task of observation is reduced to determining which of the proposed types a given variant more closely resembles; in connection with this, it is necessary 4) to establish certain distinguishing features for the types being distinguished, according to which each variant can be assigned to one category or another. The listed conditions aim to eliminate as much as possible the subjectivism of somatoscopic assessment of variations and to make the results of different studies comparable with each other. This is achievable to the extent that there is a well-developed scheme of variations, that the types being studied are already known, and the task is merely to determine the belonging of different individuals to one type or another. The initial¹ establishment of types is associated with extensive theoretical processing of material and represents an independent scientific task. On the basis of preliminary scientific processing of the material, forms or schemes of research and instructions for their use in practical work are compiled. The researcher requires great experience and theoretical knowledge of the field being studied in order to achieve confidence and uniformity in somatoscopic determinations. Auxiliary means of S. include models, casts, schematic drawings, and photographs. Somatoscopic research techniques have to be used when studying the most diverse variations in structure, both normal and abnormal. S. is the main method for determining the pigmentation of the skin, hair, iris, and mucous membranes. There are special models that facilitate uniform determination: Prof. Fischer's scale, which consists of artificial strands of hair made of celluloid mass, differently colored and each marked with a special number; Prof. Martin's scale—glass models of eyes of different colors; Prof. Lushan's scale for determining skin color, etc. For determining variations in the structure of the soft parts of the face—shape of the ear, nose, eyelid, lips—there is an extensive album compiled by Prof. Veninger. There are also plaster models of the main variants. A special type of S. is dactyloscopy (see). The same method is applied when studying the shape of the foot (its supporting surface as a whole) and can be successfully used for studying the shape of the hand. Determination of the build type in the study of constitution is also based to a large extent on S. Auxiliary means here are schemes and photographs of the accepted categories of constitution. Depending on the specific tasks of the research, special models or templates can be constructed, e.g., for determining the shape of the mammary gland in women—cardboard templates by Dr. Lipiets. An essential requirement in any somatoscopic research should be the photographing of characteristic variants. Such photographs serve as documents confirming the correctness of the diagnosis and enabling objective comparison. The scale and other conditions of photography should be indicated on the photographs. When processing somatoscopic observations, they are compiled into tables, allowing for statistical processing. In cases where this is possible, i.e., when the types being distinguished are equivalent in volume of variability, it is desirable to use conventional numerical symbols or scores. On the basis of the latter, a conventional average score or a brief summary characteristic of a group for a given trait can be obtained. For individual characterization, the writing of symbols of individual traits in a certain order is also used, giving a somatoscopic formula of the individual. Somatoscopic schemes for various fields of research can be found in the corresponding manuals (dermatolo-12? logical, gynecological, neurological, etc.), general schemes—in manuals on anthropology.