Cretinism

{kref -tin-izm) [Fr. , cretin, a. simple-minded person]. A congenital disea characterized by absence of the thyroid gland, diminutivene of size, thickne of neck, shortne of arms and legs, prominence of abdomen, large size of face, thickne of lips, large and protruding tongue, and imbecility or idiocy. It occurs, endemically in the goitrous districts of Switzerland, and sporadically in other parts of Europe and in America. Lack of the secretion of the thyroid gland seems to be the cause. 214