Congenital dermal sinus It ensures that neurological condition does not degrade and prevents infection. Diagnosis can be confirmed through the use of advanced neuroimaging to observe the tract and associated lesions. During normal development, cutaneous ectoderm separates from neuroectoderm to allow for the insertion of mesoderm. That is, the skin separates from the tissue of the spinal cord to allow proper formation of the vertebral column. In cases of congenital dermal sinus there is a failure in this process, resulting in formation of a persistent connection between the skin and neural tissue. This manifests as a tract extending from the surface of the
Traditional Chinese medicines derived from the human body "Three Corpses; demonic spirits believed to live in the human body and hasten death" and "gǔdú" 蠱毒 "gu poisoning"; a poison produced by venomous insects; cast a black magic spirit possession over someone". The first "Bencao gangmu" prescription for human nails is not from Chinese medical texts but from Daoist rituals for expelling what (Cooper & Sivin (1973: 220) describe as the "Three Corpse-Worms 三尸, the chief of the "inner gods" who are to the individual microcosm what the celestial bureaucracy is to the cosmos." Prescription 52.6.1, the 斬三尸法 "Method of Beheading the Three Corpses", involves supernaturally cutting the nails