Tiny Tim's Ailment
In the December 1992 issue of the American Journal of Diseases of Children Dr. Donald Lewis, an assistant professor of pediatrics and neurology at the Medical College of Hampton Roads in Norfolk, Virginia, theorized that Tiny Tim, Bob Cratchit's ailing son in Charles Dickens' classic A Christmas Carol, suffered from a kidney disease that made his blood too acidic.

Dr. Lewis explained that Tim's case, left untreated due to the poverty of the Cratchit household, would produce the symptoms alluded to in the novel.
According to the Ghost of Christmas Present, Tim would die within a year. The fact that he did not die, due to Scrooge's new-found generosity, means that the disease was treatable with proper medical care. Dr. Lewis consulted medical textbooks of the mid 1800's and found that Tim's symptoms would have been treated with alkaline solutions which would counteract the excess acid in his blood and recovery would be rapid.
While other possibilities exist, Dr. Lewis feels that the treatable kidney disorder best fits "the hopeful spirit of the story."
Source - AP Science Writer Malcolm Ritter-1992
For more fascinating looks into other aspects of the tale, see here:
http://charlesdickenspage.com/christmas.html

Callow repeated his performance as Dickens in one of my all-time favorite episodes of the modern incarnation of DOCTOR WHO - the episode is called "The Unquiet Dead" and ran during the Christopher Eccleston/Billie Piper era - here's the trailer!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q6DxZHfpsVs
Track this down and watch it, if you haven't seen it already - it may become YOUR new holiday tradition!
Back tomorrow!
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