At the end of the nineteenth century, recurrent cases of rib fractures were recorded in psychiatric asylums, opening a long chapter of discussions about the application of the ‘non-restraint’ system. Here we present a brief discussion of an article written by Enrico Morselli about five cases of rib fractures in the mental asylum of Reggio Emilia, in 1874–5. Morselli, a supporter of the ideas of ‘non-restraint’, suggested a common pathological cause. His analysis proposed the osteomalacic condition as the possible cause of fractured ribs, rejecting the accusations of violence by asylum attendants. The discussion also examines similar cases of the same period, making rib fractures the means through which the issue of management of the insane was addressed.

19 世纪末，精神病院记录了肋骨骨折的复发病例，开启了关于“无约束”系统应用的长篇讨论。在这里，我们简要讨论了恩里科·莫塞利 (Enrico Morselli) 撰写的关于 1874-5 年雷焦艾米利亚精神病院中五例肋骨骨折的文章。Morselli 是“无约束”思想的支持者，他提出了一个常见的病理原因。他的分析提出骨软化症可能是导致肋骨骨折的原因，并驳斥了庇护服务人员的暴力指控。讨论还审查了同一时期的类似案例，使肋骨骨折成为解决精神病管理问题的手段。