Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1889-01-16
THEY MADE HER A NEW FACE.
Surgeons Treat q Strange Disease With
Great Success.

From the New York World.
Mrs. A. B. Pullman has but recently
been lying at the Mount Sinai Hospital.
Sixty-sixth Street and Lexington Ave-
nue., the victim of strange and terrible
disease, and the subject of an almost
equally terrible cure. The lady is 81 years
of age, and, apart from the rarity of the
malady and the singu arity of the cura-
alive treatment. the case is remarkable
for the extraordinary vitality evinced
by the aged patient.
Nearly twelve years ago Mrs. Pullman,
who at the time was resident OF Chi
cago, detected one morning upon her
right cheek minute pimple of a deep
scarlet hue. This increased in size rap
idly and became quite painful. Skilled
physicians and SPECIALISTS in skin dis
eases were powerless to check the dis
ease which destroyed skin, flesh and
cartilage as it spread, until the poor suf-
terer's face became terrible to behold.
Her sufferings were almost insupporta-
BILE and when her brother-in-law, DR..
w. E. Fluhrer, of No. 80 West Thirty
third Street. the visiting physician of
Mount Sinai Hospital, in September
last, suggested that she come to New
York. she did so, and went to Mount
Sinai Hospital.
On September II DR.. Fluhrer, aided
by Drs. II. Lilianthall, w. Ladenski, O..
Nichols and the hospital staff, made a
thorough examination, and pronounced
the sufferers affiiction to be 'lupus," 81
rare and malignant type of tuberculous
disease. Then they proceeded to oper-
ate. Subjecting the patient to the in
fuence of ether, they cut away the dis
eased parts, using the scalpel with such
freedom that there was at the end
of the operation no flesh left on the
front of the face, with the exception OF
the chin and portion of the forehead.
The usual antiseptlc treatment followed.
Contrary to the expectation of even
the most sanguine of the operators, the
patient rallied almost at once from the
shock of the treatment, developed ia
vorable symptoms, and, for the first time
in twelve years, had an unbroken hours
sleep. The cheek wounds began to
granulate, the forehead incision healed
rapidly, and within two months the suf-
ierer declared that she was practically
Tree from pain, and that q cure had to all
intents and purposes been effected.
But the doctors did not consider that
their task was finished. The disease
had been defeated, it was true, but
something had yet to be done to partial
ly eHace Its remaining traces. Accord
ingly, particles of skin, ranging IN size
from pins point to bits the size OF a
dime, were taken from Mrs. Pullman's
neck and transplanted to her forehead
and cheek. This operation, too, was
quite successful, and to-day all that re-
mains of the wound in the forehead is d
reddish mark the size of a bean.
There now remained the nose and lip.
For the first it is proposed to use an or
binary artificial nose, but for the second
the extreme art of the surgeon is being
brought into play. A narrow strip of
flesh is to be cut from each side of the
cheek out of the now healthy flesh.
This will be cut on three sides only, then
turned back and over, meeting beneath
the nose and forming what, in the fu-
ture, is to be the upper lip. The two
edges will be joined without the aid Of
thread, and the inner surface of the slip
being turned outward, will give the nat
ural color to the edge of the lip.
And so thus cured, Mrs. Pullman,
while bearing with her for the rest Of
her life scars OF the terrible 'lupus,"
will nevertheless be fairly presentable
and a standing proof of the scientific
skill of the modern surgeon. Mrs. Pull
man is now staying at the Murray Hill
Hotel