Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-08-01
LYMPH Is A FAILURE.
Unly One Patient ISLeft Under Treat
ment in New York.
DIR, HEINEMAN ALONE A BELIEVER
Or, kOch's Tubercuhn Cannot Cure Either
Cancer or PhthiSiS.
SOMETHING ABOUT THBsLUPUs-CASES

lvmph and resolved to devote himself IN the
future to meteorological researches Will not
arouse surprise in New YORK, where the
lvnph has come TO be regarded as failure
in the cure of consumption, or OF anything
that could not be moreeasily~cured by other
means. The failure of the lymph in New
York. saws the New York Times, has been
SO complete that there is now, so far as
known. only-one patient under lssnphtrea
,neut in a public institution. Formerly
there were hundreds
prof Abraham jacob, who was among
the foremost Of the earliest distinguished
advocates of experimentation wath the
lvmph. gave II thorough trial in practice
Al Mount Sinai Hospital, the German Hos
pitsI. and several other public institutions,
and the result of his experiments was so far
from satisfactory that he definitely aban-
doned its further use in the hospitals The
Professor has sailed for Europe, but4before
departing he left his opinion of the' Koch
lymph on record.
ALLEvIATNE,- NOT r-CURATIVE.
Alta meeting of the Academy of AIedi-
cine in West Fortv<hird street, in the
"a
lvmph. Prof jacob stated that the lymph
seemed to be an alternative but not cura-
tive. Its use had caused Improvement IN
tubercuIous eases over the usual methods of
hospital treatment. Beyond that, however,
nothing appeared to-lIave been established.
The object Of Prof Jacobs journey to
Tu~one is TO attend, rs delegate. the forth
coming Tuberculosis Congress which meets
In Paris this month. 1t Is understood that
D. r.~rnaSes 10 furnish data TO the congress
,--s.--fur- his lymph experiments and
rr.r- conclusions therefrom, IN accordance
with his known opinions on the subject.
rrna -l-esenr congress Is a continuation of
-rr- which met in Paris two years ago, and
-a (which Prof Jacob, DR.. Henry y. Heine-
4r.rr. and Dr L. C. NJ. Page were delegates.
r-.. object Of the congress was to establish
IN. relation. if such relation might exist,
between consumption in man and consump-
-.an In the lower animals, with the object
,t asrsrtaining whether there was infection
in the meat or milk of consumptive cattle.
Ea- only physicians but veterinarians ass
7ur'l took part in the congress
40 CASE OF INFECTION PROVED.
Although great learning and patient OBJ
rarva1ion had been brought y bear on the
problem, there was no one in attendance at
the congress. it Is declared, who was able to
present a single authenticated and undis-.
purable case where man had been infected
with consumption either from meat or milk.
The theme of discussion at the present ses-s
sion Of the congress will be considerably
b-oadened.
At ST. Marks Hospital, where-there were
over 30 cases of tuberculosis under lymph
treatment during the early stages of the eX-
element over Prot. Koch's discovery, there
IS not now single patient. The use of the
lymph was discontinued two months ago,
except in one case, and there has been no
lymph administered at all in the hospital
-lr over 4 month. Moreover, there have
been no patients admitted in that period
who expressed desire to have the lymph
used. The sum total of the entire series of
experiments with the lymph at st. Marks
was the discharg: of three lupus patients
credited on the books as ''cured, although
II is as vet too early, of course, to tell
whether the disease will make Its reap
pearance.
we used the lymph" said DR. S.
Strauss sin many cases of lupus and some
cases of phthisis. 4 few of the patients
suffering with phthisis were discharged as
improved. but none were cured. The last
case of phthisis was a woman, who went
away saving she felt slightly improved.
The effect of the lymph treatment on the
patients was often largely the result of
their Imagination. They believed they felt
better because the lymph was heralded as
great cure. The woman of whom L. just
smoke was under treatment two weeks.
LYMPH STILL ON HAND.
owe still have about 1,OOO milIigrams of,
the lymph, but long ago ceased to admins
Ter 1t. except to such patients as expressed
an urgent desire for its use, and then only
ar their own risk. To such patients we
have held forth no promises, telling them
frankly that the chances for their receiving
amy benefit from the lymph were very
-..-lt We offered no assurance. The
r..ular faith in the remedy has died out.
IU.re are no more applicants for its use.
When last We administered it the doses
varied from one to l. mllligrams.
Al st. Luke's Hospital in West Fifty
fourth street, near Fifth avenue, where
formerly DIR. Kinnieutt, the pioneer expert
menter in New York, was so enthusiastic
over the lymph, its use has been entirely
discontinued, and when the subject of the
lymph treatment was yesterday broached to
Or. J.. p Bishop, The house physician, he
dismissed its further consideration with an
impatient wave of the arm.
"The use Of the lymph" he said, ''has
been entirely stopped in this hospital No
lymph has been administered this present
month, and its use was practically aban-
G0Icd before that. We used two big bottles
ut the lymph 10000 milligramS in alb on
our tuberculosis patients, and none Of them
were discharged as cured"
no PATIENT ENTIRELY CURED.
At Bellevue Hospital, where there was at
one time '1ymph" ward under the care of
Prof Loomis the use of the lymph has been
discarded. No patient was discharged as
entirely cured. The experiments at Belle
vuc covered q wide range of cases. from
lupus 10 almost the last stages of pulmonary
consumption. The usual symptoms of
alienation were frequently observed.
At the NOn,efore Home for Chronic In
valids, in the Boulevard at West One Hun
dred and Thirty-eighth street, the use of the
lymph has been given up. No patient was
discharged as cured. The lymph was ad-
ministered in this institution TO many per-
sons suffering from phthisis, but with un-
satisfactory results. In some cases there
was seeming temporary relief, with an ale
yiation OF the symptoms
The lymph was tried in several cancer
cases at the New York Cancer Hospital,
Eighth avenue and One Hundred and Sixth
street, under the personal direction of DIR.
George Z. Shrady, Of the Medical Record, but
1t was soon demonstrated that the new
remedy was Intellectual TO retard or stop the
ravages o. that disease, and there has been
no attempt to emphasize the failure by fur
ther experiments. DIR. Shrady was skeptical
Of the virtues of the lymph from the outset
and was among the first to criticise its use
point out its defects, prophesy its failure,
and dccTy its use.