The morning call., 1891-05-06
THE COURSE OF CONSUMPTION.

a paper on tuberculosis, read before the
National Conference of State Boards of
Health, now in session at Washington. led
to a discussion in which the spread of the
disease was admitted. At the South espe-
cialy. where sanitary seienoe is in is in
fancy, and the negro refuses to be taught to
take proper care of himself, cases Of con
sumption are increasing in number and the
mortality therefrOm is larger than it was.
The conference dwelt upon the recent dis
coyery that phthisis is contagious. and may
be taken from the lower animals as from
man; it urged upon its members the duty
of educating the people on the subject.
The faculty and the public have reluct-
antly come to the conclusion that Koch
lymph is failure as a cure for consumption
That opinion was reached here some time
ago. There has been no case of cure by the
lymph in San Francisco, and there are sew
eral cases in which the Koch treatment is
suspected of having aggravated the disease
In New York the new remedy was gwen a
thorough trial a patient was selected, sent
to Berlin, and there treated under the eye of
Koch himself, regardless of expense Alter
a full experiment he returned hGme to die Of
tuberculosis in New York hospital. Ply
sicians in the East have ceased to prescribe
the German remedy. There is a lingering
hone that it may prove efficacious in cases of
lupus and leprosy, but faith in its value in
cases Of consumption IS no longer generally
entertained in any quarter.
1t would be incorrect to infer that con-
sumption cannot be met by a treatment
which takes the bacillus as its objective. No
such negative result has been reached. All
that the recent experiments have proved is
that thus far DIR. Koch has not hit upon
the exact geTmicide which viii accomplish
results in cases of tuberculosis. 1t is pos
sible, nay, it is probable, that he has pointed
the way, and that others who come after
him will improve upon his methodist that
some day physicians will learn how TO stop
the ravages Of the disease germ. If they do
Dr. Koch viii be entitled TO the honors
which belong to pioneers in the work of dis
covery.
Meantime, we must deal with the most
fatal of all diseases with the knowledge we
| possess, aud the materials at our hand
Within the past FIVE years, much has been
learned Of the nature of consumption, and Of
the weapons by which it may be resisted.
We have ascertained beyond controversy
that it is contagious, and an infectious
disease, and that il is particularly liable to
be spread By civilizations from the sputa Of
c0nsumptiveS. The prevalence of the dis
ease in families, which is generally eX-
planned by the theory that there is con-
sumption in the blood, is really due to the
non-isOlatiOn Of the patients. a young
man or girl attacked by consumption con-
tinHes to occupy the same chamber with
members of his or her family, and to
cough and expect0rate in their presence
| they catch the disease, much as they would
! catch scarlet fever or diphtheria under the
/ same conditions. In the light of modern
| science, the first step to be taken when the
| presence of tuberculosis is determined is to
/ isolate the patient.
1t is exceedingly doubtful if any drugs,
| either in the aIlopathic or homeopathic
! form, are of service in tubercular disease
! Stories have appeared in the papers about
cures effected in Germany by the use OF
| alcohol, in large quantities, and regular
| doses. There may be constitutions in which
such stimulants impart such temporary
yigor to the system that it is enabled to
| throw of the disease germs and eXpel them
| from the tissues and the blood. But the
better opinion among physicians is that
! this is dangerous treatment. The use Of
! stimulaniS is sure to be followed by a re-
action, which offsets any benefit they may
| confer. OF the advantage Of lie in the
| open air, in elevated regions, wlilz3 a dry
! bTacing atmosphere acls As tonic That in
| wolves no reaction, there has never been any
| question. In the earlier stages Of tubeTcu-
! lar disease. six months spent in the SierTas,
| in hunting or w0od-chopping. are almost
sure to effect cure And it is a cure which
is in the reach OF all persons. T4e
| trouble is that most cOnSumptiyes only dis
cover that they have got tuberculosis when
the early stages Of the disease are past, and
! its cure has become a matter Of extra
ordinary difficulty; and that then they
! seek relief at the seashore, where harsh
winds aggraYate pulmonary inflammation, or
/ IN warmer attitudes where the air is re-
| Taxing and tends to weaken instead OF
| strengthening the vitality.