The Brunswick times. [volume] (Brunswick, Ga.) 188?-1900, 1897-06-13
A STRANGE MAGNET.
EXTRACTS PARTICLES OF IRON OR
STEEL FROM THE EYES.

This Electro Magnet Has Drawing Force
of Sixteen Pounds 1t Has Not Failed
Since 1t Was First Used, About a Year
Ago.
The magnet has now become one of
the greatest aids to the eye surgeon.
| The wonderful power of electricity for
human good is demonstrated every week
at the New York Eye and Ear infirm-
airy. Few persons know of the seeming
marvels which have been accomplished
with the giant electro magnet, which is
located in the operating rooms of the
| institution referred to.
The particular use to which the cleo
tro magnet at the infrmary is put is to
locate or extract particles of iron or
steel lodged i'll the eye. The simplicity
and utility Of the plan are obvious, and
yet this magnet represents the first
practical experiment in the use of cleo
| tricity to aid the surgeon in removing
| the bits of iron and steel which have,
previous to the adoption of the magnet
system, generally caused blindness.
The soft iron core of the magnet is
| about two feet long and three inches in
diameter. 1t is pointed at each end.
The winding is disposed on spools
and is supplied with current from the
house mains. The whole magnet rests
on stand and is arranged to turn east
| ~ at the touch Of hand The most
wonderful feature of the whole thing is
| the fact that this great power here dis
played can be manipulated in so deli
! cate manner as to perform the incest
of operations.
Suppose a worker i'll iron or steel is
struck i'll the eye by a fine splinter of
metal from machine. The case re-
quires the attention of the most skillful
specialist. So the sufferer is taken at
once to the hospital. The first thing to
do is to locate the piece. of metal. The
| instrument used is a small needle high
| ly magnetized with electricity. If the
splinter is on the surface of the eye, it
will cling to this needle and may be
easily removed.
But it may have been hurled with
| such force as to have become imbedded
i'll the eye itself. The white portion of
| the eye which surrounds the iris, or col
ored ring, is composed of tough muscles,
which can be penetrated with only the
greatest difficulty. If the iron or steel
| particle become imbedded in this mus
cular tissue. it will not yield to the
magnetic needle.
Now comes the use of the large mag
net. This instrument has a drawing
| force of l6 pounds. AS the eye of the
patient is pressed toward its point the
subtle magnetic power begins to draw
upon the splinter. The metal, strug-
| Cling for release, bulges the eye from
the socket. If not too deeply imbedded,
the splinter will yield to the force, and,
leaving the eye, become attached to the
point of the magnet.
But as only too often occurs the met
al may strike with such force as to per-
| forate the coating and drop down into
the cavity of the eyeball. Especially is
this the case when it passes through the
iris or the pupil. One instance was
mentioned to me by the attendants at
the hospital of splinter which passed
entirely through the eye and lodged in
the coating on the other side of the ball.
Applied to the eye, the big magnet will
reveal with accuracy to the skilled sight
of the physician the nosition Of The
troublesome particle. Knowing this, he
can remove it by an operation. Only in
the most desperate cases need loss of
sight follow.
1t is now little more than a year
since the first experiment with the mag
net was made at the inirmary. During
that entire time not single failure has
been recorded. The magnet is as relia-
BILE as truth itself, and there are at least
dozen persons with unimpaired sight,
the infirmary physicians say, who can
thank the magnet and that only for the
fact that they can ee.-New York Her
aid.