The evening tribune. (Pawtucket, R.I.) 189?-190?, 1897-07-02
CURE FOR TETANUS.
A NOTED eAcTERIoLooIsT's ExPcRI-
MENTs WITH ANTlToxiNE.

Tho bacteria of Locijaw Abundant. but
They Cannot Propagate In the Presepce
nj Oxygen GrntifyinE Results Obtained
by the Use of the New Remedy.
DR.. Hopkins of the Cleveland Medical
college, and one OF tho worlds noted
bacteriologists, recently performed "a
notable experiment. "A rabbit afflicted
with lockjaw in its worst phase and in
imminent danger Of dying was cured by
the doctor by one injection OF lockJaw
antitoxine
As rabbit has less degree Of vital
ity than man has and as its system is
less susceptible to changes it is believed
that a person afflicted with lockjaw can
be cured more easily than the rabbit
was The use of lockjaw antitoxino was
attempted at the New York Pnsteur in
stitute some time ago. but it's applica-
tion was not marked with success.
Dr. Hopkins in an interview had this
to say Of his remarkable experiments:
"Lockjaw, or, as it is technically
known, tetanus, is one of the most fatal
diseases known to medicine. In fact, it
is almost invariably fatal. The cause OF
the affection was unknown until, in
1884, Nicolaier found the germ which
produced it in garden earth. The germs
were especially abundant in manured
soil, and this led to the supposition that
these organisms had their origin in the
intestines of horses. But this theory
was quickly disproved by LIE Dentre,
who found the germs existing in abun-
where there were no horses. In these is
lands the natives were accustomed to
poison their arrows by thrusting them
in soil rich in these germs
The disease is usually contracted
through wounds from rusty nails, etc.,
which have been in such soil and are COW
cred by the germs, or it may come from
direct contact between an abraded skin
surface and earth containing the germs.
One of the characteristics of these bao-
terra, and fortunate one, Is that they
cannot propagate in the presence OF oxy-
gen. We're it not for this fact the dis
ease would certainly be much more
common. So virulent are these organ
isms that five-one-m -millionths of q cent?
meter taken from culture four weeks
old would kill q mouse in q few hours.
So rapid is the progress Of the disease
that If the point Of inoculation were
cauterized and the germs then present
at that point thereby destroyed an hour
after the incubation the result would
be unchanged. In the hope of curing
this much dreaded disease Behring and
Kilatalo have devised an antitoxine
similar in preparation and application
to the antitoxine for diphtheria, and un-
der its use the disease has lost much Of
its horror.
"Among the first to investigate along
this line in this country was DR.. George
w. Hopkins, bacteriologist to the Cleve-
land Medical college. DR.. Hopkins Sc
cured a strong, vigorous goat and inject
ed into it at first one one -millionth of a
drop Of a culture of tetanus germs The
injections were continued in constantly
increasing doses for four months, the
last dose being five drops Of a most viru-
lent culture, and at the end Of this time
the animals jugular vein was opened
and two quarts Of rich red blood were
extracted. This was allowed to coagu-
late and then the serum which had been
squeezed out Of the clot was removed.
This possessed the curative properties,
and with it many experiments were
performed. Rabbits, guinea pigs and
dogs were inoculated with the disease,
and when it had assumed an apparently
fatal form few drops of the antitoxine
serum were introduced under the ami
malls skin and this procedure was inva-
riably followed by muscular relaxation
and general improvement in few
hours and complete recovery Us rule
inside of "a hours. 1t was later tried
upon horses suffering from lookjaw with
equally gratifying results and lastly in
cases in men, with complete recovery
in all but few cases which were not
seen until the patients were moribund. |"
Exchange.