The Opelousas courier., 1897-02-13
MODERN. AILMENTS.
Mechanical D5vices That Bring
. Evils in Their Train.
The Trolley Foot" Telephone
Ear" and bicycle Toe

@tSt a. tIlc tLstIti't StLitiS Ok VAC
age has forced novelties into the
higher professions, and the expert
mechanic finds his field growing
large" continually. 80 the physician
sees new or special diseases confront
lng tii:l resulting from H5w conl!-
tloH5 in mClarn NE. These new dis
eases, says the New York Tribune, re.
cclvc the names from tho lay world
which are adopted b7 the scientific
people.
That has been ,lono buior>,
though said Il phys.cs4n, and rail-
road spine 'housenaid's knee sem
g!noer's ear, AMI painters collie are
designations which would probably
never have been given ID certsinncom-
paints If they had not been suggested
by laymcn. OF course, there are sclen-
title for ALL" he added, but
they arc not used except III medical
literature, and then they arc not 50
eXprcssive.'
Among the new muIalies which the
physicians attribute to recent nltchan-
ical and scientific Inventions is the
"trol!ey foot Tie motormau on
electric and cable ears rings the warn
ing gong by pressing his foot upon g
knob Or button, and it is said that the
constant pressure produces an ailment
which had never been known until the
ears came into use.
'ln the first place. said Il motor
man. it wears ont the shoe quicker
than You have any idea but that's the
shoes fault. Then, tapping the knob
produces Il tickling sensation at first,
aud then the foot gets iEtiimod. OF
course We know that it cant be- any
thing serious, and keep right on kick
ing the thing, and after n few days the
Inflammation wears of, the skin gets
hard and We think lis all over and
that we'll have 80 more trouble. But
that's a mistake. Shooting pains and
nervous %tw,tchlngs follow, and these
arc worse when one is off duty than
vhcn kicking the gong" 1t was ex-
lIEained that IN most instances the
difficulty wear away. but that trolley
loot" had caurr!H many men to quit
the service q the railroad corpora
tions. u
Yelenlhl>!ss re car, as aresult of coastant
use of the telephone, has given the
ear specialists considerable work. The
structure OF the ear is not in any way
affected by the use OF the instrument.
but the unnatural use OF the organ
frequently causes u nervous strain,
which is reflected in the aural nerves
When asked about the cure for tele-
phone ear IN biologist said:
Il have never seen q case which
was not cured in q SHORT time after
the cause was removed. When the pa
tient stops using the telephone the
ringing noises and the headaches soon
disappear"
Bicycle back and bicycle toes are
among the Ills which are charged to
the improper use Of the bicycle. 'The
man or woman" sail % physician.
"who doubles up IN q wheel cannot
escape the bicycle back il he lives
long enough, and the coward on a
bicycle is apt to contract the bicycle
toe" which results from curling up
the foot. 1t is a strange thing he
added, "but it is true that the ner-
vous rider, who constantly thinks he
is about to tumble, will have e%xcruci.
ating pains in his toes after n short
ride, and he will be troubled in that
way until he gains confidence enough
in himself to stop the v contrac-
ton of his feet. As to the bicycle
back it is simply a natural conse-
quence. The men who work in mines
and who are compelled to stoop for
hours at a time have what is known as
miners back, which is identical with
bicycle back but while we pity the
miners We condemn the wheelmen."
Telegrapher's cranp is another Of
the modern complaints. It results
from the manipulation Of the tela-
graphic key, and affects the sufferer
in the same way as writer's cramp.
The fingers which are used on the
keys and the whole forearm are fre.
quent]y made useless, ard are restored
to q normal condition only after sci.
entiic treatment by gymnastics and
massage.
Typewriter's cramp is much like
teiegrapher's cramp, but rs both
hands are used in writing on the ma.
chine, so both hands are often In
yolved in the abnormal! condition.