The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1898-10-28


nm This Isine.
Now York Journal,
me rpcrts Of tho apparently succt.sfui
ueetment OF case OF severe lUckSaw. -
'e'anus, by direct Injections Of an nnti toxtn
serum Into tho brain substances hns aroused
,ne interest Of not only tho medical proses-
sion' but also Of the people In general, for Il
ieaus 10 the hope that BY this now method
we may havc made great advance In tho
treatment OF tetauus through serum, 80 that
we may hope 10 ret as favorable, or nearly
as favorable. results in that disease a. IL
diphtherla. AS is well known IN the medical
profession, tho results up to this time have
been rather Disappointing.
Tetanus, or lorkjaw. is u disease caused
by the poison formed by the tctanus baciili
or Germs. Thete gcr,ns exist Ia tho soil,
horse manure etc, and when driven Into =
wound aieng with dirt. etc, they grow
and mako their poison. Tha germs do not
leave tho wound area but the poison IL xb-
sorbed Into the lluod, This poison IL one OF
the most powerful known, and has direct
heMoh upon the nerves and hcryo cells.
The nrst symptoms usually appear In thf
muscles Of the thr0Nrt and jaw or less frtH
qnNnuy In the muscles near tho wound.
Wherever they appear they are due to the
irritation of tho nerve cells by the tetanux
poison. which has .got into tho blood from
that formed about tho wound.
rVanue poison has an antidote ne certain
~ mas tho Nlphthcria poison. We eau give
an auim0l under the skin million times
ehnuEh poison to Kill IL. ana then by Injecting
Into tho blood n few drops OF antt-tosin W.
can save us life and even prevent siekncss.
lno anti-,oNin is supposed TO combine With
tho toxin or poison aud render Il iu.rt or to
combine with the cells and render them pol
son proof. iust ns u llttle soda would rombine
nhu render nonttal some hulphufie acid u.
however, tho polson attacks the cells frst tho
ahtt-toNin In probably useless just as the
soda would bo 10 person burnt by the sui
phuftc acid.
Now In diphtherla. the physician or parent
detects the disease by tho gray patch In the
throat at limo before the child has abb
Hprhod 80 mitch poison that It's cells have be-
conse attacked d0aa OF anti. toxin renders
the diphtheniR poison harmless, aud tho child
reGoeere,
In tcinnus, however, we do not detect tho
disease by the appearance OF tho wound, bat
ouly by The conynislons which show the nerve
cells are already attacked and perhaps 80
much injured that no amount 81 ant-toSin
can save lie for anti toxin can only prevent
further disease mot cure cells already de-
struyod.
II is for this reason that although we eau
prtNent person trom getting lockjaw after .
wound. We often fail 90 cure after convulsons
have started IN ofder TO got the nnti-tosin
Into the blcnd IA quickly rs poasIblr. SO thAs
u may reach immediately all poison Ia tho
blood ana about the nerve celle naA stop FUR
ther III cNectk OF tue poison, the hnti-tpNin -
sometimes put Immediately ihio vein. 10
that Il cutters directly tn,o ti9 circulation.
with thu idea that " pint Ia sufficient rnnren-
tratiou about the nerve eells Il may rob them
of the poison which is asliue on hem, uut
which has not 0H yel fully combined with and
destroyed thein. n hue heun injected fow
times directly iEto the nerNe brain tissues,
Although Ia these desperate cases such
methods are undoubtedly Unstable aud s-u
worthy of commeudntlpn. yet II seems father
too much to espuc, that We can hope by in-
iortlnE the scruin over or into The plaia Lsaue
IN safe amounts 10 roach sufficient Of the dts.
eascd nerve celia TO be able 10 exert any very
mplked effect, even II we aud that II " possible
TO nioot any more by this diract application
than We could got from tho anti-topin citcn-
itinE 10 the blood, which would soon be abb
sorhed into tue fluids bathing the reiis.
Although it fFomw Improbable. therefore.
that many or lErhnps any tnsaE can be saved
b. the direct application ni nnti-toxiu to the
hralu tiHeucs, YET ~ before stated, tho ex-
nlMmont rs worth trying aud when properly
carried out ue1fy without danger.
Kpowiug tlat our views Of the manner In
which the tetanus poison attacks the cells are
san largely theoretical -, may and mrthOdg
Of treatment that viii give good results where
W. haYn little ground for hopes,
William \, jenkins, NJ D..
Health Commissioner.