The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-11-05


nervous system conferred in the spinal col
umn. The nerves being launched" in the
abdomen, the pain naturally manifests it
self there. Bending the body forward
usually produces pain; bending 1t back
ward relieves the pain. If the patient is
able to walk his gait will be painfully
careful. He seldom or never stoops to
pick up objects. Instead, he crouches.
Sometimes there is pain in the back, but
not often. No deformity will be observed
at the start, but if the disease is allowed
to run, a slight knob or hump will soon
appear. Sooner or later in nearly every
case paralysis, to a greater or lesser ex-
tent, viii manifest itself. This is due to
the fact that the disease has invaded the
spinal canal.
DIR. Phelps Studies.
These symptoms were neatly laid down
as absolute guides by DR.. A. NJ. Phelps
the professor of orthopaedic surgery at
the New York Post Graduate Medical
School. DIR. Phelps, it is conceded, is to-
day the foremost authority in Potts dis
ease, its cure and the cures of the deform-
ity it produces. This article is based on
an interview with him. An oethopaedic
surgeon is a medical mechanic. Hunch-
back and the disease that produces it are
to be cured almost solely by mechanics
and most interesting thing this cure is.
No medicines are given except cod liver
oil and other nourishing substances that
help to build up and repair the tissues that
are being destroyed by the poison germs.
Lots of fresh air, healthy surroundings
and plenty of good food make up the rest
of the treatment outside of the field of
mechanics. A hunchback patient, in fact,
is treated just exactly as a consumptive
is treated.
But the hunchback has a decided ad-
vantage over the consumptive. 1t is i'm
possible to cure consumption of the lungs
Thanks to the possibility of applying me-
chanics, consumptive of the spine Is cas-
lily durable.
The reason, and the only one, why pull
monary or ordinary consumption cannot
be cured is that IL is impossible to secure
a rigid condition of the lungs. If it was
possible to keep the lungs absolutely
quiet the disease would not spread. The
germs would be confined to the area of
Inflammation, comparatively small, in
which they first settled 1t is the con-
slant agitation of the lung tissue caused
by breathing that spreads the germs.
breaking down more and more of the
healthy tissue
DR.. Lewis A. Sayre, the great New York
surgeon, was the first practitioner to real
ize that what was impossible in the lungs
was attainable in the spine. Until his dis
covery, only a comparatively few years
ago, spinal consumption was considered a
incurab bic as lung consumption. The only
difference then was that in spinal n
sumption nature stepped in at a Ger ain
point to check the disease. The germs
having settled themselves in that partic-
ular section of the backbone that had been
injured were spread gradually as they are
in the lungs by every movement Of the pa
tient. Every time he sat down or got up
or turned his head or stopped, the patient
caused an agitation of his spine that
spread the germ colony, and carried for
ward the work of destruction. The germs
always fastened to the interior or soft por-
ton of the spine. Pretty soon the emit e
interior side of one of The bonts of the
spine was eaten away. Then the next YER
tebrae is attacked. Naturally there is soon
a collapse The spinal column, partially
eaten away on the inside, bulges outward.
The hump is formed. AS the work of lie
struction continues the spine bends more
and more until finally the curve is so great
as 10 let the ribs of the patient settle in
the hip bones
The Disease stops Itself.
DR.. sayre noticed that in all cases where
the patient lived until this point was
reached that the destruction stopped. The
ribs settling on the hip bones acted as a
support for the spinal column. The sof
part OF the spinal bones no longer rubbed
| together and the germs in consequence
could not spread their work was over
| Certain new bone tissue formed. partially
replacing that which had been destroyed.