The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1899-12-20
THE FACTS AS TO SMALL pox
OBSERVATIONS OF AN EXPERT.


Severe in Recent Years-The Con- |
fluent Form is Not Common Now.
As the question OF SMALLPOX is again |
demanding the attention of the health |
authorities and the public generally |
we present a summary OF q paper by |
w. M. Welch, Nj. D., OF the Philadel- |
phia municipal hospital (pest housc), |
published in the Philadelphia Medical
Journal OF Nov. Is, 1899.
Two or three years ago, says DR..
Welch, q mild type OF smallpox ap.
peared In the Southern States. While
the disease was recognized as infec-
tious, its diagnosis was rendered diili-
cult In part by reason Of the unusual
mildness Of it's Symphonic and also be-
cause OF the inexperience Of tho
younger generation OF physicians in
dealing with smallpox. The mild type
OF the affection has been ascribed to
It's supposed Introduction from the
tropics, bnt this Ia questionG' le. In
an experience OF 20 years OF hospital
work, which includes over 8 SOC cases
OF smallpox DR.. Welch has never seen
cases present uniformly so mild q type
as during the pre- vailing epidemic, nor
has he been able to find in the vast
amount OF literature published on the
subject an account OF a similarly mild
epidemic in this or any other country.
The disease has prevailed among ne
grOes, both in the South and in the
Northern cities. La Philadelphia 122
out OF 128 cases were negroes. This is
due to the fact that In the Southern
States vaccination has been greatly
neglected, particularly among the ne
grOes. The disease has been called by
various names, such as Cuban itch,"
elephants ITCH" ETC., but the most
popular name among the colored peo-
Pile was "the bumps"
While the disease as q rule presents
even in the unvaccinated the symp-
toms OF mild variOloid, yet not all cases
are equally mild. Some patients show
considerable degree of confluence in
the exposed parts of the body, parti-
cularly OF the face. In the mildest
cases it was impossible to count as
many as dozen pustules even in per-
cons who had never been vaccinated.
Tho vast majority Of the patients
would not remain in bed after the
eruption appeared. They would dress
up In their clothing, walk about and
indulge in various pranks, tricks and
games. 1t was novel sight to see
smallpox patients, negroes, ,lunvaccinat-
ed, at about the eighth or ninth day of
the eruption, engaging in game Of
baseball"
In previous epidemics the mortality
from smallpox in Philadelphia has
varied from 1S per cent. to 64.41 per
cent, the average death rate being
63.3 81 per cent. Even before vaccina-
tiOn was discovered small outbreaks Of
the disease were occasionally y met with,
In which the mortality was not above
18 per cent, while the average death
rate from natural smallpox during the
eighteenth century WAS, according to
available statistics, not less than 40
per cent. In the present epidemic in
Philadelphia the mortality Of l28 cases
was nil. OF these ITO had not been
vaccinated, and II showed the scars OF
imperfect vaccination. a large pro-
portlon-ll3 cases-were over l5 years
OF age.
The prophylact:c power OF vaccina-
tion Is clearly evident from the fact
that so few Ofsthe cases of smallpox
occurred In persons who were vaccin-
ated. Besides, 1t is believed that but
for vaccination the disease would have
become widespread and assumed an
epidemic form OF immense proportion,
since so many of the persons affected
were not Ill enough to be confined to
the house, but, on the contrary, min
gled quite freely with the public,
The symptoms OF the disease differ
only in degree from the severer form.
Ill. chill more or less marked is
commonly an early symptom. This is
followed by fever, the temperature
varying from 101 degrees Fahrenheit to
los degrees Fahrenheit. At the same
Sime irritability of.the stomach occurs.
Pain in the small of the back Is COM
mon early symptom and it may be
slight or severe. In adults headache
Is often severe. The eruption appears
in from as to ~ hours after the chill,
and with the appearance Of the erup-
tiOn the temperature drops to normal.
The eruption first manifests itself as
minute hard elevations on some parts
of the face, forehead and the wrists,
Two or three days usually elapse be-
fore the outbreak Is complete. In this
time the slight elevations of the skin
change to water blisters and about the
fifth day the contents change to pus.
In the majority of cases the eruption
Is scattered. In the suppurative stage
the secondary fever Is not prominent
symptom. The diseases with which
the present epidemic Is most likely to
be confouDded are chickenpOx and im
petigO contagiosa.
Within the last year or two one OF
the most helpful contributions to medi-
cal science has been the Introduction
of glycerinized vaccine lymph. With
per cont. OF "takes" is secured, while
very few sore arms result. 1t now
seems an established fact that when
severe sores result from vaccination
with the new form OF lymph they are
due to scratching or some other source
of secondary infection, and not to the
vaccine. Glycerined lymph Ia now
prepared by several reputable houses
in this country, and is the only form OF
vaccine virus that should be employed,
since 1T offers greater protection from
smallpox and additional security from
sore arms. BY the employment of this
virus smallpox has within less than q
year been rendered extinct In the is.
land OF Puerto Rico and some of the
provinces of Cuba-Holguin, where,
under Spanish rule, it had long been
epidemic.
Another popularity of the present
mild epidemic in the Southern States
has been It's prevalence In the summer
months; whereas 1t is usually regard
ed as winter disease. Upon this
point DR.. WEIGH remarks that he sees
no reason why the disease should not
assume it's old and familiar form when
the infection is conveyed to the Middle
and Northern States, and that what it
will do when cold weather sets in re.
mains to be seen.
The United States marine hospital