The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-10-15
HEALING BY LIGHT RAYS.
Il DANISH pHYSICT4>'s TREATMENT
OF NNIN DISEiSES.

Certain Rays on the Affected Areas with
Good Results Curative Powers al the
solar spectrum Electric Light Also Used.
The current issue Of the Philadelphia Medical
journal presents from advance sheets OF the
British Medical journal, n paper by Dr. Waldo
mar Bic describing the methods Of DIR. Fnsen of
Copenhagen In curing cruptvc diseases Of the
skin by concentrated light Concentrated light
as here used means the concentration Of certain
desired rnys of sunlight or " tho electric light
upon the diseased tissue, and the exclusion from
the tissue II rays which have been shown TO be
detrimental DR. Finscn was already known
for his treatment uf skin eruptions, especially
those Of smallpox and similar diseases, by red
light in which he excluded the blue. violet and
ultra violet rays Of light as injurious to the dis
eased parts and as tending 10 aggravate existing
inflammation. His later work is the outgrowth
and converse Of that method. and where before
he used red light to exclude the chemical rays
OF light (blue, violet and ultra violet. az having
an injurious effect in the diseases he treated, he
has now found way to utilize the effects Of the
chemical rays benchcially in other diseases In
this treatment he does away with the red rays
because of their heat and altogether his work
presents an interesting analysis Of tho thera
peuuc power in the solar spectrum. DR.. Bic is
DR. Finsens principal assistant at the Finsen
Nedicinske Lysnstitut in Copenhagen
Or. Finsen found the chemical rays OF light
capable Of causing inflammation in a healthy skin,
and excluded them in his red-lght treatment
as having the concomitant power to increase
inflammation already existing. His further studies,
In which in part he followed earlier invcstig atlons
led to his new method Of treatment phoothcrapy,
based these properties of tho chemical
rays: their bactericidal power. their power to
produce Inflammation of the skin. as already noted
and their power to penetrate the skin BY his
method he causes the chemical rays TO penetrate
the diseased skin and kill the bacilli that occa
sion the disease Tho bactcricdal property oflight
generally had been previously demonstrated
Investigations at tho Fnsen Laboratory showed
that that property instead Of residing in the light
rs a whole, was a power of the chemical rays
Bright sunshine at noon of July killed specimen
bacillus o. prodfotoSuJ) in an hour and a half
The light from electric arc lamp killed in from
eight to nine hours These bacteria were in
plate cultures and DR.. Bic observes that much
longer periods of exposure undoubtedly would
be required To kill the germs II growing in the
skin. He says that even the strongest sunlight
has. then, too slight bactericidal property
ever to be OF any use for therapeutic purposes,
otherwise all bacterial skin diseases would be
cured spontaneously in the summer" Dr. Fin
sen found the therapeutic power of sunlight TO
reside in the chemical rays and as he concen-
trates these blue violet and ultraviolet rays in
the apparatus he has devised, they will. when
collected from an electric arc light, kill bacteria
in u few seconds. That is the gist of his photo
therapy, the details Of the working out of which
are full Of interesting disclosures
II had already been proved that the old theory
that the skin dcsease known as erythemd Solora
was caused by the heat in light was wrong. That
was found by passing electric light in parallel
rays through distilled water, which absorbs the
ultrared rays uhe dark red heat waves or through
glass plate which absorbs a large proportion Of
the ultra violet rays. Whether the light contained
the ultra red rays made no difference but when the
ultra violet rays were not in il no inflammation
was produced. Dr. Finsen carried his expert
ments far enough TO show that the blue and the
violet rays share this power of the ultraviolet
but in less degree.
Another investigator. GodneG found by plac
Ing small. sealed glass tubes containing muriate
pf silver beneath the skin OF cats and dogs and
exposing some of them 10 daylight while others
were kept in darkness, that the chemical rays Of
light penetrated the skin for the silver was black
rned in the animals exposed to the sunlight but
not in those kept in the dark. DR.. Finscn found
that these rays penetrate bloodess tissues much
more easily than those filled with blood This
was shown by placing scnsitzed paper back of
n mans car and concentrating the blue and violet
rays of sunshine the other side OF the car After
five minutes Of this the paper was unaffected
hut when all the blood had been pressed out Of the
car the paper was blackencd in twenty seconds
Looking at the solar spectrum through an ear
with the normal quantity Of blood one sees only
red stripe but il the ear is made annnc all the
colors appear. Through these discoveries Dr.
Finsen was enabled TO make favorable the con
ditons for applying his concentrated light treat
ment by deyising means for renderin tho skin
areas to be treated as anHmic as possible during
the application of the rays
Another necessity to be met before he could
utilize the therapeutic powers OF light was to
cool the light sufficiently SO that the skin should
not be burned This he accomplished by the
construction OF a lens composed of a plain glass
and curved one bound by metal ring and
between them bright blue, weak ammonical
solution oil copper sulphatc, This is used when
operating, with sunlight Electric light requires
another device. The water abSorbs the ultra
red theaU waves and the blue color excludes
considerable proportion Of the red rays as well
as OF the yellow rays, both Of which have heating
power When operating with electric light only
distilled water is used for cooling because the
extreme ultra violet rays, which the ones
Or Ftnscn has found to have the greatest bac.
tcricidal power, and which abound in the electric
aIc light are absorbed by the blue coloring mat
sunlight arc. like the violet rays Of sunlight
but little impaired, il has been found in pass
Ing through the blue solution, In summer, when
the skies are bright sunlight is used in the Finsen
Treatment; at other times electric arc lamps OF
from 30 to so ampcr,S. The cooling lens in the
sun instrument hangs on foot and can be raised
and lowered and turned on a vertical and hori,
z"ntal axis SO as To he placed properly in the
sum rays and at amy distance required to make
The light fall on the part 10 be treated
Ut Bic says OF the apparatus for conccntra ting
IN" electric are light; 1T consists Of lenses of
quartz framed in two brass tubes which can he
moved. III" one into the other, like the two pieces
"i telescope. Lenses 81 quart are used be
cause this material in far higher degree than
glass allows the ultra violet OF shortest wave
length I" pass through and il il just the ultra
Elnlct rays that have considerable baCteriCid Il
elect The apparatus for concentrating the
Eunght may, on the other hand, be made Of
glass, because all the ultra violet rays OF the sun
light have 50 long wave length that they can
pass through glass; those Of shorter wave length
hrr already absorbed by the atmosphere In
the part OF the apparatus which faces the lamp.
two lenses are placed. that have together a focal
distance OF twelve CcntimctrcS: when the apDa tA
- placed in such way that the first lens is
exactly at this distance from the points ol
tho carbpnS nj the lamp, they consequently
will concentrate the divergent rays coming
from the lamp and make them parallel. thcsc
rays pass through tho brass tubes, at The
diStal end Of which thcy meet again with
Nv" lenses Of quartz. which concentrate the
parallel rays, making them CunvCrgcnt in such
way that they are united about ten Ccntimctrca
outside the second lens Between these two