The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-04-14
ORIGIN OF PNEUMONIA.
Not Inflammation, but n Real Germ
Culture.
From the Medical Record.


From the Medical Record.
In pneumonia the Importance Of the role
played by mlcro-organisms Is now gem
orally acknowledged. Or. Andrew II.
Smith, IN his article on "Croupous Pneu-
monia," in a forthcoming volume OF the
Twentieth Century Practice of Medicine.
has done much to e1ucIdate these moot
points and to remove the difficulties In tho
way of d more intelligent understanding
of the causation of the disease. lie takes
the ground that pneumonia is not an in
Illumination of the lung, but that 1t is Sim
ply process Of germ culture going on In
the air cells. the culture medium being
supplied from the functional vessels. Dr.
Smith is of the opinion that the key to the
whole problem Is in the double circulation
In the lungs, thing known to every one.
but the bearing Of which upon the pathol-
ogy OF pneumonia has been hitherto over
looked. Attention is drawn TO the fact
that la no other organ of the body but the
lung could structural health and disease
action 80 on side by side, for Il Is the only
one-although a somewhat analogous con-
dltion is met with In the heart-in which
the blood supply for nutrition and function
are separately provided for.
As might be expected, 80 radical a
change Of view as to the pathology of the
disease carries in its train numerous new
views In respect to treatment More than
one bird Of the article Is devoted TO a con-
sideratlon of this branch Of the subject.
In marked contrast to the usual custom of
writer's We have seen that DIR. Smith
asserts that pneumonia is not an inham-'
nation of the lung for the reason that in
his opinion II does not affect the nutrition
of the organ, but Is a process OF germ cul-
ture in which the pneumocOccus grows in
a culture medium supplied by the func-
tional capiuaries of the lung. Hence his
argument runs that therapeutic efforts
should be directed toward the arrest or an
hibition Of this germ culture. Inasmuch
az this culture medium Is derived from the
blood, and subsistence added TO the latter
will be also found In the former. and if
that substance Is inimical TO the growth of
the coccus, IT will in so far act In the de
rection sought. Fortunately the pneumo-
coccus Is the most vulnerable Of all the
germs and possessed OF the least vitality.
We have. therefore, according to Prof.
Smith, priori probability that it's ca
reer i'm the lung can be modified by drugs
The one from which the most satisfactory
results ia this direction have been obtain
ed Is the salicylate of sodium Creosote is
also valuable. as are likewise large doses
of qulnine, which have been credited with
an abortive effect long before the exist
ence of any kind of micro-organism was
recognized.
In regard 10 the treatment of pneumonia
by means of antltoxln. Prof. Smith be-
Heves with most scientific men that. while
there may and probably will be a great
future for orrhotherapy, at present the
results have been too indecisive to be re-
lied upon as curative or remedial In this
disease However. the news has recently
come from Berlin that Prof. Wassermann
of that city a pupil Of Prof. Koch. hopes
that he has discovered a serum cure for
pneumonia.
There are many more features of inter-
est in Prof. Smiths work which we
should like 20 notice. but II would be inn
possible within the limits Of an article 60
do more than give the chief points. How
ever. this much may be said. that the
new views on pneumonia" are likely to
prove a most valuable addition to medi-
cal knowledge.