The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1900-10-26

the old ones, and the old ones made fun
of the young. Some of them pronoun-
ced the word as though it were spelled
"Appendiceetis," and others "Appende-
Sights"
Papers were read by Drs. Guy H.
FITZGERALD, Charles B. Parker, Charles
G.. Foote, L. B, Tuckerman and Joseph
" Kofron. Dr. Parker told how to tell
whether person had appendicitis, say
ing that the patients stomach had usu-
ally had a "board-lilze" feeling when
felt Dr. 'Foote said that some patients
got we'll anyway, whether anything
was done for them or not, and that
some died, no matter how much was
done He thought the patients chanc-
es were better If there were an opera
ton.
DR.. Tuckerman said people had APP
pendlctis years before the disease was
discovered" and named appendicitis,
and they got we'll of it before the mod
ern discoveries were dreamed of He
thought there had been an increase in
the disease since the grippe epidenics.
He said he gave calomile, tartar emet-
ic and opium for it, and his patients
got we'll without being cut up, although
he realized that if doctor refused to
operate on a case it would usually go
to some other doctor who would.
DIR. Kofron said 50 per cent. of the
cases of appendicitis We're in children
between four and fifteen years old, and
that 70 per cent. of them were boys.
DR.. E. F. Gushing told of the discov-
cries of French doctor, who showed
that all that has been said and written
about the cause of the disease is wrong
and that the disease is caused by germs
that are present in all healthy insides,
but which are made virulent and turn
ed into dangerous appendicitis bugs
when appendix gets twisted or stopped
up so that the bugs in it are isolated.
DR.. QuirI1 thought the statistics as to
the proportion of cases among men and
women We're all wrong, because the
women went to gynaecologists with
their appendicitis cases, and these
specialists were not included in the
count of the number of cases treated
DR. Charles j. Adrich the president
of the society, said he would like to
hear what some of the older doctors
did before the appendicitis and the OPP
GRAFTON for it were discovered.
DR.. A. S. Hart said he had treated the
| disease for years before the name and
operation We're invented; that he had
never seen case in which he thought
| 1t necessary that there should be an
operation, and that he had never lost
case.
Then it settled down into fight be-
tween the medicine doctors and the sur
eeons. DR.. P. H. Sawyer, who looked
| about as old as DR.. Hart, said he had
treated lots of the cases before the new
tangled name and operation were dis
covered, but that now he was afraid to
handle serious case without advising
an operation. II used to give castor
oil and opium, and all the other things
old-time doctors gave, but now l think
appendicitis is a surgical disease" he
said.
DR.. F. J. Norton asked DR.. Parker If
1t We're possible that the board-like feel !
ing Of the abdomen might the absent
in a case of appendicitis. DR.. Parker
replied: Anything is possible in medi- |
cine" DR.. B. f. Sanger said i do
not think it is right to try to scare the |
young doctors, of whom a great many |
are present, into thinking that they
must turn every case of appendicitis |
over to a surgeon. Lots of them get |
well without an operation"
Dr. Fred Herrick told Of a case Of |
appendicitis that had the closest atten- |
ton of a number Of prominent physic-
ians, and then turned out to be jaun- |
dice. Dr. Roland E. Skeel said he /
thought the cases the other doctors had .
been telling about having cured in
twenty-four hours without operations [
never had been appendicitis. He said .
he was a surgeon and medicine doctor /
both, and believed In operations. DR..
Leo Reich told of a European doctor
who cured appendicitis with nothing
but opium.
sit Is unfair to the surgeons for the
doctor to wait until the case is almost
dead and then call surgeon and put
the responsibility of the patients life
upon him. said DR.. G. w. Grille, who
is a surgeon.
II think that the medical practitioner
of experience has just as much right to
judge when an operation should be per-
formed as a young upstart Of a surgeon
has" said DR. o. B. Campbell. Il have
handled few cases of appendicitis and
operated on few, and perhaps I have
had as many cases of appendicitis as
DR.. Grille"
Il have operated on 240 cases of APP
pendicitis," said Dr. Grille, quietly, land
ahd a great many others in which / did
not operate All l have to say is, that
I believe that the surgeon should be
called into consultation in the early
stage Of the case, so that he may have
q voice in deciding whether there
should be an operation and when it
should be performed, instead of being
given the case when the patient Is
pretty nearly dead, as sometimes hap
pens"
DR.. w. d. Porter of Cincinnati who
was present as a guest, had some oil
which he poured on the waters that
were becoming quite troubled
ut seems to me-" he said, that for
the sake of the patient and the profess
sion, the medical practitioner and the
surgeon should work together. There
is no doubt that in many cases the sur
geon is not called until the patient is
about dead, and then the burden is :
thrown on the surgeon of not saving =