The Republican., 1900-08-30
AFFECTS THE VISION.
Opinion of n Chicago Doctor on the
Hl-ETects of Tobacco on
the system.


co factories in Cincinnati making ex-
aminations among the employees to de-
termine how many of them were af-
fected with tobacco amblyopia, as well
asto collect such other statistics aswere
available in regard to this subject.
Some years ago l spent year or more
in making a similar series of these ex-
aminations in our tobacco factories.
Findings in my recent examinations
correspond in most particulars with
those in the first series. The factories
examined into employ collectively over
1900 people. of whom something over
one-half are females, ranging from 16
to As years of age. Out of this number
153 males were examined and so fe-
males. OF the males. 23 were more or
less affected with tobacco blindness; of
the 80 females only two were found to
be affected. The males examined were
between 35 and 65 years of age, and
they were all known to be heavy smok-
ers or chewers of tobacco. Some of
them both chewed and smoked, but as
a ageneral thing the heavy smokers were
not heavy chewers and vice versa.
None of these men drank to any great
extent.
The majority of those examined
showed evidence of contracted condi-
tion of both pupils. This was present
in many who showed no other evil
dence of tobacco poisoning, but it was
m ad onG AIT IN, 4bOca
showed other well-marked evidence of
tobacco infection. Twenty-three out
of the 153 complained of a gradual
failure of vision. Threefourths of the
men examined were over IS years of
age, and the oldest man examined was
high as 20 cigars day. Many of them
declared that they were compelled to
stop smoking for a month or so at
time on account of unpleasant feelings
in the head and a difficulty in reading,
from confused vision. When | COM
menced my examinations in the fac
tories, l was under the impression that
the constant inha Iation of the dust,
and the odor of tobacco in the work
shops would tend in itself to bring
about symptoms of tobacco amblyopi2.
l am inclined to think this hardly takes
place, for in my examination 1 found
that those who did not smoke nor
cnew were. with two exceptions, free
from troubles of vision of toxic nar
ture.
AS result of all my investiga tions in
this department., the following would
be a fair resume of the principal symp-
toms which characterize chronic to-
bacco poisoning, affecting both the
general system and the organ of vision.
The subjects are light eaters, and the
appetite is easily satisfied; large
number have decided antipathy to
meat. Constipation is usual. The sleep
is usually disturbed, often by disagree
able dreams. They usually go to bed
late, as they claim, in order to be able
to fall asleep. They often lie awake for
some time. They usually complain of
more or less palpitation of the heart,
and the pulse usually ranges at about
80 or over.
There is almost always gradual
but progressive failure of visual acute
Eess in both eyes. This was noticed
more or less in a large number of all
those l examined. Luminous objects
dazzle the eyesight, AID bright light
is worse for reading by than a subdued
one. These patients see better in the
evening than in the middle of the day.
In addition to this patients often COM
plain of glimmering mist which COW
ers all objects, especially in a bright
light. These subjects almost always
confound colors for central vision.
First in order comes red; this is gener-
ally taken for dark brown, pink or
black. Then in order comes white,
which is taken for dark gray or black.
Pink to these subjects often looks like
blue. tt must be remembered that it
is only for the central visual field that
these colors are confounded; the peri
phery is usually seen al right. Per-
sistent contraction of both pupils is
generally present, and this was the
most frequent of all the symptoms mo-
ticed in the cases examined-FranciS
Bowling, NJ. D.. in the journal of the
A. NJ. A., Chicago, and Condensed for
Public Opinion.