The St. Louis Republic. [volume] (St. Louis, Mo.) 1888-1919, 1901-01-27
Contribution TO Science BY
Oliver Wendell Holmes.

Puerperai Fever-Perhaps one OF the mos,
striking OF all victories OF preventive medi-
cine has been the almost total abolition Of
so-called childbed fever from the maternity
hospitals and from private practice. In
many institutions the mortality after child
birth was 5 or Q per cent. indeed some
times az high as 10 per cent. whereas to-
Gay. owing entirely 20 proper antiseptic
precautions. the mortality has fallen to a
or & per cent. The recognition OF the con-
tasicusness Of puerperal fever was the
most valuable contribution 10 medical sci
encs made by Oliver Wendell Holmes.
There had been previous suggestions by
several writer's. but HIS essay on the Con-
tagiousness OF Puerperal Fever. published
in 1876. was the first strong, clear. logical
statement OF the case. Semmelweis. a few
years later. added the weight OF a large
practical experience TO the side Of the con-
tagiousness. but the full recognition OF the
cause. Of the disease was not reached until
the recent antiseptic views had been put
into practical effect.
The century has witnessed a revolution
in the treatment of disease. and the growth
/. of a new school OF medicine. The old
s~ehoels-regular and homeopathic-put their
trust IN drugs. to give which was the alpha
ana the omega OF tDelF praCtlCe. fOT every
symptom there were a score or more OF
medicines-vile. nauseous compounds in one
case; bland. harmless. dilutions in the other.
The new school has a firm faith in a few
good. weIl-tried drugs, little or none in the
great mass of medicines stu in general use.
Imperative drugging-the ordering OF medi-
cine in any and every malady-is no longer
regarded as the chief function OF the doctor.
Naturally. when the entire conception of
the disease was changed. there came a cor
responding change in our therapeutics. In
no respect is this more strikingly shown
than I'm our present treatment OF fever; say
OF the common typhoid fever. During the
first quarter of the century the patients
were bled. blistered. purged and vomited,
and eosed with mercury. anthony and
other compounds to meet special symptoms.
During the second quarter. the same. with
variations in different countries. After 1850
bleeding became less frequent, and the ex-
periments Of the Paris and Vienna schools
began to shake the belief in the control of
fever BY drugs. During the last quarter
sensible doctors have reached the conclu-
sion that typhoid fever is not a disease to
be treated with medicines. but that in a
large proportion OF all cases diet. nursing
n bathing meet the indications. There is
active, eyStematlc. CAREFUL Wdtcniui uedi
ment, but not with drugs. The public has
not yet been fully educated to this point
and medicines have sometimes to be or
dered for the sake of the friends, and 1t
must be confessed that there are still in
the ranks antiques who would insist on a
dose of some kind every few hours
The battle against polypharmacy. or the
use of q large number of Drugs tof the ac-
tion Of which we knew little. yet We put
them into bodies of the action of which We
know less) has not yet been fought to finish
There have beea two contributing factors
on the side Of progress-the remarkable
growth OF the sceptical spirit fostered by
Paris, Vienna and Boston physicians. and
above all the valuable lesson OF homeop-
athy. the infnitasimals of which certainly
could not DC harm. and quite as certainly
could not do good; yet nobody has ever
claimed that the mortality among homeo-
pathic practitioners was greater than among
those of ths regular school. A new school
OF practitioners has arisen which cares
nothing for homeopathy and less for So
called allopathy. 1t seeks to study ration
ally and scientifically the action of drugs.
old and new. II is moro concerned that a |
physician shall know how to apply the few
great medicines which all have to use, such
as ~Quinine, lion, mercury. iodide of potas-
siurn. opium and digitalis. rather than a
multiplicity Of remedies the action OF which
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