The Nome nugget., 1902-02-08
What to Do and flow to Do !t
 in Case of Accident.
SHOULD BE PR0mpT
The Quicker Treatment Is Begun ard the Slower It Proceeds the Better 1t Is for the Patient-Use of Restoratives fiintS.

IIhe following article on 'lne tmef- gency Treatment of frOstbite" was written by Dr.. Win. J. Jackson" at the request of the NUGGET. In vlew of the many cases of frostbIte which occur every winter in this section. the article sill be found both timely and nstruc- tive.
 Payapexa, or. as it is commonly called, frostbile, is too well known to- all Northerners to require any special description. It manifests itself in no uncertain way. and the dispatch with which we commence intelligent treat ment of it is commensurate with the good results attained.
 Prophylactic or preventive treat ment is, of course. the first COnsidera- tion and. as d matter of fact. the one with which we are most familiar. A man of ordinary caution would not at tempt long mu,h without one or two changes of footwear: neither would he draw wet mitten on his hand. Self preservation prompts him to guard against hunger, cold and Over-eXertiOn, all of which come under the head of proyi ylactic measures. There are times. however. when the most care fully D anned expeditions result disas- tr ul, Circumstances impossible to foresee or guard against are constantly arising on the trail, and then it is that the Arctic demon seizes his wretched prey. The carefully planned precau- tions avail nothing: the inevitable is at hand, and the victims are frozen.
 Under such circumstances it were well that we know how to act. Emer- gelcy stations in isolated and expL sed districts (such as is being agitated for the rOadhOuseS on the Candle divide) would fll long-felt want. They would serve as house of refuge, par ii ularly if these in charge of such places, we. e familiar with the princi- pies involved in the treatment of severe frostbite. The object of this article is to set forth few general rules to be observed in the treatment of recent frost bite.
 First aid to the injured, if irtell- gently administered, would mate rially lessen the mortality and Tighten the patients suffering. Prophy ylaxis is, of course, the first consideration, as ''an ounce of preventative is better than Douad of cure.' Failing to prevent. We niu hen meet 8 desperate condi- lion with inteiligrnL concern.
 The CeStructive effects of frostbite Ire either directly or indirectly due to innammatorv changes which take place in the tissues exposed. The injurious effects are more mark ed in the aged or very young than in those of middle e. Ganyrene is due more to q low vital ty in the individual than to the extren @ cold. In the first stage of frOstbite, when stiffness, numbness and tingl.rg affect the part, the condition is mere ly one of suspended vitality, and reaction, if brought about slowly, leaves the ii suts virtually uninjured.
 In more severe cases, in which the vitality of the part is completely de- stroyed, reaction is followed by livid. shrunken appearance: the sense of touch and the power of motion are lost.
 It is this last condition that calls for the mt st careful an intelligent hal d. ling. It must not be forgotten that with prompt action and proper tre; t. ment the ,it lity of part actual ' frozen may be restored. Unsxilfal treatment may provoke gangrene even when the parts have not been in a state of congelation. The quicker the treat ment is commenced, and the slower it proceeds. the better 1t is for the pa tient. It is only possible to render medical aid at the very earliest mo- ment: afterwards it passes into the province of surgery. Medical aid, however, is rarely attainab.e; hence the necessity of wider understanding of the emergency treatment.
 The two prime factors in the treat. ment are: First, very gradual res tora,ion of the heat-producing powers of the part; second, the retardation oi anythin. stimulating an excess of req . tion. The patient should, if possible, be placed in a cold room, without fire, and the frostbitten parts should be gently rubbed with snow or with cloths dipped in ice water. Gradually the part may be held in the hands of the operator and gentle pressure exerted' It is mistake to rub frOstbitten part vigorously, and roughness, which breaks the skin, is absurdly dangerous as it only increases the subsequent in Aanmation. When reaction Is estao lished, i. e., when the circulation has