The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1903-01-04
APPENDICITIS Is
ON A BIG BOON
Since King Had 1t, All England
Follows Suit.
INCREASE IN A DECADE
Is Very at---0perations by
fredICk lreveS.

London, Jan. 3.-The busiest men this
The number of people sunering from colds
brought On by the ehangea bleness of the
weather is simply enormous. There has
also been great deal more influenza
about during the last two weeks than had
been known in any December before. be-
cause the influenza does not usually make
determined attack till the turn of the
Year.
Strange as it may seem, this curious
ailment attacks people differently every
year. This year the Malay SENS to be
more acute. the pains in the joints be-
ing, as a rule, very severe.
But people in high life, at any rate. are
more concerned at the prevalence of APP
pendicitis than of influenza. Since the
King had it, or what is called perityphlitis
it is extraordinar ythe number of people
who have been attacked. The Countess
of Dudley is just recovering from an OPP
Grafton for appendicitis. which for at
least two days it was thought might re-
suit fatally.
A physician with whom l was talking
about this said: The idea that appended
tbs is merely a fashionable disease, like
many popular notion, is quite a fall
lacy. 1t is ailment which is preva-
lent at the present time among both rich
and poor. Nor is the general belief that
1t is a new disease, manufactured by mod
ern surgeons ANY more correct.
Only recently, during some excavations
in Egypt "a mummy was brought to light
upon which the doctors made further
examination. At this strange post norton
1t was discovered that the cause of death
at least two thousand years before, must
have been appendicitis.
As TO the cause the doctor told me
strange things as that appendicitis may
sometimes may be caused by magma
ton. There is some authority for the
statement that many persons operated on
were not really suffering from the COM
plant at all. but had worried themselves
into the belief that they were. and would
Ect be satisfied until .ney had their APP
pendicitis removed Meantime, however,
obscure and real causes may, be there.
There is not the least doubt that ap-
pendicitis is increasing by leaps and by
bounds \ glance through the reports
Of three of London's hospitals, st. Thorn
as ST. Bartholomew and Guys reveals
q state of affairs which on paper at any
rate looks rather alarming. One cannot
set reports later than 1900. but ten years
previous. only thirty-eight cases of appen-
dicitis were treated. Every year since
then the number has increased at an
extraordinary pace, until in the year 1909
there were $50 cases treated at the hos
pitals The cases have been increasing
proportionately since.
In one respect the statistics are COM
forting. showing that as the complaint
be comes more prevalent the better II is
understood. Out of these 3S2 cases only
ten had fatal outcomes after the patients
were surgically treated.
Sir Frederick Treves, greatest author
fly on the subject. has performed more
than one hundred consecutive operations
successfully There therefore seems no
reason for the fears of gentleman men
toned by Sir Samuel Wilks, in an arti-
Gle in the Guys Hospital Gazette This
unfortunate individual is occasionally seiz-
ed with violent attacks of collie, when he
Is unable to give a coherent account of his
condition He has therefore written
across his body in indelible ink: please
don't operate, as | have had my appendix
removed three times"