Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-12-24
BERI<BERI.
f3N r.
Bringing Int@SQuth Africa.

BER1-BERT.
The Disease Which 4he Chinese Are
Bringing Int41pth Africa.
From the London Chronicles.
The disease which Threatens tho Chinese
coolies on their way to the Transvaal mines
is known In the far east as berf-beri, and
as kakke In Japan The origin of the word
is by some traced to lbnayree,. signifying
sheep in Hindustahi, ana by others to
..bhar-bari.'' the Hinanstani term for
swelling. The former derivation is sup
posed to refer to the peculiar walk OF per-
sons suffering from the disease, reminding
term refers to the fredpdnt accompaniment
of general dropsy
No disease presents SO many diverse
symptoms as berShsri. Not only may 1t
assume an acute. sub-acute or chronic
FORM not only mas 1t exist in an endemic
or local center, and then become epidemic,
but the persons attacked may present signs
and symptoms of general dropsy; or. on the
other hand, the tissues of the body may
atrophy and shrink until almost a mummi-
fed aspect obtains.
The essence of the ailment lies in an af-
rection of the nerves Of paralytic nature.
weakness, numbness and stiffening of the
extremities, with alterations in and lessen
ing of the sensibilfty of the skin. The
nerves OF uQLlOn anu VI SenSatfOn, supply.
ing, respectively, the muscles and the skin.
are therefore seriously AFFECTED by a form
of more or less pronounced paralysis. Al
though the lower extremities are apparent
~ most deeply involved, the upper extrem-
tiles show similar arrangement; and the
nerves to the heart, lungs, ETC.. are dis
turbed in their functions. causing heart
failure and difficulty In breathing OF the
The countries in which beri-beri exists as
an endemic or local disease of a fairly per-
manent nature are: Ceylon. the Malay
Peninsula, Sumatra, Java and Japan; TO a
lesser degree it prevails in southern China,
Borneo, Assam, Burmah and various parts
Of India. In Nautilus. Fiji and Brazil 1t
has caused serious outbreaks, and 1t must
rot be forgotten that in 1897 and 1893 beri-
beri occurred in. the Richmond Lunatic
Asylum in Dublin. In similar institutions In
France and the United States outbreaks
within recent years have also been record
ed. Although. therefore. beri-beri is dis
ease primarily of the tropics and SUBJ
tropics, like many others of it's type it ex-
tends to countries possessing temperate
climates.
On board ships it has been long looked
upon as one Of the most serious scourges,
and markedly SO in the Japanese navy. To
so alarming an extent did beri-beri prevail
among the Japanese sailors at one time
that one-fourth Of the entire force was in
capacitated; this led to a scientific inquiry
into the means of combating the disease.
The result of the investigation seemed to
point to the fact that 4 deficiency in GER
tain elements of food was the cause of the
disease. belief that seemed to be substan-
tiated by the disappearance of the disease
when the diet was improved. Against this
conclusion, however there are several OBJ
jections; for ber-beri disappeared from
among the soldiers in japanese barracks at
the same time as it disappeared from among
the sailors, although no change of diet was
provided for the soldiers.
Again, many other general sanitary inn
DrOvampnfs fad
~ with the Improvement in diet, so that the
belief that food had directly to do with the
causation of the ailment has not been
proved either in Japan or any other part of
the world. Moldy Chat is fungus-impreg-
nated) rice has been. long regarded as the
probable cause of teri<heri, hut carefully
conducted experiments in several gaols in
the Malay peninsula under British control
have proved the eisesSfd rice theory to be
erroneous. The Ch,nsse, Japanese and
Malays seem to be particularly prone to
beri-beri wheE they are congregated on
board ships. or dwelling in numbers in bar
racks, or in coolie quarters on plantations.
Many industries have abeen crippled and
some ruined by this fef1 disease: more es
pecially has this been 'the case in Borneo.
where some few years ago work on the
plantations had to be entirely suspended
owing to the severity of the epidemics.
The actual cause of beri-beri is unknown:
the bacterium, if there is one. has yet to be
suma a in 1851, dedniteW described a
micrococeal Infection of the blood their re-
suits have not been subStantiated: nor has
the intestinal worm tisA0ry OF origin been
accepted
What, then, tdocwe know Of the cause Of
beri-beri?- so az
/. The disease iss.apt toaoccur when peo-
pie especially in the Malay and Monaghan
races. are dwelling in oyercroWded habita
tons.
2 1t is a disease that affects persons
dwelling at low levels, more particularly
neal the sea.
1t is connected with sameness OF diet
with food calculated to produce seurvy,
although in no way directly connected with
scurvy.
4. 1t is disease of cities rather than of
country districts.
g. Beri-beri Is a place" disease, clinglng
to certain houses or rooms in q nousa. ana
to certain cabins on ships.
The means of preventing beri beri is to be
gathered from what We know of the prob
able causes. Overcrowding must he COM
bated. diet must be varied, and must con.
tain a sufficiency of heterogeneous elements
that is to say. the avoidance of a too strict
ly vegetable diet. Infected persons mast
be at once isolated. and those suffering
from open wounds must not be allowed to
be under the same roof win oerl-pelies
The treatment of the disease consists in at
once removing the patients from the In
fected abode, and, if possible, taking them
to a higher level. On board ships the cae..
in which the disease has appeared shoa'd
be empted and disinfected. and the pa
TENTS taken to the open air on deck when
ever feasible. The patients diet should be
generous (sameneSs avoided), and fresh
milk given whenever it can be had The
medicinal treatment has to Ds Of 4 nature
calculated to prevent heart failure. and to
sustain the patients circulation until sueh
times as the advance of the paralyzng pro-
cesseS are stayed.