Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-01-23
PREVAILING PNEUMONIA.
Virulence Of Infection and Suddenness
of Attack Features of the Disease.

Virulence of Infection and Suddenness
of Attack Features of the Disease.
From the New York Herald
The alarming prevalence or pneumonia
of the fatal type invests the discussion or
the features of the disease with much In
terest. The virulence of the infection is
particularly marked by the suddenness Of
attack and the rapidty with which the
grave symptoms manifest themselves. AS
an endemic it is more pronounced than has
been the case for many years. The I'M
favorable climatic influences of the last few
weeks are mainly accountable for the num-
her of victims, although 1t must be &C
knowledged that other subtle factors are at
work to explain the widespread dlssem1na-
ton of the malady. In children 1t is we'll
known complication of measles and as the
latter disease Is also epidemic there are
good reasons for believing that the NOR
tality statistics are thereby markedly in
creased.
The popular belief that ordinary cold
is the forerunner of the disease is well
founded. but the catarrh acts merely by
lowering the tone of the system and MAX
ing 1t an easy prey for the pneumonia in
lection. which is, after ALL the essential
causative element For some inexplicable
reason the specific microbe Is more virulent
at one time than another, and gives GER
tain complexion to the epidemic. 1t is par
ticularly active in cold, damp weather, and
is less so in a clear atmosphere, irrespective
even of a very low temperature.
The first symptom of the inflammation is
q sudden and severe chill sometimes last
ing a half hour or more, and is followed by
high fever, headache, hurried and painful
breathing and a dry and Initiative cough.
Soon the expectoration becomes tinged with
mr. n
q browniSh "prune juice" color. The tubes
in the affected portion of the lung are then
clogged with this material, thereby increas-
ing the already difficult respiration. Strange
to say, however, death is seldom caused by
actual suffocation, but rather by the direct
effect of the toxic agent which, in it's turn,
has no special relation to the extent of lung
involved in the Inflammation On the con-
trary, fatal result sometimes enSues when
only small spot of pneumonia is present.
Hence. the great aim in the treatment is to
maintain the strength of the patient until
nature can eliminate the poison.
Unfortunately, there is no way yet discov-
cred whereby the disease can be cut short
or the effects of the poison be directly coun-
| teracted. The malady is, in fact a self
| limited one, and nature uses her own means
| of relief by bringing on what is called the
| crisis" The change is sudden and strik-
| ing, and marks the disappearance of all
alarming symptoms. The temperature sud-
denly drops, the fever disappears the
| breathing is easier expectoraton more
| abundant and the patient becomes fairly
| convalescent. The remarkable transition
| appears to be due 10 the fact that the toxin
| has done its work, and not that the lung
| is materially relieved of it's load. On the
| contrary, 1t may take days before the clog
ged tubes are properly cleared and before
| such condition is evident to the practiced
| ear of the attending physician Unlike
| other self-liInited and infectious diseases
one attack does not give any immunity
| against recurrence, but on the contrary
| often exercises a predisposing influence to
| future seizures. This fact should be borne
| in mind by previous victims, especially when
| pneumonia is epidemic