The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1905-09-28
Hay Fever.

recent discoveries Of German sci
entists for the prevention and eradica-
t1on OF hay fever are from time to.
time announced BY United States Con
sui General Guenther at Frankfort.
From a recent lecture by Professor
w. f. Dunbar of the Hamburg Nv
gienic institute the consul reports the
opinion that the influences of pollen
toxin upon hay fever patients is that
Of an extremely strong acting poison,
even when administered in the most
minute doses. On account of this fact
Professor Dunbar remarks:
l feel justified in stating that the hay
FEVER appearing in the spring is an aetio-
foglcal disease. The same is the case
with the American fall hay fever, only in
this the cause is found in the pollen of
ragweed and goldenrod.
Professor Dunbar endeavored to find
a specific antipoison He describes
the many experiments to obtain an
antipoison from animals and reports
that the blood serum of some animals
showed clear antltoxin effects within
a few weeks. A mixture of pollen
toxin and the serum prevented the irri-
ta1ng effects of the former Professor
Dunbar continues:
I do not consider such a serum as alb
solutely necessary. I consider it. how
ever, as very special advantage Of the
nay fever ant1toxfn that success is at
tanned without resorting to injection
Hay fever differs from those diseases
where, so far. specific antitoxins have
been employed mainly In this-that infec-
non takes place not only once and where
the infection matter continues to develop
in the body. but that for the duration Of
several weeks the poison floats to the
patient without interruption. A subcu-
taneous treatment would in such a case
be very desirable If the patient thereby
would be made perfectly insensible to the
pollen toxin for a longer duration than,
say, of one to two weeks. This does not
seem to be possible at this time. I also
had to abandon the experiments for active
immunization of the hay fever patients
as being wholly unsuitable in practice
Under such circumstances mode of ap-
pl1catton had to be found possible for ev-
cry patient at any time. It was, there
fore, a pleasant surprise for me when l.
could snow that the simple application of
one drop Of the serum to the conjunctiva
or into the nasal canal sufficed COM
pletely in rendering these main entrances
of. the poison completely insensible and
also to remove irritation already existing.
l for one, In view of such facts, have no
desire for another remedy, for more
simple application can hardly be found.
In cases where the nasal canals are en-
t1rely closed the desired end will be at
tanned by applying the pollentine repeat
ed1y to the conjunctiva. It then acts
from the lachrymal canal upon the mu-
cous membrane of the nose. If, in addt-
tion, a small ball of cotton wetted or
sprinkled with antitoxin is introduced into
the nasal canal most afflicted, it can be
made perfectly free again in the course
Of about half an hour and then the treat
ment can be applied to the other side. It
appears to be very judicious, during the
worst days of the hay fever, to soothe the
mucous membranes Of the nasal canals
and to treat them prophylactically by al
ternately closing the. nasal canals by
means of cotton.
The remedy, which is called pollen
tine" is pulverized, and patients have
been kept entirely free from attacks
during whole hay fever season by
the use of fifty grains. Among 500
patients treated GO per cent were
free from attacks during the whole pc
riod