Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1906-01-10
Hunt Disease Germs.

With the advance in knowledge re-
gardingEgerms and the part they play
in carryingsdisease from one person to
another, an increased Importance has
been given to the accurate diagnosis
in the earliest possible stage of the de-
velOpment of the disease. This early
determination of the real character of
the disease is Of Importance not ONLY
for the kmoSt successful treatment of
the individual afflicted, but also for
the protection of the public. In order
to determine the presence of disease
germs either Al an individual or in
water, food5 OF air, it is necessary to
make careful tests in we'll eunipped
laboratory. These tests require trail ed
psychologists with all the apparatus
to be fou1 only in ARCHAEOLOGICAL
laboratory. This physicians Of the
smaller towns, cities and rural COM
munltles of3sthe state until recently
have had no. means Of securing these
important aids to the accurate. dia-
gnosls OF disease and the prevention Of
contagion.
Wisconsin, &. which has always been
one OF the most active and practical
states IN the matter of public health,
has provided state hygienic labora-
tory IN conjunction with the laborator-
les for bacteriology in the University
OF Wisconsin, in charge of Professor
H. l.. Russell, head of the department
OF bacteriology, with DIR. G.. A. Fuller
as assistant. That physicians through
out Wisconsin are awakening to the
immense value of the laboratory is
shown by the fact that every day
there are appeals from all parts of
the state from physicians asking aid
in Lsolving their meteorological pro-
blems. Although the department has
been In operation scarcely two years,
there have been 1850 examinations
made and innumerable cases of con-
tagion discovered and traced to their
sources.a - U
Five seventies of all the cases in
vestigated since the organization of
the department have been Of water
suspected of contamination by sewage.
Wherever a physician has a case of
typhoid fever the suspected cause of
which. is impure water supply, he
should send sample of the water to
the laboratory for analysis. By a
series of tests kboth the number and
character of the Edisease producing
organismsecan be determined by the
expert bacterioloqist of the laboratory.
By means of these tests the epidemics
of typhoid may be prevented.
Since it is often difficult to deter
mine whether patient suffering with
sore throat is dlphtheretic, the aid of
the laboratory is frequently sought to
settle the Question. Occasionally the
laboratory is called upon to determine
the presence of tuberculosis in pa
tients. Aid is also given in cases
where dog suspected of having
rabies has bitten a person and exam
ination is requested.
While these tests constitute con-
siderable part of the work of the
laboratory, the investigators are also
engaged in research work pertaining
to matters of public health. The i'm
portance Of the State HYGIENE Labor
atory can not be overestimated, for
by It's tests it makes possible a more
accurate treatment of disease, a large
per centage of which Iis of bacterial
origin; and by determining the source
of infection it prevents the extension
of tie contagion to other individuals,
thus preventing what is commonly
termed an epidemic. In this case 1.-THE
man behind the microscope" is not
merely investigating abstract scientific
problem, but he is turning his know
ledge to a practical account by aiding
man in his constant struggle against
the myriads of unseen but deadly
enemies-disease germs.