The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1907-07-07
THE X-RAY'S TEN YEAR RECORD
ACCIDENTS DUE To IT'S USE Ex-
AGGERATED.

Only Four Deaths. and Those In Its Ffcneer
Days-MarVellous Results In surgery
swing the scales In Favor Of the
Roentgen Ray-Uscs Not Medical.
That there have been some regrettable
accidents from the X-ray, both to patient
and operator, in the ten years which have
elapsed since it's discovery, is inoontrovert-
ible, says a writer in Van Nordcn's Md0d-
cine, but theee accidents have not boen
nearly so serious nor 90 frequent as mas
been stated.
There have been, 50 far as can be definitely
learned, only four deaths among X-ray
workers in the English speaking world d.
rectly attributable to its effects. All Of
the victims were pioneers in the field and
were marked for destruction before modern
protective methods had been introduced.
These victims were: Miss Fleischman, Ssn
Francisco; DR.. Barrie Blacker. London,
England; DR.. L.. A. Weigel, Rochester, N. Y,
and an Edison employee.
There have, Of course, been serious cases
Of dermatitis, generally Of the hands
some practitioners have lost two or three
fingers in the workout as stated above
these accidents have been due to the opera
" uLdhluk bAboCt tOhb " ~
thusiasm. Many doctors, however, have
been actively engaged in the work from
the beginning and have come through their
ten years Of experimenting without any
apparent i'll effect.
One great source Of danger hitherto has
been the operation Of the Roentgen ray by
inexperienced persons or persons who do
not possess the medical knowledge neoes-
--... e.. NkA aafa ,1xotntoN ra fsaN ~ Nkta
treatment. In some hospitals and in the
Offices Of many doctors patients have
beer treated by nurses or attendants ac-
cording TO a prescribed standard, without
any supervision whatever from a physician
or without the physical condition Of the
particular patient being considered.
Another and possibly a greater source
Of danger lies in its use by enthusiastic
practitioners who do not thoroughly under
stand even its first principles. A manu-
facturer's representative will arrive at .
small town on the evening Of a certain
day, the following morning he will sell his
machine to a physician, instruct the latter
in it's use for half an hour, proceed to the
next tswn and the same evening the physi-
clan will be diagnosing and treating n
tents
AS an adjunct to surgery the Roentgen
raw has become Indispensable. The con-
duct Of many operations which are now
performed with comparative ease wa
rendered extremely difficult, II not i'm
possible, before its introduction. In the
field Of military surgery lies one Of the
Roentgen rays widest spheres OF useful
ness.
II can fairly be claimed for the Roentgen
degree to the relief Of the sufferer from
cancer. BY it's aid many cases hitherto
inoperable have been successfully operated
upon, and in every instance the attendant
pain. II not entirely eradicated, has been
appreciably relieved.
As an auxiliary in the treatment Of tuber-
culoeis the Roentgen ray has proved par
ticularly valuable, especially in the hrSt
and final stages. While in the final stages
the inevitable end has never been averted,
have been controlled, the pain has been al
layed. the general condition made more
comfortable and in many cases the psr
TENTS life prolonged.
and strength have been materially in
creased and the general condition so i'm
proved as to enable the patient to make q
much better fight against the disease. 49,.
But IL is not alone IN the sphere OF medi-
cine that the Roentgen ray has proved its
usefulness. For instance, it has been
successfully employed in detecting naws
in metal, ores in rock, pearls in sheiHfnh.
For some time it has been used in Japan
in custom house work. being. found err
c~eedingly valuable in the detection d
jewelry and precious stones concealed in
packages, walking sticks. So.. but II has not
vet been used in this connection Ia this
country. In determining the gcnuineness
of precious stones the X-ray is infallibIe.
Under it the idiosyncrasies of every stone
are observed. The diamond Is almose
transparent; the spurious imitation 10
For the splendid results obtained with
the R~oentgen ray in this country a great
deal of credit must he accorded the Amer
icen Roentgen Ray Society, which has done
much TO stimulate interest in the science
among the medical fraternity. The mem
bership OF the so"ieav at present numbeD
nearly two bunc re md fifty. distributor
throughout the Udited States and Canada.
The society holds a four day convention
annually. in which addresses are delivered.
papers are read and discussed and the
general status OF the work reviewed.