Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-10-01
FLICK EXPLAINS TESTS
Tuberculin incubation Harm
less, Declares Scientist.
CHILDREN IN NO DANGER
Demonstration Of New Theory Of
Diagnosis Alone Desired.
NO I'LL EFFECTS ARE POSSIBLE
Value Of Results Shown in Discus
sion Of Experiments-Dr. Won
Pirquet Reads Paper on Subject.
NO I'LL EFFECTS ARE POSSIBLE

| NO greater harm could have been done
to science than was Internationally done
| when misleading statements were pub
lished in certain newspapers that the lit
tie tots at the Children's Hospital were
| inoculated with tuberculosis bacilli at
the recent Detre and Won Pirauet tests"
This statement was made to reporter
| for The Star by DR.. Lawrence Flick Of
Philadelphia, called in his own city, 1.-The
Father of the International Congress on
| tuberculosis
| THE physicians who would inoculate
human beings with tuberculosis bacilli I
should unhesitatingly say would be guilty
of a criminal act
Il wish The Star would set the matter
right. The trouble lies in the misappre-
hension of technical terms.
What actually occurred was something
| like this: The patients were inOculated
with perfectly harmless fluid known as
tuberculin. 1t is a solution which can be
called filtrate of broth culture.
! There is as much difference between
| the incubation with bacilli and what ac-
| tuaily happened as there Is between kill
ing and curing. The tuherculin is made
| Of dead bacilli-harmless. as has been
proved and known for many years. Lay
/
the dead bacilli are made into broth
and that broth is actually filtered through
something like porcelain.
Merely Harmless Diagnosis.
| Now. a better word for these so-called
tests would be the plain, ordinary word
that We all know. namely, a diagnosis.
The object is to determine whether or not
a person has tuberculosis. The object is
not to give the person inoculated any dis
ease at all. That is what would be GRIM
| inal
when the physicians prick the skin
| and the weak solution-a tiny drop of it
enters the system. the worst thing that
can happen will be a little reddening-
something like a mosquito bite II that
appears, there is tuberculosis present in
| the system. II 1t does not appear. the
theory is that no tuberculosis is present
And the diagnosis Is at an end and the
whole matter rests there.
1T is we'll known that no i'll effects fol-
low. There is no suggestion of expert
menting upon children"
Supported by Other Testimony.
Other physicians have said the same
thing concerning the Detre test. time and
again, during the sessions Of the congress.
| The matter is not new to them at all.
| 1t has been given some publicity merely
4
| hitherto known. To determine In dag
nosis whether the consumption or tuber-
culosis of any other form comes from
milk or other bovine products or whether
! 1t was contracted from another human be-
| ing Is his purpose.
The best view of the matter that lay
| man can gather Is that the physician
pricks the arm and in the course of
then say: You have no consumption"
Or, il there is the mosquito bite" he
will say: The test seems to prove YOU
have consumption"
That is all.
The demonstrations of Monday and yes
terday at the Childrenss Hospital. the
reading Of several papers and discussions
at the congress today. all had a distinct
bearing on the subject sought to be
demonstrated. The tests. therefore. have
been, of incalculable benefit to the con-
gress and it's purposes.
Tests Have Been Successful.
DR.. Acker stated today that the tests
made thus far have been successful. He
also said it was not necessary for the
authorities of the Childrens Hospital to
| secure the permission of the parents or
guardians Of the little ones who were
subjected to the demonstrations by Drs.s
Detre and Won Pirquet.
The application Of the filtrate Of bacilli
| has become part Of the regular treatment
ton. The tests are not new at the hos
pital. They had been applied ever since
| their discovery.
I'VE do not have to get the consent Of
diagnoses or tests for other diseases.
| Then why should we do so for tubercu-
losis?' DR.. Acker said.
when a child Is admitted to the hos
pital he ia examined for disease by one
test or another. II it is an obscure case
We have to investigate to learn its char
acter. 1T would be impossible to consult
parents or others in such matters of hos
pital practice.
| DR.. Acker also stated that there is no
difference In the treatment of patients az
| fected with bovine or human tubercu.
losis. The tests made recently warn the
| authorities how to guard against either
type Of the disease. He further states
| that there would be no more demonstra.
lions connected with the tuberculosis
congress.
Six baby patients of the Children"s Hos
pital were subjected to the Won Pirquet
demonstration yesterday afternoon The
children are all affected with tubercu-
losis. The nurse who requested to be
| inoculated Is not so affected.
DR.. Won Pirquet Discusses Tests.
| An echo from the tests at the Children's
Hospital was heard in the speech Of one
Of the participants in the inoccuciation ex-
periments-Dr. Clemens Won Pirquet of
Vienna. Speaking on the Frequency Of
Tuberculosis in Childhood" today. he
said:
| Il propose international statistics to be
obtained in the following manner: That
children Of all aGes--for instance, kinder
Garten and school children-be tried with
the cutaneous test on the first day: on
the next following day all should be in
spected. Those who show a reaction
should be noted as belonging to the class
OF early reaction. which practically
means having had the infection recently.
| "A week later those children who show.
! ed no reaction on the first of the trial
j should be again tried. A great percent
age OF older children will now react and
\ they belong to the'class Of secondary re-
action. which generally means having
had the infection in previous years. Those
children who have not reacted on either
Of the above occasions belong to the third
| class. which can be considered as those
practically free Of tuberculosis.
| I'm order to have a certainty with re-
gard to the third class. one could inject
the non-re action children On the following
day with one millegram Of tuberculin
according to the proposal Of F. Ham
burger and inspect those children the next
day as to the local subcutane reaction. This
trial. OF course. would only be possible In
| hospitals, whereas in schools one must
be contented with. the cutaneous trials
which can be made without any incon-
venience to the children.
I'm this way one could take note of the
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