The San Francisco call., 1909-10-31

One of the loosely applied medical
terms, which may mean a great deal or
nothing at all is the word malaria -
In practice. whenever a disease arises
that the average physician can not
diagnose, he calls it malaria" and
doses the patient with quinine. But
when he is asked to tell exactly what
malaria is he is unable to define it. He
knows that it is something terrible
which produces fever and breaks down
the human body, running many splendid
constitutions. but to describe the dis
ease exactly to state its origin and
limitations. is beyond his power and
information.
Recently, however. DR.. Robert Koch
of Berlin, who does the thinking for
the world. at present, upon the mlcroDe
in all its multitudinoUs forms, has ad-
vanced some new and startling theories
on the subject of malaria.
MANS WORST ENEMY
According to this authority the par
asftc of malaria scores of which can
live in a drop OF blood. is mans dead
liest foe. 1t appears in various degrees
of malignant influence and is distrib-
uted all over the globe, but its worst
forms are found in semitropicai and
lands of Italy producing deadly reyers.
IL causes the fever and ague of the
Mississippi bottoms. and, in It's worst
form, il. produces the deadly black
water fever or VomitO II is the Ori-
gin of the epidemfcs of cholera and yell
low fever, which depopulate whole
countries.
A LITTLE THINGS BUT TERRIBLE
The parasite of malaria finds it's way
into the blood through the bites or
mosquitoes or other blood sucking. in
scots. Wherever there are mosquitoes
there is malaria. 1t reproduees IN the
blood with incredible rapidity and soon
poisons the whole system. The efforts
of nature to get rid of the incubus pro-
duce a fever OF greater or less 1nten-
sity. according to the nature of be at
tack The blood. upon the piIrity OF
which vitality depends. becomes a poi
sonous mass of. corruption. The nerve
eenters are paralyZed for lack OF suS-
unless a remedy is promptly applied,
the patient inevitably dies.
NO SPECIFIC REMEDIES IN Use
The worst of the situation is that our
physicians have no remedies upon
Quinine is most commonly employed
In some parts of our own country peO-
pie take quinine every day OF their
lives as regularly as they take their
stant course of medication Is the lank
and sallow faced southerner. type
with which We are all familiar. But
Quinine is not q cure. 1T may heIp pre-
vent attacks of the disease, but 1t will
not relieve the more severe forms. Only
an iron constitution can carry any body
over these, and the best are frequently
rendered physical wrecks for the re-
mainder of their lives
The reports made by Gen. Shafter
from day to day show terrible state
of affairs in his army, and prove con-
clusively that nothing would have been
left of it If the malarial stricken
troops had been left at Santiago long
enough for the still more deadly foe.
is Skaters report of the condition of
the 10000 soldiers Under his command
August s:
number of fever cases. 2,086; total
number of new cases, 254; deaths, L."
The report also states that $50 fever
cases were returned to duty on that
day. showing that this fever was not of
forerunner of yellow fever. it was
deadly enough to strike terror TO the
hearts of our brave soldiers. And not
many days would have been required,
at twelve deaths day, to roll up
mortality list far greater than that OF
the deadliest battle of the war.
THE REMEDIES PROPOSED
letins to the above. certain officers in
the medical department of the war Of
flee were discussing. through the news
papers the responsibility for failure
to send sufficient medical supplies to
Skaters army. This discussion brought
out the following as a sample of the
reauisftions made for medicines The
chief surgeon of the Fifth army corps
sent the Following requisition by cable
July %: Want urgently quinine tab
let's 900 bottles: Strychnine ia abletS.
100 bottles. calomel and soda tablets.
100. bottles. caIomel. 200 grammeS.
nitric acid in two ounce Walls. 100, test
tubes. 600; Fow1ers solution. Loco"
AS nearly as can be learned. these
supplies never reached the Fifth army
corps which fact accounts for the re-
covery of a majority of the patients.
Had these remedies been administered
there would have been a far greater
mortality. With the exception of. the
ouinine every article asked for is
fight against the combined effects
of the poisons and the disease. They
would have been administered with
the laudable intention of fighting fire
with fire. But their effect would have
been simply that of adding fuel to a
flame The fact that some who were
dosed with these remedies recovered is
q notable proof of the astounding VII
tality of the Anglo-Saxon race. 1t shows
that the mysterious flame of life-with
which each is endowed at BIRTH but the
nature of which nobody understands
is a difficult thing TO quench.
THE ACTION OF oUININE
Quinine is of some use in these cases.
1919 Rrnaf'wav At 9nt