Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-09-25
BIG DAY OF SEASON NOT DEATH ALONE
Pleasing Events at Two of Other Horrors Attendant
City Fairgrounds. Upon Infantie Paralysis.
INFANT PARADE A FEATURE lDEFORMITY IN ITS TRAIL
Field Exercises Mdy Which Should Be Combaed
Dancing With Every Resource
MANY LITTLE ONES ATTEND VIEWS OF HEALTH OFFICER
Strength An Night
in the Mount Pleasant
Baby Citizens Association
Other Horrors Attendant
Upon InfantiIe Paralysis.
DEFoRMITY IN ITS TRAIL
Malady Which Should Be Combated
With Every Resource.
VIEWS OF HEALTH OFFICER
An Address Delivered Last Night
Before the Mount Pleasant
Citizens Association.

Death from infantile paralysis Is moi
the most serious feature OF the disease
| when one considers that at least Is per
cent Of those who recover from it's acute
form are permanent sufferers from some
hideous deformity-a withered arm or leg,
for example: a club foot or ~ complete
paralysis of the facial muscles. An cpl
demic OF infantile paralysis, such as we
have seen In different parts Of the coun-
try in the past three or four years, is a
thing to be feared and should be COM
bated with all the resources OF the med
ical science
The foregoing statement made by DR..
w. c. Woodward, health officer OF the
District Of Columbia, at meeting OF the
last night, at 18th street and Park road.
sounded q warning on the dangers Of a
malady which, according to the health
ofhcer's latest estimates. has attacked
$50 residents of the District in the past
year. DR.. Woodward described the after
effects of the disease to be distressing IN
the extreme, leaving little people handi-
capped physically for the balance OF their
lives.
AS a caution against infection he ad-
vised all persons coming in contact with
the disease to resort to the same safe
guards usually adopted in cases Of diph.
liberia and scarlet fever.
There seems to be little doubt that
the disease is communicated by germ
life, and very probably through the
mucous membrane Of the nasal passages.
he said. This fact must OF itself be
a warning. prompting careful precau-
tionary measures"
polionyelitis, as the medical Investigators
describe the malady, is by no means q
new affection to the human race, &C
cording to DR.. woodward. 1t has been
quarter of century and was at first
supposed to attack only children OF tender
age. In comparatively recent years this
has been disproved. It is now known to
attack adults. occasionally over the age
of sixty years. though from 10 to 90 per
cent of the cases are confined to children
under five years of age
1t first began to attract serious notice
from the medical fraternity about twenty
years ago, and from that time until four
or five years ago was subject Of cursory
investigation by medical men. The cpl
denies Of 1907 in Boston and New York
city and the subsequent alarming ap-
pearance of the disease in the states of
prompted more thorough researches to
determine its origin, and means Of either
curing or preventing it. These researches
have brought to light much important
and interesting data, he said. but the
actual control OF the disease Is matter
vet to be discovered by the investigators.
Failure Of Experiments.
Efforts to inoculate the disease into
various animals for the purpose Of ex-
pertinent have utterly failed. with the
exception only OF the monkey. and this
only when a serum made from por-
ton Of the spine Of q human victim OF
the disease has been inoculated into the
brain cavity or the nasal passages Of the
animal. All discoveries relative to the
disease have come from experiments upon
members Of the monkey family. An es-
innate upon it's infectious nature. the
number Of days It takes the disease to
develop and the period OF time that q
patient is infectious have been deter
mined from these experiments chiefly at
the Rockefeller Institute in New York
city.
1.-The number Of cases in the District
has without doubt run to about $50
so far. Of which 116 have been officially
reported by the attending physicians
said DIR. woodward. We have no law
infantile paralysis and this explains why
there are no exact figures. I base my
estimate at $50 cases from personal OBJ
servatton ana conversation with members
of washingtons medical fraternity.
There have been sixteen deaths among
the go cases There was one case In the
District last year, two in 1908 and one
in 1907. You can judge Of the present
condition Of affairs for yourself
There is little or no danger Of a Sec
ond attack Of the acute form Of the dis
ease, and in this respect 1t Is classed by
the medical fraternity with whooping
cough, measles and scarlet fever.
Not Scientifically Explained.
No scientific reason has been given for
this condition. which has generally been
accepted as an established fact through
observation by medical investigators. The
death rate. according to various munich
pal vital statistics, varies from to Is
per cent.
Some of the greatest minds in the
medical world are laboring hard for a
discovery whereby the disease may be
cured. or. better. prevented, with reason
able hope for success in the future.
Among these Investigators I would not
be extravagant in saying that probably
the most important work has been done
by DR.. Flexner and DR.. Lewis OF the
Rockefeller Institute said DR.. Wood
ward. in conclusion.
Routine business occupied the re-
mainder Of the session ~ fhA aSSocia tjon