The Dillon herald. [volume] (Dillon, S.C.) 1894-????, 1910-11-24

Recent Discoveries About the Cause
OF Peliagra.
(London Times Correspondence


(London Times Correspondence.
Pellagra is a widely distributed
disease. 1t is found in Europe. At
rica. Asia, America and even in
Oceania. In Europe IL occupies
most of the foothills districts of the
great southern highland regions
comprising the Pyrennees. Alps.
Carpathians and Balkans, and prob
ably affects more or less seriously
over a million people. 1t is a dis
ease of long duration. characterized
by peculiar rash, not unlike a
severe sunburn, which appears on
the face, round the neck and on the
back of the hands and feet. This
eruption recurs each year at de-
terminate seasons tspring and au-
tumn;) it appears suddenly under
the influence of exposure to sun
bgnt, stands out some days and
then fades off gradually, and is fol-
lowed by long persistent desuuam-
alton. Together with the eruption
other symptoms appear. They are
irregular fever, frequent fits of
gidd1ness with a peculiar debility.
confusion of mind, copious saliva
ton, insomonia, pyrosis, and diar-
rhoea. These symptoms abate dur
ing the summer months and almost
entirely in winter, especially in ear
ly in early cases. They return with
the rash each spring, After a per-
iod of progressive aggravation,
which may last three, five or thirty
years, the patient becomes greatly
emaciated, partly paralyzed, and
entirely demented. A number of
these unfortunate beings commit
suicide, as a rule, by drowning;
the majority end their days in the
lunatic asylnms.
Pellagra was first described in
Spain in 1735 by Gaspar Casal. un-
der the name of Nal della rosa, and
by FrapolH In Italy in 1771, under
the popular local name of pellagra,
name signifying rough skin. Not
these authors, but others who fol-
lowed them, looked upon pellagra
as a new disease, and ascribed IL to
the eating of maize.
In 1905 DR.. Sambon, at a meet
ing of the British Medical Associa-
ton, held at Leicester, stated that
indian corn, either sound or deter
iorated could not be regarded as
the cause of pellagra, since it did
not explain satisfactorily any of the
archaeological facts of the disease.
On account Of the great similarity
between pellagra and certain para
Site tprotozoal) diseases, such as
sleeping sickness, syphilis and kala-
azar, he suggested that pellagra
might also be protozoal disease
and was probably transmitted by
some blood sucking insect.
Last winter DR.. Sambon further
suggested that the assumed insect
carrier of peliagra might be a sand
fly OF the genus Simulium, because
OF all blood sucking flies with a
geographical distribution equal to
that of pellagra this was the only
one that exhibited the same topo-
graphical distribution and the same
extraordinary double season, spring
and autumn.
Thanks to Mr.. Camille, Sir Pat
rick Manson and Sir Lauder Brun-
ton, very influential committee
was formed, some money was raised.
and DR.. Sambon was sent to italy to
Investigate the causation of pella-
gra. In Italy DR.. Sambon was ioin-
ed by Capt. Siler and DIR. Lavinder.
OF the United States army, who had
been detailed by the American Gov
ernment to study pellagra in Italy
after having already worked it in
the States
Although there is no pellagra i'm
Z
est importance to us-first, because
1t prevails extensively in Egypt and
In the West hides; secondly, be-
cause of the elucidation of it's causa-
tion is bound to advance our knowl-
edge of the causation of the other
obscure diseases, such as beri-beri,
for instance, which are extremely
prevalent in our colonies.
DIR. Sambon went to Italy in
March, 1910, and for three months
studied the disease in the provinces
or Bergamo, Brescia, Milan, Padova,
home and Perugia. He found that
maize, either bad or good, could in
no way account for for the disease.
The distribution of deteriorated
maize was>yery different to that of
the disease. Besides he found sew
eral pellagrins who had never eaten
maize. He found that pellagra is
limited to the immediate neighbor-
mood of certain streams infested
with Simulium larvae. He proved
That the epodemic centres of the
disease have occupied exactly the
same places among the foothills OF
mountainous regions for at least a
century, because in certain provinces
such as Beiluno, Podova and Bres-
ella the disease shows to-day the
very same distribution and prevail
ence recorded by authors who stud
led the disease in these regions a
century ago. He has been able to
prove that the season OF recurrence
OF the disease is also the season of
infection, that IL the spring is re-
tarded, as 1t was this year, both the
sandflies and the pellagrous erup-
tion were delayed, and vice versa.
that an early spring hastens the ap
pearance of both sandflies and the
pellagrous rash. He found the dis
ease to he exceedfnDIv nravaIo,,.