The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1911-05-30
PHYSICIANS F|NO
FEW new FEvERS
Many Ailments Called Ty.
phoid, Are, in Many Cas-
es, Something Else.

New York, May 30-The discovery
has been made recently by modern
means OF diagnosis that the term ~.
phoid fever has been erroneously APP
piled to group OF maladies which
could not be differentiated by the old.
err methods of studying disease. There
is true typhoid fever with but slight.
~ varying symptoms. In addition few.
ers of entirely different origin have
been-and still are-called by the
same name.
The attention or physicians has just
been called to the necessity OF reyis-
ing medical nomenclature and recog
nizing the distinction between sever
al different ailments by the editors Of
various medical publications.
More than q year ago DIR. Nathan E.
Brill of this city, described fever In q
report published in the American Jour.
nal OF the Medical Sciences. which ID
now recognized generally a. Brill'a
disease. No organism has been dis
covered which could account for .
bacterial origin Of this ailment.
Mild Form Of Typhus.
Two months ago the editor OF the
Medical Record expressed the opinion
that Brill's disease and "Manchurian
typhoid" probably were the same all.
| ment. Last month, DR.. Brill replied
to the editor and gave reasons for be-
| lieving that the two diseases are en-.
tirely distinct. At the same time the
editor of American Medicine declared
| hot far
that Brill's disease is q mild typhus
II the latter view il correct New York
City has harbored at least 221 patients
suffering from a mild form of typhus
fever and the public never heard Z
word about it and was none the worse
on account of ignorance OF the mat
ter.
Here are some of the views express
sed by parties interested In this med
ical controversy concerning these new.
4 ~ tangled recognized fevers.
1 Among the large number Of cases OF
typhoid fever" says the editor OF the
Medical Record, treated by the Rus
sian army surgeons. there were many
which they were at first inclined to
classify with typhus fever. Later In
|vestigation showed that this resem-
blance was only superficial one. and
that the disease belonged to an entire
~ different group. In fact, typhus. al
though it occasionally occure II the
far east, is an extremely rare disease.
while typhoid is very common.
i Manchuria Typhoid.
j THE extensive experience with this
Il A,,r h0 it'd <n1
1.-The Russo-Japanese war, an exper.
Iience that involved 21.S49 cases OF ty.
phoid fever, brought out the very re-
markable fact that fully one-third Of
these belonged to the group OF diseas-
les Stimulating typhoid fever.
Out of this group many varied af.
lfections closely related to typhoid 70.
yer, there was extracted type having
distinct peculiarities, ind to which the
name 'Manchurian typhoid has been
given. OF this type. seventy cases
were observed, ali presenting an iden'
, tical clinical picture, with features
i that may be sharply differentiated
from those OF typhoid fever. This pic.
ture is very similar to that recently
delineated by Brill in his study Of 22l
cases in New York city
: Require Close Study
: In response to this editorial opin.
ion, DR.. Brill gives his view Of the
: differential diagnosis OF the diseases.
: and says:
J 1T seems to me that there are 90
many points Of difference between
; these affections that even clinically
they would not be considered the
same"
"Fevers resembling typhoid are re
: ceiveing much study, not that they are
: fatal Of themselves. but because they
are causing great deal Of suffering
} and possibly loss of resistance to 9th.
! er infections or even permanent injury
to health. The term typhoid formerly
Included many other infections which
: are now mostly differentiated by mod
: ern means OF diagnosis. but there are
/ still many conditions which are. pos.
sibly unknown infections to clear up