Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1911-06-14
HYDROPHOBIA.
By Frederic ]. Haskin.

through a long series This indicates tina,
in handing 1t down from one animal to
another it would become greatly diluted
and therefore harmless.
The germ which causes the disease
does not live In the blood, but has the
nerve centers Of
Lives in Nerve the body as its ia
Centers of Body. II 0' IL rsr @lD' nossI
BILE to transmit it by incubation with
the blood of affected animals. but the
spinal cord of an affected animal Is filled
with virus. and from this untold hundreds
of cases may be produced in the labora-
tory. 1t is seldom contracted through
the stomach. Dogs fed on the meat of
affected animals never take the disease
unless there is an abrasion about the
mouth or along the alimentary canal
through which the infection may pass.
1t is sometimes passed through milk, but
in these cases only where an abrasion
exists.
1t was the studies OF the famous
French physician. DIR. Pasteur, which
served to rob hydrophobia of its greatest
terrors. The treatment devised by him
consists in the administration for a num-
Der Of days of virus of various strengths
into the human system by hypodermic
methods. The first dose consists OF an
emulsion of the spinal cord of an affected
dog. which has been kept for fourteen
days. This emulsion loses its strength
in proportion to the time it is kept, and a
ten-day emulsion is consequently much
stronger than a fourteen-day emulsion.
With each succeeding day it is admins
tered the virus is of an increased
strength. until the maximum is reached,
when virus only three days old Is ad-
minstered. BY the time this maximum
dose is used the patients system is able
to resist the attack of the virus which
has been introduced by the bite Of the
dog.
There are now twenty institutions in the
United States where treatment along the
lines laid down
T1uon+v Do cfour by PaSteur may
Institutions in U. S. of these insti-
tutions are under official auspices Dur
ing the past three years the United states
public health and marine hospital serv-
ice in Washington has been treating pa
tents free at its hygienic laboratory
Those who are not able to go to Wash
ington may secure the necessary virus
for treatment under requisition by the
public health authorities Of their respec-
tive communities. The state OF Connec-
ticut seems to have a model law for the
handling of hydrophobia cases 1t ley!es
a dog tax, through which a fund is
created for the reimbursement of those
who need treatment for hydrophobia.
The statistics of the treatment Of n.y.
drophobia by the Pasteur method show
some remarkable results. OF the 30, 759
cases OF persons bitten by animals in
fected with rabies treated in the Pasteur
institute Of Paris there were only 12e
deaths Statistics from similar institu-
tons in all Of the big cities Of Europe
reveal like success in the administra-
ton Of this form OF incubation.
Several other methods of treating hy-
arophobia are in use In Europe. num-
Der of Italian physicians get the strong
est virus they can find. and subject it to
the peptic action of gastric juice for
varying periods. The weakest virus is
administered at first. and the dose grad
ually strengthened in quality rather than
in quantity. until the maximum is
reached A new idea In the treatment OF
impending hydrophobia employs the
we'll known principle Of, vaccination. In