Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1913-10-29

'3ySical INJURY, however Siighl, we UNI
6ergo some degree of shock a Mar
;thon runner, after the race is finished,
z suffering from shock" No baseball
layer finishes a game without expert
ncing the same discomfort. A barefoot
oy who steps fon sharp stone and
laastily withdraws his foot is mildly
shocked" A soldier whose leg is torn
+ by cannon ball is shocked" on a
lere terrible scale.
In a word, shock is really another
ame for cerebral exhaustion. The
els of the brain when in its normal
ondition are richly stored with "ener-
v" This energy is not psychical, but
.aysicaf: II Is composed of certain def
iitelv known chemical constituents; 1t
lust as real as the steam in the boil
:, or the electricity generated by the
vnamo. or the air we breathe. The
rain cells have an allotted supply;
IS they give Z off, they lose vitality
md weaken. if they give off all their
r aersv er even abnormal quantities Oh
Il. they die Nearly all physical ana
emotional phenomena make certain
traits upon this reservoir of energy.
rear and bodily injury in particular
v,leased depends upon the intensity OF
ne fear and the severity of tissue lac
! rations. Your body could be shced
ity sharp razor and produce only
sight cerebral exhaustion; but tear
Ing. crushing, and slashlnS hldhe
| 1, eavy demands upon stored-up energy
| etual experiments conducted bs III.
I { rlle have demonstrated that bodlly
Injury and emotional excitement, es-
| !, spially fear. produce identically the
| Inc Injuries upon the BRAN. ne
llaain cf fox that has been submitteu
Il severe physical injury displayed,
|, hen placed under the miseroscope,
ssactly the same LESSONS. In hoth
| 4ees and hrain-eells have given out
| RE quantities of energy, released,
| vat is. certain chemical substances IN
,spensable to life. In both cases the
| / rain has been Shocked
I, all surgical operations these two
l. aaoomena, fear and the wounding OF
| ssues, are the elements that produce
| saaek. The fear. of course, is prellml-
lrarv: the long anticipation. the pres
ence of the surgeon and the nurses the
SIGHT of the operating theatre and the
instruments. the suffoeation produced
Inv inhaline the nauseous' ether. Ihis
latter experience especially agonlzes
tho patient and makes serious de-
Iflands upon the stored-up energy ID
/ ne brain once anaesthetized, how
GER. we might suppose that the dan
| ar ffem the shock is over. That part
| .duced by fear is, but now the mere
I, sr1ous dangers appear.
| Every time the surgeons knife goes
| il. the brain cells give up certain in
| atalments of their energy. The anaes-
| faetic does not interfere with this ex-
liausting process. The motor nerves
which carry these impulses from the
brain to the wounded areas are just as
active as when we are wide awake.
All that the anaesthetic does is to
make us insensible to pain; the physl-
cal results of the wound are just as
palpable as though we felt them. II
l yye could anaesthetize the condemned
murderer before hanging, he would
suffer no physical discomfort; the
practical result, however, would De
the same That is all that an anaes-
| thetic does in surgical operation.
Sometimes the body. even under deep
anaesthesia, gives evidences of the
i,,ry to Which it is being subjected
Without an anaesthetic, the patient
screams and writhes in his agony
| under an anaesthetic, the respiration
grows fainter and the heart beats
slower: the latter manifestations,
heweyer are really just as express
siwe as the former. The experience is
without pain, but the effects may be
severe and are frequently fatal
DR.. CRIES new operation 1nethov
undertakes to overcome both causes Vi
surgical shock-the shock that comes
from fear and the shock that results
from physical injury. lie cans itii9
new method anoei-assoelatieh- ne"
word meaning, as DR.. Grille defines IT.
..ihe harmless association IN re-
cont article in the London Lancet, br'
Grille describes very beautifully just
what he is trying to do. He says:
arhe principle of anoci-associatlon
NAV lie illustrated by the wrecked II
tanic. The story of the stress and the
hsvehic strain of the Survivors is
knayvn that of the lost may be easily
imaeined: the future memory OF TINS
exnerienee by the survivors may saIe-
Nv be predicted. Such is the result Oh
the emotional surgical operation.
Now. if a survivor of this snip nau
been so skilfully anaesthetlzed IN ms
bed just before the accident that ne
knew nothing If the Impending oisas-
ter and if he then had been geh,is
carried IN on the deck. lowered INTO
a lifeboat, and taken aboare the res
cue shin without being allowed .% va,
ken from his anaesthesia dh.i III pet
n a comfortable stateroom-h tRea ~
bud been told that he had been tfans
fsrr.,i from the sinking ship, but ina
he was now safe and would soon SCI
home. this would be anoci-assoo'a-
tion.'
No one single anaesthetic can ac-
co,nn,;sh these several results-remeVs
the preliminary fear and overcolne .ne
hr,in exhaustion resulting from the
wonnding of tissue. BY conoin l,,s
three or four different drugs, Dr, crile
has apparently attained complete sue
cssa Here. for example, is the PROF.
d,,re adopted in abdominal operation
r. nossible, he keeps the patlent isno
- 81 %bot he is to unQeTSO