The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1915-11-17
DOCTORS DISCUSS PELLAGRA,
DIFFERENCES OF OPINION AS
TO CAUSE OF DISEASE.
Robert Wilson of Charleston Elected
to Head Southern Medical AssOcia-
ton for Ensuing Ycar-Mect Next
in Atlanta.

Dallas, Texas, Nov. 11.-Atlanta was
today selected for the 1916 meeting Of
the Southern Medical association.
DR.. Robert Wilson, Jr, Of Charles
ton, S. c., was elected president of
the association. Recommendation
were adopted to petition the president
of the United States and the secre-
tary Of war for a sufficient medical
force in the proposed increase Of the
army for national defense.
DR.. Holman Taylor of Fort Worth,
Texas, was elected first vice president
of the association and Guy Hunter of
Baltimore second vice president DIR.
Scale Harris of Birmingham holds
over as secretary and treasurer.
Sharp differences of opinion as to
the cause and treatment of pellagra
marked the final session of the asso-
citation which concluded it's annual
convention here today.
The dietary theory, recently ad-
vanced by DR.. Joseph Goldberger Of
the United States public health SER
vice, was the principal subject of dis
cussion and news reports Of his work
appearing in the "lay press were
criticised as misleading.
Several physicians said newspapers
had printed headlines that a cure had
been found but that DR.. Goldberger
had not announced anything more
than very good treatment for the
disease. possibly the best treatment
yet known.
DR.. Allan w. Freeman Of the United
States public health service read to
the pellagra symposium a copy of the
diet which he said DR.. Goldberger
found had a tendency to produce pei
lagra. DR.. Freeman pointed out that
1t was almost the Identical diet Of
every person Of small means in the
South, and appealed to the physicians
to accept for their own use and ex-
pertinent the treatment DR.. Gold
berger has demonstrated.
"Dr. Goldberger." he said, "does not
claim to prove that diet is the only
cause for pellagra. But he does claim
that through diet he had prevented
pellagra and that through diet he has
produced it," 80
DR.. Stewart L. Roberts of Atlanta
said that as pellagra is a wasting dis
ease, diet including such foods as
peas, beans and fresh meats, which
were among the articles recommend
ed by DR.. Goldgerber, would tend to-
ward relief for the reason that they
are rich in the elements necessary to
restore wastage.
DR.. Roberts added that he did not
believe it possible to say a pellagra
patient had recovered until the pas
sage Of at least three years, during
which time no symptom Of the disease
appeared. He thought that when the
cause of pellagra is discovered it win
be either parasite or a poison.
| Whatever the final proof on diet
treatment might show, said DR.. o. M.
Marchman of Dallas, even if the treat
ment fails, it should start study with
renewed vigor and hope of soon get
ting pellagra under control. He said
there probably aro between $4,000 and
$4,000 pellagra cases in Texas. DR..
X. II. Ball of Fort Worth said that
in 1907 the first pellagra death was
reported in Texas and that last year
500 deaths were reported.
DR.. A. w. Dearman of Long Beach,
Miss, referred to an outbreak of pei
lagra in an asylum in Pc ia, ILL.,. in
1903 and declared that as good re-
suits as DR.. Goldberger described
were obtained simply by segregating
the pellagra patients, and DR.. w. l..
Allison of Fort Worth, chairman Of
the Texas State committee for the
study Of pellagra, asserted that the
dietary theory would not explain all
cases. Pellagra had been known TO
develop where there was no fault with
the diet, he said.
Protests against headlines which
have appeared in Southern newspapers
was made by DR.. j. A. Hayne Of CO.
lumbia, S. C.. Dr. Hayne contended
that DR.. Goldberger does not claim
that diet iS tho co1Sa Of pellopro A.,
the sense that published reports in
dicated.