The Washington herald., 1916-08-01
SEEN AND HEARD
BY GEORGE MINER


New York, July 3I.-New York and all the
neighborng cities and villages for 200 miles have
gone panicstricken over the spread of infantile
paralysis.
vigorous quarantine against people from
this city has been inaugurated in many places.
1t frequently works great discomfort and hard
ship, Boatloads of people sent back to New
york; dozens OF families made prisoners all night
in railroad stations and shipped back next day
without sleep or food; furniture vans stopped;
summer homes that cannot be reached by their
owners, and automobile touring parties ruthlessly
stopped are only some of the anneyances the
panic has brought about
The whole surrounding country seems to BE-
wrapped in delirum of fear. In New York
the fear is not much of the disease itself as
that people will not be able to take their chill
dren away from it during this trying summer
weather.
While the death percentage from it is not
very high, there is widespread belief that those
who do survive will be crippled for life. This
belief is confirmed by bulletin issued by the
health department, which says that in previous
epdemics of this disease mortality ranged from
5 to 20 per cent and Is per cent of those who
survived were more or less permanently crippled.
This is pretty appalling outlook fer the coming
generation of New Workers.
Is the worlds biggest city largely to be in
habited by cripples? Is the crutch to be an
adjunct of future New York life?
The editor of the New York Medical Journal,
DR.. Claude L. Wheeler, does not think so at all.
He is absolutely at variance with the health de-
partment's gloomy outlook.
"The next generations health" he says, "is
not going to be imperiled by the current outbreak
of infantile paralysis. There need be anxiety
on that score 1t is safe to say that in most OF
the cases OF infantile paralysis in which the pa
tIent passes through the acute fever stage there
will be practically complete recovery of all the
functions of the body, sooner or later.
You know" he continues, there is nothing
new or startling about this disease. have known
it all my life. There have been many hundreds
OF cases every year. OF course, the suddenness
with which it seizes child makes it a terror
inspiring thing A youngster may go to bed at
night apparently perfectly we'll and wake up in
the morning unable to stand.
But there is instance after INSTANCE in which
a child who passes out OF the fever with, ap-
Parently one or both or legs completely
paralyzed is in perfect health few months or
years after the seizure"
In an address before the Academy of Medi-
cine the other night. DR., Simon Flexner, of the
Nockefener institute took much the same view.
He said:
"Of those who survive a part make complete
recoveries in which cripplns whatever re-
mains. This number is greater than is generally
supposed. The disappearance OF the paralysis
may be rapid gradual, may be complete in a
few days or may require weeks or months.
1T is imperative to keep in mind that the re-
covery OF Paralyzed parts and the restoration of
lost muscular power and function are processes
which extend over long period of time, that is,
over months and years.
so that even severely paralyzed child
who has made little recovery of function by the
time the acute stage Of the disease is over may
go on gaining for weeks, months and even
years until in the end he has reganed large
part of his losses. Fortunately, only a very
small number Of those attacked are left severely
and hopelessly crippled. Lamentablc as it is that
even one should be affected, it is nevertheless
reinsurance to know that so many recover al
together and so much Of what appears to be per-
manent paralysis disappears in time"
These two eminent medical men are certainly
IN no panic over the epidemic. If they could
calm the health department it would be a good
thing for everybody