The sun., 1917-06-10
new CURE FOR DRUG
HABIT OFFERED US.
Or. c. F. Stokes of City Board
Of Inebriety Tells OF
Treating 1870 Cases.
REMARKABLE IN EFFECTS
Pilocarpine . and Eserine
Method Suggested for Pub
lie Health Service.

An optimistic preliminary report on
the recent efforts Of Dr. Charles +.
Stokes, formerly Surgeon General OF the
United States navy and now supervising
medical officer of the Municipal Board Of
Inebriety's Warwick Farms in Orange
county. was made public yesterday by
the board through its executive secre-
tary. Charles Samson. The boards re-
port is based wholly. OF course. upon
DR. Stokess own account OF his expert
ments with the drug users on the city's
corrective farm and their effects.
drug cure was prepared after he had
used his new treatment upon 1870
patients addicted to the use of either
opium, morphine. heroin or codeine. In
January last THE Sun told OF the ex-
periments DR.. Stokes mad made upon
twenty-five drug users during the weeks
Just preceding. a knowledge Of the new
treatment having been obtained acci-
dentally then owing to letter the medical
OtItCcT Udu WTutcll W JuStiCC
kernochan asking him to send drug
users who might come before him to
Warwick Farms SO that as many as
poscible might be subjected to the
"cure" 1t was said at that time publicly
that DR.. Stokes would not make a report
on his experiments until he had treated
and cured at least 100 cases"
ORers Free Use of Treatment.
In the announcement made yesterday
~ the Board Of Inebriety 1t was said
that free use of the treatment. which is
based upon small doses Of pilocarpine
and eserine. had been offered to the Ma
tional Council Of Defence and to the
United States Public Health Service.
Existing national stress and the
passage Of the army law embodying
transcription" were reasons offered by
the Board Of Inebriety yesterday as
prompting the board ito present this in
complete report so that the problem can
be dealt with on sound scientific lines
Although the enlistment. says the board
Of drug addicts who have been freed
OF addiction has not been contemplated
II Is believed that when these individuals
are better understood 1t will be acknowl.
edged that. after treatment OF the proper
sort. they will be able to render efYicien
ViN0 III NIc luuuo&lCS
DR.. Stokes does not list by name oI
otherwise the patients he has treated
but speaks Of them generally in theii
sum total Of 130 cases. More than 81
per cent. Of these. says the report. hat
no criminal record, per cent. had beer
arrested for minor offences and less thar
per cent had been convicted OF felo
nies These unfortunates. the statemen
continues. unless properly cared To-
will not only remain unproductive maj
p0wer Of enormous proportions. but pos
sioly something worse under war con
dltions."
Drug Using Abruptly Stepped.
n. Stokes in his report counts as hi
0reateN aaccess the abrupt withdrawal
Of the drug from the victim withou
oausing. distress IL combined with afte
care Of sufYicisnt length. He does not Z,
into details Of his actual treatment I,
the extent that medical men as q rul
place At the disposal of their colleague
when publishing reports Of their expert
ments and discoveries
After thorough trial. says DR.. Stoke
In his report, he became convinced o
the remedial value Of pilocarpine an,
eserine in doses far below the minimum
medicinal doses In common use.' TIL
largest single dose of pilocarpine hydro
chloride. for example. that Dr. Stoke
has given was one-tenth Of grain, wit
the average dose somewhere betwee
one-hfteenth and one-twentieth. repeate,
every two or three hours for the frs
forty eight hours. when. as a rule. tn
medication is discontinued.
Often, says the doctor refreshln
sleep follows the first dose and the pa
tient 'is hungry and tranquilized.
Food, however, In fact everything b
avert Rnti-peristalsis There have bee
no untoward symptoms. the repoi
states. in any case in the series. whic
included valvular and myocardial di.
ease.
Treated = Doctor 78 Years Old .
One Of Or. Stokes's patients, he say
was q physician rs years old and fo
forty years 4 drug addict. DR.. Stoke
says the drug in this case was take
OF abruptly without incident" but ths
some days later the patient had ou
bursts OF rage without provocation an
was irritable and impatient" The age
ply sician. however. was treated und,
crude and unfavorable circumstanc,
which materially interfered with II
OIL his ncINOuS SYSTEM 10 IT
problems OF reality that had passed hi
by during his long period Of nsrcotlsm
while his general physical conditio
improved" DR., Stokes continues. ''on a
count Of his surroundings and his a,
venced age II Was deemed wise to give hi
the minimum amount of morphine thi
would tranquilixe him, which was four
20 be three grains daily. He can
taken of under more favorable circun
stances without doubt Other elder
patients have done we'll"
"All craving ceases" adds the repoi
"after the treatment Is under way. ar
the patients cannot tell when the ma
cotics are discontinued. The picture r
minds one Of that commonly seen in Il
crisis of pneumonia. II is one OF con
plete tranquility. Unless the physicis
has . clear understanding of the pat
ology Of tho condition as herein ou
lined and the indications for the vari
tions In treatment. he will be likely
he disappointed In his results.
The physical damage is soon correct'
In these cases, for we rarely see con
plicatinE organic LESSONS of consequenc
Tho readJustments In the nervous sy
TEN take q longer time"
Explains Method to tho Pstien
DR.. Stokes says he has found It wor'
while In his experiments 10 explain
the patient exactly what is taking pla'
a. far as possible. so that the patie
can cooperate with the physician.
we'll as having better UNDERESTIMATE
OF the fact that the readjustments
the psychic level are often tedious ar
sometimes disappointing"
Sufficient time has not elapsed
make any dennite predictions as TO Il
permanenoy OF freedom from addiction