The Dallas express. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1893-1970, 1919-08-09
CHILD is BORN REAL DOPE
FIEND. SHOWS SYMP-
TOMS EARLY IN LIFE

Inherits Taste for Narcotics From
Mother-Signs Disappear in Ra-
ito of Amount Of Drug
Administered.
How the sins Of parents are visited
upon the children is shown by case
described in American Medicine New
York;, by Christian F ]. Laase, as
sociate surgeon Of st. Marks hospit-
al, New York. in which a newborn
babe, the child Of an opium addict,
DISPLAYED at once all the symptoms
of addiction.
The case is an interesting one, be-
cause, if correctly described, it mega
tives some current theories of drug ad-
diction and shows that it depends on
something that can be physically
transmitted from mother to child, says
the Literary Digest. The mother of
the child described in DR.. Leases
narrative was woman Of q years
who had been addicted to opiates for
over two years. The baby was a,well-
nourished, healthy-appearng child,
From the moment of birth, however,
It was very restless. DR.. Laase says:
"This restlessness is probably to be
interpreted as early opiate need, due
10 the insufficient amounts Of opiate
taken by the mother just previously,
The symptoms and signs Of drug-need,
developed in the infant identically
with those of its mother in character
ard in sequence. The restlessness in
creased; it began to yawn and sneeze.
Its face became pinched and its color
poor 1t drew up its legs as if in
cramps, and cried out as if in pain.
It's pupils became widely dilated.a The
chin was in constant tremor remind
ing the observer of the chattering Of
an adult in a chill. Finally the in
can't showed signs of collapse, with
general commissions.
Child Responds to Dose of Paregoric.
Nothing seemed to alleviate these
symptoms, until finally drop of pare
goric in water was given, using a
small eye-dropper to put the paregoric
n the mouth. Five-drops of paregoric
we're given at intervals to five to ten
minutes, causing a progressive subsi-
ience of the symptoms and return to
normal.
ut is of interest to note that the
rrogress of symptom alienation fol-
lowed exactly the progress stated by
shop in adults, that is, the ssymp-
toms disappeared in ratio to the
mount Of drug administrated, those
last appearing going first, and the
restlessness first appearing being the
last to disappear.
Following the administration of
the final dose of this first series of
raregoric, the infant became quiet4and
in every way acted and seemed per-
fectlv normal.
".The mother was very anxious to
avoid continuing to give the opiate to
tNe child, and delayed its administra-
tion as long as possible. The child
would develop the above symptoms,
however, at intervals Of about egnt
hours after opiate administration, the
severity varying according to the
ength Of time the mother delayed in
administering the opiate,
"When lactation was fully estab-
'ished. the necessity for paregoric ad-
ministfation ceased. The infant an
parently obtained its narcotic supply
thru the mothers milk. The mother
lursed the child at regular intervals
lust before the time for nursing, the
child would display resJlessness un.
fke that seen in normal children
which would subside Immediately af.
ter nursing.
"When the mother went for longer
interval before taking her own opiate
n when she took it in diminished
euantity, The child displayed earlier
onset and greater severity of with
irawal symptomatology, il being
necessary at lines to supplement tn,
opiate derived from the mothers mill
With drop or two Of paregoric. Ap
parently the amount supplied to tn,
hid varied with the amount presen
n the mother
Pictures in Child and Mother Same
J "The picture of physical symptom
ltologv, and of suffering, in the chilt
vas identical with the picture in tn,
! mother; the various symptoms occur
ring in the same sequence and rela
1--WE severity, and following the SAM
reactions. 70 opiate administration
and also yielding to nothing other thar
opiate administration,
ut seems to the writer that case
such as the above deserve closest con
sideration and Interpretation. The.
certainly upset the generally accepte,
theories Of opiate addiction expresses
| by the older writers. 1t seems absur
! and impossible to attempt to explain
any of the phenomena displayed b,
! psychiatric or psychologist approach o.
he old basis Of sensuous enjoyment
of deliberate indulgence, morbid curio
| sity, vicious or criminal instincts, ett
"The manifestations in this cas-
were beyond all argument purely phys
zeal in their origin and in the ma
chinery~ Of their production. Some
thing in that infants body caused tn
physical manifestations it exhibited
This something was manufactured b
the body Of the infant itself, and nc
: merely supplied to it thru the umbil
cal circulation from its mother, other
wise it would not have continued {
manifest the symptomatology afte
! birth or after reasonable time TO
lowing birth. The organs Of the il
. FAINT while still in utero developed I'll
function OF protective mechanisl
against cpiate, and carried on tn;
: function after birth."