New-York tribune., 1920-11-08
Dr.S. A. Meltzer.
Inventor and
Scientist, Dies
Noted Professor of Rookie
feller Institute Restored
Young Physician to Life
hK Artificial Respiration
Devised Lockjaw Cure
Many Infantile Paralysis
Patients Saved by Appli-
cation of His Methods


the department or physiology and
pharmacology at the Rockefeller In
stitute for Medical Research, discoverer
and inventor of many scientific and
medical devices and one of the most
eminent scientists in the country.
died yesterday afternoon in his home,
13 West 123d Street. He was sixty
nine years old.
DR.. Meltzer will be remembered
chiefly for his discovery OF an i'm
proved form of artificial respiration
which he perfected in 1912 and by
which he was able TO resuscitate per-
sons who were considered dead, in the
medical sense cf the word-that is to
say, persons the action of whose hearts
had stopped
Doctor Brought to Life
Dr. Meitzer tried the experiment on
tour species of animals-dogs, cats,
rabbits and monkeVs-all of whom were
killed purposely either by etherizatlon
or by Illuminating gas. They were
completely restored to life by the
process. In November, 1912, he caused
great deal of comment in medical
circles by the restoration to life Of
young physician who had been pro
nounced dead from an overdose of
morphine.
ne Young doctor was serving on the
staff OF one of the hospitals in this
city, and took the morphine. if is
thought" by accident. He fell into q
deep coma and was pronounced dead hv
the attending physician. DR.. Ne tier
was called INTO consultation and ordered
mat the supposed dead man be taken
to the Rockefeller Institute. He worked
on him for twelve hours. at the end of (t
winch tlme complete restoration was
evident.
Devolving upon this discovery was
the use of pharyngeal Installation for
0he administration of anesthesia,
which served as a great aid for opera
tons IN which the patient was OBLIGED
to be under the anasthetic for lonr
period of time. Ether was mixed with
the air which is pumped into the lungs
with bellows, and practically. un-
limited quantities were applied without
serious after effects during operations
Whlcn have lasted from four to twelve
I
NAL method of administering anes-
thcsia
Invented Cure for Lockiaw
Previous to his experiments with ar.
tlhclal respiration. DR.. Meltzer in 1911
discovered that blood and lvmnhatic.
were not the only means of distributinc
the solutions necessary to life tbrougF
the body, as had been generally sup
! posed since Harvey discovered blo9l
circu ation. By various experiments h,
iound that separate mode of distri
button existed.
In 1915 DIR. Meltzer created another
sensation when he discovered a treat.
mcnt for tetanus, or lockiaw. enc CT
the greatest scourges of the Europear
war. 1t consisted of the injection Of
prophy'actic dose of the snti-tetanus
serum into the wounded patient and
the injection Of a solution of Epson
salts into the spinal membrane. which
he discovered would produce complete
relaxation of the muscles long enough
for the serum to take effect
In 1915 Dr.. Meltzer read a paper be-
fore the Academy Of Medicine in
Aeolian Hall in which he gave three
suggestions for the cure Of infantile
paralysis and explained in connection
with the disease the use of adrena'in
During the year it was found that
the doctors discovery had worked sue
cessfully on many of the patients, al
though in some cases no results were
obtained.
DR.. Meltzer was born in Courland
Russia, and obtained his preliminary
oaucntion in K0nigsberg, Prussia. Hl
studied philosophy and medicine at the
| University Of Berlin from 1875 to 1882
He received the degree of LID. from
! the University Of Maryland in 1906, st
Andrews University, Scotland, in 1912
and Washington University ST. Louis
in 1914.
Came to u. S. in 1888
DR.. Meltzer came to this country II
1888, and since then had practice
in this city. He had been head Of the
department of physiology and pharma
cology at the Rockefeller Institute fol
Medical Research since 1916. He wa,
consulting physician for the Harlem
Hospital, fellow of the American As
sociaton for the Advancement Of Sci
ence, the Academy of Science and tn,
Academy of Medicine, and formel
president Of the Association of Amer
lean Physicians, the American Physio
logical Society. the Society for Expert
mental Medicine and Biology the Amer
! can NIdHtIO- IO-IilCcTOlOglCdl ASSOclHllOQ
TIE Association for the Advancement
Of Clinical Research and the Harvey
Society.
At his death DR.. Meltzer was pres
dent of the American Association fol
Thoracic SURGERY. the Medical Rrothe er
hood, a member of the National bcad
eny Of Sciences, the American Pharma
colorical Society the Association O.
American Patholoeists. the Americar
Societv IF Naturalists and the German
ln1erial Academy of Natural Sciencos
Or Melt7er was chairman Of the
nhvsioloGical section Of the Enterna
ticnal Congress- of Arts and Science:
/ held in ST Louis in 1904 He was the
author of more than two hundred hooks
rapers and pamphlets on biology
/ phvsioloev and scientific medicine
DR.. Meltzer is survived bv his wife
/ Olga Melt2er; son, DR.. Victor Melt
zcr, and daughter, who also is a doc
/ tor-Dr. Clara Auer, wife Of Dr.. Johr
Auer, with whom the doctor conducted
many OF his experiments with arti-
fetal respiration.
MRS. SARAH J. CROMWELL
Mrs Sarah J. Cromwell, widow OF
Colonel John Nelson Cromwell, who
was killed during the Civil War al the