The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1931-03-27
What is the cause of flu? Is there


a cure?
These questions plague the medical
profession no less than the laity says
this weeks bulletin from the Mime
sofa State Medical Association on the
subject of influenza and its treacherous
little relation, the common cold"
A mild epidemic of "flu" reported
by medical authorities to be in pro-
greSs in the United States prompted
this bulletin The epidemic is less
virulent and less wide spread than the
epidemic in 1928. It has moved from
the West coast to the East while the
violent wave of the war years, thirteen
years ago. moved from Eastern Europe
steadily westward.
Most of the important medical
foundations of the world have been
working steadily on the cause and cure
of the influenza problem since the
time of the dire 1918 epidemic" the
bulletin says.
They have not yet found the specific
germ cause of the disease and so there
is, as yet, no solution to the problem
comparable to the toxin anti toxin
solution of the diphtheria problem.
I'VE are certain" says the bulletin,
that flu is spread by some infinites-
imial infective agent that is present,
though we can't find it under the mi
croscope, in the waShings from the
mouths and noses of its victims. 1t
will pass through fine porcelain filters
that separate it from other known
organisms normally present in noses
and Threats. When this filtered sub
stance is tried out on laboratory
monkeys the majority of the monkeys
will develop the same flu that troubled
the afflicted human"
In that respect, the bulletin points
out, this virus is like the agent that
causes measles, poliomyelitis and the
common cold" All of these have
been proved in the laboratory to be
infectious and no one has as yet iso-
lated the actual guilty germ for any
OF them in laboratory test tube.
They are passed from person to person
mostly by the sneezing, talking, cough
ing route.
Certain convaleScent SerumS in which
anti-bodes are present to fight the
guilty germ have been found to be of
value in the treatment of poliomyelitis
and measles.
For common cold" or "flu" there
is just one universal treatment in the
opinion of the bulletin
Go to bed" say the medical associ-
alton experts. ut is the first step in
combating any of these diseases. IF
your trouble should turn out to be
flu or a simple cold good care in
bed, with simple diet and plenty of
liquids, will give you the best possible
chance to throw it off quickly. If
your trouble should happen to be one
| OF the other diseases that come on
very much in the same way then you
have done the first and most impor-
tant thing toward getting well any,
way.
incidentally you will also have re-
moved yourself from contact with
other people. No good is done by
passing even cold" on to your
| neighbor."
There are twenty cases of whooping
cough under quarantine among the
first grade children of a certain Min
nesota village, of less than two thous-
and population, this week.
The number is expected to increase
to at least fifty by the end of another
week, the health-officer of the village
says, because small brothers and sisters
have been exposed, also second and
third graders of the one public school
of the town.
This is common place episode
among children's epidemics. It is re-
counted in bulletin from the Mime
sofa State Medical Association because
association members consider it a
typical illustration of the way un-
necessary epidemics of serious disease
are still allowed to develop among
school children
The doctor-health officer has traced
the first case to a recent newcomer in
the village who began to cough shortly
after she entered the first grade room
The school has no regular nursing
or medical inspection beyond semi
occasional visits of the hard pressed
county nurse
The first little whooper coughed
Justify She stopped coming to school
after awhile, but the parents omitted