The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1935-08-23


gigantic human laboratory for the
study of the use Of vaccines in i'm
munizing persons to the disease. Med
ical authorities on the spot believe 1t
will prove to be the most important
experiment Of it's kind ever undertaken.
North Cardinals plight follows in
the wake Of lesser epidemics In Call
fornia and elsewhere. The very seri-
business of the increase in infantile
paralysis cases may prove to be
blessing in disguise if enough can be
learned about the insidious virus, which
twists and cripples bodies, to protect
humanity against it in the future.
The first widespread attack OF polio
was noticed in Jackson county, In the
for western part of North Carolina.
From there the disease jumped, in the
words of DIR. ]. G. Knox, state cpl
demiologist, "like a skyrocket," and
'burst" in Raleigh and the rest OF
Wake county, all the way across the
state, on the Atlantic seaboard.
It is believed that the disease In
North Carolina has been checked and
is abating, but in Virginia the num-
Der of cases reported is on the upturn,
it's course having seemingly followed
the highways over the entire length of
the state, with no indication yet as to
where its spread will stop.
Cause Of Spread Unknown.
! Just how the disease was carried is
not known. Direct contact with dis
eased person is not necessary to con-
tract It. It almost never strikes two
members of the same family. Gar
riers"-people who have such mild
cases of polio that they do not even
feel sick-carry the virus to others
whose natural immunity is low and
who therefore contract the disease In
considerably more violent form. That
is much the same as the manner In
which typhoid fever and diphtheria are
spread. A single carrier, unknown TO
himself, may create several severe
cases.
When a few carriers hit a region
where the natural immunity of The peo-
pie is relatively low, an epidemic is
usually the result That is probably
what happened in North Carolina and
Virginia.
While the disease is not nearly so
much confined to young children as
the term infantile paralysis would sug-
gest, 1t is still more prevalent in chill
dren of five or less than in any other
age group. For that reason the one
sure preventive is a difficult one to
administer. It Is complete isolation.
The only way to be absolutely certain
of keeping children from catching polio
is to keep them away from all play
mates and from all crowds and pub
lie gatherings. The same applies to
adults, but they are not so likely to
catch 1t.
Unfortunately there is no sure way
to tell who Is immune and who Is not.
And there Is no means OF erecting
artificial immunity which has been sat
isfactorily proven. Vaccines which may
do the trick are being tested now In
the southeast epidemic.
DR.. Maurice Brodie, working under
DIR. william II. Park, head of the New
York city health department, has de-
yeloped the Park Brodie vaccine. An
other has been developed by DR.. John
A. Kolmer, of the Temple university
medical school in Philadelphia. With
the William H. Merrell company, manu-
featuring chemists of Cincinnati, Doc
tor Kolmer is providing between 5000
and 1000 "shots" of the vaccine free
every month-enough to vaccinate
about 5000 children.
Test Two Serums.
Neither of these vaccines must be
believed to be cure. They are merely
preyentives. Both of them contain the
polio virus-not a bacterium, but a
poison. The Park Brodie vaccine con-
tains the KILLED" virus and Doctor
Kolmers contains the greatly weak
ened virus. Both have been known to
produce in animals an immunity which
lasts about two years. How long 1t will
last on human beings has not yet been
determined. for 1t has not yet had
sufficient test.
A necessary requisite for both vac
cines Is the RhesuS monkey. the little
'blushing" monkey, SO called because
OF the way his face gets red when he
il excited, which we see in ZOOS.