Evening star., 1936-05-14
US. GAINS IN WAR
ON TUBERCULOSIS
"RaciaI Resistance" to Dis.
ease Growing, Doctors
Are Told.
BY THOMAS r. HENRY,
STAR Correspondent. OF The Star.

KANSAS ClI1, May l4.-AiAe1A-
cans may be acquiring racial resist
ance" TO tuberculosis.
This hypothesis was advanced be-
fore the American Medical Associa-
ton here by DR.. James A. Miller OF
New York City to explain the decline
In the ravages of q disease which was
the leading cause of death couple OF
generations ago.
This racial resistance. DR.. Miller
said, is the product Of two factors-tne
resistance acquired and the resistance
inherited by the majority Of individ-
uals. The first is produced by re-
peated mild exposures, which serve as
q sort Of vaccination against tubercu-
losis. Of the second there is no direct
proof. but DR.. Miller believes 1t is nee
essary to assume it to explain the de-
cline of the malady.
The stronger the inherited resist
ence, the stronger the doses of ex-
posure the individual can take, and
hence the stronger the acquired re-
sistance. Theoretically, he said. 1t Is
entirely possible that comparative i'm
fnunity to ordinary doses of tubercu-
losis infection may be obtained ulti-
mately by everybody. So far as known.
however no human being ever be-
comes absolutely and completely i'm
fnune, Dr.. Miller insisted.
Inherited Fitness"
In addition, DR.. Miller said, there
seens to be a factor of constitutional
fitness, which apparently is inherited.
1t means simply that some persons do
not become sick so easily as others. 1t
applies to other diseases as well as tu-
berculosis,
This conception Of the development
Of resistance to tuberculosis infection,
DR.. Miller said, explains why the dis
ease affects people so differently. The
type Of disease a person develops de-
pends on the level in the scale of in
herited resistance at which he is bornl
on his particular ability to acquire re-
eistance at the time of the infection as
well as his constitutional fitness.
The rare gas helium, now used to
float airships, may become literally
the breath of life to hundreds of vic
tins of asthma and other conditions
in which breathing is obstructed, it
was reported by DR.. Alvin L. Barach
of New York City.
When helium mixed with oxygen is
administered, he said, improvement
takes place dramatically within a few
minutes. In of the l8 cases. he re-
ported today, the patients apparently
were on the point of death when the
treatment was given.
DR.. Barach has tried using helium
IN other conditions in which breathing
Is obstructed, such as infections Of the
larynx, or cases Of distractions in the
throat which otherwise could be treat
ed only by operation. These obStruc-
tions included cancers and tumors of
the throat, diphtheria, pneumonia and
assesses. One 9-year-old boy had
swallowed a tooth which lodged in his
throat. The use of helium made an
operation unnecessary.
Victims of Addison's disease, q
tuberculosis condition Of the cortex
OF the adrenal glands, which inevitably
resulted in death a few years ago, now
can be kept alive indefinitely by in
jections of cortin, the hormone Sc
creted from this cortex.
A new surgical technique for re-
moval Of deep-seated brain assesses
was reported by DR.. Edgar A. Kahn
of the University of Michigan. 1t con-
sists in removing part of the skull
bone over the area where the abscess
Is located, packing the space with
gauze, and leaving 1t for several days.
Because of the increased pressure
within the brain caused by the swell
ing, the abscess rises to the surface,
where it can easily be reached.
Spread by Carriers
Evidence that colds are spread by
Hcarriers" was presented by Drs. Edward
c. Sewall Of San Francisco and NJ. M.
Cullom of Nashville. Both placed the
primary blame on persons with chron-
ically infected sinuses who can pass
on the malady to others although they
may not appear to suffer from 1t them
selves.
In support Of this theory that
chronic sinusitis is the source and car
rier of the common cold, DR.. SeWall
cites cases Of Eskimos who never had
colds until they were visited by ships
from the temperate zones. Then epi-
denies Of colds broke out among them,
although none of the visitors appeared
to be affected. DR.. Sewall explained
this by saying that some of the sailors
must have had chronically infected
sinuses in which the cold germs lin
gered in an inactive state. The Eski-
mos, having no immunity, developed
cold as soon as they were exposed.
The sailors and explorers, in turn, de-
veloped colds from contact with the
natives. The organisms acquired suf-
flcient virulence to overcome the re-
sistance of the original carriers after
having developed in the susceptible
victims, he held.
In a person who has repeated colds,
DR.. Sewan said, the membranes of the
sinus tend to become thickened. If
this thickened membrane becomes dis
eased the infection tends to become
chronic. Persons with this type Of
sinus disease. DR.. Sewall said, often
have false colds" which really are
acute flare-ups Of the chronic condi-
tions.