Evening star., 1939-11-19
Syphilis Is Cured
In 4 Days With
7 New Methods
Remedies Reported as
Effective as Old
8-Month Treatment

Effective as Old
8-Month Treotment
By HOWARD w. BLAKEsLEE,
Associated Press Science Editor.
NEW YORK, Nov. 1s.-The 30
year-old dream of the great Paul
Ehrlich, discoverer Of salvarsan,
that syphilis could be cured in one
quick period of treatment, has come
true. SO SnBY
Two four-day treatments have
been reported this fall. Both are
based on Mr.. Ehrlich's discovery,
and both are recording as many
cures as the old eight-month treat
ment.
With the new weapons, medical
men foresee early conquest of this
plague, which was introduced to
civilization by Columbus discovery
OF America, which did not even
have name until it adopted that
OF the hero of poem, and which
under the name of The Slow
Death" takes probably more lives
than any other contagious disease.
The wars of Charles VIII of
France were the first great dis
seminators of this then-new disease.
The World War started the last
chapter for America. For that war
initiated this country's campaign,
and indirectly led to both of the
new four-day syphilis treatments.
French Method Modified.
In the World War, it was desir-
able to keep soldiers with the dis
ease from spreading infection dur
ing their brief leaves from the
trenches. For that purpose, Scholtz.
a German physician, used quick
treatment of four doses of salvarsan
In "a hours.
This was rough. For Mr.. Ehrlich
had been disappointed to find that
the human system was unable to
stand enough of his medicine at
one time to cure completely.
The trench method was modified,
In 1916, by New York physician,
j. Pollitzer, who spread the dosage
over four days. Results were en-
couraging.
That led, in turn, to one of the
new four-day treatments reviewed
this fall in the Medical Record. DR..
Herman Goodman, another New
York physician, gave the syphilis
remedy on four successive morn
lngs. Then, at noon each day he
gave a different medicine, and at
night third, and still different,
drug.
The noon and night medicines
were selected to overcome the
human body obstacles which caused
the failure of Ehrlich's dream of
quick cure. These obstacles are
two. First, the arsenic in the
syphilis remedies deposits in the
tissues before it finishes attacking
all the spirochetes, the germs of
the disease. Second, the body walls
off the germs by closing capillaries
around them, so that the arsenic is
barred from reaching the spiro-
chetes.
Second Method.
DR.. Goodman's noon medicine is
sodium thiosulphate, to reactivate
the arsenic In tissues. The night
medicine is sodium iodine, to re-
open the capillaries 50 that the
arsenic can reach the germs that
may already be walled OF. No
solid food is taken during the four
days.
The other four-day treatment was
developed at Mount Sinai Hospital,
New York, and reported in the
journal of the American Medical
Association by Drs. Harold Thomas
Hyman, Louis Chargin, John L. Rice
and William Letter.
A hypodermic needle is kept in
the patients vein at the bend of
the elbow continuously for four
days. The needle drips the remedy
intermittently but only drop at
a time, so that the massive dose
necessary to destroy the spirochetes
is attained gradually in four days.
Irritation Is reduced.
This intravenous drip suggests
virtually new field in medicine.
The drip method requires a
patient to be in bed in hopsital.
This has the advantage in GER
tainty, but disqualification is COM
paratively expensive for the pocket
book of many syphilis victims.
The Goodman method has the
advantage that the patient need
not go to bed, nor be in a hospital.
The disadvantage is that the
afflicted one may not finish treat
ment, for symptoms begin to dis
appear in "a hours.
Both treatments, however, may be
destined to overcome one great
obstacle, which is the difficulty of
Keeping most persons under treat
ment for the long time heretofore
needed to make reasonably sure Of
q cure.