Evening star., 1944-09-02
~ STATE RDlTz0A7
Sister Kenny VIII 1kA
Doctors Of Method
Of Polio Treatment

"a CSooAACAo Va AAdIltAlc pdTAlySlS WIZ
staff members of Children's ane
Freedmen's Hospitals today as tn,
Health Department announced an.
other case, bringing the total in thu
Metropolitan area since July 1 tc
1853.
At the same time Children's Hos.
pital authorities disclosed that 9
new treatment involving ultraviole
irradiation of the patients blood hac
improved the condition of four pa.
tients perceptibly within "a to Al
hours.
While the irradiation treatment is
not cure, DR.. Frederick G. Burke
resident physician at Children's, said
today 1t has been found to "helr
children In acute stages of bulbar
1nfantile paralysis
Affects Brain.
Bulbar infantile paralysis attacks
the lower rear portion of the brain
and affects the throat rehexes, he
said.
Administered by DR.. G. j. P. Bar
ger OF the physical therapy section
at Georgetown University Hospital
the blood is withdrawn from the
patients arm through a needle and
tube, given an ultraviolet ray bath
to'lncrease ability to fight off infec-
ton and returned to the vein
through the needle. Three of the
patients treated are doing remark
ably well" and one is among con-
valescents now at home, DR.. Burke
said.
Though little reserach has so far
been done on the treatment. DR..
Burke said, results seemed to in
dicate 1t should be given further
trial.
Arlington Boy Stricken.
The 158th case is an 8-year-old
boy from Arlington, diagnosed at
Children's Hospital. OF the total
cases in this area, 81 are from the
District and 81 from nearby COM
munities.
Following the conference with
doctors at Children's and Freed
mems, Sister Kenny is scheduled to
broadcast at 4:45 pm. over Station
VOL. After an open forum at 8
pm. in the presidential room of the
Statler Hotel, she will broadcast
again with DR.. George C. Ruhland,
District health officer, and DR.. R. c.
Williams, assistant surgeon general
of the United States, over Station
WWDC at 8:45 pm.
Yesterday Sister Kenny demon
strated her method before an over
flow crowd of doctors, internes and
nurses at Gallinger Hospital. A
loudspeaker carried her voice to a
crowd gathered outside the door.
Speaking at dinner in her
honor at the Statler Hotel. attended
by physicians and others interested
In preventing paralysis, last night she
she told of her first encounted with
the disease in the bush country of
Australia. The nearest doctor was 100
miles away, she said, and her lack
OF training in the accepted treat
ment probably helped her hit upon
the new concept. Otherwise. she
said. she might have followed the
old standard of putting the crippled
bodies in splints and braces.
Work In Minneapolis.
Her work in Minneapolis during
the last four years was sufficient
evidence of the effectiveness of the
system, she declared. A crippled
childrens school there, with a nor
NAL enrolment of never less than
100 pupils and annual entry of 20
to 80 children, has had no enroll
since she took charge of
treatments in that city, she said
Lack OF pupils has closed two class
rooms and resulted in a reduction in
the faculty by two members.
Living proof of the worthiness of
her method was offered last hight
at the Statler by Miss Betty Ire
gloVn. l9. of $500 @ street NV.
Miss Treglown said she was stricken
with paralysis of the chest two
years ago in Montreal, Canada.
Bedridden for six months, living
part of the time in an iron-iung.
she told the audience she began to
recover as soon as the Kenny
method was applied. Now she is
completely recovered.
Her method is diagnostic, pre-
ventlve and curative, Sister Kenny
told her audience at Gallinger
Paralysis is primarily a disease af-
fecting the muscles, tendons. sub
tissue and even the skin,
she said. although the central nerv-
Gus system may be affected. The
accepted medical opinion is that the
disease is centered in the nervous
system. She said 88 per cent of
the patients treated by her have
made complete recoveries.
Criticizes Cold Attitude.
The White-haired Australian nurse
the cold attitude of Amer
ican medical publications toward
her work and said they had not in
vestlgated 1t in the proper spirit.
She read letters from several doc
tors attestlng to the benefits they
had derived from working with her
and approving her theory of treat
ment.
The Kenny method, she declared,
Is enormously termed the hot pack"
treatment. That is merely part
OF the treatment, but the whole
includes definite diagnosis
Of the disease at an early stage, she
said.
My work is a service to the med
lcal profession" Sister Kenny said.
Il place my Offering at your feet.
Are you going to help me give it to
the rest of the world?'
DR.. George c. Rutland, District
health officer, who presided and in
troduced Sister Kenny. said the
profession should approach
this conception of treatment with
a free and open mind" At the
same time, he added, it was wise
to hold to accepted principles of
treatment until they have been
proved to be wrong.
Young to Head Drive.
Meanwhile, Commissioner John