Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1946-01-31
Navy Issues Report
On Nagasaki Victims
|0f Atomic Radiation
By THOMAS r. HENRY.

| A report on the earliest OBJ
served effects of atomic bomb
radiation on human beings was
issued today by the Nays Blu
reau OF Medicine and Surgery.
1t is by Comdr. Joseph j. Tim
mes, surgeon aboard the cruiser
Wichita, which went into Nagasaki
harbor September IL, about 10 days
before the arrival of the first scien-
tific atomic bomb commissions and
about 80 days after the bomb had
been dropped on the city.
The Japanese had turned school
building into hospital and were
admitting each day about 20 victims
OF the bomb radiation. Comdr.
Timmes and his staff Immediately
started aiding the japanese doctors
whom they found quite co-opera-
tive.
True Radiation Sickness.
Comdr. Timmes said in his re-
port published today in the Naval
Medical Bulletin:
THE patients examined revealed
true forms of radiation sickness
which were similar to the acquired
or experimentally produced cases
seen In the United States. The
Japanese claimed that during the
first week most of the deaths were
the result of radiation sickness, but
they did not differentiate blast vic
tins from radiation patients. They
also attributed to radiation many
heat burns. It can be assumed,
however. that a large percentage
of the early victims died of radiation
effects.
All the victims seen came from
the same local area. No patient was
found who had been beyond three
|kilometers from the center of the
explosion area. Differentiation from
a heat burn was difficult, particu-
larry with number of flash burns
present, but when the burns ap-
peared four or five days after the
explosion and without apparent
cause, it was assumed that they were
IdQldtlUu clleCtS.
Many Lose Hair.
Many cases of alopecia failing
out Of hair were observed. Some of
these victims began to lose their
hair four or five days after the ex-
plosion, while others first noted the
phenomenon about the third week.
None of the cases exhibited complete
loss of hair. At the end of a month
a few of the patients had already
begun to grow new hair of downy
nature. The permanency of the alo-
pecia at this time is purely specula-
tive.
"The principal effect of the radia-
ton was on the bone marrow ICON
cerned with manufacturing blood
cells) and most Of the cases showed
an aplastic type of anemia. The
blood was deficient in red blood
cells and hemoglobin. A number of
very low white blood cell counts were
seen and in some of the cases the
white blood cells completely disap-
peared before death.
"A white blood cell count under
1000 offered a poor diagnosis, but
one patient with only 400 cells per
cubic millimeter survived. Smears
showed great decrease in the num-
Der Of thrombocytes lanother type
of blood cells and in some OF the
smears they had completely disap-
peared. s
Teeth Removable by Hand.
1.-THE average newly admitted pa
tient complained of fever, malaise,
loss of appetite, bleeding gums and
hemmorhagic diarrhea. The oral
changes consisted Of glossy, smooth
tongue with Lucrative LESSONS of the
mucous membranes. The LESSONS
bled easily, were often grossly in
fected, and showed no tendency to
heal. The teeth generally were loose
and easily removed by hand. Some
of the gold removed from the teeth
showed radiant energy.
Many of the patients died as
result of bronchial pneumonia. In
general it appeared that younger
individuals had more recuperative
abilities and a progressive rise in
the white blood cell count was
good omen.
Opportunities for therapeutic
endeavors were necessarily handi-
capped by our limited supplies. jap
anese attempts at treatment were
meagre because of their limited