Evening star., 1952-05-20
Fever-Inducing Drug
Reported Helpful on
Severed Spinal Cord

VI
Severed Spinal Cord
A drug originally developed to
induce fever may open up new
field Of research in the treatment
Of severed or badly damaged spinal
cords.
If the drug-Piromen-proves
successful in preventing thS
growth Of scar barriers, which
seem to keep the mangled nerve
flbers from growing together again,
the outlook for persons suffering
spinal cord injuries in the future
will be much brighter.
But doctors emphasize the re-
suits so far obtained merely .indi-
cate the drug bears further inves-
tigation. Only one known case has
been "cured"-and that might be
a rare case of spontaneous re-
generation.
The drug was described yester-
day at the National Institute of
Neurological Diseases and Blind
ness by DR.. William F. Windle,
leader Of a research team investi-
eating the drug.
Spend $5O0,OOO in Tests.
DR.. Windle is a visiting pro-
lessor Of anatomy at the Univer-
sity Of Pennsylvania, where the
research began. He also is SCI
entif1c director OF the Baxter
Chemical Co.. which has spent
more than $500.000 investigating
Pirornen'S possibilities.
With DR.. Windle was 21-year-
old Charles VanDiviere. jr., who
lost all sensation and power of
movement below the neck when
injured in an automobile accident
two years ago. His parents, Mr..
and Mrs. Charles VanDiviere, who
accompanied him here from their
Brunswick, Ga, home, were told
he would never improve.
However, he started to regain
muscle control after treatments of
Piromen. He now walks, aided
only by cane and is back at his
studies at the University of
Georgia.
In the face of only one clinical
case result. however, doctors can
not say it was the drug which
caused the cure.
Patient Improved.
DR.. Windle said st. Louis po-
1iceman whose spinal cord was
badly mangled after an accident
has shown improvement after he
was put on course of treatments
by Piromen. He said the patient
still has long way to go before
he is cured, however.
He said the drug, derived in the
laboratory from bacteria, also has
been used on some spastics. He
said he knew of one patient who
appeared to be better. but he
added that no clinical reports
have been made on any Of these
cases.
DR.. Windle first reported eE
success in spinal cord regenera-
ton in adult cats at a medical
meeting in 1850. It was a small
newspaper account of that report
which led Mr.. and Mrs. Van
Diviere to write him asking his
help in treatment Of their son.
In the animal experiments, the
spinal cords of 70 cats were COM
pletely severed. No treatment was
given 81 cats, who remained para
lyzed. Piromen was administered
in dosages of various strength to
a cats. ACTH was given to four.
Improvement in these animals
was noted.
Some have been alive for two
years now. While DR.. Windle
says functional restitution has
not been proved. most animals
can move their feet and walk a
few steps without support.
Cord Rarely Severed.
He pointed out that, in acci-
dents to human beings, the cord
is rarely completely severed. It
is more often bruised, CONSTRUCTED
or mangled.
According to DR.. Windle, it ap-
pears the nerve fibers in a man
gled spinal cord fail to regenerate
because membranes form scars
over the cord. This barrier the
fiber cannot penetrate. Thus,
the prevelant feeling among medi-
cal men that cases of spinal cord
injury are virtually hopeless.
However, the animal studies
showed that, with Pironen, and
to a lesser extent with ACTH,
the scar barriers failed to develop.
The nerves then had no inter-
ference in their re-growth.
Because Of the rapidity with
which these scars form, DR..
Windle warned there would be
little hope for persons with long
standing spinal cord LESSONS, even
If Piromen justif1es early opti-
IniSrn.
The drug, which now costs
about SIS for 20 to 80 doses, has
been tried in st. Louis on children