Evening star., 1953-06-05
Some Notable Gains
Made in Eye Surgery
Doctors Also Told Of New
Cure for Mental Ills of AGED
By Thomas R. Henry


vances IN eye Surgery-an artificial
lens, new anaesthetic, a method
Of "bandaging" the eyeball-were
reported at sessions Of the Ameri-
can Medical Association here.
A tiny lens made of a plastic similar
to plexiglasS, it was reported by Drs.
Warren S. Reese and T. N. Hamdi of
Philadelphia, may restore vision to
near normal when inserted In the eyes
OF cataract victims. The procedure
consists of implanting the lens within
the eyeball behind the pupil imme-
diately after removal of the cataract.
The function Of the eye as an optical
instrument Is practically restored by
this operation, the Philadelphia doctors
reported. There have been q few fall
ures. however. and cases must be care
fully selected.
''The operation" said their report,
"obviateS the need of q strong eye
glass, thereby eliminating distortion,
magnif1cation, seeing double. and COM
plete dependence on glasses. It also
renders unnecessary radical readjust-
ment Of the patients seeing mecha-
nism, as demonstrated by patients who
have submitted to the operation"
11lm covering over a diseased or
injured eyeball is being used to relieve
pain and speed healing, 1t was re.
ported by DR.. C.. William Weisser.
Pittsburgh specialist.
Relieves Pain.
He explained that a drop each of
two Observation-Disclosures from cattle
blood and irradiated human blood
plasma-are placed in the eye. The
result is the formation of a thick Aim
which covers the damaged area and
permits rapid healing. The method,
he said, has been used on about. 100
eye LESSONS of various sorts. In 18
cases of fingernail scratches pain relief
was obtained in about eight hours and
the average healing time was 40 hours.
Other conditions treated included
chemical burns, ulcers and inflam-
alton of the cornea, or transparent
covering of the eyeball.
A striking case reported by DR..
WeiSser was that Of chemist who
splashed hot perchloric acid in both
eyes. He was free of pain in a few
hours and did not lose a days work.
After four days his vision was COM
pletely normal.
nurse suffered frequent difficulty
after fingernail scratch. She was
off duty for nearly week at a time
and could not tolerate the slightest
light or opening of the eye. After
the two drops she was comfortable and
reported for work the next day.
DR.. Weisser reported a case of an
eye ulcer which had progressed for
three months despite treatment with
various antibiotics. Within day after
the use of the thrombin and plasma
the patients eye was comfortable and
complete healing took place in about
two weeks.
Quick-Acting Drug.
A quick-acting anaesthetic for short
operations was reported by Drs. H. E.
Schlegel. jr. and Kenneth c. Swan of
the University Of Oregon. This ma
terial. known as dorsacaine. form of
benzoic acid developed in Switzerland.
has been administered to more than
1000 patients in the last year.
SINCE dose with a standard eve
dropper, they said, produces a light
surface anaesthesia but repeated doses
are required before minor surgery, such
as removal of foreign body from the
eye. This new substance, they said,
eliminates disadvantages of most other
drugs used in eye surgery, such as
cocaine. which produce anaestheia Of
slow onset and prolonged duration.
In dosages such as would be used in
ONCE practice, they said. there Is no
erect on the blood vessels of the eve.
the pupil, the adjustment of the eye to
various distances, or eye tension.
new remedy for mental ills of the
aged-a mixture of drug which stimu-
lates the central nervous system and
one of the B vitamins which dilates
the blood veSelS-was reported to psy-
chiatristS of the Medical Association
by DR.. Sol Levy of the University Of
Washington.
The preparation is made up Of metra-
Zol. drug which in larger concen.
trations produces convulsions and nico-
tinic acid. one Of the vitamins essential
to good health.
This elixir" DR.. Levy said, "helped
the patients physically, produced a
marked improvement in their behavior.
and better performance on psychologist
cal tests. and restored to normal some
previously abnormal brain-wave trac.
ings."
Adapted to Old Folks.
The treatment is especially adapted.
he said, to aged patients with only mild
confusion and mental deterioration. He
believes that some can be improved to
the extent that they can be cared for
safely in their own homes.
There is world-confusion neurosis,
Dr. Hardin M. Ritchey of New Canaan,
Conn.,, told the psychiatrists.
1t is the reaction with anger, fright,
disbursement or shame to the in
creasing complexity OF the modern
world.
Victims, he said, are forced to resort
to emotional behavior in order to pro-
tect themselves. The remedy is
re-education
1T is based" DR.. Ritchey said, ION
the idea that a man Is not completely
at the mercy Of his environment and
unconscious, and that to a reasonable
degree he can control the shaping Of
his own life, 1t Is a method of rela-
tivefy short, intensive therapy that il
within the financial reach Of every
body"