Evening star., 1953-07-10
New Use for Cortisone:
Antidote for Snukebite
Two Virginia Doctors Note
Effects on Young Patients
By Thomos R. Henry

Another use for the wonder drug
cortisone-as an antidote for snake
bites-has just been reported to the
American Medical Association by two
Virginia doctors.
This adrenal gland hormone. accord
ing to the report Of DrS. William w.
Hoback and Thomas w. Green Of the
Clinch Valley Hospital at Richlands.
Va. greatly reduced the toxic effects
of copperhead venom.
They administered the cortisone to
their patients but at the same time
gave them all orthodox treatments.
including suction, injection Of anti.
venin, tetanuS anti-toxin and peni.
cillin.
I'VE have been impressed" they re-
port, with the pronounced decrease in
morbidity in these patients as com.
pared with II others who did not re.
ceive cortiSone or corticotropin."
Decrease in Swelling.
All their victims were children under
five. Treatment had been delayed for
some time after the bites. The most
notable effect. they found. was q great
decrease in the expected amount OF
swelling around the wound.
1.-THE effect of cortisone in these
patients" they report. 'is probably due
to its remarkable ability to inhibit
local tissue reactivity to foreign pro-
tein and its systematic effects on pain
and fever. 1t is possible that these
agents may be life-saving."
A previous case reported Is that OF
a boy who was thrown into shock by
the sting of a bee to which his system
had been sensitized. Prompt admin
iStration of cortisone apparently saved
the child's life.
They believe effects will be the
same when the drug Is used after bites
from other snakes than the copperhead.
since the influence of the cortisone Is
generalized and not specific.
X
The sensitive human nose should
be able to discriminate at least 10000
distinct odors.
Theoretically the number might run
as high as 16 million, according to one
theory.
Still nobody knows just how any
body is able to smell anything. Recent
research in this field is summarized
in the American Chemical Society's
Journal of Agricultural and Food
Chemistry.
The inner lining of the nose is sup
posed to contain as many as 10 million
olfactory receptors connected to the
brain by 100000 nerves. according to q
report by DR.. James B. Sumner of Cor
nell University. Still unknown is the
mechanism by which a smell is able to
activate any of the receptors to start q
nerve impulse.
Theory DiSproved.
Recent experiments, Dr. Sumner re-
ports. have pretty well disproved the
theory that odor is a kind of invisible
light. far in the infrared part of the
spectrum, which activates the nose re-
ceptors about the way visible light does
the rods and cones Of the eye.
Present indications are, he pointed
out, that an odor, per Sc, sets up some
chemical process in a nose receptor
which, in turn, starts an electrical inn
pulse to the brain. There the various
impulses arriving from many receptors
are co-ordinated to make different
odors
Smell is probably the oldest distance
sense and is quite degenerate in man.
but highly developed in some animals.
The degenerating, it was pointed out.
probably is due to lack of exercise
through countless generations rather
than to actual degeneration Of the
sensory apparatus itself.