ABSTRACTS 563 



destruction therefore appears to follow in general an opposite course 

 to those of other microorganic activities in soils as affected by climate. 



Marked changes in the acid soluble constituents of soils are wrought 

 by chmatic effects. The general tendency is for soils to increase in 

 iron and decrease in alumina when placed under arid conditions, and 

 vice versa. 



Phenonienal losses in certain constituents in five years seem to have 

 occurred in some soils even when the latter were not moved. Thus 

 for example the Maryland soil lost in the period named enormous 

 quantities of magnesia. 



Large increases occur in the total water soluble constituents of Cal- 

 ifornia soil when it is moved to the Kansas or Maryland stations. On 

 the other hand, the Maryland soil gains in water soluble matter when 

 moved to Kansas or to California. — Z. N. 



BACTERIOLOGY OF THE MOUTH 



The Treatment of Pyorrhea Alveolaris and its Secondary Systemic In- 

 fections by Deep Muscular Injections of Mercruy. B. D. Wright. 

 (Medical Record, 1916, 89, 807-811.) 



Seventy-five cases of pyorrhea were treated with mercuric succin- 

 imide administered intramuscularly. In conjunction with the injec- 

 tions of mercury, surgical treatment of the gums and teeth was carried 

 out. 



In all cases, the pyorrhea was entirely cured. Secondary systemic 

 infections, which were present in 54 per cent of the patients, were 

 also cured in every case. 



The author is convinced that mercury, because of its parasitotropic 

 action, promises to be successful in treating various infections pro- 

 duced by the vegetable parasites. — M. W. C. 



Constitutional Conditions Caused by Oral Sepsis. J. Daland. (New 



York Med. Jour., 1916, 103, 817-820.) 



Foci of infection in the mouth may give rise to serious constitutional 

 disturbances, such as endocarditis, acute parenchymatous nephritis, 

 furunculosis, and particularly septic polyarthritis. Many other patho- 

 logic conditions may be traced to a septic mouth as the cause. The 

 offending organism, in such cases, is usually a streptococcus. This 

 bacterium, according to the work of Rosenow, may develop greater 

 virulence than it possesses as it exists in the mouth, if it is transferred 

 to other parts of the body where different conditions for growth are 

 present. 



As a direct causal relationship exists between oral sepsis and consti- 

 tutional disease, the dentist should take particular pains to remove 

 all manifestations of oral sepsis, and it should become a matter of rou- 

 tine procedure that any septic conditions of a patient's mouth should 

 be reported to the physician.— M. W. C. 



