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MEDICAL SECTION 



specialists in every complication they are called upon 

 to deal with. What is wanted is the appointment 

 of otologists to fever hospitals ; we of the National 

 Bureau are of opinion that a great deal could be 

 done for the prevention of deafness from the exanthe- 

 mata if this suggestion were carried out, and I have 

 excellent reasons for believing that such appointments 

 of specialists would be welcome to medical officers 

 of fever hospitals. 



With regard to congenital syphilis, I will merely 

 point out certain cogent facts. It has been said that 

 no disease, even tuberculosis, is so destructive of child 

 life or so disastrous to child health as is congenital 

 syphilis. It causes the most serious cases of blindness 

 and deafness during and after school life, not to 

 mention epilepsy and mental defects. Kerr Love has 

 shown that a very appreciable number of cases ot 

 congenital deafness is due to it. Now, it was proved 

 some years ago by Cheatle that the cases which 

 become blind or deaf are those in which the disease 

 was untreated in infancy. Surely the time has come 

 for the more universal treatment of this terrible 

 condition, and in order to facilitate such treatment 

 of both mother and child, every case should be 

 notified. 



Let us take meningitis, which is another great 

 cause of deafness in children. It is a condition which 

 kills or maims thousands of children every year, and 

 yet our knowledge of its true nature is at about the 

 same stage as was that of typhus and typhoid seventy 

 years ago, save that we have the advantage of the 

 discovery of the bacterial nature of disease. Menin- 

 gitis is due to many causes ; what is required is 

 research to elucidate these causes, what they are and 

 how they act. Such research could best be obtained 

 by the notification of all forms of meningitis, to the 

 end that they might be isolated, studied, treated. 

 Could we but learn more of the etiology of meningitis, 



