THERAPEUTIC VALUE OF LOCALIZED FARADIZATION. 151 



edged weapon. Empirical clinical observations very soon convinced 

 me, at the beginning of my electro-therapentical researches, that 

 localized faradization, if applied to a mnscle or nerve in too full a 

 dose or for too long a time, may increase or even produce paralysis 

 or atrophy, instead of curing either. It was such clinical observa- 

 tion that led me to lay down the precept that muscular fara- 

 dization sliould be moderate in degree, and that neither tlie whole 

 apj)lication, nor the application to any single muscle, sliould be 

 unduly prolonged. 



With a powerful induced current, contracting the vessels during 

 its passage through the sympathetic, and producing, after its 

 cessation, a temporary diminution of their contractility (and hence 

 their dilatation), the same authors have compared the relatively 

 infinitely feeble action of continuous currents ujjou the same 

 sympathetic, "under the influence of which," tliey say, "the 

 activity of the circulation was promoted during their passage, and 

 for a long time after their cessation." ^ 



It appeared to follow, on the whole, from their experiments: — 1. 

 that induced currents, during their passage through the sympathetic, 

 arrested or impeded the circulation by closing the vessels by a 

 powerful excitation of the vaso-motor nerves ; 2. that they pro- 

 duced, after their passage, a passive dilatation of these vessels, 

 a,nd a consequent blood stasis within them, by the paralysis or ex- 

 haustion of their vaso-motors ; and, 3. that continuous currents, 

 on the contrary, increased the activity of the local circulation, 

 both during and after their passage through the sympathetic. 



Partisan and defender, as has been seen already, of the existence 

 of different physiological properties in the different kinds of elec- 

 tricity, although the reason of such difference has not at present 

 received complete explanation from actual physical data, I was 

 disposed to hail the discovery of a special difference of action 

 between the continuous and the induced currents as a triumph of 

 experimental medicine, applicable to therapeutics. But I must 

 add that there remained in my mind some doubt with regard to 

 the reality of the assigned difference ; because, in the comparative 

 experiments, the two forms of current had not been applied in 

 equivalent force. 



It was, therefore, important to verify the results said to have 

 been obtained, and the following is a summary of experiments 

 made upon rabbits by myself, in conjunction with my learned 

 friend M. Liegeois, Professor of Physiology to the Paris Faculty of 

 Medicine. Our results are far from agreeing with those of MM. 



Onimus et Legros, loc. cit. 



