ACTION OF INTEERUPTED AND CONTINUOUS CUREENTS. 201 



successfully against writer's spasm. I have frequently had occasion 

 to see this local affestion among my patients ; and it is not a 

 single case only that I have treated by the method so much 

 extolled by him. I regret having to say that I have yet to 

 wait for a cure. I have not seen even one success obtained by 

 those who have praised the treatment : on the contrary, the 

 majority of the cases that during several years have presented 

 themselves for consultation have been treated without benefit by 

 the continuous currents, and the number is now large. I will 

 mention, as an example, a very remarkable case that was sent to 

 me by Professor Germain See, in 18G9, upon which M. Onimus 

 had applied continuous currents for about a month without any 

 appreciable result. (The patient still presented the marks of the 

 electrolytic action of the rheophores.) It is useless to add that 

 the faradization tried by myself failed like tlie continuous current. 

 I nevertheless advise its application in the treatment of writer's 

 cramp, and shall myself continue its employment in this affection, 

 since conscientious observers declare that they have obtained from 

 it good results. 



(&). — Indolent tic. — I have applied the continuous current to three 

 cases of indolent tic of the face, one of whicli was recent (of about 

 a month's standing), and limited to certain muscles (the zygoma- 

 ticus minor, levator labii superioris alseque nasi, and orbicularis 

 palpebrarum). In this case the contraction gradually diminished 

 after the third seance, and was cured in about twelve seances. 

 Several months after the treatment, I was told that the tic had not 

 reappeared, but I have had no later intelligence. The two other 

 cases appeared to me to be rendered worse by the same treatment. 



Localized faradization, which I have applied sufficiently often in 

 indolent tic, has sometimes produced a temporary amelioration, 

 but not a single cure. Hence continuous currents appear to me to 

 merit the preference in the treatment of this disorder, 



(c). — Rheumatic contractions. — The local or partial contractions 

 produced by currents of cold air (rheumatic), or without known 

 cause (nervous), the cases of torticollis from contraction of the 

 sterno-mastoid, the splenius, the clavicular portion of the trapezius, 

 or of some deeper muscle, such as the rhomboideus, are in general 

 cured by faradization, with rapid intermissions, of the antagonists 

 of the contracted muscles. 



I have endeavoured to ascertain, experimentally, whether the 

 hyposthenisiug influence of continuous currents upon the contracted 

 muscles would be preferable to faradization of the antagonists. 

 The continuous currents have, in general, produced only an 

 improvement ; and I have nearly always been compelled to have 



