224 LOCALIZED ELECTRIZATION. 



far as it can be judged, of; but that, in some healthy persons, and certainly 

 more clearly in some i^aralysed limbs, the irritability for one or the other kind 

 of current unequivocally preponderates." 



This difference between the actions of induced and continuous currents, 

 very generally stated by Eemak, has since become the subject of niimerous 

 and searching inquiries. 



The great and general residt of these inquiries is the following. In com- 

 pleteJy j)aralysed muscles and nerves the excitabilify for battery currents is some- 

 times retained or even increased, ivliile the excitahility for induced currents is 

 completely lost. In such cases the curative action of the continuous current is 

 superior to that of the induced. With the return of motility the excitahility for 

 hoth kinds of current commonly changes. 



The first observation bearing upon these points was published by Baier- 

 lacher, in the beginning of the year 1859. To him, therefore, undoubtedly 

 belongs the merit of having been the first to notice this interesting and 

 important fact. I give a brief abstract of the case. 



M. B., aged 28, workwoman in a fat-tory, came under treatment for paralysis of 

 one side of the face of eight weeks' duration. Induced currents of great strength 

 produced (mly the very smallest action. After three weeks' use of the induced 

 currents there was no change. A galvanic ciirrent from fifteen elements was then 

 applied, and produced strong contractions in all the muscles. After only three 

 applications of the continuous current to the nerve-tnnik and muscles considerable 

 improvement was manifest, and after io\u more applications the paralysis had almost 

 entirely disappeared. 



There next appeared communications from Schulz, upon several cases of 

 facial paralysis, in which induced crrrrents produced no action on the para- 

 lysed side. iSchulz obtained, by testing with the continuous current, the 

 following resiilts. On the paralysed sides a current fi-om eight Daniell's 

 elements produced in all the muscles a manifest contraction at opening and 

 closing, whether the direction of the current were ascending or descending, 

 and although the same current on the sound side produced no contraction. 

 By increasing the number of elements up to twenty, contractions on the sound 

 side were produced at opening and closing ; but these contractions were much 

 exceeded by those of the paralysed side. 



This condition changed during the course of treatment. The increased 

 excitability of the paralysed muscles to the continuous current gradually 

 decreased, became more feeble from sitting to sitting, and at last disappeared 

 entirely, as upon the healthy side, unless when the number of elements was 

 gradually increased. This diminution of the excitability for the continuous 

 current is, according to Schulz, a result of treatment and a sign of improve- 

 ment ; since the restoration of the excitability by the will jiroceeds with it 

 piari puss'i. The earlier or later occurrence of this combination of symptoms 

 affords the most sure basis for a judgment with regard to the duration of the 

 paralysis. The sooner the excitability by the continuous current diminishes 

 the shorter will be the general duration of the paralysis, and vice versa. With 

 the disappearance of the paralysis the excitability by induced currents 

 retrrrns, and becomes the same as that of the muscles on the healthy side. 



To these observations by Schulz may be appended one by M. Meyer. 



The case was that of a woman forty-eight years old, with paralysis of the 

 left side of the face, of fourteen days' duration. There was no trace of reaction 

 to the induced current, but a strong contraction of the paralysed muscles was 

 produced by closing the circuit of a battery comjDosed of six of Bunsen's cells. 

 Under the treatment by the continuous current, improvement occrrrred slowly 

 but still manifestly from sitting to sitting. 



This case (reported at great length by Ziemssen) acquired much interest, 

 from the long time that it was under observation. Wliile the branches of the 

 left facial nerve, and the muscles supplied by them, had completely lost, three 

 weeks after the commencement of the paralysis, their excitability eitlier by 

 volition or by induced currents, their excitability by continuous currents was 



