ORGANOTHERAPY AND HORMONOTHERAPY 119 



ing produces striking effects on metabolism, growth and development. 

 These are fully discussed elsewhere and may here be summarized as 

 follows: (a) Either retardation or acceleration of growth depending on 

 the age and stage of development of the subject; (b) shortening of the 

 period of complete sexual development; (c) expediting of the awakening 

 of the sexual instinct. 36 



Gushing (b) (1912), working with dogs, and Smith (a) (b) (c), using 

 tadpoles, demonstrated that in the laboratory at least orally administered 

 anterior pituitary substance is absorbed sufficiently to produce some 

 organotherapeutic (constitutional) effects. In addition to these more 

 general effects Robertson (b) has also shown that administration of an- 

 terior pituitary substance accelerates the healing of wounds. Schmidt 

 has shown that tethelin injections produce no antigenic or other effects 

 which contraindicate their clinical use. 



Organotherapy with the Anterior Portion 



In general, the results of the organotherapeutic employment of anterior 

 pituitary substance have been rather disappointing and unsatisfactory. 

 This is to be explained partly by our relatively incomplete knowledge of 

 the normal and pathological physiology of this portion of the gland, which 

 is responsible for an all too frequent inability to recognize and correctly 

 interpret the clinical syndromes resulting from disturbances of its func- 

 tions. Doubtless also the lack of suitable preparations for therapeutic em- 

 ployment, and insufficient knowledge of the correct dosage and proper 

 method of administration have militated against securing some at least 

 of the results which may be attainable. In spite, however, of the present 

 rather unsatisfactory status of this phase of organotherapy, experimental 

 and clinical studies have already shown that there is a field, by no means 

 small, in which the administration of an anterior pituitary substance pro- 

 duces unmistakably useful results. Unfortunately in an all too large pro- 

 portion of the observations (both clinical and experimental) made on the 

 effects of pituitary organotherapy, preparations of the whole gland have 

 been used. Consequently it is often extremely difficult or impossible to 

 determine whether the results obtained by observers were due to the thera- 

 peutic action of the anterior portion or that of the posterior part or to 

 the combined action of both portions, and there still remains much to be 

 learned of the organotherapeutic powers of anterior pituitary substance. 

 Theoretically at least this should be useful in cases suffering from dys- 

 function or hypo function of the pars anterior. 



38 In view of the reputed efficiency of anterior pituitary medication in hyper- 

 thyroidism interest attaches to the demonstration by Hoskins and Hoskins (c) that 

 feeding of anterior pituitary substance to thyroidectomized tadpoles brings about 

 metamorphosis just as does feeding of thyroid substance. 



