300 Pneumonia 



isms in the sputum do not remain long in suspension and die 

 off rapidly under the action of light and desiccation. In 

 sunlight or diffuse daylight the bacteria in such powder die 

 within an hour, and in about four hours if kept in the dark. 

 The danger of infection from powdered sputum may, there- 

 fore, be avoided by ample illumination and ventilation of the 

 sick-room in order to destroy or dilute the bacteria, and by 

 the avoidance of dry sweeping or dusting. Articles which 

 may be contaminated and which cannot be cleaned by cloths 

 dampened in a suitable disinfectant should be removed from 

 the patient's vicinity." 



"When a person suffering from pneumococcus infection 

 coughs, sneezes, expectorates or talks, particles of sputum 

 or saliva which may contain virulent pneumococci are ex- 

 pelled from the mouth. Such particles remain suspended in 

 the air for a number of hours if the ventilation of the room 

 is good. They may be inhaled by persons in the vicinity of 

 the patient, or they may be deposited upon various articles 

 in the room. Whether suspended in the air or dried upon 

 surrounding objects, the writer's studies show that they 

 become harmless in a very short time, about an hour and a 

 half being the extreme limit, w r hile many of the pneumococci 

 in the spray perish in a few moments, especially if exposed 

 to strong light." 



"In the light of these experiments the risk of infection 

 from the pneumococcus is largely confined to those in direct 

 contact with the person whose excreta contain the organism." 



