324 INFECTIONS OF THE DIGESTIVE TRACT 



of normal gastro-enteric secretions. In many persons 

 emotional fatigue, such as often results from strenuous 

 business activity or from some kinds of recreation, has a 

 distinctly harmful influence. Even the interest attend- 

 ant on free and animated conversation may be in- 

 jurious. In the case of fatigue of sexual origin great 

 individual differences in susceptibility are manifested 

 by different persons. In all cases of long-standing 

 chronic putrefactive disorder in the intestine it becomes 

 important to take cognizance of any sexual factor that 

 may lead to fatigue. This relationship is one of the 

 utmost importance and is frequently overlooked by 

 physicians in their regulation of the lives of patients 

 suffering from chronic digestive disorders. It is a 

 very important point in this connection to realize that an 

 intelligent abstinence from sexual excitement should be 

 practiced before such abstinence is forced by the onset 

 of impotence. When this has occurred, the conditions 

 are probably much less favorable for the restoration of 

 normal secretory activity in the stomach and intestine. 

 It is customary in cases where the free hydrochloric 

 acid of the gastric juice is regularly diminished to ad- 

 vise the use of hydrochloric acid after meals in order to 

 compensate the diminished secretion of the acid. 1 In 

 some instances the use of hydrochloric acid is distinctly 



1 The absence of free hydrochloric acid in the gastric juice is 

 a feature of nearly all cases of advanced saccharo-butyric putre- 

 faction. The influence of gastric secretion has recently been studied 

 and discussed by D. van Tabora in its relation to intestinal pu- 

 trefaction. "Ueber die Beziehungen zwischen Magensaftsecretion 

 und Darmfaulniss," Deutsche Archiv f. klin. Med., Ixxxvii, p. 254, 

 1906. 



