110 



POPULAR SOIEl^OE iq"EWS. 



[July, 1889. 



Then conies the paralytic stage. The hinder 

 parts become feeble, the voice hoarse, and the action 

 of the heart greatly increased. These symptoms 

 are followed by coma, and death ensues, usually in 

 from five to seven days after the attack. 



Horses, cattle, and sheep, when affected, usually 

 show no disposition to bite, but goats and swine are 

 inclined so to do. The bite from rabid cats and 

 other carnivorous animals, owing to their ferocious 

 nature, is especially dangerous. Domestic poultry 

 is subject to rabies, and sometimes a tendency to 

 bite is observed in these animals. 



The most terrible feature of rabies is the liability 

 of man to the disease from the bite of an infected 

 animal, for, until the recent di.scoveries of M. Pas- 

 teur, there has not been known to science any cure 

 for this fatal malady. 



As a rule, the disease shows itself in man at a 

 period of between forty and sixty days after the re- 

 ception of the bite. The most prominent symptoms 

 are connected with the nervous system, which con- 

 sist in a reflex action, especially of those n«rves 

 which control the power of swallowing and respira- 

 tion. The recurrence of the frightful spasms at 

 every attempt at deglutition is the most awful symp- 

 tom of the disease, and this is so great that the sight 

 of any liquid, or even the impulse of a current of 

 cold air, is sufficient to induce the spasm. 



The term "hydrophobia" is the cause of much 

 needless confusion, for hydrophobia (fear of water) 

 does not of itself constitute rabies, for this may 

 exist without hydrophobia. The hydrophobia is 

 apparently due to an affection of the general nervous 

 system, for the hydrophobic spasm is present before 

 the patient attempts to drink"; and it may be pro- 

 voked by a variety of causes, like a bright light, or 

 the sudden touch of some unexpected object, or the 

 movements of the attendants, or, more especially, by 

 the impression produced by the passage of a draught 

 of air. This last symptom is considered one of the 

 most important symptoms of true rabies, as it is 

 never absent in the real disease, and seldom present 

 in any of the other affections which are accompanied 

 by spasms of deglutition. The whole nervous sys- 

 tem is in a state of super-excitation, and the terror 

 from the fear of attack often brings on the paroxysm 

 with increased vehemence, and the contortions, 

 cries, fury, and hallucinations of the special senses, 

 follow each other with fearful certainty. The result 

 is invariably fatal, and usually occurs within three 

 days alter the appearance of the disease. 



Such being the nature and the result of this dis- 

 ease, it becomes a vital question to inquire into the 

 prophylaxis, or prevention, of the terrible malady. 

 And the first and most obvious preventive is the 

 management of dogs in our large cities. No dogs 

 should be allowed to go at large without being 

 securely muzzled. This should be insisted upon by 

 city ordinances; and, if the muzzle is properly made 

 and properly secured, it can be worn by the animal 

 without special discomfort. The muzzle should be 

 made of wire, so as to give freedom to the move- 

 ment of the mouth, without the possibility of 

 biting. This should always be worn while the ani- 

 mal is in the street. The custom of placing a strap 

 around the nose of the dog is as cruel as it is inse- 

 cure. For, if such a fixture were effective, it would 

 prevent the animal from protruding the tongue, or 

 from drinking; and, if it is put on so loosely as to 

 admit of these movements, it fails to protect from 

 biting. 



Modern science has found inM. Pasteur a humane 

 exponent in dealing with this disease, and his ex- 

 periments with the virus of rabid animals, as a 

 means of security against the disease, have been 

 bold, brilliant, and successful. Out of 1,700 patients 

 inoculated in Paris in 1886, there were only ten who 



were not protected from the rabies. And, more re- 

 cently, the immunity from the disease by this pro- 

 cess has been practically perfect in all cases. The 

 experiments of this distinguished scientist are 

 familiar to all students of medicine, but they are too 

 complicated and elaborate to enter into a popular 

 discussion. 



The general opinion of scientific men all over the 

 world is, that the inoculation advocated by the 

 French savant is not only an absolute protection to 

 the patient against the outbreak of the rabic disease, 

 but that it is free from any serious effects to the per- 

 son inoculated. The operation will not be confined 

 to Paris, but every great city of the world will, no 

 doubt, in time, be prepared to furnish the means of 

 protection against this most dreaded and, hitherto, 

 absolutely fatal malady. 



[Specially Compiled for The Popular Science A'ews.] 



MONTHLY SUMMARY OF MEDICAL 

 PROGRESS. 



BY W. S. WELLS, M. D. 



Exploring the brain through capillary holes, in- 

 stead of resorting to the trephine, is the subject of 

 an article in the Jf. O. Med. and Surg. Jour, by Dr. 

 Souchon, professor of clinical surgery, Tulane Uni- 

 versity. 



In view of the frequency with which the presence 

 of abscesses, cysts, and effusions are found, post- 

 mortem, in the brain, in situations in which they 

 might have been reached by the aspirating needle, 

 the doctor considers capillary exploration a simpler, 

 readier, and less dangerous method of searching 

 for such fluid collections within the skull. 



He proposes that, after the hair has been snipped 

 from the selected spot by sharp scissors, and the 

 scalp has been rendered aseptic, a hole shall be made 

 through the .soft parts of the scalp with a sharp- 

 pointed aseptic bistoury. Through this, the bit of a 

 watchmaker's drill is to be introduced, and a hole 

 drilled through the skull, the bit being guarded to 

 prevent it penetrating into the brain substance. 



This bit being withdrawn, the needle of a hypo- 

 dermic syringe (tmce as large as the ordinary needle) 

 is to be introduced into the brain. If a tumor is 

 present, the needle will convey a feeling of resist- 

 ance ; if no solid tumor is present, the needle must 

 be gradually forced more and more deeply into the 

 brain, the piston being retracted at intervals in or- 

 der that any liquid at the point of the needle may 

 be withdrawn and examined. Dr. Souchon has 

 convinced himself by experiments on dogs that such 

 a procedure is quite safe. He points out the advan- 

 tage, that several points in the brain may be ex- 

 plored at the same sitting. He thinks the day will 

 come when the skull will be drilled in cases of cere- 

 bral hemorrhage, and the blood aspirated here as in 

 other situations. The editor of the Md. Med. Jour. 

 says: If Dr. Souchon's suggestions prove to be 

 reliable, the method will be of great value in the 

 application of electric currents to different regions 

 of the brain, the insulated electrodes being intro- 

 duced through the drill-holes into the brain, and 

 the effects of the stimulus noted, as regards muscu- 

 lar movements, sensations, etc. This would lead to 

 great advances in cerebral localizations. 



man. The upper extremities are unaffected. This 

 symptom, together with impairment or paralysis of 

 the motor nerves of both eyes, point to the existence 

 of a tumor of the corpora quadrigemina. 



Prof. Nothnagel, of Vienna, in speaking of the 

 diagnostic symptoms of tumors of the corpora quadri- 

 gemina {Med. Reg.), laid special stress upon the 

 early appearance of cerebral ataxia. This symptom 

 was the first that appeared in each of the four cases 

 of neoplasms involving the quadrigemiria that had 

 come under his observation. This ataxia is quite 

 different from that dependent upon tabes. The 

 patient staggers from side to side like a drunken 



Dr. Barth, physician to the Hroussais Hospital, 

 (Pans letter to Med. Record), has a new method of 

 treatment applicable to synovial cysts, sebaceous 

 wens, and, in general, to all cystic tumors of the 

 skin and of superficial regions. The beneficial re- 

 sults he had obtained by the interstitial injections ot 

 arsenic in the treatment of malignant lymphoma 

 have induced him to try the same treatment in the 

 above cases. 



The principle is that arsenical injections deter- 

 mine a moderate inflammation of the tissues, which 

 is often followed by an atrophic process. 



The first case in which the doctor tried this pro- 

 cedure was that of a girl, twelve years of age, who 

 had a synovial cyst of the wrist, of several months' 

 duration. The cyst was the size of a walnut, and 

 painting with tincture of iodine, frictions with re- 

 solvent ointments, prolonged compression, and 

 efforts to crush the tumor, had been tried without 

 success. Dr. Barth resorted to an injection of two 

 drops of purg Fowler's solution into the cavity of 

 the cyst. The operation produced a sharp pain, and 

 was followed, next day, by swelling, with tension of 

 the sac; but this soon commenced to diminish in 

 size, and, in ten days after, the tumor had entirely 

 disappeared, without leaving the slightest trace of 

 its existence. This treatment was equally success- 

 ful in other cases of cystic or benign tumors. 



Resection of the ensiform cartilage was the sub- 

 ject of a paper at the Royal Academy of Medicine 

 and Surgery, of Naples, by Dr. Rinonapoli, ot 

 Aquila, Italy. Previously to this case, only one 

 other has been recorded, — by Linoli, in 1S57, {Lon- 

 don Lancet.) The patient was injured by a horse 

 rearing and falling back upon him. His chest was 

 violently compressed, and the ensiform cartilege 

 displaced backward. 



The displaced cartilage, by its pressure upon the 

 stomach, was productive of very severe gastric dis- 

 turbance, which at length became so great thatno't 

 even the smallest quantity of milk could be taken 

 without terrible pain. The patient rapidly wasted 

 away, and his life was despaired of. Various diag- 

 noses were made, but it was left for Dr. Rinonapoli 

 — a -very young surgeon — to discover the true state 

 of affairs. 



With the consent of the patient, and the aid of 

 two colleagues. Dr. R. operated, — the minutest an- 

 tiseptic precautions (carbolic acid and perchloride of 

 mercury) being observed. An incision six centi- 

 metres long was made, the upper third being over 

 the sternum. Dissection was carefully carried down 

 to the peritoneum, which was not opened. The 

 cartilage was separated from the structures envelop- 

 ing it, and, finally, its attachment to the sternum 

 was divided by passing a probe-pointed bistomy 

 behind and cutting forward. The wound was care- 

 fully cleansed, and brought together by sutures, and 

 in five weeks the patient had completely recovered. 



The graphophone is being utilized by Dr. Benja- 

 min W. Richardson, {London Lancet^, who records 

 certain experiments in its use. He found that when 

 the cough is taken (as the speaking or singing voice 

 is taken), the return congh from the machine is as 

 clearly distinct as the original. The machine oft'ers 

 the advantage of being able, by preserving the 

 graphophone records, of comparing a cough of to- 

 day with a cough of a month or a year ago. The 

 Boston Med. and Surg. Jour, believes that this in- 

 strument offers the greatest advantages ibr lecture 



