DIPHTHERIA ANTITOXIN 



129 



From the New York Medical Record, 4th July 

 1896. 



This vast collection of cases is of special 

 interest, because they occurred in private practice. 

 In most of them the nature of the disease was 

 proved by bacteriological examination ; in the rest, 

 the clinical evidence was decisive : " It is possible 

 that among the latter we have admitted some 

 streptococcus cases, but the number of such is 

 certainly very small." All other doubtful cases, 

 244 in number, were excluded. 



Three thousand three hundred and eighty-four 

 cases were reported by 613 physicians from 114 

 cities and towns, in 1 5 different States, the 

 District of Columbia, and the Dominion of Canada. 

 To these 3384 cases were added 942 cases from 

 tenement-houses in New York, and 1468 cases from 

 tenement-houses in Chicago. The New York and 

 Chicago cases were, most of them, treated by a 

 corps of inspectors of the Health Board of the city ; 

 and the municipal surveillance was very strict at 

 Chicago : — 



" There are very few hospitals in America that 

 receive diphtheria patients. ... It was the custom 

 in Chicago to send an inspector to every tenement- 

 house case reported, and to administer the serum 

 unless it was refused by the parents. These cases 

 were therefore treated much earlier, and the results 

 were correspondingly better than were obtained in 

 New York, although the serum used was the same in 

 both cities, viz., that of the New York Health Board." 



The sum total of results was 5794 cases, with 



1 



