EXTRACTS FROM GERMAN JOURNALS. 
501 
stance. The same proved itself to be desiccating, unirritating, 
and highly favorable to the restoration of the wounded sur¬ 
face. Upon all wounds proposed to be healed by first inten¬ 
tion, the powder has been used with excellent results. In 
older wounds and chronic ulcers where the amount of the 
suppurative product is unusual, a simple application is not 
sufficient. In such cases the preparation must be applied 
with friction, which induces local heat and pain of the cutis. 
The greatest failing of dermatol is in the direction of its 
deodorizing ability, which is null. It is contra-indicated in 
all suppurative processes of the feet, since through its quality 
of forming a film by dehydrating the ungual surface, thus re¬ 
taining the pus beneath an artificial crust. Any necrosed 
portions are longer held in situ when dermatol is used, which 
necessitates frequent removal of the bandage and dressing. 
When large quantities of powder are held in contact with the 
horn matrix for several days, the latter exhibits a character¬ 
istic growth similar to cork. 
In burns, scalds and erysepelas of the skin, dermatol is 
mixed with starch meal 1-5, and acts very satisfactory. The 
dusting powder of commercial fame is a combination of der¬ 
matol and chalk. In chronic conjunctivitis and in otitis ex¬ 
terna, it supplies the most approved desiccant. Finally, it is 
preferable to iodoform on account of its odorless quality.— 
Oesterreiches Tliier. Centralblatt. 
SHORT COMMUNICATIONS. 
Phthisis verminalis .—Kudeika observed this affection as an 
epizootic in October, 1892. In nineteen different localities in 
his district he records six cows and twenty calves to have 
been attacked by the disease; the young seemed the more 
seriously to suffer. A few animals were thin and more or less 
cachectic, the remainder were, however, in good condition. 
The body temperature had risen in many instances ; dysp¬ 
noea and accelerating of respiration were also present—some 
as high as eighty per minute. By percussion the thoracic 
walls were resonant, but in the worst cases hyper-resonant; 
in no case dullness. Auscultation elicited a well marked 
