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Show TUBERCULOSIS MOST COMMON DEATH CAUSE "I wonder if I've got the 'con.' I've been losing weight, coughing, having night sweats and get tired 5, i 1 very quickly, and notice that my heart beats fast at times, but I haven't spit up any blood." A story like that usually means active ac-tive pulmonary tuberculosis tu-berculosis that is moderately ad- 1L o vanced and can be Dr. Nathan S. ,. . -it. . ... diagnosed easily by Davis III , . . physical examination. examina-tion. The anti-tuberculosis campaigns cam-paigns have made people conscious of this disease and fortunately many now come under treatment before the disease has progressed that far. The case rinding programs in schools and ' factories spot many active cases in which there are no symptoms symp-toms at all. In 1880 tuberculosis caused over 250 deaths per thousand in the United States, but today it causes I less than 60 per thousand. This has f TUBERCULOSIS j ANNUAL DEATH RATE O PE 100.000 wlfW (ACES 1-99) 1 1 4 i I I & y $ I l 1911 1920 1930 158 211.6 1133 820 165 been a great accomplishment. How- j ever, tuberculosis is still the most common cause for death in those 1 between the ages of 15 and 34. I Contagious Disease. Whenever an active case of tuberculosis tuber-culosis is found, two questions must always be asked: From whom did he get it? To whom has he given it? Did he get it from his mother, his father, his grandmother, his school teacher, the hired girl, the hired man, or the boarder. He probably acquired his infection in childhood though he may not have developed symptoms until he was in his late teens or early twenties. Girls seem to be less able to resist re-sist the infection than boys. Possibly Pos-sibly the more taxing changes due to puberty in the girls account for for this. Frequent Examinations. As the infection is usually acquired several years before it develops to a point where it causes symptoms, it is often difficult to determine the source of the infection. It is therefore there-fore advisable for all, and especially especial-ly for those regularly in contact with children, to be thoroughly examined ex-amined for tuberculosis at frequent intervals. All should have a tuberculin tuber-culin test and, if it is positive, a chest X-ray. So few adults have a negative tuberculin test that it is better that they should all be X-rayed and fortunately methods are now being developed which will reduce re-duce the cost of that procedure. High school boys and girls and those of college age should be tuberculin tested annually. Strange as it may seem, tuberculosis tuber-culosis is relatively more prevalent in rural areas than in cities and towns, though it is most prevalent in slum areas. It would seem that farm children would be less apt to be exposed to tuberculosis than would the city dwellers, that the healthy farm life would make them more resistant to the disease. Too frequently it is felt that the rest, fresh air and sunlight and good food needed for the treatment of tuberculosis tu-berculosis can be obtained just as well at home. As a result the whole family is exposed and several will probably develop the disease. The need for quarantine in this chronic contagious disease is just as great as it is in the acute such as scarlet fever or small pox. Have a tuberculin test made or preferably, have a chest X-ray taken, tak-en, that you may be certain that you have no active pulmonary tuberculosis. tubercu-losis. A fence lasts three years, a dog lasts three fences, " o horse three dogs and a man three horses. QUESTION BOX Send questions to Dr. Nathnn S. Dnvis III. Winnetka. Hi. (Enclose o self-addresstd. stamped envelope. I Q. What would cause the back of a man's neck and head to ache? He also suffers from dizziness. A. Infection may be the cause of his symptoms; that is too much poison poi-son in system for the liver to handle. An ear condition can also cause dizziness. diz-ziness. Q. Are operations for varicose veins advisable? G. L. J. A. In some cases the results are excellent bul they do harm in others. |