Show Q HEALTH SUPERSTITIONS CI C- C Q I Cranberry Poultices Not Much I IJ J I Help in in Curing Erysipelas 1 BY DR MORRIS FISHBEIN FISI Editor Journal of the American Medical Association and of Hy Hygeia geia the Health Magazine Some people believe that p poultices of cran cranberries will cure erysipelas If It ever there was a a. burning red disease it il Js Is ea known in ind indeed indeed in- in d deed ed by the pOP population lation of ot an earlier carlle day as St St. Anthonys fire The ver very basis basis' of treatment of eruptions o of various types by peculiar pecullar poultices poultice poultices is s the doctrine on which such d doe doc c- c trine trines fines as as home homeopathy pathY are founded rounded namely similia or like cures like Hence for all red and burning burning- eruptions red hangings are hung in ina ina a room and red pou are considered considered considered con con con- to have havo special virtues s. s Erysipelas is one of the th most widespread wide wide- spread pread ad of diseases since it dt seats the infection of superficial wounds by a a. germ thatis exceeding exceeding- ly y common When this germ at attacks at- at I ticks tacks acks the skin there is irritation sometimes burning burping sometimes th the formation of blisters sometimes a generalized In infection of the whole body ody with death the result However healthy adults die ie of erysipelas Newborn children children chil- chil dren ren usually die when this disease se attacks the n navel vel Old people pe peole people peo peo- pIe le suffering with Brights Bright's disease or r diabetes and drunkards are more likely kely to die of such Infections than are re healthy individuals The tendency of most cases o of ofer er erysipelas is to progress toward recovery recovery re- re covery overy and the physician usually treats the disease by the use ue of suitable suitable suit- suit able ble antiseptic solutions and other othel me methods h ds to prevent its spreading When th the Doctors Dick Dick discovered discovered ered red that the the the shaped round germ that lives in chains which chains which caused roused Scarlet fever produced ed most of ot It Its It's effects on the human body by means of a a. poison which it developed in the body bod- they prepared an antitoxin against this poison Later Latet Dr Conrad g studied the streptococcus that caused erysipelas and developed an antitoxin which would attack the j I products of that germ Today many many cases case J of erysipelas are controlled by bythe bythe bythe the use of this antitoxin which seems to stop the disease promptly when it is ia given early in the tion When the antitoxin happens to tobo tobe tobe be bo the specific ono one the strep strep- to ocus that is causing the erysipelaS erysipelas ery cry the results are The streptococcus is one of the most widespread o of all germs erms and there are of varieties The eminent bacteriologists Victor C. C Vaughan points out that the streptococcus strep strep- probably has a j much longer history than man and began egan Its assaults on the animal kingdom i long before there wa was any homo sapiens A thorough evolutionist evol he lie be believes believes believes be- be that man came into existence as a host hOt t to the tho streptococcus and nd that among the good and the bad the wise and nd fools the hs us been ore one o of he the wise and the tl fools the cus has always been one of or the most imp important factors in determining In ins ing mort mortality Uty rate rates Today the problem l lem rn m of controlling streptococci in infections in in- fe is one of the greatest unsolved unsolved un un- un- un solved d problems that confronts scientifIc scientific scientific medicine |