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Show Doctor Cries Warning Against Butchery If any public service corporation, for instance a telephone company, cut holes in as many beautiful shade trees on the public streets and lawns of any community as our specialists cut holes in the throats of helpless children there would be such a howl of protest as would awaken the laziest official from his civic sleep." These were the startling wotds of warning uttered by Dr. Royal S. Cope, land, of New York city, In a paper read before the American Institute of Homeopathy in warning against the wholesale removal of tonsils. "What about these frequent tonsil operations?" ho asks. "Are-wo making mak-ing needless sacrifice of an imperfectly understood organ? Are we causing unnecessary human suffering? Are we surgically overzealous?' On the contrary, is It better, as contended by many really eminent authorities, to remove enlarged tonsils whenever they are met in early childhood, regardless re-gardless of whether or not thoy bear any evidence of disease beyond their actual size? The chief argument of these medical advocates Js that such tonsils are a constnnt menace and for safety's sake should be extirpated without delay. "It is conceded without argument or discussion tlint cryptic, ragged, fre quently inflamed and painful, obviously obvi-ously diseased organs are worse than useless. If such tonsils fail to yield to internal medication or local treatment they should be removed. "With this qualification, however, I must put myself on record as being absolutely and unqualifiedly opposed to the ruthless operative adventures involved in a decision to operate slm-ply slm-ply because the tonsils are large. To extirpate these organs because of what may happen if they are left, to my mind, is as absurd as It would bo to cut off the child's toes for fear he; might some time have corns, or to remove re-move one kidney to lessen his chances of nephritis. "In each early morning's mall, as a member of the society for the advancement advance-ment of clinical study in New York city, I receive a bulletin giving a list of the operations to be performed that day in all the leading hospitals of tho metropolis. Thero are 'tonsil and adenoid operations' scheduled daily at. almost every institution, and frequent- ly the number will run into dozens and even scores. ! "My friends, if this problem were' dealt with as Is hog cholera or chest- nut blight or 'yellow' in peaches there would be a congressional committee, the appointment of a government commission com-mission and a large appropriation for an official Investigation and report Isn't it about time the medical profession pro-fession made some such study of tonsil ton-sil and adenoid operations?" Dr. Copeland stated, howovpr, that he Is in favor of the removal of ade- noids, which, he said, are conducive to many ills. I oo |
