AUSTRALIAN

Grey River Argus, 23 September 1911, Page 5

AUSTRALIAN

MEDICAL CONGRESS:

AN INTERESTING ; DEBATE

(By Electric Telegraph — Copyright

(Per Press Association.)

SYDNEY, Sept. 22. At the Medical Cong-ness, Doctor Gibson, speaking on the subiect of Ophthalmology, declared that plumbic optic ineuriti s in children was contracted through playing on painted verandahs. The ophthalmis section urged that the paint bo prepaned with zinc instead of lead as a basis.Doctor Barrett said that syphillis was a predominant disease among mankind. He raised the question that if it was suppresaed,. which was quit^e possible, human beings would centainly live to an old age. There would certainly be less eye and ear disease. •

. Doctor Purdy read a paper on goitre. . As a result of investigations ...in Tasmania and New Zealand, he w : as inclined to be of the opinion that g-oitro was prevalent where pjeople drink glacien water or lived in fiats through which water drained. COLLAPSE AND SHOCK. SYDNEY, Sept. 22. The M<edical Congress discussed a paper on syncope collapse and shock. Doctor Martin, of New Zealand, dsclaried that the influence of fear had a decided bearing on shock. It wasa great mental factor to be cornbatted and. allayed. Referring to battlefield injuries, he said that the mental state of the soldiers 'had ani influence ;in the production of shock. After the battles of Graspan and Belmont. patients, entered the hospital in. excellent spirits- tout after the disaster at Mageirsfontein they, were depressed and miserable. The shock was the more pronounced and suffering the greater.

(Red 12.20 a.m.) ■ ■ '■■■,-... SYDNEY, Sept. 22. The Medical Congress discussed the value of the t-überculin- cure of -?<'iisumptibifc ■■■■•■

Sir Phillip Sydney Jones said tuberculin was very uste'ful in certain cases 'thaij were 1 Jhaniguig 1 fire, .. tout its indiscriminate use was positively harmful. He. *h.ad seen- it used' in unsuitable cases wdth disastrous results.; ■■•-'■

Dr. Finch stated he begun -te use the tuberculin in the Sydney Hospital automatically and the result was such ■thatl instructions were given to-, -the general staff for i f s employment "an all. cases, of tuberculosis. Every member of the staff favoured it. This course had been decided upon after observations extending over four yvaTS.

Dr. Sibmind's paper dealt wtih pulmonary- diseases amongst quartz miners at- Bendigo. The -total deaths from lung- disease had risen '.torn 'evemyseven per ten thousand in : the £r&t quinquenial period t o on» Fundred and fifty-five point ten "tn . the last. This was largely accounted for- by the increase 1 , of those certified, as . due to tuberculosis.

Dr. Breiul's paper on tropical medicine said the investigations for the past twenty, years convinced . him of ths unsuitabil-ity of a tropical climate. It depends mostly on- prevalent diseases carried by intermediary pests -which flourish in corta.n part^ of' the tropics. Yellow fever and malaria were both combaiahle by the use of mosquito nets.

. Another paper dealt ;wdth the spread of typhoid by house flies. It was stated that the American Army Commission found du-ring the Spanish war that flies inflicted greater* loss, -on the! American forces than the arms of Spa-in." There were . similarly gneaf losses. in the Boer War. The. us? of kerosene and blue oil in keepinn down. flies was advo-atej. \