HAY FEVER CURE

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 7852, 14 July 1911, Page 9

HAY FEVER CURE

A SERUM SNUFF. Hav fever (snvs the medical correspon. dent" of the VOaily Mail"), which for more than 300 years has defied all attempts of tlie medical profession to perfect a cure, has finally succumbed to the march of science. A near cure, a “hay fever serum/' roughly similar in its action and mode of preparation _ to the well-known diphtheria scrum, is now roadv for use, to relievo thousands from the scourge that brings them weeks of misery every summer. The history of tho new preparation, which gave most excellent results last year, both in

Germany and America, was given mo by a prominent West End physician, who is an acknowledged authority on serumtherapy, or the treatment of diseases by sera made from the specific toxins or poisons of the disease: —“Not long ago, Dr Dunbar, a famous German sciem tistl discovered that hay fever was the result of an irritation of the mucous membrane of the nose, due to the action of the pollen grains of certain grasses floating in tne air. Dr Dunbar also succeeded in isolating from these pollen grains a poisonous substance which is the actual cause of the unpleasant symptoms of hay fever. Horses were then used in the preparation of a serum from this pollen poison in exactly the same way as diphtheria serum is obtained from the diphtheria poison. A small dose of the irritant is injected into the tissues of a perfectly healthy horse. He is a trifle upset by the small dose, but speedily recovers. A larger dose is given. Again lie is slightly upset, but immediately recovers. The process is continued until even a maximum dose of thev pollen poison has no, effect on high. The curative serum is then, prepared by drawing off a certain amount; of blood from one of the animal's veins, separating out the blood cells, and drying the remaining fluid pan. .Treatment of the hay fever patient consists in sprinkling' a few grains, of this dried serum on to a nasal mucous membrane with a camel’s hair brush, or dropping it on the inner surface of the loner eyelid. Different people, of course, react differently to the serum, but in most cases the dry dust must be apnlied several times a day for a month or sis weeks to give protection throughout the entire summer. The treatment is practically untried in England, but tho results in other countries last year were so highly satisfactory that there is certain to be a great demand for it once it is known here-”