Volume 50 · Issue 01 · 1936

Adamantinomas usually occur in the jaws and are more frequently found in the lower than in the upper jaw. It is not a common tumour though cases of clinical importance have been reported every now and then chiefiy in the American literature.

According to the epidemiological survey of C. U. Lee(1) and L. C. Feng (2), Filariasis in China, especially in Northern Kiangsu, Chekiang and Hunan is not a rare condition. Its complications, such as the lymph scrotum and the elephantiasis of the leg are frequently seen by clinicians. But a survey of the Chinese literature reveaIs no report on filariasis of the spermatic cord. During the past two years, three proved cases of chronic filariasis of the spermatic cord were observed in the First Hospital of the Chinese Red Cross Society, Shanghai. These cases are of interest, because the site of the disease is limited to the spermatic cord only, without the involvement of other parts of the body, such as the scrotum and the lower extremities. Due to their importance in the differential diagnosis and treatment of genital diseases in the male, these cases seem worthy of presentation, though the pathological findings of the first two cases had already been published in an another paper by Ku and the author (3).

The following clinical notes of a small epidemic of Vincent's disease in Yunnanfu recently, may be of some interest to those who are familiar with the microscopical appearance of the throat smear showing the associated Bacillus fusiformis with large spirilla, but who may not be familiar with the clinical picture of the disease. Through often called Vincent's angina, the latter word fails to describe those cases where there is chiefly a stomatitis.

Encapsulated empyema is not a common pathological condition of its type. The fact that in this case it simulated the signs and symptoms of liver abscess, the author feels that it is worth while reporting it. From the point of view of diagnosis, the case was very interesting.

Infection of eyes with gonococcus is a very serious condition and is regarded as one of the major causes of blindness in various parts of the world. In infants it goes by the name of ophthalmia neonatorum, and the infection is transmitted through the genital tract of mothers during delivery. In the pre-Crede days this formed one of the chief obstetrical complications. This disease is now rare where good obstetrics is practised. In the adult this condition is generally known as gonococcal ophthalmia. As a rule it occurs as chance infection through personal uncleanliness. The infrequent incidence of this disease in the adult in view of such widespread presence of gonauhea is remarkable. For it to occur as an epidemic is even still rarer. Therefore the report of such art epidemic as embodied in the present study should be of interest to the medical profession, particularly those interested in public health work of the country.

That lead poisoning gives rise to symptoms like "colic" and "palsy" is well-known. For this reason prophylactic measures have been adopted, so that, although there are about a hundred and fifty industries at present employing lead ingredient, cases of lead poisoning have been greatly reduced.

Much has been written recently in the health journals of Western countries as to the necessity of a higher type of training for all public health personnel. The trend seems to be towards more theoretical training even for subordinate personnel such as sanitary inspectors, and it has been suggested that university courses be provided. Conditions in China are quite different from those of Western countries, especially as regards these recent ideas of training. Here the training must be essentially on the practical side, as the men going out in the Field must be able to do things themselves and in turn, serve as instuctors to local personnel. Theoretical workers have not been successful and it would appear that the great need is for men with practical training and sufficient theoretical knowledge to be able to meet new conditions encountered in the different sections. Above all, it will be necessary for all public health workers to have sound common sense and reaIise that local conditions, especiaUy in the beginning, must modify their whole procedure of work.

If it is true that a nation gets the government it deserves, it is no less true that every medical community should get the journal suitable to its requirements. Therefore, in pledging ourselves to maintain the policy of our predecessor, we are not only doing justice to our subscribers but also upholding the Constitution of our Association in trying to extend medical knowledge and advance medicaJ science.

Maxwell (21, 22, 23) made the first classical account of osteomalacia in China in 1923. His description of the symptomatology with the characteristic deformities of the skeletal system, and the infiuence of repeated pregnancies and lactation on the course of the disease is well known. He considered secluded life, lack of sun-light and poor diet as principal etiological factors and used cod liver oil in treatment. Miles and Feng (20) found that the diet of their series of patients with osteornalacia was not only poor in calories, protein and fat, but also very deficient in calcium and fat soluble vitamin. They demonstrated in all their cases low serum calcium and inorganic phosphorus and negative calcium balanco on a moderate calcium intake. The calcium balance became positive when cod liver oil was added to the diet with or without extra calcium medication. Recently our own work (11, 17, i8) confirmed the earlier metabolic observations and further demonstrated that the essential metabolic abnormality in osteomalacia is deficient calcium absorption from the intestine. Vita- min D acts in promoting calcium absorption and also in minimizing endogenous calcium elimination. Its beneficial effects, even in small dosage, last long after the medication is stopped.

In a previous paper (1), two of us (H.C.C. and S.K.C.) made a preliminary report on sigmoidoscopic diagnosis of amcbic dysentery. We have since had more opportunity to study this disease and in the present paper we will stress the various diagnostic problems and amplify the points previously emphasized. The conclusions are drawn from personal observations on the sigmoidoscopic appearance of 50 cases of amebic dysentery seen at the gastro-intestinal clinic of the Peiping Union Medical College Hospital, supplemented by a review of 75 cases of amebic dysentery treated in the wards of the same hospital during the years 1930-1935.

Gonorrheal ophthalmia is a very serious, destructive and contagious disease of the eye. Any method which early and quickly eradicates the gonococcus from the eye not only saves the eye from blindness but also checks the spreading of a dangerous infection. In general, the treatment of gonoblennorrhea may be divided into two classes, the local treatment and the administration of foreign or nonspecific proteins. A large variety of foreign proteins have been advocated but probably the most generally used is milk. The use of milk in ophthalmology dates back to 1915 when Schmidt (1) of Prague employed cow's milk for intramuscular injections to induce a protein reaction. Since then, a fiemendous amount of work has been done in gonorrheal ophthalmia. While most authors report favorable and often striking effects following milk injections, a few (2) do not believe it to be a trustworthy therapy and even think it is dangerous to the disease and body. The previous reports mostly come from observations on isolated cases or groups of cases observed at different times. Under thEse circumstances there is a great possibility that the microorganisms may not be of the same strain and the milk may come from different sources. Such variations Will naturally influence the results of the treatment.

Despite the criticisms which have been made of the icterus index on the grounds of its inaccuracy in the presence of carotinemia, it seems probable that this simple determination will remain one of our most valuable laboratory methods: The experimental observations of Snider and Reinhold(1) suggest that the character of the van den Bergh reaction (direct, delayed, biphasic, indirect) depends on the concentration of bilirubin in the blood stream rather than on the mode of its production and that, consequently, it adds little if any information to that derived from the icterus index. The clinical results of Osgood and Haskins (2) are in accord with this opinion and the latter authors recommend the routine use of the icterus index, in preference to the van den Bergh test, not only because it is simpler but also because it is more accurate. CertainIy, in infants and children, as well as in other instances when it is desirable to avoid venepuncture, the determination of the icterus index; which may be done on minute quantities of blood, offers obvious advantages.