DUBLIN
1
1209 EDINBURGH. (From our own Correspondent.) ALBUMINURIA IN THE APPARENTLY HEALTHY. AT the last ordinary meeting of the Royal Society of Edinburgh a paper on the Discharge of Albumen from the Kidney in Healthy People was read by Professor Grainger Stewart. The paper contains the results of an extensive research carried out in relation to varied classes of the community. Professor Stewart comes to the conclusion that in the community generally the average of those who have albuminuria is about 30 per cent. ; in military life the pro- portion is larger than amongst civilians, and with advancing years there is a marked increase in the proportion. In all classes he finds an increased number showing albumen after breakfast, as compared with what obtains before that meal. While healthy moderate exercise, as in the weekly march- out of the garrison, decreases the number in whom it is present, excessive muscular exercise, as seen in fatigue duty, largely increases the proportion of men showing albu- minuria. Several other phases of human activity have been investigated in the same way, and yield most interest- ing results. Some of the general conclusions at which Professor Stewart arrives are the following :-That there is no sufficient proof that albuminuria is a normal condition in the human subject, but that it is a much more frequent phenomenon in the apparently healthy than was formerly supposed; that it increases in frequency as life advances, and is more common in those who lead laborious lives than in others; that moderate exertion decreases the phenomenon, whilst excessive work produces an increase, as does also cold hathing in certain individuals; and, finally, that the exist- ence of persistent albuminuria is not per se a sufficient ground for the rejection of a proposal for life insurance. The paper, which was richly illustrated by tables, giving a complete analysis of the results, was very favourably received by the Society, and its author was congratulated upon the comprehensive and valuable nature of his research. THE PRESENCE OF BACTERIA IN FISH. At the same meeting of the Royal Society a paper on the - existence of Bacteria in Living Fish was presented on behalf of Professor E wart. A variety of species of micro-organisms are constant inhabitants of the majority of fresh-water and sea fish alike, the skate, dogfisb, and some other species being, however, exempt. A considerable number of organisms may be present in the blood, lymph, and peritoneal cavity with- out any apparent interference with the vitality of the animal. Under a variety of depressant conditions the number of these bacilli increases: thus starvation, confinement in aquaria, and a rapid, though moderate, rise of temperature produce this effect, and the increase, if considerable, is accompanied by symptoms of languor and, in many cases, the death of the fish. The exact species of bacilli discovered have not as yet been classified; experiment shows, however, that they are not of ordinary putrefactive varieties, while the clinical evidence equally excludes them from the group of patho- genic microbes. THE MEDICO-CHIRURGICAL SOCIETY. At the recent meeting of this Society some interesting cases illustrating the condition of word-blindness were exhibited by Dr. Byrom Bramwell, who gave a valuable clinical demonstration of the main symptoms in two of his patients. Mr. A. G. Miller showed two patients who made an excellent recovery after operations for the relief of intra- cranial suppuration. Dr. Foulis exhibited a new and useful ,, apparatus for the irrigation of the bladder, and a new form of obstetric forceps. A paper was read upon some Poisonous Products of an unusual nature present in Human Food, de- tailing the results obtained by Drs. Philip and Hare in a recent case of poisoning that occurred in Carlisle. Dr. Philip succeeded in separating from some ham, the material suspected, an extract poisonous to frogs, and producing symptoms in the human subject suggestive of irritant poisoning, and resembling those observed in the large number of patients who suffered after the ingestion of por- tions of the ham in question. Microscopic examination showed the presence of micrococci in the ham, but no bacilli were discovered resembling those present in the Wellbeck case which occurred in 1880, where poisonous ham was found to be the cause of the outbreak. A special meeting of this Society is to be held early in July, to discuss the subject of scarlet fever in relation to the recent epidemic in Edin- burgh, and specially with regard to questions of the etiology of the disease now exciting such great interest. Edinburgh, June 7th. DUBLIN. (From our own Correspondent.) ROYAL COLLEGE OF SURGEONS. THE contest for the vice-presidency of the College which took place on Monday last excited unusual interest, as it was known that it would be a close one. Mr. Fitzgibbon, the successful candidate, polled 126 votes, against 102 obtained by his opponent, Mr. Croly. As regards the Council, all the outgoing members who offered themselves were re- elected, with the exception of Mr. Story; while two new members have been added-viz., Mr. Frazer and Mr. Kendal Franks. More than a month since, when writing on this subject, I mentioned Mr. Franks as certain of success, and the result has justified my expectation. An unusual com- pliment was paid Mr. Frazer by electing him on his first attempt, and he will, I am convinced, prove a formidable opponent to Mr. Meldon in the contest for the vice-pre- sidency next year. The votes at the meeting last Monday were the highest ever recorded, and numbered 230. At the annual meeting of the College on Saturday an animated dis- cussion took place in reference to the proposal for amalga- mation between the Carmichael College and the College School. The matter is referred to more fully in another column, and I only allude to it here to remark that the debate would not have suffered by the admixture of a larger proportion of the elements of courtesy and toleration on the part of some of the speakers than was manifested on the occasion. By the recent rules of the Council the examiners in anatomy and surgery, who were appointed on the 31st ult. for the ensuing year come under different arrangements as regards their emoluments, which has caused considerable dissatisfaction to those most in- terested in the matter. Previously the eight examiners in these subjects received equal remuneration, but now two examiners only in anatomy and two in surgery will as a rule be actually employed. The two other examiners in these subjects, whom I shall style assistant examiners, are only expected to act during the sickness or absence of the others, and to examine candidates for fellowship. It follows that almost all the fees from candidates will go to the acting examiners; and, on the other hand, the assistant examiners will neither have much honour or profit. For, taking the average annual number of Fellows admitted to examination, the remuneration of each assistant examiner will probably not exceed from £10 to X15 per annum. I believe it is not at all improbable that one, if not more, of these assistant examiners will shortly resign his post. DUBLIN HOSPITALS COMMISSION. It is authoratively stated that no steps will be taken by the Government, at least for this session, to carry out the recommendations of the Dublin Hospitals Commission. This is a result which probably will not cause much surprise, a feeling existing to a very general extent that such would be the case. HOSPITAL FOR INCURABLES. An appeal is being made by the governors for funds to carry out a design formed to extend the usefulness of this excellent institution. It is contemplated to add a new wing for the treatment of patients suffering from cancer and phthisis. It will be called the "Victoria Jubilee Wing," and I am in a position to state that his Royal Highness Prince Albert Victor, on his approaching visit to Dublin, will lay the foundation stone of this addition to the hospital. THE 3" ACOB TESTIMONIAL. An address with a purse containing .E500 was presented to Dr. A. H. Jacob at the College of Surgeons on Monday last. The address was read by Dr. Mapother, and Dr. Jacob having irade a suitable reply, the proceedings terminated. The address, it may be mentioned, was signed by over 400 medical practitioners. I am informed that Sir William Stokes and Prof. Edward Hamilton have been appointed coadjutor examiners in Surgery for the Apothecaries’ Hall of Ireland. Dublin, June 7th.
Transcript of DUBLIN
1209
EDINBURGH.
(From our own Correspondent.)
ALBUMINURIA IN THE APPARENTLY HEALTHY.
AT the last ordinary meeting of the Royal Society ofEdinburgh a paper on the Discharge of Albumen from theKidney in Healthy People was read by Professor GraingerStewart. The paper contains the results of an extensiveresearch carried out in relation to varied classes of thecommunity. Professor Stewart comes to the conclusion thatin the community generally the average of those who havealbuminuria is about 30 per cent. ; in military life the pro-portion is larger than amongst civilians, and with advancingyears there is a marked increase in the proportion. In allclasses he finds an increased number showing albumen afterbreakfast, as compared with what obtains before that meal.While healthy moderate exercise, as in the weekly march-out of the garrison, decreases the number in whom it is
present, excessive muscular exercise, as seen in fatigue duty,largely increases the proportion of men showing albu-minuria. Several other phases of human activity havebeen investigated in the same way, and yield most interest-ing results. Some of the general conclusions at whichProfessor Stewart arrives are the following :-That there isno sufficient proof that albuminuria is a normal condition inthe human subject, but that it is a much more frequentphenomenon in the apparently healthy than was formerlysupposed; that it increases in frequency as life advances,and is more common in those who lead laborious lives thanin others; that moderate exertion decreases the phenomenon,whilst excessive work produces an increase, as does also coldhathing in certain individuals; and, finally, that the exist-ence of persistent albuminuria is not per se a sufficientground for the rejection of a proposal for life insurance.The paper, which was richly illustrated by tables, giving acomplete analysis of the results, was very favourablyreceived by the Society, and its author was congratulatedupon the comprehensive and valuable nature of his research.
THE PRESENCE OF BACTERIA IN FISH.
At the same meeting of the Royal Society a paper on the- existence of Bacteria in Living Fish was presented on behalfof Professor E wart. A variety of species of micro-organismsare constant inhabitants of the majority of fresh-water andsea fish alike, the skate, dogfisb, and some other species being,however, exempt. A considerable number of organisms maybe present in the blood, lymph, and peritoneal cavity with-out any apparent interference with the vitality of the animal.Under a variety of depressant conditions the number of thesebacilli increases: thus starvation, confinement in aquaria, anda rapid, though moderate, rise of temperature produce thiseffect, and the increase, if considerable, is accompanied bysymptoms of languor and, in many cases, the death of thefish. The exact species of bacilli discovered have not as yetbeen classified; experiment shows, however, that they arenot of ordinary putrefactive varieties, while the clinicalevidence equally excludes them from the group of patho-genic microbes.
THE MEDICO-CHIRURGICAL SOCIETY.
At the recent meeting of this Society some interestingcases illustrating the condition of word-blindness wereexhibited by Dr. Byrom Bramwell, who gave a valuableclinical demonstration of the main symptoms in two of hispatients. Mr. A. G. Miller showed two patients who madean excellent recovery after operations for the relief of intra-cranial suppuration. Dr. Foulis exhibited a new and useful ,,apparatus for the irrigation of the bladder, and a new formof obstetric forceps. A paper was read upon some PoisonousProducts of an unusual nature present in Human Food, de-tailing the results obtained by Drs. Philip and Hare in arecent case of poisoning that occurred in Carlisle. Dr.Philip succeeded in separating from some ham, the materialsuspected, an extract poisonous to frogs, and producingsymptoms in the human subject suggestive of irritantpoisoning, and resembling those observed in the largenumber of patients who suffered after the ingestion of por-tions of the ham in question. Microscopic examinationshowed the presence of micrococci in the ham, but no bacilliwere discovered resembling those present in the Wellbeckcase which occurred in 1880, where poisonous ham wasfound to be the cause of the outbreak. A special meeting ofthis Society is to be held early in July, to discuss the subject
of scarlet fever in relation to the recent epidemic in Edin-burgh, and specially with regard to questions of the etiologyof the disease now exciting such great interest.Edinburgh, June 7th.
_______________
DUBLIN.
(From our own Correspondent.)
ROYAL COLLEGE OF SURGEONS.
THE contest for the vice-presidency of the College whichtook place on Monday last excited unusual interest, as itwas known that it would be a close one. Mr. Fitzgibbon,the successful candidate, polled 126 votes, against 102obtained by his opponent, Mr. Croly. As regards the Council,all the outgoing members who offered themselves were re-elected, with the exception of Mr. Story; while two newmembers have been added-viz., Mr. Frazer and Mr. KendalFranks. More than a month since, when writing on thissubject, I mentioned Mr. Franks as certain of success, andthe result has justified my expectation. An unusual com-pliment was paid Mr. Frazer by electing him on his firstattempt, and he will, I am convinced, prove a formidableopponent to Mr. Meldon in the contest for the vice-pre-sidency next year. The votes at the meeting last Mondaywere the highest ever recorded, and numbered 230. At theannual meeting of the College on Saturday an animated dis-cussion took place in reference to the proposal for amalga-mation between the Carmichael College and the CollegeSchool. The matter is referred to more fully in anothercolumn, and I only allude to it here to remark thatthe debate would not have suffered by the admixtureof a larger proportion of the elements of courtesy andtoleration on the part of some of the speakers than wasmanifested on the occasion. By the recent rules of theCouncil the examiners in anatomy and surgery, who wereappointed on the 31st ult. for the ensuing year come underdifferent arrangements as regards their emoluments, whichhas caused considerable dissatisfaction to those most in-terested in the matter. Previously the eight examiners inthese subjects received equal remuneration, but now twoexaminers only in anatomy and two in surgery will as arule be actually employed. The two other examiners inthese subjects, whom I shall style assistant examiners, areonly expected to act during the sickness or absence of theothers, and to examine candidates for fellowship. It followsthat almost all the fees from candidates will go to the actingexaminers; and, on the other hand, the assistant examinerswill neither have much honour or profit. For, taking theaverage annual number of Fellows admitted to examination,the remuneration of each assistant examiner will probablynot exceed from £10 to X15 per annum. I believe it is notat all improbable that one, if not more, of these assistantexaminers will shortly resign his post.
DUBLIN HOSPITALS COMMISSION.
It is authoratively stated that no steps will be takenby the Government, at least for this session, to carry outthe recommendations of the Dublin Hospitals Commission.This is a result which probably will not cause much surprise,a feeling existing to a very general extent that such wouldbe the case.
HOSPITAL FOR INCURABLES.
An appeal is being made by the governors for funds tocarry out a design formed to extend the usefulness of thisexcellent institution. It is contemplated to add a new wingfor the treatment of patients suffering from cancer andphthisis. It will be called the "Victoria Jubilee Wing,"and I am in a position to state that his Royal HighnessPrince Albert Victor, on his approaching visit to Dublin,will lay the foundation stone of this addition to the hospital.
THE 3" ACOB TESTIMONIAL.
An address with a purse containing .E500 was presentedto Dr. A. H. Jacob at the College of Surgeons on Mondaylast. The address was read by Dr. Mapother, and Dr. Jacobhaving irade a suitable reply, the proceedings terminated.The address, it may be mentioned, was signed by over 400medical practitioners.
I am informed that Sir William Stokes and Prof. EdwardHamilton have been appointed coadjutor examiners inSurgery for the Apothecaries’ Hall of Ireland.Dublin, June 7th.
