Report on the etiology and prevention of yellow fever / by George M. Sternberg.

  • Sternberg, George Miller, 1838-1915.
Date:
1890
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Report on the etiology and prevention of yellow fever / by George M. Sternberg. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the Augustus C. Long Health Sciences Library at Columbia University and Columbia University Libraries/Information Services, through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the the Augustus C. Long Health Sciences Library at Columbia University and Columbia University.

    129/286 (page 123)
    Case 10, November 18, 1889: Osteomyelitis of tibia, amyloid liver, and kidney. Liver 48 hours in laboratorj' is perfectly preserved, has a freph appcarnnce and no odor, very .acid reaction. Contains nnmerons and various bacilli, one resembling N. No. 11: Tuberculosis; autopsy 24 hours after death. Liver 48 hours in labora- tory very soft, and has an empyreumatic odor; contains a large bacillus with round ends; bacillus N not present. Case 12: Tuberculosis; autopsy 8 hours after death. Liver in oven at 35° for 48 hours; soft, liutrefactive odor; alkaline reaction ; various bacilli present, N not recog- nized. Case 13: Death from chloroform ; autopsy at once. Liver preserved in antiseptic wrapping ; opened at end of 48 hours has an acid reaction and fresh appearance ; con- tains a large anaerobic bacillus with end spores—slide l.'')43. Case 14: Heart disease ; autopsy 7 hours after death. Liver, 48 hours, fresh ap- peiirance,no odor, acid reaction; contains various bacilli—slide 1.550. Case 15 : Peritonitis after laparotomy. Liver in antiseptic wrapping at end of 48 hours is perfectly fresh in appearance, has a very acid reaction, and contains large anaerobic bacilli in great numbers which appear to be identical with my bacillus N. These were not obtained in an anaerobic culture in glycerine agar, but were present in an anaerobic culture in blood serum and glycerine agar mixed, associated with other bacilli—slide 1898. Case 16 : Tumor of uterus; autopsy 4hours after death. Liver preserved 48 hours, fresh in appearance,no odor, very acid reaction; various bacilli; bacillusN not pres- ent. Tbese notes sliow that the large anaerobic bacillus which I have designated by the letter IST was more constantly present in the liver from my yellow-fever cases than in my comparative autopsies, but the hope which I entertained for a time that it might be the specific infec- tious agent has given way before the evidence of its presence in the liver of persons dying from other diseases. It is true that I had this evidence before returning from Havana, but I admitted to myself the possibility that acclimated persons dying in the infected city duriug the epidemic season might carry the specific germ in their intestine, and that upon their death from another disease it might invade the tissues. I was therefore not willing to exclude this bacillus until I had found it in comparative autopsies made outside of the area of possible yellow- fever infection. Having found it in my comparative autopsy IS'o. 15, made in the city of Baltimore, in January, 1890, I can no longer enter- tain the supposition that it may be concerned in the etiology of yellow fever. (e) RESULTS OF EXPERIMENTS UPON ANIMALS. I shall give an account of my experiments with pure cultures of the various bacteria which I have isolated in connection with my systematic description of these microorganisms. At present it is ray intention to record the results obtained from inoculations of blood, urine, liver tissue, and material from the stomach and intestine, and first it will be well to call attention to similar experiments which have been made by others. I quote from my previous report, published in the annual volume of the Marine-Hospital Service for 1889.