1
1244 REPORTS AND ANALYTICAL RECORDS. INTERNATIONAL HYGIENE. By C. W. HUTT, M.A., M.D., D.P.H., Medical Officer of Health, Metropolitan Borough of Holborn. London : Methuen and Co., Ltd. 1927. Pp. 261. 10s. 6d. THE habit of " thinking internationally " is growing steadily amongst intelligent men and women, and there was scope for such a book as Dr. Hutt has written. It is obvious that for an island country the health of the mercantile marine, both its own and that of other countries, is of great importance to trade, while the fact that England is on the path of migration from the mainland of Europe to the Far West means that this country is liable to infections imported from all quarters of the globe. Dr. Hutt deals in interesting detail with these and other aspects of the problems of international hygiene. He begins with one of the fundamental problems-namely, how infectious diseases are kept out of a maritime country-and goes on to discuss land frontiers in relation to infectious diseases and the various sanitary conventions. Our dependence upon the Dominions and continental neighbours for our food- supply leads to a discussion of the international problems connected with food. The chapter on the difficult subject of drug habits opens up a new field of preventive medicine, and Dr. Hutt’s summary of the working of the Dangerous Drugs Acts of 1920 and 1923 is admirably balanced. Following chapters deal with the health of the seamen, and in particular the problem of venereal disease. Writing of industrial hygiene from the international standpoint, Dr. Hutt stresses the point that any restriction in industry which makes for the health of the workers should be imposed equally on all nations ; the existence of an International Labour Office and of the League of Nations Health Organisation, whose work is well set out in this book, may make this a practical ideal. Voluntary work such as that of the League of Red Cross Societies is also playing a valuable part in the international field. Interchange of public health personnel, made possible by the generosity of the Rockefeller Foundation, may prove the best means of all for pooling hygienic experience, and it was presumably Dr. Hutt’s visit to Austria in such circum- stances that stimulated him to write this admirable book. JOURNALS. BRITISH JOURNAL OF OPHTHALMOLOGY. September.-This number is mainly devoted to hereditary and family diseases. C. H. Usher gives two pedigrees of hereditary optic atrophy. R. R. James a pedigree of a family showing hereditary glaucoma. R. C. Davenport a family history of choroidal sarcoma. Major J. N. Duggan and B. P. Nanavati have discovered a family with blue sclerotics, and the same authors a family with aniridia. The juxtaposition of these various narratives is calculated to enhance their value. October.-N. Pines contributes a paper on arterial hypertension and retinal changes. The general practitioner is sometimes appealed to by specialists to record observations of this nature and we cannot but be grateful when the appeal, as in this case, is xesponded to. In over a hundred cases seen in general practice the blood pressure (systolic and diastolic) was correlated with the state of the retinal vessels as revealed by the ophthalmoscope. the urine being also examined in most cases. For this work considerable experience with the ophthalmoscope is required, and this the author possesses. His analytical table, in which the various signs of degeneration of ’the vessels are correlated with different degrees of hyperpiesis and with cases of diabetes, is of distinct value. The different vascular signs usually looked for are tabulated and the frequency with which they were found is noted, but the main importance is attached to the sign of translucency of the secondary arteries. (In the main arterial branches the blood column is so thick that it is itself sufficient to cause loss of translucency.) When translucency was complete the blood pressure was normal in all cases. When translucency was incomplete or absent the general blood pressure was in all cases abnormally high. This is a valuable observation, but needs checking by other observers, especially in regard to the age of the patients. In elderly patients a certain loss of translucency is the rule without the existence of- any unduly high arterial tension. NOl’embe1".-In the second of two short papers T. Harrison Butler reports a case of monocular diplopia which must be unique. The slit lamp showed the cause of the diplopia to be a large fluid cleft in the cortex of the lens. This formed an optical opacity dividing the lens into an upper and a lower segment. These acted independently, forming an upper and a lower image upon the retina.- Tscherniiig’s Photometrical Glasses form the subject of a paper by W. A. Wille (Java). The object is to render possible a quantitative estimation of the power of adaptation to darkness. The apparatus consists of a series of plain dark glasses and a light-tight frame. The glasses are graduated thus : No. 1 lets through one-tenth of the light, No. 2 one-hundredth, No. 3 one-thousandth, and so on. The test is a candle flame at half a metre distance and the darkest glass through which this can be seen is the measure of the power of adaptation. It can be used as a measure of night blindness in any disease where this is a symptom. A differentiation must be made between the first or primary adaptation which takes place within 10 or 15 minutes, and the secondary which takes place within half to three-quarters of an hour. Reports and Analytical Records. GENASPRIN. (GENATOSAN, LTD., LOUGHBOROUGH, LEICESTERSHIRE.) Genasprin is an acetyl salicylic acid (aspirin) preparation put up in the form of tablets convenient foi the treatment of headache, toothache, neuralgia, neuritis, rheumatism, also for influenza and all feverish conditions. The tablets when analvsed were found to contain :- . The weight of each tablet is 6-5 gi., equivalent to 5 gr. of pure acetyl salicylic acid. "MINTIES." (JAMES STEDMAN-HENDEPSON SWEETS, LTD., SWEETACRES, SIDNEY, AUSTRALIA.) Minties are a hard opaque white sweet with a pleasant but not too pronounced flavour of pepper- mint. They dissolve slowly in the mouth, maintain the throat in a moist state, and do not adhere to the palate. Analysis shows that the sweets have been made from pure and wholesome materials. Each sweet is wrapped in waxed tissue paper which keeps it in a dry condition and free from extraneous contaminations. Messrs. ALLEN & HANBURYS, Ltd., have prepared, and are now in a position to supply, liver in the form of a fine powder, which is palatable and readily taken by the most fastidious patient. Two ounces of this product are equal in activity to eight ounces of fresh liver. The powder is supplied in 1 oz., 2 oz., 4 oz., and 8 oz. bottles.

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1244 REPORTS AND ANALYTICAL RECORDS.

INTERNATIONAL HYGIENE.

By C. W. HUTT, M.A., M.D., D.P.H., MedicalOfficer of Health, Metropolitan Borough ofHolborn. London : Methuen and Co., Ltd. 1927.

Pp. 261. 10s. 6d.

THE habit of " thinking internationally " is growing

steadily amongst intelligent men and women, andthere was scope for such a book as Dr. Hutt haswritten. It is obvious that for an island country thehealth of the mercantile marine, both its own andthat of other countries, is of great importance totrade, while the fact that England is on the path ofmigration from the mainland of Europe to the FarWest means that this country is liable to infectionsimported from all quarters of the globe. Dr. Huttdeals in interesting detail with these and other aspectsof the problems of international hygiene. He beginswith one of the fundamental problems-namely,how infectious diseases are kept out of a maritimecountry-and goes on to discuss land frontiers inrelation to infectious diseases and the varioussanitary conventions. Our dependence upon theDominions and continental neighbours for our food-supply leads to a discussion of the internationalproblems connected with food. The chapter on thedifficult subject of drug habits opens up a new fieldof preventive medicine, and Dr. Hutt’s summaryof the working of the Dangerous Drugs Acts of 1920and 1923 is admirably balanced. Following chaptersdeal with the health of the seamen, and in particularthe problem of venereal disease. Writing of industrialhygiene from the international standpoint, Dr. Huttstresses the point that any restriction in industrywhich makes for the health of the workers should beimposed equally on all nations ; the existence ofan International Labour Office and of the League ofNations Health Organisation, whose work is well setout in this book, may make this a practical ideal.Voluntary work such as that of the League of RedCross Societies is also playing a valuable part in theinternational field. Interchange of public healthpersonnel, made possible by the generosity of theRockefeller Foundation, may prove the best meansof all for pooling hygienic experience, and it waspresumably Dr. Hutt’s visit to Austria in such circum-stances that stimulated him to write this admirablebook.

JOURNALS.

BRITISH JOURNAL OF OPHTHALMOLOGY.September.-This number is mainly devoted tohereditary and family diseases. C. H. Usher givestwo pedigrees of hereditary optic atrophy. R. R.James a pedigree of a family showing hereditaryglaucoma. R. C. Davenport a family history ofchoroidal sarcoma. Major J. N. Duggan and B. P.Nanavati have discovered a family with blue sclerotics,and the same authors a family with aniridia. Thejuxtaposition of these various narratives is calculatedto enhance their value.

October.-N. Pines contributes a paper on arterialhypertension and retinal changes. The generalpractitioner is sometimes appealed to by specialiststo record observations of this nature and we cannotbut be grateful when the appeal, as in this case, isxesponded to. In over a hundred cases seen ingeneral practice the blood pressure (systolic anddiastolic) was correlated with the state of the retinalvessels as revealed by the ophthalmoscope. the urinebeing also examined in most cases. For this workconsiderable experience with the ophthalmoscope isrequired, and this the author possesses. His analyticaltable, in which the various signs of degeneration of’the vessels are correlated with different degrees ofhyperpiesis and with cases of diabetes, is of distinctvalue. The different vascular signs usually lookedfor are tabulated and the frequency with which theywere found is noted, but the main importance isattached to the sign of translucency of the secondary

arteries. (In the main arterial branches the bloodcolumn is so thick that it is itself sufficient to causeloss of translucency.) When translucency was

complete the blood pressure was normal in all cases.When translucency was incomplete or absent thegeneral blood pressure was in all cases abnormallyhigh. This is a valuable observation, but needs

checking by other observers, especially in regard tothe age of the patients. In elderly patients a certainloss of translucency is the rule without the existenceof- any unduly high arterial tension.

NOl’embe1".-In the second of two short papersT. Harrison Butler reports a case of monoculardiplopia which must be unique. The slit lampshowed the cause of the diplopia to be a large fluidcleft in the cortex of the lens. This formed anoptical opacity dividing the lens into an upper anda lower segment. These acted independently, formingan upper and a lower image upon the retina.-Tscherniiig’s Photometrical Glasses form the subjectof a paper by W. A. Wille (Java). The object is torender possible a quantitative estimation of the powerof adaptation to darkness. The apparatus consists ofa series of plain dark glasses and a light-tight frame.The glasses are graduated thus : No. 1 lets throughone-tenth of the light, No. 2 one-hundredth, No. 3one-thousandth, and so on. The test is a candleflame at half a metre distance and the darkest glassthrough which this can be seen is the measure of thepower of adaptation. It can be used as a measureof night blindness in any disease where this is asymptom. A differentiation must be made betweenthe first or primary adaptation which takes placewithin 10 or 15 minutes, and the secondary whichtakes place within half to three-quarters of an hour.

Reports and Analytical Records.GENASPRIN.

(GENATOSAN, LTD., LOUGHBOROUGH, LEICESTERSHIRE.)

Genasprin is an acetyl salicylic acid (aspirin)preparation put up in the form of tablets convenientfoi the treatment of headache, toothache, neuralgia,neuritis, rheumatism, also for influenza and all feverishconditions. The tablets when analvsed were foundto contain :-

.

The weight of each tablet is 6-5 gi., equivalent to5 gr. of pure acetyl salicylic acid."MINTIES."

(JAMES STEDMAN-HENDEPSON SWEETS, LTD., SWEETACRES,SIDNEY, AUSTRALIA.)

Minties are a hard opaque white sweet with apleasant but not too pronounced flavour of pepper-mint. They dissolve slowly in the mouth, maintainthe throat in a moist state, and do not adhere to thepalate. Analysis shows that the sweets have beenmade from pure and wholesome materials. Eachsweet is wrapped in waxed tissue paper which keepsit in a dry condition and free from extraneouscontaminations.

Messrs. ALLEN & HANBURYS, Ltd., have prepared,and are now in a position to supply, liver in the formof a fine powder, which is palatable and readilytaken by the most fastidious patient. Two ouncesof this product are equal in activity to eight ouncesof fresh liver. The powder is supplied in 1 oz., 2 oz.,4 oz., and 8 oz. bottles.