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ANIMALS AS A RESPONSIBILITY
ZOSTER VIRUS AND
BELL’S PALSY
37
causation. A further study has recently been made, have not been inspected by qualified veterinary for the United States Public Health Service, by surgeons. This country has, as he says, been far Dean K. Brundage and J. J. Bloomfield,’ and an behind foreign countries in the governmental support attempt made to isolate the factors responsible for of veterinary research, and Prof. Hobday’s lecture the high incidence of pneumonia again found. Factors lends force to his appeal for donations for the rebuilding apart from working conditions, such as seasonal and endowment of the Royal Veterinary College. variation in the frequency of pneumonia, influenza epidemics, economic status of the workers, their age, ZOSTER VIRUS AND BELL’S PALSY nationality, extent of addiction to alcoholic stimulants, and prevalence of the disease in the general comIT is now some 26 years since Ramsay Hunt put munity were all considered and found to be of forward the view that certain cases of facial paralysis insufficient influence. A calculation of the frequency -those associated with a vesicular eruption in the of pneumonia according to the nature of exposure sensory area of the seventh nerve-were due to the shows very high rates amongst the men obliged to zoster virus. And although this syndrome has been work out of doors during inclement weather (13.6 and recognised generally accepted, experimental per 1000) and for those subjected to heat with wide evidence in support of it has been lacking. Elsewhere changes in temperature without significant exposure in this issue, Dr. R. S. Aitken and Dr. R. T. Brain to any other kind of industrial health hazard (12.6 show that cases of the Ramsay Hunt syndrome per 1000), in contrast with a rate of 3-9 cases annually possess specific zoster antibody in their blood ; per 1000 exposed to none of the working conditions Hunt’s thesis appears to have been correct. But held to be hazardous. Sudden cooling or chilling apart from the interest attaching to this demonstraof the body the authors believe to be an important tion that a proportion of cases of facial paralysis predisposing factor, and the importance of its avoid- are due to the zoster virus, Aitken and Brain’s work ance should be stressed amongst the men, for whom has another significance. Quite a number of the change-houses should be adequately provided. Some filtrable viruses are only capable of attacking a of the occupational groups here dealt with are too limited number of animal species. Sometimes one small to be of real service, but the report represents alone is species susceptible and this seems to be so a careful attempt to reach statistically sound conwith the virus of zoster. Where man is the susceptible clusions, though in investigations of industrial species the direct method of experimentation is hazards it is notoriously difficult to be certain that often precluded, and one has to fall back on indirect all extraneous factors have been effectively isolated. means-histological, morphological, and immunoThis report, however, is but a preliminary, for the a solution to our problems. logical-to provide full study is to be presented in Public Health Bulletin The studies of Netter and his colleagues demonstrating No. 202, which is still in the press. the unity of the clinical group of zoster and the relationship of the zoster and varicella viruses is a good example in point ; the work of Aitken and ANIMALS AS A RESPONSIBILITY Brain is another. OuR responsibility towards animals is recognised BROMPTON HOSPITAL REPORTS by all, and the State has legislated widely on theii behalf. In his Alexander Pedler lecturefor 1932, WE welcome the appearance of the first number Sir Frederick Hobday, principal of the Royal of this new publication, which contains a collection Veterinary College, showed the reverse of the shield ; of papers written by members of the honorary staff we are not, he said, equally alive to the responsibilities of the Brompton Hospital for Consumption and towards ourselves which this contact with animals Diseases of the Chest and by others working in its imposes, and we are insufficiently protected against various departments. In these days when medical the dangers it creates. Glanders and rabies have been with of our ramification journals, every dealing eradicated in this country and are not likely to recur have multiplied to so great an extent that it science, so long as the present preventive legislation is is difficult for any investigator to keep abreast with obeyed. He holds also that the timely application all the materials necessary for his work, it is conof the right methods has done much to stamp out venient to have a series of papers dealing with a foot-and-mouth disease and anthrax. But the figures branch of medicine brought together into he gave for bovine tuberculosis, though familiar, particular a volume. The articles here republished single remain remarkable. The average proportion of indicate that the research department of the hospital tuberculous cattle in the dairy herds of Great Britain is doing useful work. The incidence of tuberculosis works out, he believes, at between 30 per cent’. and children has been especially studied, but there 40 per cent., and in some cases is as much as 60 per upon as what may be called a by-product of the emerges, cent. ; in all there are probably over a million infected that there cattle. Prof. Hobday quoted figures showing that investigation by radiological methods, are many instances of alterations in the structure not only do between 3000 and 4000 children under of the lungs in children, visible by X rays, which are 5 years die of tuberculosis caught from the cow, but not due to the tubercle bacillus, and a paper by Dr. some 45,000 people suffer annually from joint F. H. Young deals with the problem of these conaffections the results of bovine tuberculosis with ditions from a clinical point of view. It would which they have been infected early in life. The seem that though far from fulfilling the consumption of meat also entails danger if, as in hopes held sanocrysin, out at its introduction, has yet established England, the animals can be slaughtered at private itself as a useful adjuvant in the treatment of tuberabattoirs which are often quite unsuitable. The and a contribution to our knowledge of its rest of Europe is far ahead of us in this respect, for culosis, of action is here made by Dr. E. E. Atkin, who mode only in England are animals killed for food which studied its anti-allergic effects in animals inoculated 7 Jour. Indust. Hyg., December, 1932, p. 345. with dead of tubercle bacilli and found a deficultures 8 Animals as a National Responsibility. The Alexander Pedler lecture of the British Science Guild, delivered under the nite inhibition of the formation of tubercles. We hope auspices of the Burton-on-Trent Natural History and Archæo- that future numbers of these reports may be furnished logical Society, by Prof. F. T. G. Hobday, F.R.C.V.S. Obtainable with an alphabetical index to facilitate reference. from the Guild, 6, John-street, Adelphi, London, W.C.2, at is. ____
BELL’S PALSY
37
causation. A further study has recently been made, have not been inspected by qualified veterinary for the United States Public Health Service, by surgeons. This country has, as he says, been far Dean K. Brundage and J. J. Bloomfield,’ and an behind foreign countries in the governmental support attempt made to isolate the factors responsible for of veterinary research, and Prof. Hobday’s lecture the high incidence of pneumonia again found. Factors lends force to his appeal for donations for the rebuilding apart from working conditions, such as seasonal and endowment of the Royal Veterinary College. variation in the frequency of pneumonia, influenza epidemics, economic status of the workers, their age, ZOSTER VIRUS AND BELL’S PALSY nationality, extent of addiction to alcoholic stimulants, and prevalence of the disease in the general comIT is now some 26 years since Ramsay Hunt put munity were all considered and found to be of forward the view that certain cases of facial paralysis insufficient influence. A calculation of the frequency -those associated with a vesicular eruption in the of pneumonia according to the nature of exposure sensory area of the seventh nerve-were due to the shows very high rates amongst the men obliged to zoster virus. And although this syndrome has been work out of doors during inclement weather (13.6 and recognised generally accepted, experimental per 1000) and for those subjected to heat with wide evidence in support of it has been lacking. Elsewhere changes in temperature without significant exposure in this issue, Dr. R. S. Aitken and Dr. R. T. Brain to any other kind of industrial health hazard (12.6 show that cases of the Ramsay Hunt syndrome per 1000), in contrast with a rate of 3-9 cases annually possess specific zoster antibody in their blood ; per 1000 exposed to none of the working conditions Hunt’s thesis appears to have been correct. But held to be hazardous. Sudden cooling or chilling apart from the interest attaching to this demonstraof the body the authors believe to be an important tion that a proportion of cases of facial paralysis predisposing factor, and the importance of its avoid- are due to the zoster virus, Aitken and Brain’s work ance should be stressed amongst the men, for whom has another significance. Quite a number of the change-houses should be adequately provided. Some filtrable viruses are only capable of attacking a of the occupational groups here dealt with are too limited number of animal species. Sometimes one small to be of real service, but the report represents alone is species susceptible and this seems to be so a careful attempt to reach statistically sound conwith the virus of zoster. Where man is the susceptible clusions, though in investigations of industrial species the direct method of experimentation is hazards it is notoriously difficult to be certain that often precluded, and one has to fall back on indirect all extraneous factors have been effectively isolated. means-histological, morphological, and immunoThis report, however, is but a preliminary, for the a solution to our problems. logical-to provide full study is to be presented in Public Health Bulletin The studies of Netter and his colleagues demonstrating No. 202, which is still in the press. the unity of the clinical group of zoster and the relationship of the zoster and varicella viruses is a good example in point ; the work of Aitken and ANIMALS AS A RESPONSIBILITY Brain is another. OuR responsibility towards animals is recognised BROMPTON HOSPITAL REPORTS by all, and the State has legislated widely on theii behalf. In his Alexander Pedler lecturefor 1932, WE welcome the appearance of the first number Sir Frederick Hobday, principal of the Royal of this new publication, which contains a collection Veterinary College, showed the reverse of the shield ; of papers written by members of the honorary staff we are not, he said, equally alive to the responsibilities of the Brompton Hospital for Consumption and towards ourselves which this contact with animals Diseases of the Chest and by others working in its imposes, and we are insufficiently protected against various departments. In these days when medical the dangers it creates. Glanders and rabies have been with of our ramification journals, every dealing eradicated in this country and are not likely to recur have multiplied to so great an extent that it science, so long as the present preventive legislation is is difficult for any investigator to keep abreast with obeyed. He holds also that the timely application all the materials necessary for his work, it is conof the right methods has done much to stamp out venient to have a series of papers dealing with a foot-and-mouth disease and anthrax. But the figures branch of medicine brought together into he gave for bovine tuberculosis, though familiar, particular a volume. The articles here republished single remain remarkable. The average proportion of indicate that the research department of the hospital tuberculous cattle in the dairy herds of Great Britain is doing useful work. The incidence of tuberculosis works out, he believes, at between 30 per cent’. and children has been especially studied, but there 40 per cent., and in some cases is as much as 60 per upon as what may be called a by-product of the emerges, cent. ; in all there are probably over a million infected that there cattle. Prof. Hobday quoted figures showing that investigation by radiological methods, are many instances of alterations in the structure not only do between 3000 and 4000 children under of the lungs in children, visible by X rays, which are 5 years die of tuberculosis caught from the cow, but not due to the tubercle bacillus, and a paper by Dr. some 45,000 people suffer annually from joint F. H. Young deals with the problem of these conaffections the results of bovine tuberculosis with ditions from a clinical point of view. It would which they have been infected early in life. The seem that though far from fulfilling the consumption of meat also entails danger if, as in hopes held sanocrysin, out at its introduction, has yet established England, the animals can be slaughtered at private itself as a useful adjuvant in the treatment of tuberabattoirs which are often quite unsuitable. The and a contribution to our knowledge of its rest of Europe is far ahead of us in this respect, for culosis, of action is here made by Dr. E. E. Atkin, who mode only in England are animals killed for food which studied its anti-allergic effects in animals inoculated 7 Jour. Indust. Hyg., December, 1932, p. 345. with dead of tubercle bacilli and found a deficultures 8 Animals as a National Responsibility. The Alexander Pedler lecture of the British Science Guild, delivered under the nite inhibition of the formation of tubercles. We hope auspices of the Burton-on-Trent Natural History and Archæo- that future numbers of these reports may be furnished logical Society, by Prof. F. T. G. Hobday, F.R.C.V.S. Obtainable with an alphabetical index to facilitate reference. from the Guild, 6, John-street, Adelphi, London, W.C.2, at is. ____