Treatment;—­The only thing to do when the patient has this disease is to make him comfortable and arrest the progress of it, if possible.  It is incurable, but treatment sometimes arrests the progress and at least lessens the suffering and prolongs life as long as it is worth living to them.  I have given a longer description than was necessary, for I wanted men who live such fast lives to understand what it brings them for most cases are caused by syphilis.  The description could have been made longer and other symptoms and complications put in.  I think enough has been given and perhaps this description may deter some one from going the same road.

The Diagnosis is made at first by the fatigue, peculiar pains, loss of the knee jerk, the peculiar pupil and history of syphilis.  Later it is made from the ataxia; the peculiar walk, etc., and the bladder disturbances.

Hereditary ataxia.  Friedrich’s Disease.—­This peculiar disease is due to a degenerative disease of the posterior and lateral columns (parts) of the spinal cord, occurring in childhood, and often in several children of the same family.

Causes.—­More in boys than in girls and oftener in the country districts.  Heredity is frequently a cause and it is traced to syphilis, epilepsy, alcoholism, and insanity in the ancestors.  Several children of the same family may have it.

Symptoms.—­In very young children it is noticed that they are slow in learning to walk; the child staggers in trying to stand or to walk; it uses its hands clumsily, and has difficulty in speaking.  The movements of the hands are peculiar, the hands move like in chorea, the speech is slow and drawling.

Recovery.—­Very doubtful, but they may last for years.

[Nervous diseases 307]

Infantile paralysis. (Acute Anterior Polio Myelitis).—­This is an acute disease occurring almost exclusively in young children with paralysis, followed by rapid dwindling of the muscles of the parts affected by the paralysis.

Causes.—­Found in children under three years old.  It is more common in summer than in winter.  It often follows scarlet fever, measles, and diphtheria.

Symptoms.—­The onset is usually sudden; often the child is put to bed at night seemingly well and in the morning is found paralyzed in one or more limbs.  High fever or chills, general feeling of illness, pain all over the body, decided brain symptoms, like delirium or convulsions and intermittent contractions of the muscles may usher in the disease.  These forerunning symptoms may last a short time or for several weeks, after which the paralysis is noticed, being extensive as a rule, and affecting one, two, or all of the extremities and sometimes the muscles of the trunk.  This general paralysis soon disappears being left permanently in only one extremity, chiefly in one leg.  The other symptoms disappear.  The paralyzed part atrophies (wastes) rapidly.  The disease is very rare in adults.  If the paralysis does not show a decided change within the first few months, full recovery is doubtful.