History of medical practice in Illinois - Bushnell Historical Society

General Surgery 195ogy. He mentioned that appendicitis was still a bone of contention betweenmedicine and surgery, as was also intestinal obstruction andcholelithiasis. Hernia had now become a purely surgical problem. Hementioned the value of spinal puncture and finally of x-rays— their firstappearance in our reports. The value of Marmorek's serum for streptococcusinfection was considered. In a later discussion Dr. James B. Herrickspoke of the value of venesection in some instances of arteriosclerosis andthe overloaded heart. Dr. Robert H. Babcock discussed coronary sclerosis.Gastrostomy after esophageal burns by lye was the subject of a paperby Dr. J. A. Haughman of Neoga, who said the operation had been performedby Sedillot 48 years before but that the first successful case wasperformed by Dr. Sidney Jones of England in 1874. Haughman had performeda von Hacker gastrostomy and opened the stomach by a cauteryknife three days after sewing the stomach wall toDr. Jacob Frank followed with athe peritoneum.paper on "Intestinal Anastomosis,"using Senn's decalcified bone plates for anastomosis. These bone collarshad six needle hole perforations at the apex of the shoulder. He describeda successful gastroenterostomy with this collar performed by Dr. McCandlessof St. Louis on March 16, 1897. The collar had been carved out of asound compact bone from the hind foot of a 4-year old ox and was decalcifiedin 10 per cent hydrochloric acid. Frank noted that whittled potatoesand carrots had been used in past years, and he reiterated the factthat a French surgeon had brought out the idea of pressure necrosis, laterused to advantage in the Murphy button technic.Dr. John E. Owens of Chicago spoke of the use of toxins in the treatmentof sarcoma, particularly inoperable cases, and referred to the serum madeand used by Dr. William B. Coley of New York, first employed in April,1891. He cited a case reputedly so cured. Dr. A. E. Halstead said that hehad seen the microscopic sections of that case and that it was a giant cellsarcoma. Dr. Halstead had treated three patients thus and all died withinthree or four months, and he said rightly that "the improvement to benoted with the treatment of sarcoma with toxins is largely due to error inthe diagnosis."Dr. J.B. Murphy read a paper "On End to End Suture of Large Vessels,"in which he said that arteries could be united and the blood current continuedthrough them (in the dog). He overlapped and then sutured thearterial ends. The greatest difficultyin getting a good result was thrombosis.He had sutured both the femoral and axillary arteries, but not theaorta.Dr. A. E.Halstead reported on "Nonmalignant Strictures of the Rectum,"employing linear proctotomy followed by dilatation and/or colostomy.Dr. Carl E. Black reported on "Infiltration Anesthesia," using