The Abortive Treatment of Syphilis

" Is it possible, by excision of the initial lesion, to destroy the syphilitic virus and prevent infection of the general system ?" This is the extremely important question which Dr. Prince A. Morrow endeavours to answer in a very able and well reasoned paper published in the Transactions of the New York Academy of Medicine for the year 1883. The practice of surgeons has undergone a revolution in this matter. The older surgeons including John Hunter, Benjamin Bell, Sigmund and Ricord (during the earlier period of his career) recommended and practised cauterization of the sore, and their advice and example were largely, if not universally, followed. It was observed, however, that ? in a certain number of cases constitutional infection occurred, notwithstanding free destruction of the sore by caustics, and it was reasoned that in these cases the operation had been resorted to too late?after, in fact, the poison had already gained access to the system. A new doctrine and practice were accordingly founded on this assumption, namely, that in order to prevent systemic infection, it was necessary to destroy the sore within four days of infection. Few surgeons would, we imagine, in these days, resort to cauterization when induration had already after a lapse of weeks taken place in the neighbourhood of the point of inoculation, and in the lymphatic glands nearest to it, even if secondary symptoms had not made their appearance ; but