Medicine: A. M. A. Convention

Capstone of a U. S. medical career is the presidency of The American Medical Association. Eighteen men now living have had the honor. The A. M. A., convened last week at Detroit, underscored the honor by awarding to each of these 18 a gold medal and a citation. The list:

William Williams Keen, 93, of Philadelphia, ”emeritus of American surgeons”; born, Philadelphia; degree from Jefferson Medical College 1862; president 1900-01.

Frank Billings, 76, of Chicago, only living man who was president of the A. M. A. for two years; born, Highland, Wis.; degree from Northwestern University 1881; president 1902-03, 1903-04.

William James Mayo, 69, of Rochester, Minn., “most noted of American surgeons”; born. La Sueur, Minn.; degree from University of Michigan 1883; president 1906-07.

William Henry Welch, 80, of Baltimore, “dean of American pathologists”; born, Norfolk, Conn.; degree from Columbia University 1875; president 1910-11.

Rupert Blue. 63, of Washington, D. C., “distinguished representative of the United States Public Health Service”; born. Richmond County. N. C., degree from University of Maryland 1892; president 1916-17.

Charles Horace Mayo, 64, of Rochester. Minn., “a leader in surgery and in health education”; born, Rochester, Minn.; degree from Northwestern University 1888; president 1917-18.

Arthur Dean Bevan, 68, of Chicago, “distinguished teacher of anatomy and surgery”; born, Chicago; degree from Rush Medical College 1883; president 1918-19.

Alexander Lambert, 68, of Manhattan, “distinguished physician and teacher”; born, New York; degree from Columbia University 1888; president 1919-20.

William Clarence Braisted, 65, of West Chester, Pa., “leader of the United States Navy Medical Corps during the War”; born. Toledo, Ohio; degree from Columbia University 1886; president 1920-21.

Hubert Work, 70, of Denver, “physician and statesman”; born, Marion Center, Pa.; degree from University of Pennsylvania 1885; president 1921-22.

George Edmund de Schweinitz, 71, of Philadelphia, “noted American ophthalmologist”; born, Philadelphia; degree from University of. Pennsylvania 1881; president 1922-23.

Ray Lyman Wilbur, 55, of Washington. D. C., “clinician, educator, statesman”; born, Boonesboro, Iowa, degree from Cooper Medical College 1899; president 1923-1924.

William Allen Pusey, 64, of Chicago, “leader of American dermatology”; born, Elizabethtown. Ky.; degree from New York University School of Medicine 1888; president 1924-25.

William David Haggard, 57, of Nashville. Tenn., “a leader in surgery in the South”; born. Nashville. Tenn., degree from University of Tennessee 1893; president 1925-26.

Wendell Christopher Phillips. 73. of Manhattan, “a leader in laryngology”; born, Hammond. N. Y.; degree from New York University Medical School 1882; president 1926-27.

Jabez North Jackson. 61, of Kansas City. Mo., “teacher, clinician and leader”; born. Labadie, Mo.; degree from University Medical College (Kansas City 1891; president 1927-28.

William Sydney Thayer, 66, of Baltimore, “investigator, clinician, teacher and inspirer of medical men”; born, Milton,. Mass.; degree from Harvard University 1889; president 1928-29.

Malcolm La Salle Harris, 68, of Chicago, “surgeon, medical leader and jurist”; born. Rock Island, Ill., degree from

Rush Medical College 1882; president 1929-30. To get the medal next year at Phila delphia: William Gerry Morgan, 62, of Washington. D. C.; Newport, N. H. ; degree from University of Pennsylvania 1893; incoming 1930-31 president. To get it the year after: Edward Starr Judd, 52, of Rochester, Minn.; born, Rochester, Minn., degree from University of Minnesota 1902; last week elected 1931-32 president.

Points made in papers read at the convention included the following:

Suppressed Hearts. Does “stern control of the epiotions developed through education . . . not throw extra stress on the heart and thus account for its deterioration in civilized men?” Dr. William James Mayo, Rochester, Minn., raised the question, found the hint of an answer in the fact that “so many surgeons die of heart disease. They practice a profession in which stern control of the emotions is constantly necessary.”

Hearts & Marriage. Asked Dr. William Duncan Reid, Boston: “Should a woman with heart disease have children?” He answered himself: “Rheumatic heart disease is the type most commonly found. A study shows that women who die of it during the child-bearing age die because of the natural evolution of the disease and not because of the effect of child-bearing on it.”

Stupid Cancer Treatment. “One of the worst abuses of this intelligent age is the use of heat lamps, friction and other forms of heat on cancer patients by irregular practitioners. Heat or massage directed to a slowly growing cancer on the surface, where all the patient’s protective mechanism is working to destroy the invading cancer cells, promotes local circulation, thus stimulating the abnormal cells and scattering them into the recesses of the body to form extensions of the original cancer.”* Dr. Albert-Soiland, Los Angeles.

Foods Babies Like. Infants thrive better when they have the foods they like than when they eat by order. Dr. Clara Marie Davis, Chicago, proved this by permitting 13 newly weaned children to choose, for a total of 21,800 meals, what foods they liked from trays of assorted victuals. Almost all continuously like meats, potatoes, carrots, beets, peas, apples, bananas, oranges, eggs. Generally unpopular were spinach, lettuce, turnips, barley. All foods were fresh, cooked without salt or seasoning and without loss of water or soluble substances.

Pharmacology. In the Convention’s technical exposition, 22 exhibits were by drug manufacturers. Their position was delicate. The A. M. A. officially advised visiting doctors: “The exposition is becoming more and more of an informative or educational nature. It should not be thought of as simply a commercial exhibit, although the manufacturer’s business must always be classed as commercial.” The A. M. A. previously had denounced drug manufacturers—for interfering with and controlling the Eleventh Revision Convention of the U. S. Pharmacopoeia this spring at Washington. Editorialized the A. M. A. Journal: “Pharmaceutic organization . . . toured the country enlisting representatives of commercial interests. . . . The [Pharmacopoeia] Convention therefore was dominated by such representatives in a proportion of at least five to one of medical and scientific interests combined—[by] lawyers and executive secretaries representing trade groups, as well as detail men and promoters from individual pharmaceutic houses. . . . Perhaps certain interests plan deliberately to wreck the Pharmacopoeia with a view to promoting the use of proprietary preparations. Perhaps they plan to lower standards with a view to breaking down scientific control.”

The A. M. A.’s present advice on the very important matter of drugs is that physicians refer only to the A. M. A. book Usejul Drugs, which lists products selected from the Pharmacopoeia by the A. M. A. Council on Pharmacy as well as “New and Non-Official Remedies.”

Overtrained Specialists. The rigid training of a general practice is advisable before a doctor becomes a specialist. The growing habit of medical students studying for a specialty before they graduate is good for scientific medicine. But the specialist so produced is “likely to be narrow in his point of view and lacking in the humanitarian interest that is so essential in caring for the sick.”—Dr. James Carruthers Masson, Rochester, Minn. He proposed two remedies: 1) specialization be studied in only graduate courses of medical schools; 2) committees of practicing specialists should examine and give certificates to general practitioners with sufficient special training.

Women Physicians who attended the Convention bewailed the fact that of 757 women who last year applied to medical schools for admission, only 285 were accepted. Women doctors average $4,000 to $5,000 income a year—slightly more than the average for the men. Half of U. S. women physicians are married.

Trachoma. One more research step and Medicine will be certain that four years ago the late great Dr. Hideyo Noguchi discovered the actual germ of trachoma, contagious blinding eye disease. Drs. William Chris Fimioff and Phillips Thygeson of Denver reported to the Convention that the organism caused trachoma in monkeys. Remains to test it on a human. The test human may be Woo Dak-San, Silver City, N. Mex., Chinese sentenced to be executed for murder. To him last week was suggested a choice and to New Mexico’s Governor R. C. Dillon was presented a plea—that the sentence be commuted to life imprisonment provided Woo Dak-San subject his eyes to infection by the trachoma germ. Propounders of choice and plea were Dr. Polk Richards of the U. S. Indian Health Service and Dr. Francis Ingersoll Proctor, Boston ophthalmologist. Woo Dak-San refused.

Socialization. In his inaugural address President William Gerry Morgan, at length and with sharp terms, denounced every and all movements which in any way keep a sick person from having the doctor of his choice. Damned thus were all paternalistic, social institutions such as voluntary sickness insurance, compulsory sickness insurance, state medicine, mental hygiene.

*Important cancer tidings at the convention: organization of a radiological research institute; by the Chemical Foundation; to make a thoroughgoing study of all cancer problems, to reduce the cost of radium (now $60,000 a gram)-