X Rays For Epilepsy

How the Treatment Has Benefited a Young Girl.

HER WEIGHT GREATLY INCREASED

Elsie Winkler of New York Recovered Power of Speech, and the Epileptic Attacks Became Less Frequent and Less Severe - What a Physician Thinks of the Case.

Considerable interest has been attracted to the case of Elsie Winkler of New York, the sixteen-year-old girl who has been under X ray treatment for epileptic fits at the Postgraduate hospital in New York for several weeks past. The girl's case is the first in the United States so far as is known in which X rays have been employed in the treatment of epileptic affections, and the improvement of the patient since the experiment has been in progress has been marked, says the New York Times.

The girl's present malady followed an attack of diphtheria when she was ten years old, in which antitoxin was used. The immediate consequence of the diphtheria was the partial paralysis of the right arm, and epileptic fits followed in the course of a few weeks. These increased in severity and frequency as a year passed, until the child's general condition became alarming. Treatment by bromides failed to relieve her, but seemed rather to develop skin eruptions, which aggravated her suffering.

When the girl was taken to the Post-graduate hospital some weeks ago, the paralysis of the arm was such as to render it useless, the fits were of daily and sometimes semi-daily occurrence, and the child could not speak with sufficient clearness to give an intelligible account of herself. Her mother, who accompanied her, was obliged to state the history of the illness.

Dr. J.H. Branth of New York suggested treatment by X rays. The mother consented, telling of the previous prescribing of bromides. These were ordered discontinued, and the X ray treatment begun, as it has been carried out during the subsequent weeks. The immediate result was an improvement in the child's general condition and speech and the diminution of the skin eruption. Then the epileptic attacks became less frequent and less severe, until at the present time they occur not oftener than once in two weeks. The child has now so far recovered her voice that she speaks with distinctness, although slowly. Her complexion is nearly clear and her weight considerably increased.

Further than to take cognizance of the results of the X ray treatment in this individual case, physicians familiar with it are disinclined to speak. Dr. Branth said that the use of X rays in cases of epilepsy was a matter that could not be determined by the development of a single case, but he did not hesitate to speak of the success so far attained in the present instance. 

"I will say so much," he said, "that whether the X ray treatment is show to act in epilepsy or not it may be advised in such cases for its beneficial results on the general condition of the patient. This girl in the Postgraduate hospital has shown wonderful improvement in the few weeks in which she has been under treatment."

Dr. Branth was asked to speak of the pathological aspects of the case. He said:

"The conclusion must not be formed, even if we are shown to be successful in cases such as this one, that all cases of epilepsy will yield to X ray treatment. In cases like that of this girl the theory accepted at present for explaining the disease is that its existence depends upon cellular instability. The primary seat of the convulsion is in the cortex of the brain and the secondary seat the medulla oblongata. My believe is that if the X rays have effect it is in whipping together the brain cells into normal action. That, of course, is entirely conjectural, because the theory of epilepsy is conjectural also."