Medicine: Doctors in Cleveland

Unknown anywhere in the world before 1922 is the disease now called granulopenia. During the past three years it killed 1,300 U. S. people, mostly housewives. Physicians, nurses and their families suffered high mortality. Rarely has a poor person died of the disease, rarely a Negro. Finding out why became Dr. Roy Rachford Kracke's job at Emory University, Atlanta. Clever reasoning led him to suspect certain new-fangled pain-killing drugs manufactured from benzamine derivatives of coal tar. Negroes, who seldom complain of minor aches or pains, do not use those drugs. Poor people cannot afford them. Doctors get them as free samples. "We have seen few physicians," said Dr. Kracke last week, "who do not have a package of allonal, amytal compound, peralga, or other such drugs lying on their desk within easy reach. It is easy for the doctor and certainly common practice when members of his family become ill to reach for one of these 'newer and better' drugs with which he has been circularized and detailed."

Experiments showed Dr. Kracke that the pain-killers which he suspected inhibit the production of germ-killing white blood cells in the marrow. A sore throat or a cut finger uses up white cells. No others come from the marrow to replace them. Eventually the body has too few white cells available to fight off the invasion of germs. Along comes a cold, and the granulopenic (poor in white cells) person dies with shocking suddenness.

The drug which most often causes granulopenia in the U. S. is amidopyrine (chemical name: dimethylamrno-phenyl dimethyl pyrazolone). Related drugs which Dr. Kracke also blames are: pyramidon, phenacetine, arsphenamine. neoarsphenamine, amytal compound, allonal, peralga, amidophen. Dinitrophenol causes the rapid oxidization of sugar and fat in the body. This year it killed at least two overeager fat-reducers (TIME, April 30). Dr. Kracke said he feared it would be exploited this winter as a weight reducer.

Dr. Kracke's lecture on the new disease and his exhibit of drugs which cause it was one of the most exciting incidents at Cleveland last week, where the American Medical Association conducted its 85th convention. Other newsworthy presentations included: