An Investigation into the Value of Tryparsamide in the Treatment of the General Paralysis of the Insane, with Special Consideration of the Clinical and Serological Factors Which May Affect the Prognosis

Tennent, Thomas (1930) An Investigation into the Value of Tryparsamide in the Treatment of the General Paralysis of the Insane, with Special Consideration of the Clinical and Serological Factors Which May Affect the Prognosis. MD thesis, University of Glasgow.

Full text available as:
[thumbnail of 13905301.pdf] PDF
Download (14MB)

Abstract

1. Fifty cases of general paralysis were submitted to treatment by tryparsamide. Seventeen were treated by this drug alone and in thirty three others the drug was combined with fever therapy. 2. Of these have had a good remission; have had a partial remission; 14% are unimproved, and 18% are dead. 3. The effect of treatment is influenced by the duration of the mental symptoms prior to treatment; by the age of the patient and by the clinical type of the illness. 4. The chances of a successful outcome after treatment diminish in direct ratio to the duration of the mental symptoms prior to treatment. 5. The chances of remission are slightly diminished with the increase of years over forty years of age. 6. The most favourable types in order of degree of improvement are the manic type; the euphoric type; the simple type and the tabo-paretic type. 7. The outlook is much better in the simple "apathetic" type than in the simple "fatuous" type. 8. The speech defect and the tremors have been the neurological signs which showed the most improvement as the result of treatment. The changes in the reflexes were slight and inconsequent. The changes in the pupillary reactions were likewise variable. No pupil which was inactive prior to treatment showed a response after treatment. 9. In the early stages the clinical and serological changes do not run parallel. A partial parallelism exists in the later period as all cases then showing clinical improvement show a concomitant serological improvement. 10. The complications resulting from treatment by tryparsamide in this series have been very few. Visual disturbances occur in a small percentage of cases and are sufficiently important to demand a careful opthalmoscopic examination of all patients prior to treatment. The best method of administration of the drug is the intravenous one. It should not be administered subcutaneously, nor intramuscularly. No bad results have followed upon the extravasation of small amounts into the tissues around the veins. The drug is not cumulative and has been administered regularly at weekly intervals over a period of many months without any detrimental effects. 11. Tryparsamide is a most valuable drug in the treatment of General Paralysis of the Insane and the results obtained in this series are encouraging. It forms a valuable substitute for fever therapy where the latter is contraindicated , but the most effective method of treatment consists in a combination of tryparsamide with fever.

Item Type: Thesis (MD)
Qualification Level: Doctoral
Keywords: Medicine
Date of Award: 1930
Depositing User: Enlighten Team
Unique ID: glathesis:1930-79850
Copyright: Copyright of this thesis is held by the author.
Date Deposited: 03 Mar 2020 10:31
Last Modified: 03 Mar 2020 10:31
URI: https://theses.gla.ac.uk/id/eprint/79850

Actions (login required)

View Item View Item

Downloads

Downloads per month over past year