. Preventive medicine and hygiene. transmitted directlyfrom parents to offspring less frequently than we have heretofore beenled to believe. Chronic alcoholism in the parents is also regarded as a potent pre-disposing factor in the production of epilepsy. Echeherria has analyzed572 cases bearing upon this point, and divided them into three classes, ofwhich 257 cases could be traced directly to alcohol as the cause, 126cases in which there were associated conditions, such as syphilis andtraumatism, 189 cases in which alcoholism was probably the result ofth€ epilepsy. Figures equally strong are
. Preventive medicine and hygiene. transmitted directlyfrom parents to offspring less frequently than we have heretofore beenled to believe. Chronic alcoholism in the parents is also regarded as a potent pre-disposing factor in the production of epilepsy. Echeherria has analyzed572 cases bearing upon this point, and divided them into three classes, ofwhich 257 cases could be traced directly to alcohol as the cause, 126cases in which there were associated conditions, such as syphilis andtraumatism, 189 cases in which alcoholism was probably the result ofth€ epilepsy. Figures equally strong are given by Martin, who, in 150insane epileptics, found 83 with a marked history of paternal intem-perance. Of the 126 Elwyn cases in which the family history of this^Boston M. and 8. Journal, CLXXIV, 16, April 20, 1916, p. 512 THE HEREDITARY TRANSMISSION OF DISEASE point was carefully investigated, a definite statement was found in only4 of the cases (Osier). Huntingtons Chorea.—Huntingtons chorea is frequently ^ 5 The disease is known as chronic hereditary chorea. It was described byLyon in 1863, who traced the disease through five generations. Hunt-ington in 1872 gave the three salient points in connection with the THE HBEEDITAEY TRANSMISSION OF DISEASE 513 disease, viz.: (1) its hereditary nature; (2) association with psychicaltroubles; and (3) late onset between the thirtieth and fortieth year. Huntingtons chorea is a typical dominant trait. The normal con-dition is recessive; in other words, the disease is due to some positivedeterminer. Persons with this dire disease should not have children,but the members of normal branches derived from the affected strainare immune from the disease. This disease forms a striking illustra-tion of the principle that many of the rarer diseases of this countrycan be traced back to a few foci, even to a single focus; certainly in thiscase many of the older families with Huntingtons chorea trace back tothe New Haven colo
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Keywords: ., bookauthorwh, bookcentury1900, bookdecade1910, booksubjecthygiene
