Hysterical Aphonia Associated With Latent Syphilis

Abstract

cable to mask very sick patients, especially those with respiratory difficulty. These patients are prolific dis¬ tributors of droplet spray. Physicians and attendants, even though properly masked, cannot come within close range of such persons without the danger of infection through the eye. Public health administrators should bear in mind the limitations to the protective value of the gauze mask when worn by the noninfected. The pathologist at the necropsy table should remember that infectious material splashed into the eyes is just as potent as if it had been directly implanted on the mucous membrane of the nasopharynx. CONCLUSIONS 1. The eyes offer a relatively large surface area for the reception of droplets sprayed from the mouths of other persons.2. An organism introduced into the conjunctival sac may be recovered from the nose in five minutes, from the throat in fifteen minutes, and from the stool in twenty-four hours.3. The upper respiratory tract of a person wearing a properly constructed mask may be infected by expos¬ ing the eye briefly to direct droplet spray.4. This portal of entry is of importance in the trans¬