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    "localId": "75720331",
    "label": "Letters Received, November 17, 1925",
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    "id": "75720331",
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    "title": "Letters Received, November 17, 1925",
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        "Safety Light Collection",
        "Records Related to Radium Dial Painters"
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    "seq": 3,
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    "type": "document",
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    "ocrText": "COPY\nFOREIGN TRADE BUREAU OF THE PHILADELPHIA COMMERCIAL MUSEUM\nTranslation Department\nLanguage - German\nTranslated by FW\nFrom - Dr. Fernan, Physikallische Abteilung der Radiumstation im Allegemeinen\nAddressed to Welsbach Company\nKrankenhaus --- Wien 1X, Alsersrasse 4\nDate (of original) 11/17/25\nGentlemen:\nI shall reply to the questions put to me as much as possible.\n1. Whether at Vienna or other German Radium Ambulances there takes place a systematic\ncontrol of the State of health of the employees.\nSince a serious illness of a sister, who had to look after the application of the radium\nsupports, we introduced a periodical eximination of the aspect of the blood of the female\nnurses. We ascertained, expecially among the female staff, a far reaching diminution of\nthe white blood corpuscles - Leukopenie- The white blood corpuscles had dropped from\nthe normal number 6000 8000 in 1 cm to 3000 in a. round number. We now established\na service in turns, and have three sisters sèrve in turns, so that the actual working\nhours are limited to 7 hours.\n2. Whether I myself had made some experiences on my person on Radium harms.\nIn the first years after the opening of the Radium Station, where I stayed almost con-\ntinuously from 5 to 6 hours in the emanation work, I too suffered from a far reaching\n\"Leupenie\". Now, when I remain at the maximum 2 hours in the emanation work, the aspect\nof my blood might be called almoşt normal. From the time of the making of the supports\n1913-14 there remained a lasting damage on my fingers; the right index shows spots which\nhave become very horny, and in a spot which is circular, of about 5 mm diameter there is\nloss of tissue, that is histologically -formation of an ulcer or abcess. On the left\nhand three fingers have become very horny, and the damage of the cutaneous papillae has\nadvanced so far that anaesthesia exist in the nerves which inosculate in the papillas.\n3. Whether I know of any publications treating the statistics or the Radium damages\nearly and late.\nStatistics only exist concering the X-ray damages and even in the rays therapeutics\n(\"S trahlentherapie\") the most adapted periodical for such communications there is to be\nfound only something about damages by X-rays.\n4. What provisions were made at Vienna, in order to prevent danges to the employees.\nHow much leave of absence is given.\nBesides the facilitations of service, mentioned above, up to the present we only\ngranted a 4 weeks leave of absence. It is true that through transportable lead wall, the\nbuilding of box containing the radium supports (?) in a cupboard covered with lead\ndiminished very strongly the intensity of the rays, but our measurements ascertained\nthat there still exist - an equal distance presumed -7% of the original radiation which\nreate through a continuous effect disturbances, especially among the femal nursing staff.\n-2-\nThe specific damage of the bone-marrow, of the function of the spleen and in\ngeneral of the blood system, we found unfortunately in a nurse who used to apply for years\nthe carriers, and that with all serious consequences. At first there appeared haavy\nulcerations on both hands, and finally the woman perished of aplastic anemia (in which\ndeformations of the red and white blood corpuscles present themselves). As is known, the\nbone marrow is the site of development of the red blood corpuscles.\nI should like to remakk besides that according to my own researches all radio-\nactive elements, both a and b radiating, exercise the same effect on the blood. I\ninjected \"intravenos\" Polonium, active precipitation, emanation, radium chloride, Thorium\nX, and I could also ascertain with small doses diseases characterized by relative increase\nof white blood corpuscles, with larger doses \"Leukopenie\". In one case we arrived at a\nrabbit through Polonium (500 statistic units were sufficient) to a decrease of\nLeucosytoses down to zero, which of course resulted in the death of the animal.\nI trust that rendered you some service thus, how ever scarce my data may be.\nYours very truly"
}