f the
venereal peril, these are the two diseases we have in mind.

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

THE CURABILITY OF VENEREAL DISEASE

Gonorrhea May Be Practically Cured in Every Case in Man--Extensive
Gonorrheal Infection in Woman Difficult to Cure--Positive Cure in
Syphilis Impossible to Guarantee.

Just as the usual statements in regard to the extent of venereal
disease have been found untrue or greatly exaggerated, so do the
statements regarding the curability or rather incurability of venereal
disease need careful revision. The picture usually painted of the
hopelessness of gonorrhea and syphilis is too sombre, too black, and,
contrary to the assertions made by laymen and laywomen and physicians
who do not specialize in the treatment of venereal disease, I wish to
make the statement that every case of gonorrhea in man, without any
exception, if properly treated, can be perfectly cured, _as far as
practical purposes are concerned_. I add the last phrase because the
cure may not be perfect in the scientific sense of the word; that is,
the man may not be brought back into the condition in which he was
before he got the disease. But, for all practical purposes, as far as
he himself is concerned, as far as his wife is concerned, and as far
as the future children are concerned, every case may be cured, without
any doubt. And I say this, basing myself upon a varied professional
experience extending over nearly a quarter of a century.

As to gonorrhea in women, that depends to a great extent upon the
virulence of the disease and the promptness with which treatment is
instituted. If the gonorrhea is limited only to the cervix, the vulva
and the urethra, then prompt treatment will usually bring about a cure
in a comparatively short time. But if the gonorrheal inflammation has
extended to the body of the uterus, or still worse, to the tubes, then
the treatment may become a very tedious one, and some cases may not be
curable without an operation.

With syphilis the matter is different. Since the introduction by
Ehrlich of the various arsenic preparations, we have much better
success in the treatment of syphilis, and we can positively render
every case non-infectious to the partner. But, as to guaranteeing a
positive cure, that is, guaranteeing that the patient will never have
an outbreak or relapse of his disease in the future, and that the
children will be perfectly free from any taint, this we can do no more
now tha