The recent death of William Helfand, a collector of memorabilia about bogus medical treatments in the United States dating back centuries reminded me of something I wrote many years ago. Mr. Helfand was an expert in the history of quackery and the methods for promoting it.  The article I wrote was published in Medical Device and Diagnostic Industry magazine in 1983. Quack medical devices fraudulently promise to cure disease without evidence of safety or effectiveness. The widespread availability of such products was instrumental in the enactment of the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act of 1938 and the Medical Device Amendments in 1976. Photographs of a number of them are available on the Pinterest website:

 www.pinterest.com/sue57sandoval/quack-medical-devices-and-cures/?lp=true.

The first quack device may have been the first medical item patented under the Constitution. In 1796, the government granted Dr. Elisha Perkins a patent for metal rods called tractors, they consisted of a pair of small brass and iron instruments each about three inches long, flat on one side, rounded on the other, and tapered with a sharp point. One was gold in color, the other silver, the pair sold for about five guineas (around 25 dollars), extremely expensive in those days. Perkins claimed that his tractors used a mysterious force to unlock the secret door to health. The points of the tractors were drawn, first one, then the other across the afflicted surface of the body and allegedly drew the disease elements out. Considering the time period and the quality of medical practice that prevailed, it was not surprising that Perkin's treatment enjoyed amazing popularity.

The availability of quack devices continued through the 19th century, and could be deemed the "Age of Electrotherapeutics." In the belief that electricity could cure a number of ailments, it became common practice to deliberately send shock waves through the body. Much of this theory stemmed from the work of Luigi Galvani, whose research on isolated frog muscles showed they would react spasmodically when exposed to an electrical impulse. There were a wide variety of electrical quack devices, an example was the ”Improved Magneto-Electric Machine for Nervous Diseases." Many similar devices could be found in doctor's offices and a jolt of electricity was often standard therapy.

In 1892, almost a century after Perkin's patent was granted, Dr. Hercules Sanche obtained one for another cure-all device. The "Oxydonor," according to the doctor, "caused the human organism to thirst for, and absorb oxygen, the vitalizer of blood." The oxydonor was a sealed metal cylinder containing a stick of carbon, and an uninsulated, flexible cord was attached at the other end. At the end of the cord was a small disc. To initiate the action the user merely placed the cylinder in a bowl of cold water and attached the disc to a wrist or ankle with an elastic band. The machine supposedly removed oxygen from the water and magically forced it through the "myriad pores" of the patient's body. It was indicated for all forms of disease and advertised in several of America's best monthly magazines.

Sanche was the forerunner for a host of other 20th century charlatans. The most notorious may have been Albert Abrams, founder of "Electronic Medicine" or "Radionics." Abrams claimed to have developed a diagnostic system that could determine the sex, age, race, disease, and even the religion of a patient he had never even seen. Even more miraculous was his invention of an apparatus called the"Oscilloclast." With this device Abrams claimed to be able to cure most of the ills of the flesh. Following the oscilloclast, his inventions became more sophisticated and he even published a book modestly entitled "The Electronic Reactions of Abrams", later shortened to the E.R.A. It disclosed the belief that the human body possesses rates of electronic vibrations of sickness and health. It followed that the type, severity, and location of any disease could be determined by measuring the perturbed vibratory rates. These rates, of course, could be measured by instruments designed by Abrams. For diagnosis, a drop of blood, preserved tissue, a photograph, or a sample of the patient's handwriting was needed. Abrams and his remarkable claims took the world by storm, and the E.R.A. became known throughout the civilized world. Drops of blood on blotters, accompanied by checks for ten dollars poured in by the hundreds to Abram's office in San Francisco.

Many worthless cure-all devices were still being sold in the 1950s and '60s. In fact the Food and Drug Administration and the AMA held a National Congress on Medical Quackery in 1961. Much of this changes with the enactment of the Medical Device Amendments of 1976, but we continue to witness the promotion of quack devices, albeit in a more limited fashion. The old-time hokum still exists and will persist as long as vanity, dishonesty and incurable diseases endure.