Ask Fuzzy: Who was Sister Elizabeth Kenny?

The Advertiser

2 days ago

In June 1916, New York officially declared a polio epidemic and, in doing so, instigated a practice that we might find unacceptable today. Newspapers published the names and addresses of sufferers, placards were nailed to doors, and families quarantined.
Australians too, were affected. Polio became a notifiable disease in Tasmania and other states by 1922. Despite these measures, polio incidents continued to rise until 1938, when in Australia the number of cases peaked at 39 per 100,000.
Polio, sometimes called infantile paralysis, is a devastating disease that causes muscle fatigue and spasms in the limbs, often accompanied by severe pain.
When Elizabeth Kenny first encountered the disease, the accepted practice was to immobilise the patient.
With splints and plaster body casts to prevent muscle tightening, many paralysed patients lay for months at a time.
Unfortunately this would often atrophy both affected and healthy muscles.
The Australian Elizabeth Kenny (1880 -1952) became something of a maverick by developing what was then considered a radical treatment.
In 1913 Kenny opened a small hospital in Queensland, where her method was reportedly used with success.
To ease pain, she lay strips of hot moist cloth over the person's affected areas. And rather than immobilising her patients, she had them do exercises such as bending and flexing joints.
Several times a day, they'd move them through a limited range of motion.
In doing so, she went directly against the orthodoxy, but her methods are now thought to be a forerunner of modern physiotherapy.
However Elizabeth Kenny remains a tricky subject. In some ways, she resembles today's self-appointed heroes who reveal their groundbreaking treatment that busts open the orthodoxy. Kenny appears to have been a skilled self-promoter. She became famous in the United States and her story even featured in a 1946 Hollywood movie.
But some saw her as a tireless propagandist who manipulated, or even falsified, her results.
She claimed to have achieved an astounding 80 per cent recovery rate, but this was based on observation and intuition rather than any scientific study.
MORE ASK FUZZY:
Her approach was based on a fundamental misconception that the problem was a muscular one that could be corrected through "muscle re-education".
As some researchers thought at the time and has subsequently been proven, polio paralysis is actually a neurological condition.
As someone with direct experience of RSI (Repetitive Strain Injury) and Frozen Shoulder (adhesive capsulitis), I cannot imagine a worse treatment than to stop a person exercising.
Treatment today is more nuanced. As with the Kenny method, it includes hot moist packs and physical therapy. However, institutions such as the Mayo Clinic also include appropriate bed rest and even "splints or other devices to encourage good position of the spine and limbs".
The Fuzzy Logic Science Show is at 11am Sundays on 2xx 98.3FM.
Send your questions to [e-mail]; Podcast: FuzzyLogicOn2xx.Podbean.com
In June 1916, New York officially declared a polio epidemic and, in doing so, instigated a practice that we might find unacceptable today. Newspapers published the names and addresses of sufferers, placards were nailed to doors, and families quarantined.
Australians too, were affected. Polio became a notifiable disease in Tasmania and other states by 1922. Despite these measures, polio incidents continued to rise until 1938, when in Australia the number of cases peaked at 39 per 100,000.
Polio, sometimes called infantile paralysis, is a devastating disease that causes muscle fatigue and spasms in the limbs, often accompanied by severe pain.
When Elizabeth Kenny first encountered the disease, the accepted practice was to immobilise the patient.
With splints and plaster body casts to prevent muscle tightening, many paralysed patients lay for months at a time.
Unfortunately this would often atrophy both affected and healthy muscles.
The Australian Elizabeth Kenny (1880 -1952) became something of a maverick by developing what was then considered a radical treatment.
In 1913 Kenny opened a small hospital in Queensland, where her method was reportedly used with success.
To ease pain, she lay strips of hot moist cloth over the person's affected areas. And rather than immobilising her patients, she had them do exercises such as bending and flexing joints.
Several times a day, they'd move them through a limited range of motion.
In doing so, she went directly against the orthodoxy, but her methods are now thought to be a forerunner of modern physiotherapy.
However Elizabeth Kenny remains a tricky subject. In some ways, she resembles today's self-appointed heroes who reveal their groundbreaking treatment that busts open the orthodoxy. Kenny appears to have been a skilled self-promoter. She became famous in the United States and her story even featured in a 1946 Hollywood movie.
But some saw her as a tireless propagandist who manipulated, or even falsified, her results.
She claimed to have achieved an astounding 80 per cent recovery rate, but this was based on observation and intuition rather than any scientific study.
MORE ASK FUZZY:
Her approach was based on a fundamental misconception that the problem was a muscular one that could be corrected through "muscle re-education".
As some researchers thought at the time and has subsequently been proven, polio paralysis is actually a neurological condition.
As someone with direct experience of RSI (Repetitive Strain Injury) and Frozen Shoulder (adhesive capsulitis), I cannot imagine a worse treatment than to stop a person exercising.
Treatment today is more nuanced. As with the Kenny method, it includes hot moist packs and physical therapy. However, institutions such as the Mayo Clinic also include appropriate bed rest and even "splints or other devices to encourage good position of the spine and limbs".
The Fuzzy Logic Science Show is at 11am Sundays on 2xx 98.3FM.
Send your questions to [e-mail]; Podcast: FuzzyLogicOn2xx.Podbean.com
In June 1916, New York officially declared a polio epidemic and, in doing so, instigated a practice that we might find unacceptable today. Newspapers published the names and addresses of sufferers, placards were nailed to doors, and families quarantined.
Australians too, were affected. Polio became a notifiable disease in Tasmania and other states by 1922. Despite these measures, polio incidents continued to rise until 1938, when in Australia the number of cases peaked at 39 per 100,000.
Polio, sometimes called infantile paralysis, is a devastating disease that causes muscle fatigue and spasms in the limbs, often accompanied by severe pain.
When Elizabeth Kenny first encountered the disease, the accepted practice was to immobilise the patient.
With splints and plaster body casts to prevent muscle tightening, many paralysed patients lay for months at a time.
Unfortunately this would often atrophy both affected and healthy muscles.
The Australian Elizabeth Kenny (1880 -1952) became something of a maverick by developing what was then considered a radical treatment.
In 1913 Kenny opened a small hospital in Queensland, where her method was reportedly used with success.
To ease pain, she lay strips of hot moist cloth over the person's affected areas. And rather than immobilising her patients, she had them do exercises such as bending and flexing joints.
Several times a day, they'd move them through a limited range of motion.
In doing so, she went directly against the orthodoxy, but her methods are now thought to be a forerunner of modern physiotherapy.
However Elizabeth Kenny remains a tricky subject. In some ways, she resembles today's self-appointed heroes who reveal their groundbreaking treatment that busts open the orthodoxy. Kenny appears to have been a skilled self-promoter. She became famous in the United States and her story even featured in a 1946 Hollywood movie.
But some saw her as a tireless propagandist who manipulated, or even falsified, her results.
She claimed to have achieved an astounding 80 per cent recovery rate, but this was based on observation and intuition rather than any scientific study.
MORE ASK FUZZY:
Her approach was based on a fundamental misconception that the problem was a muscular one that could be corrected through "muscle re-education".
As some researchers thought at the time and has subsequently been proven, polio paralysis is actually a neurological condition.
As someone with direct experience of RSI (Repetitive Strain Injury) and Frozen Shoulder (adhesive capsulitis), I cannot imagine a worse treatment than to stop a person exercising.
Treatment today is more nuanced. As with the Kenny method, it includes hot moist packs and physical therapy. However, institutions such as the Mayo Clinic also include appropriate bed rest and even "splints or other devices to encourage good position of the spine and limbs".
The Fuzzy Logic Science Show is at 11am Sundays on 2xx 98.3FM.
Send your questions to [e-mail]; Podcast: FuzzyLogicOn2xx.Podbean.com
In June 1916, New York officially declared a polio epidemic and, in doing so, instigated a practice that we might find unacceptable today. Newspapers published the names and addresses of sufferers, placards were nailed to doors, and families quarantined.
Australians too, were affected. Polio became a notifiable disease in Tasmania and other states by 1922. Despite these measures, polio incidents continued to rise until 1938, when in Australia the number of cases peaked at 39 per 100,000.
Polio, sometimes called infantile paralysis, is a devastating disease that causes muscle fatigue and spasms in the limbs, often accompanied by severe pain.
When Elizabeth Kenny first encountered the disease, the accepted practice was to immobilise the patient.
With splints and plaster body casts to prevent muscle tightening, many paralysed patients lay for months at a time.
Unfortunately this would often atrophy both affected and healthy muscles.
The Australian Elizabeth Kenny (1880 -1952) became something of a maverick by developing what was then considered a radical treatment.
In 1913 Kenny opened a small hospital in Queensland, where her method was reportedly used with success.
To ease pain, she lay strips of hot moist cloth over the person's affected areas. And rather than immobilising her patients, she had them do exercises such as bending and flexing joints.
Several times a day, they'd move them through a limited range of motion.
In doing so, she went directly against the orthodoxy, but her methods are now thought to be a forerunner of modern physiotherapy.
However Elizabeth Kenny remains a tricky subject. In some ways, she resembles today's self-appointed heroes who reveal their groundbreaking treatment that busts open the orthodoxy. Kenny appears to have been a skilled self-promoter. She became famous in the United States and her story even featured in a 1946 Hollywood movie.
But some saw her as a tireless propagandist who manipulated, or even falsified, her results.
She claimed to have achieved an astounding 80 per cent recovery rate, but this was based on observation and intuition rather than any scientific study.
MORE ASK FUZZY:
Her approach was based on a fundamental misconception that the problem was a muscular one that could be corrected through "muscle re-education".
As some researchers thought at the time and has subsequently been proven, polio paralysis is actually a neurological condition.
As someone with direct experience of RSI (Repetitive Strain Injury) and Frozen Shoulder (adhesive capsulitis), I cannot imagine a worse treatment than to stop a person exercising.
Treatment today is more nuanced. As with the Kenny method, it includes hot moist packs and physical therapy. However, institutions such as the Mayo Clinic also include appropriate bed rest and even "splints or other devices to encourage good position of the spine and limbs".
The Fuzzy Logic Science Show is at 11am Sundays on 2xx 98.3FM.
Send your questions to [e-mail]; Podcast: FuzzyLogicOn2xx.Podbean.com