About 300 cases of so-called Jake paralysis have been reported in Oklahoma City in the past two months. Briefly, these cases present the following symptoms: Sudden onset, with cramps and soreness of the calf muscles, followed in a few hours by complete bilateral paralysis of the anterior and posterior tibial nerves. In most cases, but not in all, there is a paralysis of the musculospiral, median and ulnar nerves. Pain, touch and thermal sensations are not disturbed, but paresthesia is present in many cases. The function of the cranial nerves is normal. Fundus examinations have been negative. In none of the cases reported have there been sphincter disturbances.
Blood counts, complement fixation tests and urinalyses have proved irrelevant. In one case, I found stippling of the red cells, but this patient had been a painter for thirty years. All of these patients have been addicted to alcohol, and nearly all