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Victims of germ warfare treated successfully after 60 years of open leg wounds

ELDERLY people who have suffered from open legs wounds for more than 60 years after germ warfare attacks by Japanese invaders during World War II have been successfully treated in the city.

Four of a group of 10 people aged between 70 and 91 from Jinhua City in Zhejiang Province have been discharged from Shanghai Punan Hospital.

Doctors said the success is due to a comprehensive treatment program focusing both on leg problems and each patient’s own health problems plus the use of newly developed medical equipment.

A further six patients from the villages which became known as “rotten leg villages” are still receiving treatment and are also said to be progressing well.

They arrived for treatment in Shanghai two weeks ago, with the help volunteers and scholars of Japanese germ warfare.

The group of poor farmers from villages with poor medical facilities had suffered from festering, ulcerous wounds to their legs for 60 to 70 years.

In years gone by, some had gone to local hospitals for treatment, but gave up after failing to see any improvement.

Among the group is Wang Rongfu, 82, who said he developed problems in his right leg after he took a herd of cows onto a hillside when he was 11.

“Dew on the grass wet my leg, which started to fester since then,?he said. “The wound sometimes got better, then worsened again.” The Japanese army used biological weapons that included anthrax and bubonic plague to attack many places including Zhejiang province during the Sino-Japanese War of 1931-1945.

Doctors said all of the group are improving quickly after proper treatment.

“We conducted physical check before treatment and gave therapy while concerning with their own chronic diseases like diabetes and heart diseases,?Said Yin Zhifa, a hospital official said.

He said the hospital used newly developed equipment which can stimulate the activity of white cells and then boost better blood circulation on the wound.

“The machine, developed by Shanghai Jiatong Hospital and our hospital, is still under clinical trial. It use on these patients proves its effectiveness,” he said.




 

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