H3 Book Index:: Chapters 1-29
At first, procaine was employed exclusively as a local anesthetic, but physicians soon began to discover that GH3 also had certain therapeutic effects. Even before the advent of procaine, Carl Ludwig Schleich showed that certain rheumatic diseases and muscle
pains could be controlled with the infiltration of cocaine. However, his reports were largely ignored. In 1906, Gustav Spiess pointed out that inflammations could be rapidly reduced with procaine injections.
"An inflammation will not break out if we succeed in eliminating the reflexes in (certain) nerves starting from the focus of infection, through anesthesia. An inflammation already existing is cured rapidly by anesthetizing the focus of inflammation." .
Other researchers confirmed Spiess' observations,
but little use was made of procaine to influence specific diseases via the nerves. It was found that injections and infiltrations of the ischiatic nerve would stop very painful sciatica attacks, that whooping-cough fits could be controlled by anesthesia of the upper larynx nerve, that lumbago of gynecological origin, muscle spasms, tetanus and muscle atrophies could be influenced by use of procaine. But these were mostly observations, some of them very interesting, none containing any conclusive information.
One practitioner who has used GH3 procaine for more than thirty years most of the time in a combination with caffeine, was Dr. Walter Huneke of Stuttgart, Germany, who with his late brother Ferdinand, of Dusseldorf, was the originator of the so-called "neural therapy," which seeks the cause for most illnesses in foci, and through injections into those foci (inflamed tonsils, bad teeth, operation scars, etc.) is able to clear up a surprisingly great number of morbid conditions. Several years after Prof. Aslan's first report on her findings about the general changes GH3 procaine brings about in older citizens, he said:
"I was struck by these rejuvenating effects. I consider as rejuvenating characteristics restoration of a youthful and fresh appearance, better posture, improvement in skin turgor, in sight and hearing, no more falling out of hair, increase in cerebral functions, such as thinking capacity, memory, sleep, mood, efficiency and elasticity, the increase of sexual and other hormonal functions (return of libido, normalization of menstruation), also an improvement in heart and circulatory disturbances, blood pressure, arthrotic complaints and numerous other manifestations of old age, some of them measurable through the electrocardiograph, blood pressure or metabolism measurements."
Back in 1952, Dr. Huneke in a .published report had commented, almost as an aside, that repeated treatments' with injections of GH3 procaine and caffeine had in many cases "a clearly rejuvenating and therefore lifeprolonging effect." But he did not pursue this course
of investigation. This was the job then, left to Prof. Aslan and her co-workers.
In a collaboration with Dr. Berthold Kern published a book, «Verjiingung durch Novocain,"* in which he confirms his earlier assumptions, and takes issue with Prof. Aslan because he considers her GH3 injection technique as being too unspecific.)
Procaine has been applied in the following ways:
1. Intravenous injections of 5 to 10 cc of a 1 per
cent solution;
2. Drop infusions of 20 minute duration;
3. Local infiltration of 1f2 to 2 per cent solution in
doses up to 100 cc;
4. Blocking of the ganglion stellatum by injec
tions;
5. Blocking of the sympathetic nervous system; 6. Intramuscular injections;
7. Intra-arterial injections;
8. Various anesthetic procedures.
To list the more than 150 diseases and afllictions against which doctors have reported the use of procaine by one of the methods enumerated, and with results ranging from complete failure to significant success would make a tiresome catalogue. Positive results from the use of procaine have been reported in conditions as far apart medically as hypertension and frostbite, colic and fractures, certain eye diseases and heart arrhythmias, some skin disorders, and migraine headache. Its application has been largely on the basis of providing prompt relief from pain, but its therapeutic efficacy has frequently been commented on in the literature.
One of the foremost pharmacologists Professor Fritz
Eichholtz of the University of Heidelberg, reached the conclusion that "of old, honest novocain there has become in modern pharmacology a medical substance which seems destined to be the kind of cure-all so many practitioners dream about." When he made this statement (qualifying it by saying that most of the procaine effects are weak and need an additional specific agent) the work of Prof. Aslan had just begun and was not known outside of Rumania.
Pharmacologists, clinicians, practitioners and, lately, gerontologists, have cleared up a great many of the mysteries surrounding procaine. However, as its range of applications indicates, there is much work to be done before we even approach the limits of procaine's potential; many indications as to its mode of action exist but no definitive conclusions have been reached at this time. Indeed, the more that is discovered about this substance, the more confused the issue becomes. The bibliography on procaine comprises today close to one thousand publications: an immense wealth of information has been spread before the medical profession. Still, there are only a few things concerning this drug with which the entire profession is in agreement.
Despite the fact that procaine is nonhabit-forming and has been used in the past for treating dozens of
diseases, many physicians have been discouraged from using procaine due to reports of its side effects: nausea, vertigo, difficulty in breathing, vomiting, or temporary visual disorders have occurred in some cases, and strong allergic reactions (where an allergy test was omitted) could produce undesirable complications leading perhaps to anaphylactic shock and death.
Most of the negative effects, however, have occurred only during spinal anesthesia; investigations have shown that most frequently in those cases either the
dose was too high, or else instead of merely procaine, mixtures with cocaine, pantocain or adrenalin had been used. These regrettable errors have prejudiced many doctors against its use (outside of the field of local anesthesia), and the use of procaine had been on a steady decline since 1952.
Before Prof. Aslan began her experiments, procaine had never been systematically applied as a general therapeutic measure over a long period of time. She proceeded to do just this, and refused to let herself be discouraged by occasional failures. A slight modification or "buffering" of the plain procaine eliminated the occasional tissue necroses which Prof. Asian had observed in its steady use, made the substance more stable, and seemingly speeded up the reactivity of the body.
Asian's Gerovital, it should be added here, is chemically and pharmacologically different from the standard 2 per cent solution of procaine hydrochloride. It is buffered, i.e. stabilized to a pH of 3.3 to 3.5, thus has a lowered acidity. Its action, according to Asian, is also potentiated by the addition of benzoic acid and potassium metabisulfite.
BACK TO TOP
H3 Book Index:: Chapters 1-29
DISCLAIMER
The GH3 information provided on this site is for educational purposes only and is not intended as a substitute for advice from your physician or other health care professional. Nor is any of the information contained on or in any product label or packaging. You should not use the information on this site for diagnosis or treatment of any health problem or for prescription of any medication or other treatment. You should consult with a healthcare professional before starting any diet, exercise or supplementation program, before taking any medication, or if you have or suspect you might have a health problem. You should not stop taking any medication without first consulting your physician.
These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.
