Feind im Blut | |
---|---|
Directed by | Walter Ruttmann |
Written by |
|
Produced by | Lazar Wechsler |
Cinematography |
|
Edited by |
|
Music by | Wolfgang Zeller |
Production company | |
Release date |
|
Running time | 74 minutes |
Countries |
|
Language | German |
Feind im Blut (English: Enemy in the Blood) is a 1931 Swiss-German drama film directed by Walter Ruttmann. It tells three stories about people who become infected with syphilis. There are also documentary parts with information about the disease. The film was co-produced with several organisations focused on combatting sexually transmitted infections.
A student learns that his girlfriend has been unfaithful. He goes out for a night on the town with a friend. The friend spends the night with a waitress and catches syphilis.
A mechanic tries to cure his syphilis by going to a quack. It does not help him. His wife gives birth to a child infected with the disease and commits suicide.
A married woman attends dancing classes. There she meets a young man who gives her syphilis.
The film was made to inform and warn the public about syphilis. It was produced by Praesens-Film in collaboration with the Swiss Society to Combat Sexually Transmitted Diseases, the German Association for the Fight Against Sexually Transmitted Diseases and the Main Health Department of the City of Berlin. Filming took place from 9 February to 27 March 1931 in Berlin and Zürich, with studio scenes in the Lignose-Hörfilm Atelier and Grunewald-Atelier in Berlin. [1]
The film was released in Germany on 14 April 1931. It premiered in Switzerland on 18 April the same year. [1]
Syphilis is a sexually transmitted infection caused by the bacterium Treponema pallidum subspecies pallidum. The signs and symptoms depend on the stage it presents: primary, secondary, latent or tertiary. The primary stage classically presents with a single chancre though there may be multiple sores. In secondary syphilis, a diffuse rash occurs, which frequently involves the palms of the hands and soles of the feet. There may also be sores in the mouth or vagina. Latent syphilis has no symptoms and can last years. In tertiary syphilis, there are gummas, neurological problems, or heart symptoms. Syphilis has been known as "the great imitator" because it may cause symptoms similar to many other diseases.
Chancroid is a bacterial sexually transmitted infection characterized by painful sores on the genitalia. Chancroid is known to spread from one individual to another solely through sexual contact. However, there have been reports of accidental infection through the hand.
Ghosts is a play by the Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen. It was written in Danish and published in 1881, and first staged in 1882 in Chicago, Illinois, US, performed in Danish.
Albert Ludwig Sigesmund Neisser was a German physician who discovered the causative agent (pathogen) of gonorrhea, a strain of bacteria that was named in his honour.
Congenital syphilis is syphilis that occurs when a mother with untreated syphilis passes the infection to her baby during pregnancy or at birth. It may present in the fetus, infant, or later. Clinical features vary and differ between early onset, that is presentation before 2-years of age, and late onset, presentation after age 2-years. Infection in the unborn baby may present as poor growth, non-immune hydrops leading to premature birth or loss of the baby, or no signs. Affected newborns mostly initially have no clinical signs. They may be small and irritable. Characteristic features include a rash, fever, large liver and spleen, a runny and congested nose, and inflammation around bone or cartilage. There may be jaundice, large glands, pneumonia, meningitis, warty bumps on genitals, deafness or blindness. Untreated babies that survive the early phase may develop skeletal deformities including deformity of the nose, lower legs, forehead, collar bone, jaw, and cheek bone. There may be a perforated or high arched palate, and recurrent joint disease. Other late signs include linear perioral tears, intellectual disability, hydrocephalus, and juvenile general paresis. Seizures and cranial nerve palsies may first occur in both early and late phases. Eighth nerve palsy, interstitial keratitis and small notched teeth may appear individually or together; known as Hutchinson's triad.
The Golden Twenties was a particular vibrant period in the history of Berlin. After the Greater Berlin Act, the city became the third largest municipality in the world and experienced its heyday as a major world city. It was known for its leadership roles in science, the humanities, art, music, film, architecture, higher education, government, diplomacy and industries.
Friedrich Wilhelm Felix von Bärensprung, sometimes Baerensprung, often shortened to Felix von Bärensprung was a German dermatologist and entomologist, known for his research into tinea cruris, herpes zoster and syphilis.
Gonorrhoea or gonorrhea, colloquially known as the clap, is a sexually transmitted infection (STI) caused by the bacterium Neisseria gonorrhoeae. Infection may involve the genitals, mouth, or rectum. Infected males may experience pain or burning with urination, discharge from the penis, or testicular pain. Infected females may experience burning with urination, vaginal discharge, vaginal bleeding between periods, or pelvic pain. Complications in females include pelvic inflammatory disease and in males include inflammation of the epididymis. Many of those infected, however, have no symptoms. If untreated, gonorrhea can spread to joints or heart valves.
A sexually transmitted infection (STI), also referred to as a sexually transmitted disease (STD) and the older term venereal disease (VD), is an infection that is spread by sexual activity, especially vaginal intercourse, anal sex, oral sex, or sometimes manual sex. STIs often do not initially cause symptoms, which results in a risk of transmitting them on to others. The term sexually transmitted infection is generally preferred over sexually transmitted disease or venereal disease, as it includes cases with no symptomatic disease. Symptoms and signs of STIs may include vaginal discharge, penile discharge, ulcers on or around the genitals, and pelvic pain. Some STIs can cause infertility.
Wolfgang Zilzer was a German-American stage and film actor, often under the stage name Paul Andor.
Clemens Carl Otto Schmalstich was a German composer, conductor, and Nazi politician.
The Guatemala syphilis experiments were United States-led human experiments conducted in Guatemala from 1946 to 1948. The experiments were led by physician John Charles Cutler, who also participated in the late stages of the Tuskegee syphilis experiment. Doctors infected 1,300 people, including at least 600 soldiers and people from various impoverished groups with syphilis, gonorrhea, and chancroid, without the informed consent of the subjects. Only 700 of them received treatment. In total, 5,500 people were involved in all research experiments, of whom 83 died by the end of 1953, though it is unknown whether or not the injections were responsible for all these deaths. Serology studies continued through 1953 involving the same vulnerable populations in addition to children from state-run schools, an orphanage, and rural towns. However, the intentional infection of patients ended with the original study.
Franz Schulz was a playwright and screenwriter who worked from 1920 through 1956.
Syphilis is a bacterial infection transmitted by sexual contact and is believed to have infected 12 million people in 1999 with greater than 90% of cases in the developing world. It affects between 700,000 and 1.6 million pregnancies a year, resulting in spontaneous abortions, stillbirths, and congenital syphilis. In Sub-Saharan Africa syphilis contributes to approximately 20% of perinatal deaths.
Ernst Behmer was a prolific German stage and film actor who appeared in more than a hundred films during the silent and early sound eras.
Gerhard Max Richard Bienert was a German stage and film actor.
The outbreaks of sexually transmitted infections in World War II brought interest in sex education to the public and the government. During the late 1930s and early 1940s, military maneuvers increased worldwide and sexual hygiene and conduct became major problems for the troops. Soldiers and sailors on assignment overseas were often lonely, had time to spare, got homesick, or were just looking for female companionship. This resulted in many men having multiple sex partners, and as a result, became a major health concern. During the Great War, venereal diseases (V.D.) had caused the United States Army to lose 18,000 servicemen per day. Although by 1944, this number had been reduced 30-fold, there were still around 606 servicemen incapacitated daily. This drop in numbers was partly because of the Army's effort to raise awareness about the dangers faced by servicemen through poor sexual hygiene, and also because of the important developments in medicine. In late 1943, a case of gonorrhea required a hospital treatment of 30 days, and curing syphilis remained a 6-month ordeal. By mid-1944, the average case of gonorrhea was reduced to 5 days, and in many cases the patient remained on duty while being treated.
Louis Guillaume Joseph Doutrelepont was a German surgeon and dermatologist.
Mutual monogamy is a form of monogamy that exists when two partners agree to be sexually active with only one another. Being in a long-term mutually monogamous relationship reduces the risk of acquiring a sexually transmitted infection (STI). It is one of the most reliable ways to avoid STIs. Those who choose mutual monogamy can be tested before the sexual relationship to be certain they are not infected. This strategy for the prevention of acquiring a sexually transmitted infection requires that each partner remain faithful and does not engage in sexual activity with another partner.