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The common cold as a disease has only a moderate appeal to the otolaryngologist in practice. However, as a health problem it is the concern of all physicians. It is the only ailment that affects virtually every one each year. There is no time of the year when the community is entirely free of colds. The mode of life in the cities is conducive to its spread, for, in spite of advances in ventilation, there are still crowded conditions in schools, factories and offices. In spite of the fact that colds have been known since early times, physicians still have little actual scientific knowledge of their exact cause, their prevention and cure. In general, the results in the treatment of colds are not brilliant. The cold persists in being a complex problem, and it persists in having frequent serious complications. Because the vast majority of these complications occur in the