West Australian (Perth, WA : 1879 - 1954), Tuesday 14 January 1930, page 13


SLEEPLESS FOR 15 YEARS.

Curious Effect of War-Wound.

VIENNA, Jan. 12.-Brain and nerve specialists of Central Europe are puzzled by the astonishing case of M. Paul Kern, a Hungarian Government official, who has

not slept and not even closed his eyes since he was wounded by a Russian bullet on the Eastern Front in 1915. After being wound-ed, he recovered consciousness in a Lem-berg hospital, where he was transported to Budapest. From the moment when he opened his eyes in Lemberg he has not slept; nor, indeed, has he had the slightest desire to do so. The best brain and nerve specialists in Budapest have been unable to trace from X-ray examinations any ab-normality. Dr. Frey, a noted University professor, who has been watching the case for years, admits that he is baffled. Curious-ly, apart from an occasional headache, Kern has not suffered and has not gone to bed for years. His work has not revealed the slightest signs of deterioration. At first he tried to sleep, but hours of wakefulness lying in bed exhausted him more than working.