Talk:Amelia Earhart/Archive 10

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Summary

AE's health problems

Dear colleagues, since - as i saw - some kind of "discussion" appeared (as exchange of remarks) about AE's sinus problems, i thought that this attempt (below) to "summarize" the problem on the base of the quotes from different Earhart's biographies may be possibly helpful.

1918

Apparently, the first time when the sinus inflammation problem appeared in AE when she volunteered as a nurse's aid in the Spadina Military Hospital in Toronto, in 1918.

1918, nursing work at Spadina Military Hospital in Toronto

This is how AE describes the appearance of the problem herself: "At the end of my brief hospital career, I became a patient myself. It was probably the case of trying to carry on all day as usual and work all night. Anyway, I collected a bug that took up residence in the inaccessible little hole behind one's cheek called the antrum. The result was several minor operations and a rather long period of convalescence. Some of this was spent at Northampton where my sister was at Smith and the rest of Lake George" - "The Fun Of It" by Amelia Earhart (1932), p.21.

1918, workload stress, sounds like antrum is being used in a generic sense to refer to the maxillary sinus. Could be L or R. Sinus would be the modern word used now instead of antrum here (in the UK). several minor operations, long convalescence Northampton with sister then Lake George.

Amelia's sister Muriel wrote in her book: "In the spring of 1918, I moved to Northampton, Massachusetts. Early in November, Amelia was hospitalized by a serious attack of pneumonia. She missed celebrating the Armistice. When she recovered sufficiently to travel, Amelia came to Northampton to stay with me to recuperate. I had rented a small apartment on Bedford Terrace and took care of her while i studied for the four comprehensive entrance examinations required by Smith College" - "Amelia. My Courageous Sister" by Muriel Earhart Morrissey and Carol L.Osborne (1987), p.54. Amelia's biographer Mary S. Lovell wrote: "...When the great influenza epidemic struck, Amelia worked night duty on the pneumonia ward, as the virus attacked the patients and staff alike. It is hardly surprising that before long she, too, fell victim. Amelia was still recovering when the armistice was signed on November, 11, but, in any case, she was scathing about the peace celebrations". Then Mary Lovell quotes the private letter from Amelia to her friend Kenneth Merrill:

before 1918 Nov 11 hospitalized, flu pandemic. Pneumonia caused by flu is worse than other forms of pneumonia. Likely to have painful pleuritis. At armistice day Nov 11, convalescence cared by sister in Northampton.

" December 1918 Kenneth dear, ...I am just out of the hospital where the effects of the flu [epidemic]... put me. I think working twelve to fourteen hours at a stretch added to the strain of having carried on all summer - made me a more then normally easy prey for influenza, and an infection in my nose at the same time which later necessitated an operation after which flu symptoms reappeared. Altogether I have more then a two months siege and face the awful prospect of doing nothing for two more." - "The Sound Of Wings" by Mary S.Lovell (1989), p.27.

Sinusitis is often precipitated by viruses, including flu.

1918 Dec hospital discharge. Ill for more than 2 months with 2 more months convalescence. Sinus operation. work long hours,

Amelia's biographer Doris L. Rich commented (although giving a bit different “timeframe” of when exactly the problem appeared): “…Although she continued to work through the winter of 1918-1919, during a worldwide influenza epidemic that claimed more lives then the war, by late January she was bedridden with a serious sinus infection. Without antibiotics, opening and drainage of the sinus cavities was the only treatment available. These “washings out”, as she called them, were agonizing and only partially effective leaving her a semi-invalid. In February, she left Toronto for Northampton, Massachusetts, to join Muriel who was taking preparatory courses for entrance to Smith College in the fall” - “Amelia Earhart: A Biography” by Doris L.Rich (1989) – p. 20.

Jan 1919, bedridden with sinusitis. Sinus wash out, a minor but unpleasant procedure, no anaesthetic, different forms of "washout" and "irrigation". a semi-invalid

(Feb 1919), convalescence Northampton with sister.

AE’s biographers Donald M. Goldstein and Katherine V. Dillon describes the problem in details, referring to Amelia’s book “20 Hours 40 Minutes”: “The influenza epidemic of 1918 struck Toronto. This was one of history’s major disasters, claiming twenty million lives worldwide. Sister Amelia was one of the few permitted on night duty, and she served in a pneumonia ward where she “helped to ladle out medicine from buckets.” She stayed well throughout the epidemic that killed so many and then took seriously ill with what she diagnosed as “a case of too much nursing, perhaps with too long hours.” She suffered from “pain and pressure around one eye and copious drainage via the nostrils and throat.” Today a doctor would probably prescribe antibiotics, but these had not been discovered in 1918, so Amelia had to endure several minor operations and a long convalescence.” - “Amelia: a Life of the Aviation Legend” by Donald M. Goldstein and Katherine V. Dillon (1997) – p.26.

1918 job "sister Amellia", ladle out medicine from buckets, sounds like a liquid medicine. pain and pressure around one eye and copious drainage via the nostrils and throat, several minor operations and a long convalescence. no antibiotics

Also see: ”20 Hours 40 Minutes” by Amelia Earhart (1928), p.43. Jean L.Backus, AE researcher and the author of the book “Letters from Amelia” – citing and analyzing a lot of authentic Amelia’s private letters to her friends and relatives, first of all to her mother Amy, - comments: “The Armistice of November 11, 1918, not only constituted another watershed for Amelia Earhart, it preceded one of the first of several episodes of ill health coincident with periods of great stress in her life. She was through with boarding school, restless, undecided about a career, and she was seriously ill with a severe infection. One of the volunteers permitted night duty on the pneumonia ward, she apparently had kept well during the strenuous schedules required to cope with the great influenza epidemic which followed World War I and killed twenty million people around the world. Once the emergency was over, she took to her bed. Today the illness would be diagnosed as sinusitis and dealt with handily, but in 1918 there were no antibiotics, and only irrigation of the sinus cavities was offered in the way of treatment…[…]…Her body responded to sights and sounds and smells of distress in others {her patients} with pain and pressure around one eye and copious drainage via the nostrils and throat. Despite the “washings out” as Amelia named the irrigations, the torment of chronic sinus infection persisted throughout the rest of her life, including flights of 1932 and 1935. ” - Jean L.Backus, “Letters from Amelia” (1982) – p.49-50.

Nov 1918, finished boarding school, stress, long work hours as volunteer, with pain and pressure around one eye and copious drainage via the nostrils and throat, chronic sinus infection pain in flights of 1932 and 1935

suggests only irrigation of the sinus cavities was offered in the way of treatment then.

Here's how Susan Butler, another AE's recognized biographer, commented the events: "...Amelia was tough, but, but finally she too, felt ill. She was hit with a pneumococcal bacterial infection in her frontal antrum, where the pressure so builds up in the sinuses that severe, chronic pain results. Without antibiotics, the only treatment was to surgically open the cavity, drain the infections, and keep it open and draining until all traces of the infection completely disappeared. Amelia was operated upon. It was a long, debilitating course of treatment, lasting mounts, and it so seriously weakened Amelia that it took the rest of the winter for her to recover her strength. Even then it turned out that the infection had not been totally eradicated; it would remain a serious problem for years.

?year, a pneumococcal bacterial infection in her frontal sinus. chronic pain. Antrum again being used for sinus. Surgical opening cavity. months convalescence and weakness. infection not eradicated.

?? sounds like a different episode to the above 1918 one. ?? is this speculative?

She spent her convalescence in Northampton, Massachusetts, where Amy had taken an apartment in order to be with Muriel, who was now studying at Miss Capen's School so she would do well on the College Board examinations required for entrance to Smith College. There Amelia rested." -"East To The Dawn: The Life Of Amelia Earhart" by Susan Butler (1997), p. 86.

1918, rest

Likely consistencies of 1918 illness

After finishing boarding school, Earhart volunteered for nursing work at Spadina Military Hospital in Toronto. She was working at the time the 1918 flu epidemic struck Toronto, and she was put on a arduous duties including night duties. She contracted flu and got pneumonia and maxillary sinusitis as complications of flu. She was hospitalised in early November 1918 owing to pneumonia and discharged in December 1918, by which time she had been ill for about 2 months. Sinus related symptoms were pain and pressure around one eye and copious drainage via the nostrils and throat. In hospital she had painful sinus washouts to clean out the maxillary sinus (?Left or Right side). She was expected to need 2 months convalescence and rest. which she spent partly at Northampton, Massachusetts and partly at Lake George. She was convalescing at the time of the 11 November 1918 armistice and missed the celebrations.

after 1918

In following years it became obvious that the problem was not really removed completely - that is understandable if to consider that it was a pre-antibiotic era. So in following years, AE was persistently plagued by assaults of the sinus inflammations and the inevitable accompanying symptoms like headache.

years after 1918, chronic sinusitis with exacerbations, symptomatic, headache

The years 1921-1923, spent by AE with her parents in California, were AE's first years of her activity as a pilot... But in these years, sometimes the chronic sinus problem sharpened to such a degree that AE was forced to wore - even on public - the small drainage tube covered by a bandage, for to drain the abcess still plaguing her and to cure this way the tormenting headache caused by a persisting sinus inflammation.

1921-1923, drainage tube covered with a bandage to drain abscess, headache, persisting sinus inflammation. Are there any photoes to establish in on L or R an site of bandage?

(a drainage tube might not have been that tiny)

AE’s biographer Doris L. Rich wrote about this period: “…Another admirer was Winfield Kinner, Jr., an eleven year-old schoolboy. …[…]…He was also impressed by what seemed to him considerable stoicism on the day she removed a small bandage from her check to show his mother the tiny tube used to drain the chronic abcess of the antrum which continued to plague her.” - - “Amelia Earhart: A Biography” by Doris L.Rich (1989) – p. 32.

??date, tiny tube in check to drain chronic abscess, ? L or R

This persisting and painful problem (that was especially boring because of AE’s flying, as it caused an extremely uncomfortable and painful effects at the rapid changes of air pressure caused by a changes of altitude when flying in open cockpits characteristic for the era) - finally made the next surgical intrusion inevitable and necessary. Unfortunately it wasn’t successful and, soon after it, it was clear that the new surgical intrusion is inevitable and will be necessary pretty soon. So when AE and her mother left California for Boston in May 1924, for to join AE’s sister Muriel (who departed earlier before by train), AE was far from being and feeling healthy.

Before May 1924, pressure effects presumed in a blocked sinus containing some air, Surgery done, not successful. another op planned.

As Mary S. Lovell, AE's biographer, wrote: "...To add to Amelia's existing problems, - and perhaps exacerbate them - the condition (an abscess in the nasal passages that had created a deep-seated sinus infection causing a great deal of pain) that had first occurred during her time at Spadina now flared up again. An operation was advised, which she undertook somewhat nervously. The aftermath was months of further physical discomfort and the ignominy of being harried by a debt-collection agency for payment of the five-hundred-dollar medical fees. It took a year for Amelia to pay off this sum, but by then she had left California." - "The Sound Of Wings" by Mary S.Lovell (1989), p.47. About this second surgery, Doris L.Rich wrote: “…In 1924, less then nine months after she received her FAI license {May 15 1923}, Amelia Earhart was hospitalized for another sinus operation.” - “Amelia Earhart: A Biography” by Doris L.Rich (1989) – p. 32. As the biographer Susan Butler wrote about this second surgery, "...Amelia was laid low by the return of the infection in her antrum, the result of the strain of packing up all the Earhart possessions, ...[...]... An operation was called for to drain pneumococcal infection. The procedure cost five hundred dollars, which Amelia left unpaid." - "East To The Dawn: The Life Of Amelia Earhart" by Susan Butler (1997), p. 117.

Abscess in nasal passages, sinus infection, painful, $500 medical fees for operation

1924, hospitalised for sinus operation (less than 9 months after May = March 1924)

Operation to drain pneumococcal infection from sinus (antrum used for sinus), $500 medical fees

The biographer Doris L.Rich wrote: “Amelia and Amy left Hollywood on a bright May day. Barely recovered from one operation and knowing another would be necessary as soon as she reached Boston, Amelia was determined to see something on the way” – “Amelia Earhart: A Biography” by Doris L.Rich (1989) – p. 40.

? year May (probably 1924), recovered from one op, but another op needed.

Thus, AE “transformed” her transcontinental trip with her mother into the Big Tour across several US (and Canadian) National Parks and other famous places and landmarks. Apparently that second surgery was so much unsuccessful that it rather sharpened the problem than cured it; so, before the across-the-country car trip of AE and her mother ended, she felt even worse. As Mary Lovell wrote: "...The pain in her head was, by the end of the journey, insupportable. Within days of her arrival in Boston, Amelia entered Massachusetts Memorial Hospital for an operation in which a small piece of bone was removed to allow drainage of the sinuses. It was completely successful and after a short convalescence, she was free of pain for the first time in four years." - "The Sound Of Wings" by Mary S.Lovell (1989), pp.48-49.

year, 2nd op made pain worse and unbearable, piece of bone removed for sinus drainage, complete success, short convalescence and then pain free

Biographers Donald M. Goldstein and Katherine V. Dillon wrote: “Within a week of joining Muriel, Amelia was in a hospital. The breakup of her parents’ marriage had coincided with a severe attack of her old sinus problem, an ailment that throughout her life flared up during the periods of stress. In Massachusetts General Hospital a small piece of bone was removed to permit drainage. Upon discharge she declared that for the first time in four years she was free of headache and nasal pain. ” - “Amelia: a Life of the Aviation Legend” by Donald M. Goldstein and Katherine V. Dillon (1997) – p.35.

?? 1924 date, parents' divorce, stress, coincided with exacerbation, piece of bone removed for drainage, then free of headache and nasal pain.

As Susan Butler comments: "The last part of it [the trip] was a labor of love for Amelia, for the [recent] operation had not completely drained out the infection, and there was a pressure and pain in her sinus. Three days after their arrival in Boston, Amelia checked into Massachusetts General Hospital, where yet again doctors opened up her sinus and drained out the infection. This time her recovery was excruciatingly slow. She spent the months in Medford, a suburb of Boston where Muriel had found a teaching job and a house nearby for herself and her mother to live in." - "East To The Dawn: The Life Of Amelia Earhart" by Susan Butler (1997), p. 117.

?date, arrived Boston, 3 days, Massachsetts General Hospital, sinus opened and infection drained. Slow recovery lasting months

The biographer Doris L.Rich wrote: “The seven thousand-mile trip to Boston took six weeks. Two weeks later Amelia entered Boston General Hospital for more surgery. After her release she joined Amy and Muriel in Medford, a suburb of Boston, where Muriel was teaching at Lincoln Junior High…[…]… Before Amelia could think about another plane, Amy offered her the money for a second year at Columbia University and Amelia accepted, returning there in September 1924.” -“Amelia Earhart: A Biography” by Doris L.Rich (1989) – p. 40.

?year, (before Sept 1924) Arrived Boston, 2 wks, operation at Boston General Hospital

As Jean Backus commented: “Within a week of their arrival, Amelia entered Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston for surgery. During the four stressful years in California, while Edwin and Amy struggled to preserve their marriage, and Amelia acted as a buffer between them, she had never been free of headache and nasal discomfort. Her flying had not helped the condition. The goggles and helmet she wore did not entirely protect her face from the effect of wind and cold in an open cockpit, and she had constantly endured probes and irrigations which never brought more then temporary relief. During her hospital stay, a small piece of bone was surgically removed to allow natural drainage from the offending antrum. For the first time in years, she was free of headache and nasal discomfort, but the difficulty would return and she would mention other attacks after periods of great stress in the future.” - Jean L.Backus, “Letters from Amelia” (1982) – p.61.

Parents marriage problems over 4 years, small piece of bone removed to allow drainage of sinus, (the offending antrum - which one). arrived in Boston, <1 wk, entered Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston for surgery, free of headaches and nasal discomfort after op.

That's how AE's sister Muriel wrote about these 1924 surgeries - after 50+ years: "...Soon after Amelia and Mother arrived in Medford, Amelia was troubled by a recurring sinus infection which dated back to living in Toronto. It flared up in California the previous year, and she went through some painful and ineffective treatments. Upon the advice of our Medford doctor, she had nasal surgery. The surgeon removed a small piece of bone in her nasal passage, allowing her sinuses to drain. Surgery cured the problem completely. Amelia left the hospital after about a week's stay, entirely free from headache and nasal discomfort for the first time in four years." - "Amelia. My Courageous Sister" by Muriel Earhart Morrissey and Carol L.Osborne (1987), p.54.

?year, nasal discomfort, headaches over 4 years, during which time she had some painful and ineffective treatments. 1 wk stay in hospital and operation, much better.

Likley consistencies 1918 to 1935

Earhart continued to have chronic sinusitis with exacerbations after her 1918 operation, and for years afterwards she continued to get sinus pains and headaches. She had several unpleasant and painful sinus washouts, which gave temporary relief. At times she wore a drainage tube to drain the sinus and covered it with a bandage on her cheek. Pressure effects due to flying at various altitudes exacerbated the pain and discomfort, and her face was partially exposed to the wind and cold in open cockpit aircraft. She had an operation in the spring of 1924, but the pain became worse and almost unbearable. She had to pay $500 medical fees, and she was pursued by a debt-collection agency.

Her parents divorced in 1924 which added to her stress. She was admitted to the Massachusetts Memorial Hospital in Boston for one week for another operation, a small piece of bone was removed to allow drainage of the sinus, and she became free of pain and headaches.

1935 operation

However in those pre-antibiotic days apparently the problem still could not be solved definitely, once and forever. So after 11 years, in 1935 - after an extremely intensive and especially stressful and exhaustive several-months-period of professional activities of all kinds - she was bedridden with this old problem again.

1935, workload stress, sinus problems, bedridden.

As Mary Lovell wrote about this period of 1935, "...The heavy demands made on Amelia that spring took an inevitable toll, for in June she became with the old recurrent sinus problems. An operation was followed by an attack of pleurisy and she was bedridden for ten days. George, who had been in New York, flew to her side." [He] arrived yesterday, which helps," she {Amelia} wrote Amy {her Mother}." - "The Sound Of Wings" by Mary S.Lovell (1989), p. 219.

1935 spring, workload stress

1935 June, sinus op due to sinus pain, pleuritis, bedridden 10 days. George comforted her.

As biographers Donald M. Goldstein and Katherine V. Dillon wrote: “In view of the murderous schedule Amelia had been following so far in 1935, it is not surprising to find her writing to Amy {her Mother} from Cedars of Lebanon Hospital in Los Angeles on June 1935. “The sinus is kicking up and I am tired of being beaten up with washings out so Dr. Goldstein is going to work on me tomorrow.”…[…]… The next day Amelia had her operation. Dr. Joseph Goldstein told the press that it was “minor and unimportant”, and the patient “would leave the hospital in a day or two”. Nevertheless it was a painful nuisance to Amelia. She left Cedars of Lebanon as soon as she was able and went to a friend’s. She wrote to her mother on July 5: “There is a backache I had which I thot was a strained muscle turned into pleurisy. I am still in bed with my side strapped. GP arrived yesterday, which helps. I am getting on now, and can get up as soon as 3 days pass in which I run no temperature. The nose is healing OK though I am warned I’ll have a headache for another week!” - “Amelia: a Life of the Aviation Legend” by Donald M. Goldstein and Katherine V. Dillon (1997) – p.143.

1935, June, hospitalised, surgeon Dr Goldstein, in press "minor and unimportant" - probably a simplification. In hospital several days.

1935, July 5, at friends, backache due to pleuritis, side strapped, feverish, nose healing, headache for more than one 1 wk.

As Susan Butler commented, "...By summer she was run down, understandably. At the end of June her sinuses were kicking up so badly, she landed in Cedars of Lebanon Hospital in L.A., then got pleurisy. It threw all their [AE's and GP's - Alex] plans off schedule and meant they would not get to the Double Dee ranch that summer after all" - "East To The Dawn: The Life Of Amelia Earhart" by Susan Butler (1997), p. 339.

1935, end of summer, hospitalised Cedars of Lebanon Hospital in LA. pleuritis.

As Doris L.Rich wrote: “Exhausted by three long-distance flights and three lecture tours in six months Amelia was hospitalized with a severe sinus infection. On June 25, the day after her last lecture, she entered the Cedars of Lebanon hospital for surgery. She told her mother she was “tired of being beaten up with washing out” (in which a syringe was used to pump a solution into the atrium to flush out the debris of suppurating tissue which then drained from the patient’s mouth. The alternative was surgery to enlarge or correct blocked nasal passages for normal drainage). From the hospital she went to the Oceanside ranch of GP’s friends, the Louis Lightons, to recuperate. She was bedridden there with a backache she assumed was caused by a strained muscle was actually pleurisy. When GP arrived on the fourth of July she was still in bed with her ribs strapped, but her nose was healing.” – “Amelia Earhart: A Biography” by Doris L.Rich (1989) – p. 207. Also see: Jean L.Backus, “Letters from Amelia” (1982) – p.175.

1935, June 25, admitted to Cedars of Lebanon hospital. exhaustion after lecture tours in 6 months, tired of sinus washouts. Surgery, recuperate at Oceanside ranch, backache, pleuritis, bed bound with ribs strapped, nose healing.

Thus the different solid credible biographic sources, that refers to the original letters and other family documents and related records, certainly indicates that Amelia Earhart had a serious and persisting chronic sinus inflammation problems, that plagued her with a periodic “assaults” since 1918 – when she “collected the bug” in Toronto, during the worldwide influenza epidemia – to 30s, when the problem again demanded a surgical intrusion as late as in 1935. Although slightly differing in the referred exact dates of surgeries and such a things as exact length of the recuperation periods (that is understandable - as all the sources describes the events after 50 or mory years passed), it is certain that all the sources positively confirms that in total, the problem demanded as many as 4 surgical intrusions during the period 1918 - 1935. Best regards to all - sincerely, Alex V Mandel (talk) 07:38, 24 November 2007 (UTC)

summary, 1918 to 1935, 4 intrusions, Is a sinus washout counted here??

Likely consistencies of 1935 illness and operation

Earhart had a exhausting workload in the spring of 1935 and she become ill with sinusitis. She was fed-up of "sinus washouts". On 24 June 1935 she was hospitalised, and had a sinus operation the following day under care of the surgeon Dr Goldstein at the Cedars of Lebanon Hospital. Her surgeon made a statement for the press. After several days in hospital she was discharged, and she went to stay with her husbands friends at Oceanside ranch, the Louis Lightons, where in early July she developed pain which she initially thought was a strained back muscle, but was actually due to pleuritis; she was feverish, her ribs were strapped, and she was bedridden for 10 days. George flu back from New York on the 4th July, which comforted her. He nose healed over a week or two.

AE's health problems

Dear colleagues, since - as i saw - some kind of "discussion" appeared (as exchange of remarks) about AE's sinus problems, i thought that this attempt (below) to "summarize" the problem on the base of the quotes from different Earhart's biographies may be possibly helpful.

Apparently, the first time when the sinus inflammation problem appeared in AE when she volunteered as a nurse's aid in the Spadina Military Hospital in Toronto, in 1918.

This is how AE describes the appearance of the problem herself: "At the end of my brief hospital career, I became a patient myself. It was probably the case of trying to carry on all day as usual and work all night. Anyway, I collected a bug that took up residence in the inaccessible little hole behind one's cheek called the antrum. The result was several minor operations and a rather long period of convalescence. Some of this was spent at Northampton where my sister was at Smith and the rest of Lake George" - "The Fun Of It" by Amelia Earhart (1932), p.21.

Amelia's sister Muriel wrote in her book: "In the spring of 1918, I moved to Northampton, Massachusetts. Early in November, Amelia was hospitalized by a serious attack of pneumonia. She missed celebrating the Armistice. When she recovered sufficiently to travel, Amelia came to Northampton to stay with me to recuperate. I had rented a small apartment on Bedford Terrace and took care of her while i studied for the four comprehensive entrance examinations required by Smith College" - "Amelia. My Courageous Sister" by Muriel Earhart Morrissey and Carol L.Osborne (1987), p.54. Amelia's biographer Mary S. Lovell wrote: "...When the great influenza epidemic struck, Amelia worked night duty on the pneumonia ward, as the virus attacked the patients and staff alike. It is hardly surprising that before long she, too, fell victim. Amelia was still recovering when the armistice was signed on November, 11, but, in any case, she was scathing about the peace celebrations". Then Mary Lovell quotes the private letter from Amelia to her friend Kenneth Merrill:

" December 1918 Kenneth dear, ...I am just out of the hospital where the effects of the flu [epidemic]... put me. I think working twelve to fourteen hours at a stretch added to the strain of having carried on all summer - made me a more then normally easy prey for influenza, and an infection in my nose at the same time which later necessitated an operation after which flu symptoms reappeared. Altogether I have more then a two months siege and face the awful prospect of doing nothing for two more." - "The Sound Of Wings" by Mary S.Lovell (1989), p.27.

Amelia's biographer Doris L. Rich commented (although giving a bit different “timeframe” of when exactly the problem appeared): “…Although she continued to work through the winter of 1918-1919, during a worldwide influenza epidemic that claimed more lives then the war, by late January she was bedridden with a serious sinus infection. Without antibiotics, opening and drainage of the sinus cavities was the only treatment available. These “washings out”, as she called them, were agonizing and only partially effective leaving her a semi-invalid. In February, she left Toronto for Northampton, Massachusetts, to join Muriel who was taking preparatory courses for entrance to Smith College in the fall” - “Amelia Earhart: A Biography” by Doris L.Rich (1989) – p. 20.

AE’s biographers Donald M. Goldstein and Katherine V. Dillon describes the problem in details, referring to Amelia’s book “20 Hours 40 Minutes”: “The influenza epidemic of 1918 struck Toronto. This was one of history’s major disasters, claiming twenty million lives worldwide. Sister Amelia was one of the few permitted on night duty, and she served in a pneumonia ward where she “helped to ladle out medicine from buckets.” She stayed well throughout the epidemic that killed so many and then took seriously ill with what she diagnosed as “a case of too much nursing, perhaps with too long hours.” She suffered from “pain and pressure around one eye and copious drainage via the nostrils and throat.” Today a doctor would probably prescribe antibiotics, but these had not been discovered in 1918, so Amelia had to endure several minor operations and a long convalescence.” - “Amelia: a Life of the Aviation Legend” by Donald M. Goldstein and Katherine V. Dillon (1997) – p.26.

Also see: ”20 Hours 40 Minutes” by Amelia Earhart (1928), p.43.

Jean L.Backus, AE researcher and the author of the book “Letters from Amelia” – citing and analyzing a lot of authentic Amelia’s private letters to her friends and relatives, first of all to her mother Amy, - comments: “The Armistice of November 11, 1918, not only constituted another watershed for Amelia Earhart, it preceded one of the first of several episodes of ill health coincident with periods of great stress in her life. She was through with boarding school, restless, undecided about a career, and she was seriously ill with a severe infection. One of the volunteers permitted night duty on the pneumonia ward, she apparently had kept well during the strenuous schedules required to cope with the great influenza epidemic which followed World War I and killed twenty million people around the world. Once the emergency was over, she took to her bed. Today the illness would be diagnosed as sinusitis and dealt with handily, but in 1918 there were no antibiotics, and only irrigation of the sinus cavities was offered in the way of treatment…[…]…Her body responded to sights and sounds and smells of distress in others {her patients} with pain and pressure around one eye and copious drainage via the nostrils and throat. Despite the “washings out” as Amelia named the irrigations, the torment of chronic sinus infection persisted throughout the rest of her life, including flights of 1932 and 1935. ” - Jean L.Backus, “Letters from Amelia” (1982) – p.49-50.

Here's how Susan Butler, another AE's recognized biographer, commented the events:

"...Amelia was tough, but, but finally she too, felt ill. She was hit with a pneumococcal bacterial infection in her frontal antrum, where the pressure so builds up in the sinuses that severe, chronic pain results. Without antibiotics, the only treatment was to surgically open the cavity, drain the infections, and keep it open and draining until all traces of the infection completely disappeared. Amelia was operated upon. It was a long, debilitating course of treatment, lasting mounts, and it so seriously weakened Amelia that it took the rest of the winter for her to recover her strength. Even then it turned out that the infection had not been totally eradicated; i6t would remain a serious problem for years.

She spent her convalescence in Northampton, Massachusetts, where Amy had taken an apartment in order to be with Muriel, who was now studying at Miss Capen's School so she would do well on the College Board examinations required for entrance to Smith College. There Amelia rested." -"East To The Dawn: The Life Of Amelia Earhart" by Susan Butler (1997), p. 86.

In following years it became obvious that the problem was not really removed completely - that is understandable if to consider that it was a pre-antibiotic era. So in following years, AE was persistently plagued by assaults of the sinus inflammations and the inevitable accompanying symptoms like headache.

The years 1921-1923, spent by AE with her parents in California, were AE's first years of her activity as a pilot... But in these years, sometimes the chronic sinus problem sharpened to such a degree that AE was forced to wore - even on public - the small drainage tube covered by a bandage, for to drain the abcess still plaguing her and to cure this way the tormenting headache caused by a persisting sinus inflammation.

AE’s biographer Doris L. Rich wrote about this period: “…Another admirer was Winfield Kinner, Jr., an eleven year-old schoolboy. …[…]…He was also impressed by what seemed to him considerable stoicism on the day she removed a small bandage from her check to show his mother the tiny tube used to drain the chronic abcess of the antrum which continued to plague her.” - - “Amelia Earhart: A Biography” by Doris L.Rich (1989) – p. 32.

This persisting and painful problem (that was especially boring because of AE’s flying, as it caused an extremely uncomfortable and painful effects at the rapid changes of air pressure caused by a changes of altitude when flying in open cockpits characteristic for the era) - finally made the next surgical intrusion inevitable and necessary. Unfortunately it wasn’t successful and, soon after it, it was clear that the new surgical intrusion is inevitable and will be necessary pretty soon. So when AE and her mother left California for Boston in May 1924, for to join AE’s sister Muriel (who departed earlier before by train), AE was far from being and feeling healthy.

As Mary S. Lovell, AE's biographer, wrote: "...To add to Amelia's existing problems, - and perhaps exacerbate them - the condition (an abscess in the nasal passages that had created a deep-seated sinus infection causing a great deal of pain) that had first occurred during her time at Spadina now flared up again. An operation was advised, which she undertook somewhat nervously. The aftermath was months of further physical discomfort and the ignominy of being harried by a debt-collection agency for payment of the five-hundred-dollar medical fees. It took a year for Amelia to pay off this sum, but by then she had left California." - "The Sound Of Wings" by Mary S.Lovell (1989), p.47. About this second surgery, Doris L.Rich wrote: “…In 1924, less then nine months after she received her FAI license {May 15 1923}, Amelia Earhart was hospitalized for another sinus operation.” - “Amelia Earhart: A Biography” by Doris L.Rich (1989) – p. 32. As the biographer Susan Butler wrote about this second surgery, "...Amelia was laid low by the return of the infection in her antrum, the result of the strain of packing up all the Earhart possessions, ...[...]... An operation was called for to drain pneumococcal infection. The procedure cost five hundred dollars, which Amelia left unpaid." - "East To The Dawn: The Life Of Amelia Earhart" by Susan Butler (1997), p. 117.

The biographer Doris L.Rich wrote: “Amelia and Amy left Hollywood on a bright May day. Barely recovered from one operation and knowing another would be necessary as soon as she reached Boston, Amelia was determined to see something on the way” – “Amelia Earhart: A Biography” by Doris L.Rich (1989) – p. 40.

Thus, AE “transformed” her transcontinental trip with her mother into the Big Tour across several US (and Canadian) National Parks and other famous places and landmarks. Apparently that second surgery was so much unsuccessful that it rather sharpened the problem then cured it; so, before the across-the-country car trip of AE and her mother ended, she felt even worse. As Mary Lovell wrote: "...The pain in her head was, by the end of the journey, insupportable. Within days of her arrival in Boston, Amelia entered Massachusetts Memorial Hospital for an operation in which a small piece of bone was removed to allow drainage of the sinuses. It was completely successful and after a short convalescence, she was free of pain for the first time in four years." - "The Sound Of Wings" by Mary S.Lovell (1989), pp.48-49.