THE NONSPECIFIC AGENTS 41 



Sugar Solutions. The use of sugar solutions (usually glucose) for 

 intravenous injections in sepsis, in pneumonia and other infectious 

 diseases has been repeatedly reported, with some evidence of clini- 

 cal usefulness. There is usually a slight temperature reaction fol- 

 lowing the injection and a leukocytosis of from 5,000 to 20,000. 

 Audain and Masmonteil inject from 500 to 2,000 c.c. daily and re- 

 port satisfactory results in sepsis, erysipelas and rheumatism. The 

 isotonic solutions are made up as follows: For glucose 47.6 p.m., for 

 saccharose 103.5 p.m., for lactose 108.9 p.m. 



The use of sugar injections in the treatment of tuberculosis led 

 Hasenbein to suggest sugar injections to produce focal reactions in 

 general. He used a 50% solution of cane sugar in doses of from 3 

 to 5 c.c. to which was added 1 c.c. of a 2% solution of novocain (in- 

 tramuscular injection). In females suffering from gonorrhea there 

 was a typical focal reaction with first an increased secretion, fol- 

 lowed later by a diminution. 



Distilled Water. Reactions have been reported from distilled 

 water when injected in relatively large amounts intravenously. 



Formalin. Torry, working with acute and chronic rheumatism, 

 has injected formaldehyd intravenously to produce the shock re- 

 action. The toxic agent which brings about the reaction according to 

 Torry is probably a formaldehyd-protein compound. The dosage 

 is as follows: Formalin is used (37% solution of formaldehyd) and 

 of this from 1.5 to 3 c.c. are injected after diluting in from 200 to 300 

 c.c. of physiological salt solution. 



During the administration there is some bronchial irritation and 

 lacrimation. After the injection a typical protein shock reaction 

 occurs in about half an hour's time, i.e., chill, fever, sweating, etc. 



Solusin. From Szily's laboratory another chemical mixture has 

 been published, interesting rather than useful. This consists of 1.4 

 parts of bichlorid of mercury, 0.5 part sodium arsenate, 24 parts of 

 sodium iodid and distilled water 100 parts. Of this mixture from 

 1 to 2 c.c. are injected and the patient is said to react with a typical 

 chill, fever, sweating, etc. Ammoniacal copper sulphate in a 4% 

 solution has been used by Noire for intravenous injection in puerperal 

 infections. 



Hetol, the sodium salt of cinnamic acid, Sodium Succinate, Suc- 

 cinimid, Levurine and Tyimarin, Formic Acid (Krull) , to mention but 

 a few of the drugs that have been used as nonspecific stimulants, are 

 all characterized by a leukocytosis following their injection. 



The use of the active toxic agent of Bee stings and Snake Venom 

 has been reported for a number of diseases, the former with par- 

 ticular success by Terc and Langer in the treatment of arthritis. 



lodids. A discussion of the probable mechanism of the therapeutic 

 effect of the iodids might be of value in this connection, but inasmuch as 



