Specific Therapy 409 



According to the investigation of Gordon* there are four types, 

 I, II, III, IV, of the meningococcus, capable of identification through 

 their bdiavior toward their respective agglutinating specific sera. 

 To treat a case therefore it becomes necessary either to use a serum 

 specific for that tj^e, as in pneumonia, and make sure that a power- 

 ful polyvalent serum potent against all the types be employed. As 

 the determination of the type is more difficult than the determina- 

 tion of the types of the pneumococci, the polyvalent serum treatment 

 is that given preference at the present time. 



* "Medical Research Committee, Special Reports," Series No. 3, 1917, ig. 



