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Scientific Proceedings (125) 



pigs to cow's milk. In 33 cases with negative precipitine tests 

 attempts passively to sensitize guinea pigs with the patient's 

 blood were negative. 



In a number of the patients observations were made over a 

 period of from 2 to 4 months. It was found that the presence 

 of precipitines varied from time to time. Thus far our observa- 

 tions have been too few to correlate the presence or absence of 

 precipitines with the clinical condition of the patient. In four 

 patients, however, who were observed over a long period, the 

 precipitine reaction was absent during periods when the infant 

 was losing weight or when the weight was stationary and re- 

 appeared when the patient improved. With further improve- 

 ment the precipitines disappeared entirely. This question, how- 

 ever, must be studied further before any conclusions can be 

 drawn. 



A group of 30 infants suffering from a mild or moderate 

 grade of malnutrition or convalescent from acute infections 

 were studied. In 25 cases the tests for precipitines to cow's 

 milk were negative and in 5 positive. In two of the positive 

 cases passive sensitization tests on guinea pigs were tried. Both 

 were positive. Fifteen tests on older children or adults were 

 negative. The blood of eleven new born infants (placental 

 blood) was examined and was negative in all. 



Tests for milk protein in the blood were made in 27 cases 

 of severe diarrhea by the precipitine reaction and also by ana- 

 phylactic tests on guinea pigs. All of the patients were receiv- 

 ing cow's milk as food. In six cases the precipitine test was 

 positive. In 17 cases the anaphylactic tests on guinea pigs were 

 positive. In 10 control tests on athreptic infants both the pre- 

 cipitine and anaphylactic tests for antigen were negative. These 

 results confirm the work of Lust, Schloss, and Worthen, and 

 others, in showing that in diarrhea there is a tendency for the 

 intestinal tract to be permeable to protein. In this connection 

 tests for precipitine to cow's milk on 13 infants suffering from 

 diarrhea or convalescent from diarrhea are of interest. In all 

 of these cases precipitine was present. Passive sensitization 

 tests on guinea pigs were made in 8 cases and were positive 

 in 3. 



