THE  AMERICAN 
JOURNAL  OF  PHARMACY 
JULY,  i896. 
ON  THE  PREPARATIONS  OF.  STROPHANTHUS.  - 
By  Horatio  C.  Wood,  M.D.,  and  Wiujam  S.  Carter,  M.D. 
Report  of  Research  Committee  on  Pharmacodynamics,  of  the  Committee  o 
Revision  of  the  United  States  Pharmacopoeia. 
The  United  States  Pharmacopoeia  of  1890  recognizes  only  one 
preparation  of  the  important  drug  strophanthus,  namely,  the  tinc- 
ture. It  is,  however,  in  practice,  very  often  desirable  to  give  stro- 
phanthus with  other  drugs  in  pill  form,  and  the  present  research 
was  made  to  test  the  activity  of  the  best  commercial  strophanthin, 
and  also  of  an  extract.  A  priori,  there  is  no  reason  for  supposing 
that  the  extract  will  not  be  an  effective  preparation;  but  in  order  to 
determine  the  question  positively,  we  have  made,  in  the  Physiological 
Laboratory  of  the  University,  a  series  of  experiments  with  the  drug 
upon  mammals.  The  extract  was  made  by  Dr.  Charles  Rice,  by 
evaporating  the  tincture.    Of  it  he  says : 
Extract  of  Strophanthus. — Each  1  gramme  of  this  corresponds  to  4*127 
grammes  of  strophanthus  seed,  or  to  82*5  c.c.  of  the  official  tincture.  I  did 
not  attempt  to  bring  the  extract  to  a  definite  weight,  bearing  a  simple  propor- 
tion to  the  crude  drug  or  the  tincture,  since  it  is  just  as  easy,  or  rather  easier, 
to  weigh  out  such  a  quantity  of  the  extract  as  will  make  a  solution  of  any 
desired  strength. 
The  following  are  the  experiments  made  with  this  extract.  In 
each  of  them  a  solution  of  the  extract  of  strophanthus  was  made, 
0*1  gramme  in  1,000  c.c.  of  water,  given  by  injection  into  the  jugu- 
lar vein. 
Experiment  1. — Dog  ;  weight,  8-6  kilos. 
Arterial  pressure,  92 ;  5  c.c.  were  given.  The  arterial  pressure 
rose  in  one  minute  5  mm.,  when  5  c.c.  more  were  injected.     In  one 
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