68o 
Current  Literature. 
(  Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
(    September,  1920. 
men  who  are  exposed  to  the  vapors  of  anihne.  During  a  period  of 
twenty-three  years,  from  25  to  30  per  cent,  of  the  tumors  of  the 
bladder,  which  came  to  operation  at  the  surgical  clinic  of  the  Univer- 
sity at  Frankfurt  am  Main,  were  caused  by  aniline.  The  vapors 
of  aniline  are  inhaled  highly  diluted  with  air;  their  effect  on  the 
bladder  is  slowly  cumulative ;  the  first  symptoms  of  the  cancer  appear, 
on  the  average,  when  the  workman  has  been  employed  in  the  factory 
for  sixteen  years.  In  order  to  reduce  the  danger  to  a  minimum,  the 
plant  must  be  constructed  of  impervious  materials  and  be  amply 
ventilated;  the  evolved  gases  must  be  purified  before  their  escape 
into  the  atmosphere;  closed  apparatus  must  be  used;  liquid  raw 
materials  and  products  must  be  handled  with  compressed  air,  sohds 
by  mechanical  devices.  Ample  bathing  facilities  must  be  provided 
and  used  at  the  end  of  each  day's  work.  Clean  work  clothes  and 
wooden  shoes  must  be  worn  daily,  and  gas-masks  and  rubber  gloves 
must  be  used  when  necessary.  The  urine  of  the  workmen  should 
be  examined  at  frequent  intervals.  (From  Jour.  Franklin  Institute, 
May,  1920.) 
Sodium  Chloride  as  Antidote  for  Strychnine. — Giribaldi 
cites  authors  who  claim  that  sodium  chloride  renders  certain  poisons 
less  soluble,  and  describes  research  on  rabbits  and  dogs  which  demon- 
strated that  a  strong  solution  of  salt  has  a  certain  action  in  this  line. 
The  sodium  chloride  must  follow  the  strychnine  in  less  than  five 
minutes,  either  by  the  mouth  or  subcutaneously,  for  any  effect  to 
be  apparent.  {Gazzetta  degli  Ospedali  e  delle  Cliniche,  Milan,  Decem- 
ber II,  1 91 9,  40,  No.  99;  through  Jour.  Amer.  Med.  Assoc.,  May  8, 
1920.) 
ArsbnicaIv  Poisoning  Following  Use  of  Arsphenamin. — • 
Fifty-eight  cases  of  delayed  poisoning  following  the  administration 
of  arsphenamin  and  mercury  were  observed  by  the  authors  in  mili- 
tary hospitals  and  in  private  practice.  Forty-seven  of  these  showed 
symptoms  referable  to  the  liver,  namely,  jaundice,  decreased  digestive 
power  and  liver  atrophy.  Bight  of  these  were  fatal  and  at  necropsy 
showed  marked  atrophy  of  the  liver.  Dermatitis  occurred  in  eight 
cases.  Five  were  severe  with  marked  exfoliation.  Peripheral 
neuritis  was  observed  in  two  cases.  Albuminuria  was  present  in 
over  50  per  cent,  of  the  cases.  Edema  was  found  in  two  cases. 
The  onset  of  the  symptoms  seldom  occurred  until  five  weeks  after 
the  administration  of  arsphenamin  had  ceased.    The  earliest  symp- 
