QOO  On  Sterilizing  Hypodermic  Solutions.  {Ani-^r-1^arl^- 
bismuth  iodide  may  be  dissolved  in  hydriodic  acid  or  in  potassium 
iodide  and  diluting  the  solution  with  water.  On  subliming  a  mixture 
of  iodine  and  powdered  bismuth,  blackish  scales  of  bismuth  iodide 
having  a  metallic  lustre  are  obtained.  This  compound  is  permanent 
in  the  air,  and  is  but  little  aifected  by  cold  water,  but  hot  water  con- 
verts it  into  the  red  oxyiodide.    (See  also  p.  590  of  this  number). 
ON  STERILIZING  HYPODERMIC  SOLUTIONS. 
By  E.  Ist.  Girling. 
Dr.  A.  Poehl,  of  St.  Petersburg,  in  a  recent  article  published  in  the 
Pharm.  Zeitung,  comments  on  the  desirability  of  preparing  solutions 
of  the  alkaloidal  salts,  for  hypodermic  use,  which  shall  remain  free 
from  bacteria  or  ferment  bodies,  and  remarks  that  solutions  for  sub- 
cutaneous injections  are  generally  made  without  any  antiseptic  pre- 
cautions. 
.  He  says  :  "  The  very  act  of  nitration  through  paper,  causes  the  fil- 
trate to  contain  more  micro-organisms  than  the  unfiltered  liquid  con- 
tained." This  may  be  readily  understood,  when  the  process  of  manu- 
facturing such  paper  is  considered,  and  unless  some  method  is  adopted 
to  insure  sterilization,  both  of  the  water  used  in  preparing  the  solu- 
tions, and  of  the  paper  used  in  filtering  them,  the  risk  of  obtaining 
septic  solutions  is  considerable.  Dr.  Hager,  who  has  written  on  the 
danger  of  employing  septic  hypodermic  solutions,  among  other  pre- 
cautions, recommends  the  use  of  water  twice  distilled  in  order  to  render 
it  free  from  volatile  organic  matter. 
It  is,  however,  necessary  to  bear  in  mind  the  fact,  that  the  alkaloids 
themselves  aid  in  developing  certain  forms  of  bacteria,  and  in  order 
to  prevent  this,  other  precautions  than  the  employment  of  doubly  dis- 
tilled water  are  necessary. 
The  addition  of  salicylic  and  boracic  or  boric  acid  to  the  solutions 
has  been  recommended,  but  their  use  is  open  to  objection  from  a 
medical  point  of  view. 
It  has  been  also  suggested  to  boil  the  solutions  in  order  to  sterilize 
them ;  but  as  it  has  been  demonstrated,  that  such  a  course  would 
cause  the  partial  decomposition  of  certain  alkaloids,  some  other  mean.* 
had  to  be  sought  to  secure  the  desired  end. 
A  process,  which  has  given  excellent  results  in  the  hands  of  the 
writer,  and  which  is  not  open  to  the  above  objections,  inasmuch  as  no>: 
foreign  substance  is  contained  in  the  finished  solution,  is  as  follows  : 
