Tests  for  Albumin  in  Urine. 
A  Hi.  Jour.  Pti  arto.. 
Dee.,  1886. 
The  author  concludes  that  "the  common  '  raw1  ice,  till  lately,  almost 
exclusively  used,  on  account  of  the  large  number  of  bacteria  capable  of 
development  which  it  contains,  should  not  be  taken  with  food — in  drinks 
—or  for  medicinal  purposes.  It  should  never  be  used  in  the  treatment 
of  wounds.  In  these  connections  artificial  ice  made  from  distilled  water 
should  be  employed.  The  use  of  raw  ice  in  contact  ivith  food,  which  is 
afterwards  to  be  cooked,  is  permissible,  but  artificial  ice  is  to  be  pre- 
ferred. Raw  ice  may  be  freely  used  where  it  does  not  come  into  direct 
contact  with  food." — Med.  Chronicle,  Oct.  1886.  Zeitschr.f.  Hygiene 
I.  Heft  2. 
TESTS  FOR  ALBUMIN  IN  URINE. 
The  following  reagents  were  investigated  by  a  committee  of  the 
British  Medical  Association  : — 1.  Dr.  Oliver's  papers ;  2.  Dr.  Pavy's 
pellets;  3.  Dr.  Johnson's  picric  acid;  4.  Sir  W.  Robert's  acid  brine; 
5.  A  solution  of  picric  acid  saturated  with  common  salt — picric  acid 
brine;  6.  Solution  of  potassio-mercuric  iodide  with  citric  acid;  7. 
Nitric  acid  ;  a,  with  previous  boiling  of  the  urine;  b,  applied  accord- 
ing to  Heller's  method ;  8.  Acetic  acid  and  heat;  the  urine  being  boiled 
previous  to  acidification.  The  committee  experimented  with  some  arti- 
ficial admixtures  of  albuminous  bodies  in  fluids  other  than  the  urine, 
which  need  not  here  be  particularized.  The  general  conclusion  obtained 
from  these  preliminary  experiments  was  that  solution  of  potassio- 
mercuric  iodide  with  citric  acid,  particularly  when  used  after  Heller's 
method,  gives  the  most  delicate  and  clearly  marked  re-actions ;  and 
that  nitric  acid  is,  for  use  in  the  consulting  room,  not  inferior  to  any 
but  the  potassio-mercuric-iodide  test;  its  use  in  the  two  ways  indicated 
above  being  taken  into  comparative  consideration  with  the  other  tests 
correspondingly  applied.  By  the  use  of  different  reagents,  the  com- 
mittee were  able  to  distinguish  some  forms  of  albuminous  bodies  from 
some  other  states  or  forms  ;  for  instance,  peptones  from  egg-albumin, 
or  serum-albumin,  or  the  albumin  of  albuminuria. 
As  regards  the  clinical  use  of  the  tests  above  enumerated,  the  com- 
mittee arrived  at  the  following  conclusions  : 
1.  Of  Dr.  Oliver's  test  papers,  the  potassio-mercuric  iodide  give 
the  most  delicate  reactions  of  all  the  papers,  and  excel  nitric  acid, 
however  applied.  The  ferro-cyanide  papers  come  next,  but  witli  a 
decided  interval,  and  the  tungstate  papers  third  ;  whilst  the  picric-acid 
