Commission on Acute Respiratory

Although the antifibrinolysin test as originally described (1) is only qualitative in nature (2), it has proved valuable in the study of infections caused by the f8-hemolytic streptococcus. However, the results obtained by different investigators have been difficult to interpret primarily because of failure to control the various factors participating in the fibrinolysin-antifibrinolysin reaction. Recent studies (3) have clarified the nature of the reaction between fibrinolysin and antifibrinolysin. By control of the various participating factors, an antifibrinolysin test which is quantitative in nature has been devised (4) (5). The definition of the unit of measure (5) should result in more uniformity in reporting data concerning antifibrinolysin. Furthermore, the substitution of a clot formed from fibrinogen and thrombin for fresh plasma makes the test readily adaptable to the study of sera in a routine manner. The present study was undertaken to evaluate the clinical usefulness of the quantitative antifibrinolysin test. The data have been analyzed from the standpoint of establishing: (1) the nor-