The Therapy of Acute Staphylococcal Infection of Mice with Antitoxin and Sulfonamide Compounds *

Long and Bliss,20 and Mellon, Gross, and Cooper,24 in their monographs, have reviewed the conflicting evidence on the action of sulfanilamide, neoprontosil, and other early derivatives which have not found satisfactory clinical application. The reported experimental work on the action of sulfapyridine, sulfathiazole, and sulfamethylthiazole has held out greater promise of success against the staphylococcus. Whitby37 reported slight protective action with sulfapyridine against staphylococcal infection in mice, but experimental detail was omitted. Bliss and Long4 demonstrated a significant prolongation in the life of mice treated with sulfapyridine following intravenous infection. Mayer23 similarly observed some action in a small group of mice infected intraperitoneally, after they had been rendered more susceptible by mucin. Barlow and Homburger2 infected mice intravenously with 800 million organisms, and found sulfathiazole and sulfamethylthiazole effective in prolonging life and in preventing the development of internal abscesses or in their healing. They further noted, in groups of 20 mice observed for 20 days, that sulfamethylthiazole was superior to sulfathiazole, and that both were considerably more effective than sulfapyridine. Bliss and Ott,5 subjecting mice to severe intravenous infection, found negligible survival in 30 days, but significant prolongation of survival time, with sulfapyridine, sulfathiazole, and sulfamethylthiazole. The last two were equally effective and superior to sulfapyridine. Rake and McKee,30 studying intraperitoneal infection in mice rendered more susceptible by mucin, found, at the end of 31 days, little if any activity on the part of sulfapyridine, but definite protection afforded by the thiazole compounds, with sulfathiazole superior to sulfamethylthiazole. Evidence of persistence of staphylococci in internal organs was noted in 14 per cent of the sulfathiazole survivors and in 25 per cent of the sulfamethylthiazole group.