To the Editor:—
The view is generally held that penicillin is inactivated by the acid of the stomach (Rammelkamp, C. H., and Keefer, C. S.: The Absorption, Excretion and Distribution of Penicillin, J. Clin. Investigation22:425 [May] 1943) and that the drug cannot be effectively administered by the oral route unless it is given in combination with buffers (György, Paul; Vandegrift, H. N.; Elias, William; Colio, L. G.; Barry, F. M., and Pilcher, J. D.: Administration of Penicillin by Mouth, The Journal, March 17, p. 639) or in peanut oil (Libby, R. L.: Oral Administration of Penicillin in Oil, Science101:178 [Feb. 16] 1945). A simple and, as judged by clinical response, effective method of administering penicillin by mouth in my experience has been to make up 100,000 units in only 5 cc. of saline solution and then give 20,000 or 40,000 units as an oral dose of