THE TREATMENT OF PNEUMOCOCCIC PNEUMONIA WITH CONCENTRATED RABBIT SERUM

There have been few reports submitted concerning the use of rabbit serum in the type specific therapy of pneumonia. This is particularly true of the concentrated and refined serum. The steadily increasing improvements in the character of the serum have indicated the fulfilment of the factors defining a good serum for therapy; namely, first that the intravenous administration be without undue reaction and second that the adequate dose be contained in a small volume. The theoretical and practical advantages that antipneumococcus rabbit serum possesses over horse serum have been pointed out by several observers.¹ These observations, however, have been made with the unconcentrated rabbit serum. Finland and Brown² describe the use of the concentrated serum in sixteen cases with two deaths in type I pneumonia. The present report deals with the administration of concentrated and refined rabbit serum in 153 patients, comprising twenty-one different types of pneumococcic infection.