The relation of streptococci to scarlet fever and its complications / [R.A. O'Brien, C.C. Okell].

  • O'Brien, Richard Alfred, 1878-1970.
Date:
[1926?]
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: The relation of streptococci to scarlet fever and its complications / [R.A. O'Brien, C.C. Okell]. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    S. F. 18, a toxigenic strain isolated by ourselves. The two Dick strains, and also one from Dr. Anna Williams, only absorbed Dochez serum to 3/4 titre; S.F. 18 serum was completely absorbed by these three strains. Eleven strains of haemolytic streptococci from sources other than scarlet fever—for example, puerperal fever, pyo¬ rrhoea, etc.—were also tested for absorption; the great majority of these did not absorb the agglutinin, but five strains which seemed to have no connexion with scarlet fever did absorb it. These were respectively a strain isolated from strangles in a horse, one from a case of pyorrhoea alveolaris, and two from cases of pyogenic infec¬ tion. It was thus possible arbitrarily to separate by absorption the bulk of scarlet fever strains from non¬ scarlet fever strains, but not with sufficient certainty to allow the diagnosis of an individual strain. These results confirm the work of Stevens and Dochez, and other recent investigators. At the best positive agglutination or absorp¬ tion results are but presumptive evidence that a given streptococcus is a scarlet fever organism. Dr. O’Brien, in closing the discussion and in answer to questions, said that the work of Dr. Parish seemed to show that a good scarlet fever antitoxin would consistently protect a rabbit against a lethal dose of culture of Strepto¬ coccus scarlatinae, both being given intravenously, while a poor serum would not. The immunization of nurses was already being practised in England with, so far, very promising results. It was at present premature for the bacteriologists to claim to speak with authority to the public health administrator and tell him which people were potential carriers—-that is, distributors of scarlet fever. Dr. Trevan had tried the effect of scarlet fever toxin on the capillary loops of the intestine, but could not find any consistent effect. He agreed with Professor Douglas that the absence of research in infectious fever hospitals was lamentable, but hoped that the appointment of the pathologists to the Metropolitan Asylums Board and also, probably, to the fever hospital in Manchester, would mark the commencement of a time when the amount of clinical pathology in infectious fever hospitals would be com¬ parable with that in large teaching general hospitals. He felt that if the antibacterial serum made by the injection of streptococci could be of any use, that fact would have been discovered during the many years that antistrepto- coccal serums had been used for the treatment of scarlet fever. He was, however, at present disinclined to hope much from antibacterial scarlet fever serum. He had concentrated scarlet fever serum on a large scale; appar¬ ently considerable losses occurred if the routine processes were used, but it was very difficult to check the loss, since the present methods of titration were so difficult to com¬ mand and so liable to fallacy. The speaker now fully accepted the Streptococcus scarlatinae as the cause of the