A Study of "Penicillin Failures"

In studying a new therapeutic agent it is neccessary not only to discover the conditions in which it is effective but also to define the circumstances under which it fails or at least yields unsatisfactory results. Penicillin has now been used long enough to make possible the compilation of lists of those infections in which it seems to be of value.¹But such bare enumerations do not begin to tell the story, as there are all sorts of special circumstances which arise in the individual case to modify any general statement. From an intensive study of over 100 patients treated with penicillin a good deal has been learned about what might be called "penicillin failures"; it is with this phase of the subject that the present paper is concerned. "Penicillin failures" may be discussed under the following headings: Causes of death in penicillin treated patients. Failures due