Intramuscular and Subcutaneous Administration of Penicillin in Beeswax-Peanut Oil

Of various methods described for prolonging the action of penicillin by delaying its absorption or excretion,1one of the most promising appears to be the intramuscular injection of penicillin-beeswax-peanut oil mixtures. First described by Romansky and Rittman,2this method is an adaptation of the technic of Code and his associates,3who obtained extended prolongation of the action of histamine, desoxycorticosterone acetate and heparin by mixing them with various oils and beeswax. In the original communications of Romansky and Rittman2it was noted that assayable levels of penicillin could be maintained in the blood stream for seven to ten hours following single intramuscular injections of penicillin-beeswax-peanut oil mixtures. Favorable clinical results have since been reported in the treatment of gonococcic urethritis 4 and pneumococcic pneumonia.5 During the past nine months mixtures containing various concentrations of penicillin, beeswax and peanut oil have been prepared and investigated in