Experiments on the Sensitizing Properties of Penicillin.

Summary and Conclusions

Tests for ana-phylactic sensitization with penicillin were attempted by the isolated uterus technique and by intracardiac or intravenous reinjection of antigen. Sensitization with penicillin as currently prepared and marketed was demonstrated by both methods. Sensitization was not uniform, and usually atypical in that the uterine response was often delayed and de-sensitization often difficult to demonstrate. The results appear to afford a partial explanation for some of the reactions encountered in the clinical use of the drug.