Studies on immunisation and their application to the diagnosis and treatment of bacterial infections / [Wright].

Wright, Almroth, 1861-1947.

Date:: 1909

Credit: Studies on immunisation and their application to the diagnosis and treatment of bacterial infections / [Wright]. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The University of Glasgow Library. The original may be consulted at The University of Glasgow Library.

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$elusive manner that in connexion with tubercle—and it is only in con- nexion with tubercle that the accuracy of the method lias been specifically called in question—the opsonic technique gives, in competent hands, extremely consistent results, and that it gives these, not only in the case of normal uninfected persons, but also in the case of the infected persons with whom we have dealt in our hospital. I need not say any more but pass on to consider the utihty of the mformation furnished by the opsonic index. This may be considered under two headings. We may consider first what has been learned in the way of principles and facts of general apphcation by the measurements of the opsonic index, and secondly what help is furnished by estimations of the opsonic index in connexion with the treatment of a case. A few words will suffice in connexion with each of these questions. In connexion with the former, I would draw your attention to the fact that—if we except the case of immunisation against typhoid where the changes in the bactericidal and agglutinating powers of the blood have served as a guide—almost everything that we know of the laM^s which govern the immunising responses which are evoked by bacterial vaccines in man, everything that we know of the phenomena of autoinoculation and everything tliat we know ^v^th respect to the proper dosage of our vaccines, is derived from the opsonic index. If any hght has been thrown on the machinery of immunisation in man, if it has been possible to substitute for the excessive doses of tuberculin which were originally employed, as a first step, the maximal doses which could be administered without injury, and after- wards, both m connexion with tubercuHn and in connexion with a num- mined, exactly comparable quantities of serum, exactly comparable Quantities of phagocytes and exactly comparable numbers of bacteria must be emrSoved in f)?! tubes which correspond respectively with the patient's blo^d and the normal hl.H dtlicrte^IrrfoT '^^'^'^1 ^'^qr--t ^hich had been overiooS' wSre enoe U indeed it makes any! ^t^^s^n arrived aT^'^ ^^^^^^^^ caseVthTL-r r ^^:zi^r^:^^-c h^ rd 'v'^^ Sray^e ob^ate^-tn SoXr the same stock. For n Association with 7) « ''^^r^ ^^^^d from undergo upon artificial mS theTRrafal^^^^^^^^^^ Z '^ '^''^ ^i-'-^bes phagocytic attack of the normkl ^00^ reonfpl^^^^^^^ resistant to the where before a very high index was obtafnerthrresuU be^a of^ ''^^^^^^ to an mcrease in the denominator in the fraction : ^ ^^P'^ P!^^9ocyti^^ount^^ blood phagocytic count of the normoTbloodr$