Report on the disinfecting and antiseptic properties of izal : [from the Bacteriological Laboratory, Owens College) / by Sheridan Delépine.

  • Delépine, Sheridan, 1855-1921.
Date:
[1895]
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Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Report on the disinfecting and antiseptic properties of izal : [from the Bacteriological Laboratory, Owens College) / by Sheridan Delépine. 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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    [Reprinted from the Medical Chronicle September, 1895J\ REPORT ON THE DISINFECTING AND ANTISEPTIC PROPERTIES OF IZAL. [FEOM THE BACTERIOLOGICAL LABORATORY, OWENS COLLEGE.] By SHERIDAN DELEPINE, Professor of Pathology, Victoria University. Among the numerous products which have, of late years, been proposed as advantageous substitutes for some of the older disinfectants and anti- septics, izal is undoubtedly one of those deserving very special attention. Observations made by Dr. Klein nearly three years since have shown it to be capable of killing a large number of micro-organisms associated with various diseases, and this it could do even when sufficiently diluted as to cause no detrimental irritation of tissues. Among the most remarkable features of this compound are its comparative insolubility and non-volatility at the ordinary temperature properties which it seems difficult to associate with an active disinfectant but which numerous experiments have proved not to be incompatible in this case. If we add to these the facts that izal can be freely administered internally, used over extensive wounds, or injected under the skin with- out bad effects, and, finally, that it does not damage surgical instruments there are sufficient grounds to justify the impression that izal is a sub- stance of considerable scientific and practical interest. In the course of numerous experiments on well-known disinfectants I have come to the conclusion that it is difficult to compare the results obtained by various observers owing to the different conditions under which they conduct their observations, and also because the micro- organisms which they use for the purpose of testing the germicidal properties of various substances differ in their degree of resistance according to the way in which they have been cultivated, kept prepared for experiments, etc. Though accepting fully the results obtained by Dr. Klein and other observers, I, at the suggestion of Mr. J. H Worrall thought it might be well to test again the germicidal properties of izal' I naturally avoided conducting my experiments on the same lines as those fully explained in.Dr. Klein's report. As it was my intention to study carefully the effects which certain disturbing factors might have on the results obtained, I investigated th» action of izal on a small number of germs. I selected them so as to get types of the most important forms of pathogenic bacteria which one might have to deal with in practice. These organisms were Jjn Th! bacillus ubercnlosis (hominis) 5 (2) the bacillus coli communis (111 T preferred to the bacillus of typhoid fever for reasons gi^ Zt on)