BANNERMAN’S INTRAVENOUS SOLUTION

Report of the Council on Pharmacy and Chemistry

Bannerman’s Intravenous Solution (Wm. Bannerman and Co., Chicago) was refused recognition because vague, indefinite and misleading statements were made regarding its composition, because it was recommended for anemia, tuberculosis and syphilis under grossly exaggerated and unwarranted claims and because the intravenous injection of complex and indefinite mixtures is unscientific and dangerous. Notice of the action of the Council having been sent to the Bannerman Company, the firm submitted a revised statement of composition and also a revised advertising circular.

The claim is made that Bannerman’s Intravenous Solution “is a compound of only the purest and proven efficient U. S. P. drugs.” According to the latest statement:

Each 10 c.c. of Bannerman’s Solution contains:
Hydrargyri Albuminas Mercury Content	1	1-9	Gr. or	0.075 Gm.
Ferri Albuminas Iron Content	4	1-4	Grs. or	0.286 Gm.
Sodii Chloridum	6	1-5	Grs. or	0.412 Gm.
Calcii Salicylicum	4		Grs. or	0.26 Gm.
Guaiacol	4		Grs. or	0.26 Gm.
Creosote (Beechwood)	5		Grs. or	0.32 Gm.

The solvent is said to be distilled water.

The formula is unsatisfactory in several particulars. The stated amounts of some of the ingredients are in excess of their solubility in water; the nature and amount of albumin contained in the “Hydrargyri Albuminas” and “Ferri Albuminas” are not given; the claim that the solution contains only U. S. P. drugs is not true. But the main objection to the preparation is its unscientific character and the unwarranted therapeutic claims made for it.

Even though a patient had all three diseases, syphilis, tuberculosis and anemia, it would be most irrational to use a shotgun prescription, containing, in fixed unvarying proportions, mercury for the syphilis, iron for the anemia and germicides for the tuberculosis. In syphilis the mercury-content of Bannerman’s Solution is inadequate; in anemia the intravenous administration of iron is unwarranted, and in tuberculosis there is no evidence that the injection of bactericides is efficient.

Exception must be taken, moreover, to the statement that “its use is absolutely safe.” The danger of anaphylaxis from repeated injections of albuminates cannot be disregarded, and as J. F. Anderson, director of the Hygienic Laboratory, has pointed out [54] we know little of the secondary or remote effects of the intravenous injection of toxic substances; some of them probably do permanent harm.

Such claims as the following require no comment:

“It builds up and increases the hemoglobin in the blood.
“It increases the number of red blood corpuscles.
“It regulates the white cells.
“It stimulates cell growth; therefore, it is reconstructive.
“It is a powerful antiseptic.
“It is useful in any septic condition.”

In view of the facts given, the Council again refused recognition to Bannerman’s Intravenous Solution.—(From The Journal A. M. A., Jan. 2, 1915.)

IODALIA [O]

Abstract of Report of the Council on Pharmacy and Chemistry

Iodalia is sold by Geo. J. Wallau, Inc., with the claim that because of the peculiar combination in which it contains iodin it is a valuable and efficient substitute for iodids. The preparation was examined in the Chemical Laboratory of the American Medical Association, which reported to the Council that, contrary to claim, iodin in the form present in Iodalia would, when administered, act like an ordinary iodid. Further the proportion of iodin present was so small that to administer the equivalent of 20 grains of potassium iodid it would be necessary to give the contents of a one-dollar bottle of Iodalia. In view of this report it is evident that the claim that Iodalia is “always well tolerated” and that it cannot produce “symptoms of iodism” is true only because of the small percentage of iodin it contains. The claims made in the advertising matter, that Iodalia is an efficient iodin medication in the treatment of syphilis, that it is a suitable substitute for cod-liver oil and that it may be used in anemia, dysmenorrhea, dyspepsia, malaria and diseases of the heart, are entirely unwarranted.

Iodalia is exploited in a way to suggest its use to the public for a host of diseases. Particularly reprehensible are the recommendations contained in a circular which accompanies the trade package that Iodalia:

“... offers the same protection against grippe, bronchitis, pneumonia, tuberculosis, pleurisy and other infectious diseases that vaccine does against small pox ...”

“It is also the best preventive against the slight infections and ailments to which debilitated and delicate children are subject.”

The Council voted that Iodalia be refused recognition.—(From The Journal A. M. A., Dec. 12, 1914.)