Column Headings:
2 = Physical Appearance*
3 = Gm. in 1-Ounce Bottle
4 = Price per Ounce
5 = Moisture, Per Cent.
6 = Alkalin. as NaOH on Dry Powder† Per Cent.
7 = Theobromin in Dry Powder† Per Cent.
8 = Theobromin in Orig. Specimen† Per Cent.
| 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | |||||||
| Diuretin | 3 Pure White | 28 | .5 | $1 | .75 | 0 | .01 | 10 | .44 | 48 | .61 | 48 | .61 |
| Theo. Sod. Sal. M. C. W | 3 Pure White | 27 | .5 | 0 | .35 | 1 | .89 | 9 | .95 | 46 | .11 | 45 | .24 |
| Theo. Sod. Sal. Merck | 1 Pure White | 29 | .0 | 0 | .35 | 0 | .48 | 10 | .38 | 47 | .87 | 47 | .58 |
| Theo. Sod. Sal. P. W. R. Co. | 2 Pure White | 29 | .1 | 0 | .35 | 2 | .46 | 10 | .30 | 47 | .57 | 46 | .39 |
| Theo. Sod. Sal. Roche | 3 Pink | 28 | .6 | 0 | .35 | 2 | .27 | 9 | .92 | 49 | .05 | 47 | .92 |
| Theo. Sod. Sal. Squibb | 1 Pure White | 26 | .8 | 0 | .45 | 0 | .39 | 9 | .97 | 46 | .82 | 46 | .63 |
* In this column, 1, 2 and 3 denote the following:
1. Quite crystalline, under microscope.
2. Fairly crystalline, under microscope.
3. Not crystalline, under microscope.
† Average of determinations.
While the results show some variation in the moisture content and also in the actual theobromin content of the dried specimens, the variation is unimportant. The products in their original state (undried), as compared in relation to the theobromin content (the highest percentage of theobromin being 48.61, the lowest 45.24), reveal a variation of only about 3 per cent.—a variation which is negligible in the case of drugs such as theobromin.
From the preceding investigation, it is concluded that (1) practically there is no difference between the non-proprietary brands of “theobromin sodium salicylate” and “Diuretin;” (2) the several specimens examined were not simple mixtures of “theobromin” and “sodium salicylate”; (3) essentially all the brands complied with the standards laid down and can be rated as satisfactory; (4) “Diuretin,” though sold at an exorbitant price, is not superior to the product supplied under the descriptive term “theobromin sodium salicylate,” and (5) “Diuretin” sells wholesale for $1.75 an ounce, against 35 cents for the “theobromin sodium salicylate,” and therefore its employment cannot be interpreted otherwise than as a useless and unnecessary expense.—(From The Journal A. M. A., April 4, 1914.)
UNGUENTINE
W. A. Puckner and A. H. Clark
Attention has been called at various times to the fact that the value of a published “formula” to a proprietary remedy is in direct ratio to the reliability of the manufacturer publishing it. When medical journals first insisted on their advertisers letting physicians know the contents of the remedies they wished to sell them, medical literature reeked with formulas—some of them of weird and wonderful design. Since the advent of the Food and Drugs Act, which requires that labels shall approximate truthfulness, and particularly since the Council on Pharmacy and Chemistry has investigated a number of proprietary remedies, the publication of “formulas” is not so common.