Since the foregoing was published, two other products—“Cerelene” and “Stanolind Surgical Wax”—were submitted to the Council on Pharmacy and Chemistry for investigation as to their acceptability for inclusion in New and Nonofficial Remedies. In this connection the Laboratory was requested to examine them.
“Cerelene” is manufactured by the Holliday Laboratories, Pittsburgh. According to the manufacturers, “Cerelene” is a compound composed of 84 per cent. paraffin, 15 per cent. myricyl palmitate and 1 per cent. elemi gum. As ordinarily marketed, “Cerelene” contains the following materials: To the beeswax is added Oil of Eucalyptus, U. S. P., 2 per cent., and Betanaphthol, U. S. P., 0.25 per cent. The manufacturer further states that the myricyl palmitate is a purified form of beeswax, free from all impurities, acids, etc., which is solely manufactured by this company and for which patents are pending. The properties described for “Cerelene” were as follows:
When cold, Cerelene is a solid wax-like cake of a fine yellow brown color. On exposure to air for long periods, the amber color darkens to some extent. It is entirely free from solids, odorless and tasteless; does not separate or change when melted repeatedly, and cannot in the melted state be separated by fractional crystallization. It is entirely neutral to indicators being perfectly free from both acids and bases.
| Tests: | Melting Point, U. S. P. method, 126 F. |
| Density, U. S. P. method, 0.907. | |
| Iodin value, 0.5. | |
| Saponification number, 0.9. |
“Stanolind Surgical Wax” is manufactured by the Standard Oil Company of Indiana. In the submission of the product to the Council on Pharmacy and Chemistry, it was stated that the product was a specially prepared paraffin “free from dirt or other deleterious matter.... It has been steamed and resteamed to drive out any free oil and repeatedly filtered.”
The examination of the foregoing products yielded the figures described in Table “B.”—(From The Journal A. M. A., May 19, 1917.)
THE STABILITY OF IODINE OINTMENTS
L. E. Warren, Ph.C., B.S.
In general, the literature on the keeping qualities of iodine ointment, and on the stability of iodine if mixed with ointment bases, is confusing. The recorded evidence is often contradictory. The attention of the writer was brought to this condition by studies of several proprietary preparations, Iodex,[184] Iod-Izd-Oil,[185] Iocamfen, and Iocamfen Ointment.[186]