Incompatibility of Pepsin and Pancreatin in liquid preparations.—A report of the Council on Pharmacy and Chemistry of the American Medical Association (Journal American Medical Association, February 2, 1907, p. 434) calls renewed attention to the generally well-known fact that despite the frequently made statement that pepsin and pancreatin must be incompatible in liquid preparations a number of such mixtures are still being offered by manufacturers or retail pharmacists and are used by physicians.
The Council has investigated a number of preparations of this type and has invariably found them to be practically inert in at least some of the claims made for them. Having demonstrated that pepsin and pancreatin cannot exist in one and the same solution for any reasonable length of time and that preparations that are said to contain these two ferments are sold under impossible claims, the Council recommends:
(1) That the Council on Pharmacy and Chemistry refuse to approve liquid preparations that are claimed to contain both pepsin and pancreatin.
(2) That the medical profession through the Journal of the American Medical Association be advised of the fallacy of employing such combinations.
(3) That the attention of manufacturers be called to the worthlessness of such incompatible liquid preparations of pepsin and pancreatin and that they be urged to cease offering such products to the profession.
(4) That since the National Formulary has recognized a preparation of this kind under the title “Elixir Digestivum Compositum” the American Pharmaceutical Association be requested to instruct its committee on the National Formulary to omit this preparation from the next edition.
Acetanilid Mixtures.—The mixtures of acetanilid and other ingredients that formerly were exploited as definite chemical compounds are now being marketed as mixtures, and, in some cases at least, have had their composition changed so as to be totally unrecognizable.
Antikamnia, under the regulations of the Pure Food and Drugs Act, is being marketed as a mixture containing 350 grains of acetphenetidin in each ounce. Pharmacists who are in the habit of filling prescriptions for physicians calling for “antikamnia” in solution will now experience the additional difficulty of being obliged to explain why the new antikamnia differs from the old in its physical properties.
Ammonol.—This preparation is said to be Ammoniumphenylacetamid on one portion of its label and directly under it is said to contain 240 grains of paracetyl-phenetidin in each ounce.
Phenalgin, marketed as an ammoniated phenylacetamide, is labeled as containing 50 per cent. of acetanilidum.