Sensitivity Reactions to Intramuscular Injection of Benzathine Penicillin

Abstract

SINCE Wannamaker and his colleagues1 and Bernstein et al.2 demonstrated that daily oral administration of penicillin for ten days will successfully control epidemics of disease due to Group A streptococci among military personnel, the problem of employing penicillin as a prophylactic agent in such epidemics has become largely a practical one. For mass prophylaxis it is necessary to administer tablets daily. The attendant problems of ensuring that each man takes the drug at the proper times and the constant supervision by medical personnel of the overall operation make this form of prophylaxis difficult when large numbers of people are involved. . . .