HISTAMINASE IN THE TREATMENT OF COLD ALLERGY

Abstract

For several years Horton, Brown and Roth¹have studied the interesting phenomena exhibited by patients suffering from cold allergy or a hypersusceptibility to cold. They have demonstrated that the systemic reactions, behavior of the blood pressure, pulse rate and gastric acids of these patients when exposed to cold are in every way comparable to the symptoms experienced by persons who have received injections of histamine hydrochloride. Similar local reactions in the hand may be reproduced by the intra-arterial injection of 0.5 mg. of histamine. These workers have concluded that physical agents such as cold probably cause increased permeability of the tissue cells and permit the release of histamine, which is a normal constituent of the skin and other organs, thereby causing the phenomena manifested by patients exhibiting hypersensitivity to cold. Since the work of Dale²on the chemical transmission of nerve impulses by acetylcholine, it was suggested that