Acquired Hemolytic Anemia and Antipenicillin Antibody

Abstract

In a recent report. Ley et al.¹have described the occurrence of circulating antipenicillin antibodies in patients who had received penicillin therapy. These antibodies were demonstrated by agglutination of penicillin-coated red blood cells by their sera. No agglutination of the same cells not coated with penicillin occurred with the same sera. Agglutination took place both by the saline and indirect antiglobulin technique. Cells coated with other antibiotics were not agglutinated by these sera. Eluates from the agglutinated cells agglutinated the penicillinized cells as well. Inhibition of agglutination was found after addition of penicillin to these sera prior to mixing with the test cells, but no inhibition was noted by addition of other antibiotics. Penicillin has been used extensively since the first clinical trials in this country in 1942. In several large series²approximately 1% to 8% of patients exhibited an allergic response to the drug, depending on the