TREATMENT OF PERTUSSIS WITH THE NEW YORK STATE PERTUSSIS VACCINE

Since the description of pertussis vaccine was incorporated in "New and Nonofficial Remedies" in 1914, there have been many contradictory reports concerning the value of the preparation. Some authorities, among them Pospischill,¹ at the whooping cough hospital in Vienna, have abandoned its use, while others, including R. P. Schowalter,² W. C. Davison³ and S. McLean,⁴ have discouraged it. Still others, including J. P. C. Griffith and A. G. Mitchell,⁵ have expressed the belief that vaccine has little if any effect in the prophylaxis or treatment of pertussis but are unwilling to admit that its use should be discouraged. The majority of investigators, however, favor it. Their opinions are reflected in the remarks of Madsen, who wrote that "although no absolutely sure prophylactic effects have been obtained... there is no doubt that infection is lighter among the vaccinated than among the non-vaccinated."⁶ This opinion is