CHANGES IN BLOOD PIGMENTS ASSOCIATED WITH THE PROLONGED ADMINISTRATION OF LARGE DOSES OF ACETANILID AND RELATED COMPOUNDS

¹ From the Laboratory of Pharmacology, Yale University School of Medicine

1. The administration of acetanilid in extremely large doses to both rats and monkeys results in the formation of moderate amounts of methemoglobin and of sulfhemoglobin.

2. Similar results were obtained in rats with phenacetin.

3. In monkeys receiving 540 mgm. and 135 mgm. of acetanilid per kilogram for more than three months only moderate amounts of methemoglobin and sulfhemoglobin were formed. In these animals there was an appreciable fall in the total hemoglobin.

4. The administration of 50 mgm. of acetanilid per kilogram to monkeys for more than three months produced no appreciable changes either in methemoglobin, sulfhemoglobin, or total hemoglobin. There was every indication from the general condition of the animals that they could survive this dose indefinitely.