PEDIATRICS Vol. 17 No. 1 January 1956, pp. 78-83
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THE USE OF GAMMA GLOBULIN IN THE TREATMENT OF MEASLES ENCEPHALITIS

John E. Allen M.D.1 and Donald J. Frank M.D.1

1 Contagious Division of the Cincinnati General Hospital and Department of Pediatrics of the College of Medicine of the University of Cincinnati

A clinical review of 25 recent cases of measles encephalitis demonstrates the continued importance of measles in the field of contagious diseases.

A comparison of a group of patients with measles encephalitis treated with supportive therapy only, with a group treated with massive doses of gamma globulin, is presented. The over-all results of this study do not demonstrate any effect on the rate of sequelae or of complete recovery rate in those patients receiving massive doses of gamma globulin. While a possible decrease of mortality was demonstrated in those patients treated with gamma globulin, statistical analysis does not support this conclusion. This information is compared to that from a similar study by Odessky et al.

It is concluded that gamma globulin in massive doses is not indicated in the treatment of measles encephalitis.

The extreme importance of modifying all cases of measles in all age groups whenever possible is emphasized as a most potent tool for the prevention of measles encephalitis, as well as other post-measles complications.