Splenin A in Rheumatic Fever: The Testing of Splenin A as an Anti-Inflammatory Agent.

The clinical observation of an exacerbation of rheumatic fever occurring rapidly after splenectomy led to the extensive research described in this volume. The author's work in America has been correlated with other work in Britain and Canada and has led to clinical trials. Two substances are believed to be produced by the spleen. The first, called splenin A, appears to exert an anti-inflammatory action, whereas the second, called splenin B, appears to aggravate inflammation. These investigators have given splenin A intravenously or intramuscularly to 47 patients under the age of 14 with rheumatic fever in two Chicago hospitals. In the acute attack each patient was watched by several physicians and had three serological tests (AS titer, ESR, and serum diphenylamine reaction) carried out at regular intervals. Patients were watched for exacerbation of the disease after the withdrawal of the drug splenin A, and a follow-up of one to three years