Clinical potentialities of certain bisquaternary salts causing neuromuscular and ganglionic block / [W.D.M. Paton, E.J. Zaimis].

  • William Paton
Date:
[1948?]
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: Clinical potentialities of certain bisquaternary salts causing neuromuscular and ganglionic block / [W.D.M. Paton, E.J. Zaimis]. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    (Reprinted from Nature, Vol. 162, p. 810, November 20, 1948) Clinical Potentialities of Certain Bisquater- nary Salts Causing Neuromuscular and Ganglionic Block Two members of the polymethylene aca-bistrimethyl- ammonium series1 ([N+(CH3)3.(CH2)W.N+(CH3)3] 21*) appear to possess activities which may be suitable for clinical use—the C 10 derivative (n — 10) to produce neuromuscular block, the C 6 derivative (n = 6) to produce ganglionic block. We wish to describe briefly the main characteristics of these compounds, in view of the great attention being paid to possible substitutes for d-tubocurarine chloride2*3 and to the use of tetraethylammonium iodide for ganglionic block4. The accompanying table gives the doses of C 10 and d - tub o e urar j no chloride which are approximately equipotent in causing neuromuscular block when in¬ jected intravenously into unanaesthetized monkeys (Macaca mulatto), cats and rabbits. Monkey Cat .Rabbit (Z-Tubocurarine chloride (mgm./kgm.) 0-1 0*15 0-17 C10 compound mgm./kgm.) 0*3 0*03 0*10 These results show variation of potency of the C 10 derivative of the bistrimethylammonium salt with species (as we previously reported) ; preliminary trials indicate that man is close to the cat in sensit¬ ivity. The onset of the paralysis is smooth and uneventful in the monkey and the cat ; in the rabbit, transient fine fasciculations (of the type re¬ ported in the cat under chloralose1) are just detect¬ able. In general, the order in which the various muscles are paralysed and recover from paralysis is much the same as with d-tubocurarine chloride. The main difference between the C 10 compound and d-tubocurarine chloride lies in the relative sparing of the respiration by the former in the monkey and the cat. In the monkey, even a small dose of d-tubocurarine chloride (0*075 mgm./kgm.), sufficient to produce weakness for about ten minutes, is accompanied by exaggerated movements of the nostrils and trunk indicative of respiratory difficulty. Similar respiratory signs can only be produced by the C 10 compound under test with a dose of 0*5 mgm./kgm., which causes complete paralysis of