[First clinical results in the treatment of pulmonary tuberculosis with isonicotinic acid hydrazide].

Application of isonicotinic acid hydrazide and related compounds under the name Rimifon, Nicotibine, Tizide, Ditubine, was carried out in a total number of 160 cases in the University Clinic of Phthisiology of Athens at the Sanatorium “Sotiria”. The present study concerns only 36 cases of pulmonary tuberculosis of which four had tuberculous laryngitis. The limited number of 36 selected cases out of 160 Is due to the following two important factors, (1) because the duration of the applied therapy is from two and one-half to three and one-half months and, (2) because in these cases the clinical observation as well as the x-ray and the laboratory control were considered as complete. Most of our patients chosen for this study had far advanced pulmonary tuberculosis and uniformly bad prognosis, e.g. progressive, evolutive, bilateral cavitary tuberculosis, because such is the condition for the most part of patients under treatment at Sotiria. Besides, we wanted to try the effectiveness of the drug in cases of bad prognosis because the first published data in the Quarterly Bulletin of Seaview Hospital, Vol. XIII, No. 1, January 1952, reported extremely favorable results in such cases. Here is a summary of the results obtained in these 36 cases: