44
Dr. JACOB. That is true.
The CHAIRMAN. How many cases of that were there?
Dr. JACOB. There was a report of 2,000 patients and, among the
2,000, three had a generalized body rash and two had difficulty
breathing, but they responded rapidly to treatment.
The CHAIRMAN. Did the difficulty in breathing pass away reason-
ably soon?
Dr. JACOB. Yes; it did.
The CHAIRMAN. And also the irritation of the skin passed away
reasonably soon?
Dr. JACOB. Yes.
The CHAIRMAN. Were those cases where you would say there was
an allergy to DMSO on the part of that patient, who used it and
got that reaction?
Dr. JACOB. I would say there was a hypersensitivity to DMSO in
those patients, yes, sir.
The CHAIRMAN. Could such a reaction be avoided by patients if
they were going to use it without the advice of a doctor by using a
small amount to see if they got any allergic reaction?
There are some people allergic to aspirin or penicillin. If they
take an antibiotic shot, they always ask you are you allergic to
something like this.
Would the use of a small amount indicate whether one was
allergic or not?
Dr. JACOB. It is very difficult to detect sensitivity to DMSO by
using a small amount. We have tried this without success.
The CHAIRMAN. I see.
Well, was the breathing difficulty severe enough to threaten
suffocation and frighten the patient?
Dr. JACOB. The breathing difficulty was severe enough to require
the use of epinephrine. The patients survived. There is no question
but that any drug which does good has a possibility for doing bad,
and DMSO is not an exception.
The CHAIRMAN. I want to ask each of the four witnesses whom
we are examining now-Dr. Reedy, do you know of any instances
of adverse effects from the use of DMSO and, if so, what was the
nature of that reaction?
Dr. REEDY. I know of no significant side effects in any way except
those of redness of the skin, which were quickly reduced by the use
of any kind of cream. But there were no so-called anaphylactic
reactions or spasms in the throat or difficult breathing of any kind.
The CHAIRMAN. Now, Dr. Scherbel, have you known of any seri-
ous dangerous reaction experienced by anybody who used this
material?
Dr. SCHERBEL. Nothing serious, Mr. Chairman. I have seen some
itching, a few patients with hives which have subsided rapidly. I
have seen one or two patients who felt drowsy, more so than they
ordinarily would have after using it. That is about the extent. I
think one or two mild headaches.
Now, whether these are really related I don't know, but what
happens if we use the drug and the method we have discussed
today in our experience is very mild.
The CHAIRMAN. One other question.
