Tuberc Respir Dis.  1981 Mar;28(1):1-11. 10.4046/trd.1981.28.1.1.

Survey on the Anaphylactic Shock due to Streptomycin at Health Centres

• KMID: 2528863
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.4046/trd.1981.28.1.1

Abstract

The anaphylactic shock due to streptomycin occurs much less frequently than that of penicillin, according to various reports. However, when the patient expires it not only is a tragedy for the patient and his family, but it also makes the medical personnel and the institution involved to experience overwhelming difficulties. Therefore, streptomycin injections outside of the National Tuberculosis Programme have been hampered considerably, and it has some problems even within the Programme at the present time. To investigate the incidence of streptomycin shock, all health centtes throughout the country ha ve been asked to report the incidence of streptomycin shock. clinical findings, and eventual outcome. And review of the references were made on the incidence and the pathogenesis of streptomycin shock. Present paper reports the result of the retrospective survey on streptomycin shock within the National Tuberculosis Control Programme based on the information gathered from 192 health centres among total 204 health centres. The rate of streptomycin injections given at the health centres and subcentres was around 30%. There were 21 cases of anaphylactic shock and four of them expired during three years commencing from 1 January 1977 through 31 December 1979. The incidence of shock out of the total doses of streptomycin supplied to the patients was one out of approximately 500,000 gram doses of streptomycin (0.0002% or 0.2 in 100,000), and one out of 160,000 gram injections given at the health centres and subcentres (0.0006% or 0, 6 in 100,000). The death rate in the light of the total doses of streptomycin supplied to the patients was one out of 2,600,000 gram (0.00004% or 0.4 in 1,000,000) and by the injections given to the patients at health centres and subcentres was one out of 1,000,000 grams (0.00009% or 0.9 in 1,000,000). The incidence of shock by the numbers of patients on streptomycin treatment was one ou t of 13,000 (0.008 or 8 in 100,000) and the death rate was one out of 68,000 (0.0015% or 1.5 in 100,000) cases.