Relative Toxicity of Certain Antiseptics Containing Soap and Alcohol—With Special Reference to Mouth Washes

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Abstract
By the use of the destruction of phagocytic activity as a measurement of toxicity and comparing toxicity with germicidal ability under a similar set of conditions to obtain a toxicity index, it was found that addition of alcohol to a soln. of phenol increased the toxicity index. A marked increase in the toxicity index occurred when soap was added to phenol solutions. The high toxicity index caused by the addition of soap was demonstrated with several phenolic compounds and essential oils. The toxicity of alcohol and soap was obtained for comparison. The toxicity and germicidal power of 87 commercial mouthwashes have been determined: only 9 were found to be germicidal under the conditions of test, while 62 were toxic in a 1:5 dilution; 14 were toxic in a 1:10 dilution; 2 were toxic in a 1:15 dilution; 5 were toxic in a 1:20 dilution, and 1 each was toxic at dilutions of 1:25, 1:30, 1:40 and 1:50. A brief discussion of the application of the toxicity-index method to the evaluation of antiseptics is presented.

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