SINCE 1880, silver nitrate, 1 per cent (Credé), or some other silver compound has been instilled into the eyes of newborn infants for the prevention of ophthalmia neonatorum. According to the method of Credé, this was followed by irrigation of the conjunctival sacs with saline solution.
It is known that the incidence of ophthalmia in the newborn has decreased, whether actually as the result of the local therapy or because of the better prenatal care has not been established. Some opposition to silver compounds has existed for years; therefore, a better form of therapy was sought, and penicillin was instilled, as suggested, in the series of cases to be reported here.
For the purpose of this paper, ophthalmia neonatorum was defined as including any indication of inflammation in the eyes of infants aged 2 weeks or under.1 Three vital factors should be considered in the prophylaxis of this disease: