The Spermicidal Powers of Chemical Contraceptives: III. Pessaries

Abstract

1. A technique is described for comparing the spermicidal powers of pessaries, using human sperms.2. Those pessaries which do not contain cocoa-butter are more spermicidal than those that do.3. Quinine and lactic acid pessaries, in cocoa-butter vehicles, are almost without effect upon sperms.4. There is more than ten times as much quinine bisulphate in a quinine pessary as suffices to kill all sperms in half an hour, but the cocoa-butter prevents its action in some way which is not at present understood.5. Semori is the most spermicidal pessary of the nine investigated. Even at one-tenth of the concentration at which it is normally used, it kills every sperm or nearly every sperm in half an hour.6. Even if the foam-producing substances are omitted, semori remains effective.7. The minute quinine urea hydrochloride pessary is nearly as effective as semori, but the absence of foam-producing substances in this pessary limits its usefulness.8. Speton relies for its spermicidal power wholly upon its foam-producing substances. Its supposedly active substance, sodium dichlorylsulphamidbenzoate, is without effect upon sperms.