Alteration in the multiplication of Staphylococcus aureus by Enovid

Abstract

The widespread use of oral contraceptive drugs stimulated an assessment of one such compound for any effects on staphylococci. In vitro turbidimetric studies indicated that norethynodrel in therapeutic doses had a bacteriostatic action on the growth of staphylococci. When adult female mice received 2.5 μg norethynodrel and 1.2 μg mestranol intraperitoneally on each of 3 days before intravenous challenge with virulent staphylococci, the spleens and kidneys of the norethynodrel–mestranol (Enovid) treated mice contained one-half to one-third lower viable staphylococcal counts than those obtained from the same organs of the control mice. Furthermore, during the first several days after infection the Enovid-treated mice showed reduced mortality rates in comparison to those observed in the control mice. Thus, Enovid may affect the development of staphylococcal infections or chemical reactions governing the growth of staphylococci.