Tentative method for the qualitative detection and quantitative assessment of air contamination by drugs.

A method for detecting and measuring air contamination by drugs is described which uses an electrostatic bacterial air sampler, sprayers for micronizing drugs, and Mueller-Hinton medium seeded with a highly susceptible strain of Sarcina lutea. Three antibiotics (penicillin, tetracycline, aminosidine) and a sulfonamide (sulfapyrazine) were identified by pretreating portions of medium, showing no bacterial growth, with penicillinase or p-aminobenzoic acid solution and subsequently determining how both drug(-) susceptible and drug-resistant strains of Staphylococcus aureus were affected by this pretreatment. Quantitative determinations were also attempted by measuring the size of the inhibition zones.