[Cerebrospinal fluid passage of therapeutic immunoglobulins of the IgG class in infectious inflammatory disease of the CNS].

Immunoglobulins are often used as an optimizing therapy in cases of infectious diseases of the central nervous system. To clarify the question of whether or not an intravenously administered compound of the IgG class is able to penetrate the cerebrospinal fluid barrier despite its high molecular weight, 12 anti-HBs negative patients received 20 ml each of a beta-Propiolacton treated IgG compound with a high anti-HBs titre (1 : 115 000) used as a marker. Four patients having an inconspicuous fluid condition were consulted for control. Five patients were suffering from slight disturbances and three other patients had severe disorders of the blood-cerebrospinal fluid barrier function resulting from inflammatory diseases of the central nervous systems. Cerebrospinal fluid was produced by way of lumbar puncture resp. drainage for the determination of anti-HBs. Simultaneously, the concentration of antibodies in serum was determined. In all patients having barrier disturbances, anti-HBs was evident in the cerebrospinal fluid, the transfer of intravenously administered immunoglobulins to cerebrospinal fluid increasing in correlation with the degree of the barrier disorder. The therapeutical importance of immunoglobulin therapy in treating infections of the central nervous system is pointed out.