[Fundamental and clinical studies on forphenicinol, a small-molecular immunomodulator]

Forphenicinol , a small-molecular immunomodulator, was orally administered to 10 long-term hospitalized patients with decreased pulmonary function, mainly, due to obsolete tuberculosis. The patients were grouped equally into 2, the first group received 50 mg of forphenicinol /day for 4 weeks and the second group received forphenicinol for a total period of 1 year, according to the following dose-schedule; 100 mg/day for the first 2 months, 400 mg/day for the next 6 months and 200 mg/day for the last 4 months. Investigations were made on the serum levels and safety of forphenicinol in all of these patients. The results of the investigations were as follows. Peak levels of forphenicinol were attained, in most cases, 2 hours after the administration and the average peak levels on the 14th day were 1.37 micrograms/ml for the dose of 50 mg/day, 5.02 micrograms/ml for 100 mg/day, 7.49 micrograms/ml for 200 mg/day and 15.02 micrograms/ml for 400 mg/day. There was no difference between the serum peak levels on the 1st and 14th days, in the patients who received forphenicinol at the dose of 50 or 100 mg/day. This finding led us to conclude that forphenicinol may not be accumulated in the body when it is administered repeatedly. Neither any side effects nor any abnormal values in the laboratory analysis of samples were observed for forphenicinol . The following improvement were observed, in the patients who received forphenicinol on a long-term basis (1 year); diminution of thick-walled cavity in 1 patient with atypical mycobacteriosis and in another patient with drug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis, negative sputum culture for bacteria was observed during this whole period of forphenicinol treatment.