Massengill's Elixir Sulfanilamide: The Scramble to Confiscate

The FDA's scramble to account for all of the bottles of Massengill's Elixir Sulfanilamide began as soon as district chief William H. Hartigan and inspector Walter E. Donaldson arrived in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on October 15. After meeting with the local medical society, the officers immediately set out to determine which of the city's druggists had the elixir in stock. With the help of FDA inspector Cramer at Massengill's Kansas City distribution center and data from the company's Bristol headquarters, Hartigan and Donaldson identified the Oklahoma druggists who had received the elixir. In addition to 8 pharmacies in Tulsa, shipments had been sent to 3 drug stores 100 miles away, in Oklahoma City. Bottles had also been shipped to 1 store each in the smaller communities of McAlester, Cleveland, Duncan, Skiatook, Enid, and Claremore [1,2].

Hartigan and Donaldson obtained permission to legally confiscate Massengill's elixir bottles through the US district attorney in Tulsa (Whit Mauzy), who granted seizure of the elixir on the basis of mislabeling. Druggists' stocks, when found, were returned to either Massengill's Kansas City branch or company headquarters, where they would be tallied by on-site FDA personnel. Although stocks were often directly handed over intact, Hartigan and Donaldson occasionally found themselves scrounging through a store's back-room trash in their attempt to account for every last ounce.

To track down elixir in consumers' hands, the inspectors had to review the prescription files of druggists, some of whom were not entirely cooperative. At Tulsa's Getman Drug Store, which had dispensed 24 elixir prescriptions (including those for 6 of the deceased), the FDA encountered "extreme difficulty" with the obstructive efforts of the druggist and a prescribing doctor. In Cleveland, Oklahoma, the local drug store and a prescribing physician "interposed every possible interference in attempting to trace subdistributions." The attending physician went so far as to change prescription records that had been filed by the drug store. The FDA ultimately determined that 18-year-old Wilmer Morris, from Osage, just across the Arkansas River, had received a 4-ounce elixir prescription from the Cleveland drug vendor. He consumed about half of it and died October 27—more than a week after the death of the last Tulsa victim, Earl Beard. [1,2].

In total, FDA agents found that 38 prescriptions had been dispensed for Massengill's product throughout Oklahoma. House-to-house visits in Tulsa and other affected communities revealed that most patients had consumed at least a portion of their elixir prescription without harm. But in one case, the FDA hit a brick wall. The agency discovered that a prescription had been written by an untraceable doctor for an unnamed individual who had been driving through Tulsa. The would-be victim was never found. In 2 cases, prescriptions were procured by drug salesmen from Squibb and Abbott—ostensibly out of curiosity and for competitive intelligence [1,2].

By the end of October, the FDA identified 11 elixir-related deaths in Oklahoma. The death rate in the state was 29%.

1. Root T. Frantic fight on death is heart-breaking job. The Kansas City Journal-Post. October 31, 1937.

2. FDA correspondence. Report from J. O. Clarke to Chief Administration. December 4, 1937.