Screw Worms in Human Beings, 131 



A full account of Hemiptera-heteroptera obnoxious to man lias 

 recently been compiled by Eaphael Blanchard entitled, " Sur la 

 Piqiire de quelques Hemipteres." Archives de Parasitologie, V. No. 1, 

 p. 139 (1902). 



Screw Worms in Human Beings. 



A note regarding the Screw Worm {Compsomyia macdlaria) in 

 human beings was sent by Dr. St. George Gray. Screw Worms were 

 taken from the mouth and nose of a female patient dying of phthisis 

 in the Victoria Hospital. " I am not at all sure that they are the 

 larvae of Compsomyia macellaria, which is very common in some 

 parts of this island and which attacks cattle, for I have never seen a 

 single specimen of the adult fly in the vicinity of the hospital, but 

 there are innumerable flies of other species about. I am trying to 

 breed out a few of these in a jar of earth, so that I may be absolutely 

 certain of the fly. I may mention one fact about them which may 

 be of interest. Out of four patients who were attacked by Screw 

 Worms two occupied the same bed, one after the other, and a third 

 the next bed to it. The other case was in a more remote part of the 

 hospital." 



About a month after, specimens of the fly and its puparia arrived 

 with the following interesting notes by Dr. St. George Gray : " I 

 notice that those bred from the larvse have a more decided bluish 

 colour than those caught in the open. This may be due to the 

 fact that the former had never fed. During life the eyes are of a 

 brick-red colour, but this changes after death." The larva? of 

 C. macellaria have frequently been known to attack human bemgs, 

 entering the external orifices. 



K 2 



