200 GARRISON. 



A similar compilation with regard to age demonstrates that "round 

 worms" are encountered with over twice as great frequency in children 

 under 15 years than in adults of middle life, the number of children 

 from 1 to 15 years examined being 2,381; those infected, 400, or 16.80 

 per cent; adults, from 15 to 50 years, examined, 1,461; infected, 107, 

 or 7.32 per cent. 



It is evident that our figures (26 per cent), based entirely upon adults 

 and almost entirely on males, are considerably below the proportion 

 of the total Philippine population harboring this worm, should a like 

 sex and age relation with' regard to Ascaris infections hold in the 

 Philippines. 



INFECTIONS WITH AMCEBA. 

 (23 per cent.) 



Statistics regarding the frequency of Amoebae in the human intestine 

 have varied greatly in the percentage of infection found, numbers as 

 high as 50 and even 70 per cent having been reported; a comparison is 

 rendered more unsatisfactory by the fact that some authors have at- 

 tempted to distinguish between Entamoeba coli and Entamoeba histolytica 

 and others have not done so. In the work here reported no attempt 

 at such differentiation was made after the investigation ha.d progressed 

 for a few weeks, for the reason that it was not found possible to dif- 

 ferentiate the two species with any certainty in a routine microscopic 

 examination of the fresh faeces, and also because we are of the opinion 

 that, until more light has been thrown upon the problems of the specific 

 identity and the relative pathogenicity of intestinal amoeba, the only safe 

 attitude to hold toward amoebic infection of the intestine in the Philip- 

 pines is to consider all intestinal amoeba potentially pathogenic and to 

 treat them accordingly. In view of such an opinion, the practical pur- 

 pose of the investigation expressed in the introduction would be served 

 by recording the frequency of infection with Amoeba without attempting 

 a possible specific determination of the parasites. 



A diagnosis of Amoeba was made only upon finding the motile or- 

 ganism. All encysted forms or cellular structures resembling the vege- 

 tative form of the parasite were reported to be negative with a query, 

 and other examinations were made until the motile organism was ob- 

 served or its absence rendered reasonably certain. 



The percentage of infections with Amoeba among the 4,106 prisoners 

 examined (23 per cent) agrees, rather closely with figures previously 

 reported by Musgrave and Clegg who found 154 (26 per cent) of 587 

 prisoners examined at Bilibid to have Amoeba in the faeces. 



