﻿246 The Philippine Journal of Science i9i4 



Chamberlain, Vedder, and Barber/^ constituting the United 

 States Army board for the study of tropical diseases as they 

 exist in the Philippine Islands, reported an unusually severe 

 epidemic of acute bacillary dysentery raging around the town 

 of Ormoc, Philippine Islands, during the early part of 1912. 

 The disease was most prevalent in children and babies, and 

 the mortality was extremely high. The observers arrived on 

 the scene only toward the end of the epidemic, and were unable 

 definitely to isolate the dysentery bacillus. However, they are 

 of the opinion that the epidemic was due to some variety of 

 the dysentery bacillus. From one case they isolated an organism 

 corresponding in all essential details, except that of mortality, 

 with Bowman's Bacillus "S." 



Barber and Gomez ^° studied an epidemic of acute dysentery 

 at Baguio. There were 23 cases in all; 9 Americans with 2 

 deaths; 1 Filipino, no death; 11 Igorots with 8 deaths; and 

 2 of other nationalities with no deaths. They isolated a dysen- 

 tery bacillus from 14 out of the 23 cases studied. Of the 14 

 strains of the organism, 10 were of the Shiga type and 4 of 

 the Flexner type. All of the native Igorots of the mountains 

 showed the Shiga type of organism. In all cases where it was 

 possible to trace the source of infection it was found that the 

 disease in Igorots or in foreigners was contracted at one of 

 the railroad camps. Examination of the pail system of this 

 camp showed that there was a large amount of bloody flux 

 among the workmen. Laborers in this camp included all nation- 

 alities, and were received from all parts of the Philippine Islands 

 and from Japan. 



Ashburn and Vedder ^^ studied an epidemic of acute dysentery 

 prevailing among United States soldiers at Camp John Hay near 

 Baguio. The authors stated that during the year 1911 and part 

 of 1912 there were 81 cases of acute intestinal trouble among 

 the troops in that camp. The clinical symptoms were those 

 usually referred to as "mountain diarrhoea" characterized by 

 diarrhoea with mucus and blood in the stools and by slight fever 

 lasting from two days to a week. From one of these patients 

 the authors isolated a dysentery bacillus of the Flexner type. 



During 1912 an epidemic of acute intestinal flux among the 

 troops of one company was studied. The symptoms were mild, 

 consisting of diarrhoea — some blood and mucus — the disease 



"Milit. Surgeon (1912), 30, 318. 

 "Bull. Manila Med. Soc. (1912), 4, 138. 

 "Ibid. (1912), 4, 139. 



