﻿TYPHOID FEVER IN THE PHILIPPINES ^ 



By Perpetuo Gutierrez 



(From the Department of Medicine, University of the Philippines, and the 



Philippine General Hospital) 



During recent years a number of observers have contributed 

 to our knowledge of typhoid fever as it occurs among foreigners 

 in the tropics. Very little work has been published regarding 

 the incidence, clinical types, and mortality of the disease among 

 native inhabitants of warm countries. 



The material for this paper is based upon the study of 125 

 cases of typhoid fever in Filipinos, treated in the Philippine 

 General Hospital during a period of a little less than two years. 

 During this time, there were 137 cases of typhoid admitted to 

 the hospital, of which 6 were Americans, 3 Portuguese, 1 English, 

 2 Japanese, and the remainder Filipinos. 



The importance of recognizing the incidence index of typhoid 

 fever in this country cannot be overestimated, because once this 

 infection gains a foothold it will be difficult to eradicate, on 

 account of the peculiar environment and the poor hygienic con- 

 dition under which most of the people live. 



There seems to be considerable difference of opinion regarding 

 the local distribution and prevalence of the disease. Chamber- 

 lain, Nichols, La Garde, and others believe it to be prevalent 

 throughout the Archipelago. Heiser, on the other hand, claims 

 that the incidence was very low prior to 1910. Whether or 

 not the disease is on the increase, I am not in a position to say. 

 Certainly more cases came to the hospital this year than in pre- 

 vious years. In 1911 there were 23 cases, or 0.66 per cent, of 

 typhoid out of a total of 3,461 admissions. During the fiscal 

 year 1912 there were 39 cases, or 0.53 per cent, of typhoid 

 patients out of a total of 7,252 admissions. During these two 

 years, therefore, the number of typhoid patients admitted shows 

 a fairly uniform relationship to the total admissions. Begin- 

 ning with the fiscal year 1913 and up to the present time, there 

 have been 98 cases of typhoid out of a total of 6,300 admissions. 

 This marked increase may be due, in part, to the fact that people 

 are getting more used to hospitalization, but this cannot explain 

 all the factors concerned in the increase, and if we may draw 

 conclusions from the statistics of the hospital typhoid fever is 

 more prevalent now than it was during previous years. 



* Read at the meeting of the Colegio Medico-Farmaceiitico de Filipinas, 

 June 21, 1913. 



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