210 
TYPHOID FEVER IH DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA. 
It will be noticed that Guiart (Guiart & Grimbert, 1906a, 562) 
examined 1 typhoid case microscopically without finding evidence of 
whipworm infection, but such infection was found upon autopsy. 
The possibility is present that the worms were all males, or that if 
females were present they were not ovipositing. If we had only a 
few negative cases, the same possibilities would arise for considera- 
tion in our study, but with negative results as to the whipworms and 
eelworms (exclusive of the mites) in 185 cases, or 92.5 per cent, of 
our cases, it hardly seems probable that such possibility (of only 
male infection or of nonovipositing females) would arise in 185 
patients. 
Thus it is seen that the statistics of helminthiasis in the Washing- 
ton typhoid epidemic of 1906 do not support the theory that the 
intestinal worms have any necessary or any very common connection 
as an inoculating agent in this disease. 
SEVERITY OF HELMINTHIC INFECTION. 
It will be noticed from the review of Guiart’ s papers that he lays 
some stress upon the severity of the infection with whipworms in 
typhoid cases, as judged from the number of eggs in the preparations. 
He found that they presented an average of 2 eggs per slide, which 
was about 14 times as high as he found in a nontyphoid case of 
infection with whipworms. 
Our 14 cases varied from 1 to 19 eggs in 10 slides, a total of 67 eggs 
in 140 slides, or an average of 0.47 + egg per slide. I have no exact 
statistics of the intensity of whipworm infection in nontyphoids for 
this District with which these figures can be compared, for in former 
work on fecal examinations the findings in this respect have not been 
summarized statistically. Simply as a matter of impression it 
occurred to both Mr. Willets and myself that the infections found in 
these typhoid cases averaged rather low when compared with the 
infections we found at the Government hospital several years ago in 
nontyphoids. 
TYPHOID AND WHIPWORM INFECTION COMPARED INDIRECTLY. 
In respect to age of patient . — According to statistics summarized 
by Stiles & Garrison (1906a, 71) whipworms are more common (16.80 
per cent of 2,381 persons) in persons below 15 years of age than at 
any later period of life; from 5 to 10 years of age the infection of 
203 persons averaged 25.62 per cent. In examinations made in this 
laboratory whipworm infection varied (see Stiles & Garrison, 1906a, 
24) as follows : 
