[ H ] 
Nematodes. 
Intestinal nematodes in man were not as common as in manv Darts of 
the tropics. J r 
Those found were A scans lumbvicoides , Tvicocephalus dispar , Oxyuris 
vermiculans and Anchylostoma duodenale. A few Anchylostomes or traces of 
t eir presence were found in the great majority of the cases examined. 
These cases were Chinese and Tamils. Ova of the same parasites were 
tound in the stools of 13 out of 21 Malay prisoners. 
Though found in all races it was exceptional to find the parasites in 
large numbers. This is in marked contrast with most tropical countries 
where anchylostomes if widely distributed are also found in large numbers 
m a considerable proportion of the cases. This rarity of severe infections 
is probably to be attributed to the Chinese method of disposal of excreta. 
I he faeces are either collected in large jars or passed into open cess pits. 
In either case the mass is attacked almost at once by dipterous larvae 
usually of Sarcophagi which are deposited living on the faeces. The larvae 
swarming m the previous dejecta also attack the fresh faeces. 
Experiments were made by allowing such larvae to feed on faeces 
containing various ova of intestinal parasites and these larvae were then 
placed in a clean vessel and their dejecta examined. It was found that 
ankylostoma ova were completely destroyed in passage through the intestine 
of these larvae whilst ova provided with thick shells, i.e., Ascaris Lumbri- 
coides, Tricocephalus dispar, and Distoma sinense were passed unchanged. 
A few larvae were placed in glass vessels with a small quantity of feces 
containing \ ariousova in large numbers. The result of the experiments 
leads to similar conclusions. No anchylostoma ova or embryo were found 
in the mass after a few hours. The number of larvae, their age and the 
relative amount of feces are all points which affect the rate at which this 
total destruction of Anchylostome eggs takes place. 
In the practical use either of open cess pits or of Chinese jars the 
number of larvae of various ages near the surface is so great that anchylos¬ 
toma ova, though in this climate they hatch under 48 hours, have little or no 
chance under those conditions of reaching the infective stage of free 
embryonic life. In the earthenware jars any larvae that did arrive at such 
stage can only live for a few days in either pure or putrid feces. 
Eggs of the other parasites mentioned are not destroyed in this manner. 
Tamils who pass feces in the bush or amongst their gardens harbour 
the paiasites in larger numbers as though no doubt larvae are deposited on 
the faeces shortly after they are passed still many anchylostoma will have 
hatched out and escaped into the earth before the young larvae have had 
time to pass the whole of the dejecta through their intestines. 
Clinically cases of profound anaemia due to anchylostoma are 
uncommon in Malaya but do occur, and minor cases are more common. 
Out of 328 post-mortem examinations on Chinese the deaths due solely to 
this cause were only 2, but in 4 others there was reason to believe that the 
presence of these parasites contributed to the fatal result of the other 
diseases from which the patients were suffering. In the Tamils on the 
other hand 5 out of 32 deaths were attributed to this cause either alone or 
in the main. 
Embryos of Auguilula Intcstinalc were found in feces on several 
occasions. 
