ABSTRACT
During the first four years of a long range study of enteroviruses at Silliman University Medical Center, evidence was gained of a high level of endemnicity in Dumaguete City and Negros Oriental. Antibodies were detected in 31-83% of 100 lifelong Dumaguete City residents against each of 15 enterovirus types. Seventy-seven enteroviruses were recovered from 518 stool samples, 57 throat swabs and 24 cerebrospinal fluids from patients with a variety of clinical diseases and from 63 stool samples from well children. Although times of high incidence of enterovirus excretion were recorded in the study population, no epidemics of clinical illness referable to enteroviruses were recognized. Available evidence indicated that enteroviruses did not play a prominent primary etiological role in the cases of sporadic disease seen in the hospital The incidence of enterovirus infection in well children was approximately the same as in sick children. (Summary)