The bacteriology of diarrhoea in children

75 samples of stools from children under 5 years at the Children's Hospital Rangoon were examined bacterilogically using Mac Conkey agar and desoxycholate citrate agar as primary plating media and selenite F broth and tetrathionate broth as primary enrichment media. 25 non-diarrhoeic stools from children from an urban quarter in the same age group served as a control. Salmonella typhi was the only well-defined bacterial enteropathogen isolated (1.3 percent). The parasites Ascaris Lumbricoides, Trichurus trichiura and Giardia lamblia were found in respectively 13.5, 5 and 5 percent. It is concluded that in the group studied, bacteria did not play a mojor role in the aetiology of diarrhea, but that the parasites found may have been involved. It is recommended that a survey for enteroviruses in diarrhoeic stools from Burmese children be made. It is also suggested that the role played by other possible aetiological agents in diarrhea be investigated.

Intestinal parasitisms in the Inthas

Stool samples of 107 adult Inthas were examined first at the place of collection and then at the Burma Medical Research Institute Laboratory. Entamoeba coli cysts were found in 10.29 per cent, Ascaris eggs in 3.63 per cent, hookworm eggs in 2.71 per cent and Taenia eggs in 2.71 per cent. The incidence of intestinal parasitisms in the Inthas is compared with the incidence in Tarons and Htalus (Tu, 1967) and in the case of hookworm, also with the incidence in a Burmese village group. It is concluded that the intestinal parasitisms of the Inthas should not constitute a health problem because of their low incidence.

Effect of Desmodium Triquetrum extract on some pathogenic bacteria

An aqueous extract of Desmodium triquetrum was tested against Salmonella typhi, s. paratyphi A, s. paratyphi B, Shigella boydii, s. flexneri, S. shigae, Vibrio eltor, V. cholerae (Inaba serotype), V. cholerae (Ogawa serotype) and Escherichia coli by the serial dilution tube technique. The extract was found to have bactericidal action on the ten bacteria tested. The range of minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values was also determined compared with values for streptomycin, chloramphenicol and tetracycline. Large-scale growing of D. triquetrum is suggested to facilitate analysis and identification of the anti-bacterial principle.

Nasal carriage of staphylococcus aureus in Burmese with a note on antibiotic sensitivities

134 Burmese children and adults from urban and hospital areas in Rangoon were examined for nasal carriage of Staphylococcus aureus. 77.4 per cent of 62 individuals in an urban group, 78.33 per cent of 60 nurses, doctors and medical students, 73.43 per cent of 64 Lady Health Visitor trainees, and 10 of 12 surgical patients carried S. aureus in the nares. There was no significant difference in the over-all carriage rates of urban, hospital and Lady Health Visitor trainee groups. 14 infants in a maternity hospital were examined for nasal carriage of S. avreus from the day of birth until until the day of discharge from hospital. All 14 infants carried S. aureus in the nares by the 4th day of life. Antibiotic sensivitities to benzyl penicillin, phenethicillin, cloxacillin, methicillin, streptomycin, chloramphenicol, and tetracycline were determined in 106 strains of S. aureus of both urban and hospital origin. 79.5 per cent of 44 urban strains were sensitive to benzyl penicillin, 15.9 per cent moderately resistant and 4.6 per cent resistant. All 44 strains were sensitive to the other antibiotics used. 73.9 per cent of 46 hospital strains were sensitive to benzyl penicillin, 17.4 per cent moderately resistant and 8.7 per cent resistant. 91.3 per cent were sensitive to streptomycin and 8.7 per cent resistant to this antibiotic. All 46 strains were sensitive to the other antibiotics used. There was no significant difference in the benzyl penicillin resistance rates in hospital and urban strains of S. aureus. Neomycin and chlorhexidine ("Naseptin") nasal cream therapy ws attempted in 4 carriers of S. aureus. Therapy appeared effective in 3 of the 4.