Observations on East African Bacillary Dysentery

Abstract

Fifty-six cases examined for Dysentery bacilli. All save one were clinically dysentery, and all save two were negative for amoebae and other protozoa.Twenty cases (35·7%) yielded dysentery-like bacilli.From these twenty cases thirty-six organisms were isolated and studied. Of these—Six corresponded with no familiar pathogenic organism.Six resembled B. Shiga. Two agreed completely both by fermentation and agglutination. One also gave typical fermentation and agglutination results but was at first a motile organism, although in later generations it became non-motile. The other three are less definitely Shiga bacilli.Five were mannite-fermenting organisms but only one agreed very closely in its fermentation reactions with B. Flexner and it was not agglutinated by Flexner serum.Sixteen cultures from ten separate cases corresponded closely with Morgan's bacillus.Eight of these agreed completely in their characters with Morgan's No. 1 bacillus.Three differed only from Morgan's No. 1 in being non-motile.Five presented characters intermediate between those of Morgan's No. 1 and Bowman's “Bac. S.”Of six cases yielding Morgan's bacillus, agglutination with the patient's own serum was positive in five.Three cultures showed affinities with the Bac. enteritidis.Polyvalent anti-dysenteric serum treatment tried on a considerable number of cases was a complete failure.