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The incidence of human trichinosis in the Vancouver area as determined by the examination of four hundred diaphragms

University of British Columbia

Four hundred diaphragms from Vancouver hospitals were examined for Trichinae "by direct compression and by digestion technique. Sixteen, or four percent were found to contain trichina cysts. By applying the formula M ± 3α , where M is the mean, and α is the standard deviation, theoretical range of the incidence of trichinosis in the entire population was determined to be between 1.03$ and 6.98%. Limitation of the amount of tissue examined, viz. one gram by compression and ten grams by digestion, and limitations imposed by the fact that only diaphragm muscle was examined, allowed an opportunity for certain light infections to pass unnoticed. It is therefore concluded that the incidence of human trichinosis.in the Vancouver area is probably somewhat above four percent. While no recent infections were discovered, this incidence, which is over double that found in Eastern Canada, and in some oases the intensity of infection, the highest being seventy cysts per gram of muscle, conclusively show that trichinosis constitutes a serious public health problem in the Vancouver area.

Text

2012-03-08

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http://hdl.handle.net/2429/41247

Zoology

University of British Columbia

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