A comparative study of experimental bilharziasis in monkeys contrasted with the hitherto described lesions in man

IS the months of August and Septeiiiber 1 9 1 G Lawtoii ( 1 9 1 7 ') noted certain obscnre clinical syiiiptoiiis in twenty-four early cases of biiliarziasis admitted to No. 3 Australian General Hospital, Cairo.The clinical syndrome which supervened four to twelve weelis af ter exposure to infection, consisted of it febrile attack accompanied by abdominal pain, enlarged tender liver and spleen, bronchitis, urticaria and perhaps diarrhea.Microscopical investigation showed both the presence of a high eosinophilin and lateral spined ova of B. mansoizi in the feces.In the following iiionths of the smie year a siniilar history was obtained from a large percentage of cases admitted to the 14th Australian General Hospital suffering from bilharziasis.I also found a similar symptom-complex in cases iufected with B. Immatobia alone.Since, fortunately, owing to the limited iiuuiber of exposures to the infection, none of the cases proved fatal, no human pathological niaterial was available for iiivestigation.I therefore decided to make a completc?study of early biltinrziasis as it occnrred in expeiinientalIy iiifectecl monkeys, hoping thereby to establish a pathological basis for the early clinical picture as manifested in ninny of these human cases.During the snbseqnent two years (1 9 1 7 and 1 9 18) twenty-five monkeys have been experimentally infected with one or other variety (8.ninnsoni or E. kn:mcLtobia)