Salmonellae and shigellae in a group of urban South African Bantu school children

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Abstract
1. Faeces from apparently healthy Bantu children from schools in Soweto township near Johannesburg were examined eight times at fairly regular intervals over a period of 1 year.2. Only fifty-five children were present for all eight investigations and, of these, 36·4% yielded salmonellae and 9·1% shigellae. Taking the group as a whole, 26·2% of the children had salmonella infections and 6·2% shigella infections.3. Parasites were shown to be present in sixty-four of the 130 children during the period of the investigation.4. As in other surveys, there were more isolations in summer than in winter.5.S. labadiandS. typhimuriumwere most frequently isolated, with the group B–E constituting 75% of the total isolations.S. typhi, S. paratyphi A, BandCwere not found.6. Water supplied to each house by the Johannesburg municipality was of good quality, yet it did not affect the incidence of salmonellosis and shigellosis.7. In spite of better socio-economic conditions the incidence of salmonellosis is comparable to the two previously mentioned surveys. These findings indicate a lack of instruction on personal hygiene and the importance of public health measures.