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10. Medical practitioners differ so widely in their views as to what constitutes dysentery that there is little hope of getting uniformity in diagnosis. As a rule clinical diagnoses are not supported by lahoratory findings and clinical diagnoses by themselves are not reliable. Out of 697 specimens sent to the Bacteriological Institute for confirmation of clinical findings 428 or 62% were negative for either amabæ or dysentery bacilli. It is true that some of these were dead specimens when received but even allowing for this it must be admitted that the margin of error shown by the bacteriological findings was high.
11. Notifications of dysentery would be useful in giving the health authorities early information of the prevalence in the Colony of bowel diseases giving dysenteric symptoms and thus acting as signals for the need or otherwise of instituting enquiries but unless qualified as to type the usefulness of notification does not extend beyond this.
12. In Hong Kong until the 30th of December last there was no power to make dysentery notifiable. On that date was passed the Quarantine and Prevention of Disease Amendment Ordinance which allowed of this being done. There is now nothing to prevent the Governor in Council declaring dysentery to be an infectious disease under the Ordinance and as such notifiable.
13. As notification of dysentery can do no harm and may do good especially during times of epidemic, notification of dysentery may be recommended.
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