Identification of Nematode Larvae in Serohemorrhagic Pleural Exudate
Dr. Heitor P. Fróes of Bahia, while examining recently a serohemorrhagic pleural exudate from a patient in the hospital clinic, found a nematode larva which (under the microscope) was seen to move rapidly among the erythrocytes and lymphocytes. In a fresh sample of the exudate, which was centrifugated in a different tube, he found other larvae completely deprived of their sheaths. These larvae were active at first, then they moved less intensely, and finally died. On this occasion, Dr. Thomas Girdwood, an intern in the clinic, and Waldemar Faria, an assistant in the laboratory, observed the larvae. They believe that the possibility of contamination can be definitely disregarded. Two days later the patient died. At autopsy, 1,700 cc. of fluid was found in the right pleura. This exudate was centrifugated, and again live larvae, similar in size and form to the previous