Intestinal Parasitism.
—In a review of intestinal parasitism in Colombia (Rev. Fac. méd.22:101-111, 1953), Dr. L. Patiño Camargo states that the condition constitutes one of the most serious social and economic problems of the country. It is pandemic throughout the republic, with greatest intensity in the regions of tropical and semitropical climates where 88% of the population are infested with one or more of the 22 prevalent species of parasites (Fasciola hepatica, Taenia solium, Taenia saginata, Hymenolepis nana, Hymenolepis diminuta, Dipylidium caninum, Ascaris lumbricoides, Enterobius vermicularis, Strongyloides stercoralis, Ancylostoma duodenale, Necator americanus, Trichiuris trichiura, Endameba coli, Endameba histolytica, Endolimax nana, Iodameba bütschlii, Dientameba fragilis, Retortamonas intestinalis, Chilomastix mesnili, Trichomonas intestinalis, Giardia intestinalis, and Balantidium coli).Amebiasis is found in about 30% of the inhabitants of all the regions of the country and constitutes a serious problem because of its varied symptomatology, localization, and resistance to treatment. The author