The Hawaiian gazette., 1901-09-06
ANAEM|A OF
PORTO R|CANS
Official Points for
the Hawaiian
Doctors.

captain SHAKER. l. =. a.. OF camp NJ
Kinley. is just in receipt of copy Of
the report of the Military Governor of
Porto Rico, sent him by Major John
Van X. Hoff, Surgeon, Il. :. A., wNo
made valuable report on the health
of Porto Rico. The report on the prey
alence of anaemia is of especial in
terest to Hawaii on account of the
large importation of PortS Ricans as
laborers for the plantations. Anacn,.l
is discussed at length and the milita"y
surgeons believe they are now in -
position to treat the disease which has
carried off more Porto Ricans than al
mos, any other malady
Lieut.. Bailey X. Ashford assistant
surgeon. l.. s. A.. has discovered that
the disease is due to the presence of Il
parasite i'm which diagnosis he is sup
ported by eminent medical authority.
He states that in 1890, eighteen per
cent of all deaths was due to anaemia
since when there has been IA steady
and gradual increase. until, in 1899.
22.5 per cent of all deaths came from
this cause. During the seven months
covered by his statistics there We're
6,456 deaths due to anaemia. In his
opinion the present rate of forty-two
per thousand would be reduced to thir-
ty-one If the causes Of anaemh, were
eliminated. These causes are of such n
nature as to affect the poorest people
almost alone.
a majority of the islands population
is composed of poems" who are scat
tered over every portion of the coun-
try living in poor novels and subsist-
ing on the merest apology for food.
This is the class in which the large
mortality occurs Major HoT states
there seems to have been no effort made
by the resident physicians to inves tigate
the causes of this condition and de-
finite knowledge on this point is lack
ing. The poverty of the population,
with the resultant lack of nutrition. is
probably in itself the cause of "A small
per cent of these deaths but he states
that this. in the great majority of cases.
is merely contributory to "A disease
which has long been recognized In all
tropical countries. but only practically
demonstrated in Porto Rico since the
American occupation, and by an army
surgeon. He refers to ankylostomiasis
AT Ponce. in December of 1899, Lieut..
Ashford made what seems To have been
the first record of the discovery of the
kylostoma on the island. His official
report which is partly as follows, VIII
give Hawaiian doctors a clue to the
proper treatment of anaemic Porto RI
cans now here:
l have the honor to report upon TWEEN
ty cases of the severe anaemia common
ly seen among the poor of this island.
One of the first observations made
among professional men here is the prev
alrncee of anaemia. especially among the
poor This is at first attributed usually
to starvation or poor food. then to ma
laria, and then to the Climate" Through
the kindness of the physicians of Ponce
j am able to state something as to the
mode of treatment adopted up to this
time. Some have observed that the ig-
norant peon treated himself by purging.
with beneficial effects for time, and n
relap se to previous conditions soon after
wards. Iron and arsenic have been pre-
scribed largely, but with little benefit.
Some physicians have frankly declared 1t
beyond their power to cope with the dis
ease which they regarded as "a PERM
cous, progressive anaemia of obscure orr
gin. The stools have been examined,
but no worms being evident, this as
cause was dismissed. ! was led to ex-
anime the faces for the ova OF ankylos-
tOma duodcnale, and found them in great
numbers Soon after "A large dose of thy
mol brought away the parasites. male
ana female. No sooner had ! stated my
results to the physicians of this city than
they agreed as to the diagnosis and veri-
fled the parasite and it's eggs. Their tes-
timony is as follows:
l. This disease Is the most destructive
and general disease of Porto Rico.