Amoebiasis in a non-endemic country. Epidemiology, presenting symptoms and diagnostic methods.

392 patients with amoebiasis, diagnosed at Roslagstull Hospital, Stockholm during 10 yr, are reviewed. The disease is increasing in frequency, due both to increased travelling by Swedish citizens and immigration from non-European countries. The risk for an ordinary charter tourist is, however, rather low. Two-thirds of the patients were symptomatic and one-third were regarded as asymptomatic cyst carriers. The importance of repeated examination of stool samples and examinations using different techniques, especially direct microscopy of fresh faeces, is pointed out. The latter technique is in our laboratory shown to be as efficient in cases with no diarrhoea as in those with diarrhoea, with trophozoites demonstrated in the same frequency in both groups. Sigmoidoscopy with scrapings was seldom of diagnostic value.