XXXX in the tropics: experience in the University Hospital, Kuala Lumpur.

@entity5572 @entity1 @entity1457 @entity733 @entity158 @entity221 @entity298
We reviewed 204 cases of @entity5572 seen between 1970 and 1985. Ninety were found to be amoebic, 24 pyogenic and one tuberculous. The cause of the abscesses in the remaining 89 @entity1 was not established. The @entity1 were predominantly male, Indians, and in the 30-60 age group. The majority of @entity1 presented with @entity221 and right hypochondrial @entity158 . The most common laboratory findings were leucocytosis, hypoalbuminaemia and an elevated serum alkaline phosphatase. Amoebic abscesses were mainly solitary while pyogenic abscesses were mainly multiple. Complications were few in our @entity1 and included @entity298 and @entity1457 . An overall mortality of 2.9% was recorded. The difficulty in diagnosing the @entity733 type is highlighted. The single most important test in helping us diagnose amoebic @entity733 , presumably the most common type of @entity733 in the tropics, is the Entamoeba histolytica antibody assay. This test should be used more frequently in the tropics.
