Laboratory Results on the Efficacy of Terramycin, Aureomycin and Bacitracin in the Treatment of Asymptomatic Amebiasis

Abstract

Summary and Conclusions 1. Terramycin has been found to control effectively the internal transmission of amebiasis in an institutionalized population. The simultaneous administration of the drug for ten days to 222 inhabitants of an infirmary, in which the prevalence of infection with E. histolytica was 49 per cent, resulted in the virtual elimination of the infection for at least six months after treatment. 2. While the efficacy of terramycin is clear, its superiority to aureomycin in the treatment of asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic amebiasis is not considered to be established by this study due to the design of the experiment. 3. Bacitracin was found to be less efficacious than either terramycin or aureomycin. 4. Terramycin appeared to have some effect against Endamoeba coli and Endolimax nana infections and a more pronounced effect against Iodamoeba bütschlii infections.