Bacterial skin infection was studied in 239 children between the ages of 1 and 12 years in an urban squatter area in Kuala Lumpur over a period of three months (January - March 1983). 62 children presented with dermatological problems, 33 of which were clinically diagnosed as pyoderma. Microbiological examination of swabs from the lesions yielded mixed growth from 54.5% (18/33) specimens. Beta-haemolytic streptococci were isolated from 63.6% (21/33) and Staphylococcus aureus from 54.5% (18/33) specimens. All streptococcal isolates were grouped with a commercial kit, the Streptex (Wellcome). 81% (17/21) belonged to Lancefield's group A, 90% of which were not M or T typable by the standard international set of antisera. Urine analysis, pharyngeal swab culture and determination of anti-streptococcal antibody titre were also performed for children with positive skin cultures for group A streptococcus. 6% (2/33) of children with impetigo developed acute glomerulonephritis, requiring hospitalization.
Study site: Growth and nutrition clinic, squatter area, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
The problem of diabetes is large unknown due to lack of good epidemiological studies. The author's own studies showed a prevalence rate, in the Malays, of less than 1.0% in remote rural areas, 3.9% in a village close to Kuala Lumpur, and 3.0% for Malays working in a railway yard in Kuala Lumpur. The prevalence rate for the Chinese was 4.9% in the same survey, and for the Indian it was 16.0%. A survey in GHKL showed that 17.9% of the patients admitted for a month period in 1986 were due to diabetes and its complications. Majority of diabetes in Malaysia are non-insulin-dependent type.