th ndied U.S. ARMED FORCES MEDICAL. JOURNAL 7 - _ Table 9. Percentage distribution of examined population tcith positive Kahn reactions by age group Percent positite Ate group (years) Tota) * All ages . Under 5 ‘ 15 to 24 8. 1--- wo keee Stole | 25 to 44 ; a Palau district 20.4 65. 4 41.0 61.3 | Marshall Islands district 38. 1 18.9 18.3 65.0 25.9 6.7 66.3 43.0 49.5 3.7 52.9 22.0 53.8 45 and over t 37.6 Saipan district eA.4 oo 37.4 oe. eens 44.0 ee wy district had the lowest percentage of all, only 3.6 percent positive, The next lowest was Saipan Island, with 22.8 percent. At the other -extreme was Elato Atoll in the Palau district, the only place where every individual tested had a positive reaction. Other islands or atolls where over 75 percent of the population had positive reactions were Kayangel (95.4), Satawal (92.9), Woleai (89.1), Peleliu (87.0), Lamotrek (§4.2), and Faraulep (77.3), all in the Palau district. Generally speaking, the proportion of positive reactions increased with age up to the age group of 45 and over, where a slight decline was noted. The same rate of increase from age group to age group, -. a : . mt however, was not observed in each district. i ° 3 zbe “sy Ot ee ont In the Saipan district a marked increase occurred between the 5- to 14- and 15- to 24-year age groups, with little change in the age groups thereafter. The conspicuously high rate for Saipan’s under-5-years-of-age population. however, is based on only 59 tests. Very little variation is observed between the age groups in the Palaudistrict. On the other hand, the Marshall Islands district exhibits definite increases with each age group. . In this survey a positive Kahn test. was considered likely evidence of the presence of yaws infection. It is recognized that the Kahn test is far from being an infallible index for the prevalence of yaws, for a positive reaction to the test may result from manydiseases and conditions. Because malaria was not noted in this area and because syphilis, leprosy, and infectious mononucleosis seldom occurred in proportion to the number of positive Kahn tests, it would appear to be a reliable guide in this instance. Yaws is not, as commonlybelieved, a venereal disease, but is a contagious clisease that may be transmitted from person to person by 1210 2 tae. VOLUME 10, NO. 10 te oo . ha SOT DIaT tt terre em Se ote sear se ° * . + oe . wy + *s +!