Indian Medical Research Memoirs Supplementary Series to the Indian Journal of Medical Research March 1931

At the instance of the Chief Commissioner of the Andamans arrangements were made for a special investigation into the disease in 1929 and the Home Department of the Government of India provided the necessary funds for a six months' inquiry. [...] The objects of the inquiry were : — (a) to confirm the leptospiral nature of the disease (b) to investigate the extent of its prevalence and in particular the incidence of mild types of the disease (c) to carry out a complete clinical and laboratory study (d) to investigate the epidemiology and (e) to consider the possible methods of prevention and treatment. [...] The clinical findings in Weil’s disease as it occurs in the Andmans can best be shown by descriptions of the characteristic symptoms and course of cases illustrating types of the disease of different degrees of severity and by an analysis of the incidence of the various signs and symptoms observed throughout the series of cases. [...] The characteristic features are : The sudden onset with rigor and fever the marked prostration and body pains the conjunctival injection the appearance of jaundice on the 4th day the presence of albumin and bile in the urine the polynuclear leucocytosis in the early stage and the later occurrence of a relative lymphocytosis. [...] (c) Convalescent stage setting on about the 13th or 14th day with gradual disappearance of the jaundice and other symptoms and the develoment of the antibodies in the blood and the excretion of surviving leptospirte in the urine.