Blastocystis hominis is one of the most common intestinal parasites found in humans. The prevalence of B. hominis carriage in personnel who worked in the First Army Support Command, Chonburi, Thailand, was determined. Forty-four percent of 616 stool samples were positive for B. hominis using both simple smear and concentration (Formalin/ethyl acetate) techniques. The usefulness of the concentration technique in the diagnosis of B. hominis has been confirmed. Of 272 positive specimens, 75% were detected by simple smear and 25% were additionally identified by the concentration technique. The prevalence of B. hominis carriage was highest among the privates who had lived longest in this command. This finding indicates that they might have acquired B. hominis during their stay at this base. The significantly high prevalence of B. hominis carriage was found in the Ordnance Ammunition Battalion. In this battalion, privates who had education lower than the secondary school level had significantly greater risk of B. hominis carriage.

Amniotic fluid was assayed by a radioreceptor assay utilizing 125I-somatomedin C and placental membranes. Growth hormone and prolactin levels were measured by radioimmunoassay at different gestational ages (8-41 weeks). Somatomedin receptor activity, growth hormone, and prolactin reached high levels during early gestation (8-26 weeks) displaying different patterns of appearance which reflect fetal serum levels of these hormones. After 26 weeks gestation all these hormones decreased in concentration. This decrease showed a strong correlation with fetal renal maturation as measured by amniotic fluid creatinine levels.

SUMMARY Cases in which there are more than three copies of a sex chromosome, and rarely of an autosome, have been reported, but to our knowledge hexasomy has never been described except in tissue undergoing neoplastic change. This report describes a female infant with multiple malformations in whom we found a mosaic hexasomy 21. This was first detected in amniotic fluid cells and subsequently in skin fibroblasts.Case report Spontaneous delivery of this female infant occurred at about 36 weeks' gestation. Birth weight was about 4000 g and the head circumference was 34 cm.Respirations were gasping and irregular and there was acrocyanosis with dusky discolouration of the lips. The anterior fontanelle was large and cranial sutures, including the metopic, were widely open. Despite its circumference, the head appeared small in comparison to the body. There was marked hypertelorism with short upward slanting palpebral fissures. The globes were small and the corneae cloudy. There was a right sided cleft of the lip, complete cleft of the palate, and marked nasal hypoplasia. The ears were low set and rotated, and the lobes were fleshy. The neck was short with redundant soft tissue folds posteriorly. The chest was narrow with hypoplastic nipples. The heart was normal on auscultation. The sternum was of normal length. External genitalia were normal female and the anus was anteriorly placed. The spine appeared normal.The upper limbs were hypotonic and abnormalities were confined to the hands. Both thumbs were triphalangeal and the fingers were tapered with hypoplastic nails. There was camptodactyly of fingers 4 and 5 on the right and clinodactyly of the right second and left fourth fingers. There were simian lines bilaterally. Dermatoglyphs were unremarkable.The lower limbs were hypotonic with prominent heels and a midplantar vertical crease bilaterally.The baby died shortly after birth. Necropsy confirmed the physical observations. The heart was normal on gross examination and the brain on gross and microscopical study. X-ray examination failed to reveal any skeletal abnormalities and confirmed the clinical impression of borderline microcephaly.The mother and father were both aged 36 and in good health. There had been two previous pregnancies, one ending in an early spontaneous abortion and the second with a normal female whose development has been entirely normal. There was no other relevant family history.