A morbidity survey on trachoma and other communicable eye diseases in the district of Hebron, Jordan, 1960.

In the course of a morbidity survey on trachoma and other communicable eye diseases carried out in the district of Hebron, Jordan, in June and July 1960, a total of 4031 persons were examined (2017 in Hebron town and 2014 in the surrounding villages). Trachoma infection was found in 47.6% (31.2% active) of those examined in Hebron town and in 63.9% (44.4% active) of those seen in the villages.Among the conclusions the author draws from a careful evaluation of the findings are the following. Trachoma in the Hebron area is a relatively mild infection which generally has its onset relatively late in life. The prevalence of the disease is significantly higher in the rural area than in Hebron town. The tendency to spontaneous healing is more marked in population groups with low over-all infection rates. It was quite a frequent finding that several members of one family were suffering from trachoma, but the number of persons per family had no apparent influence on the pattern of the disease.