Beriberi.—The leucocytes are about normal in number with possibly a slight increase in lymphocytes. Of course there may be anaemia present with the progress of the disease. Some think there is a slight diminution from the normal percentage of eosinophiles.
Noc found the percentage of lymphocytes in beriberi patients to be about 35 as against 32 for those unaffected.
Sprue.—There is considerable reduction in red cells which may fall below 2,000,000 in advanced cases. The whites may show a slight tendency to leucopenia with a relative increase in lymphocytes. The haemoglobin is not as much reduced as the red cells so that we obtain a color index of from 1.1 to 1.3.
Poikilocytosis and punctate basophilia are often noted, but rarely does one find nucleated reds. In a severe case the blood picture is rather that of an aplastic anaemia than a typical pernicious anaemia. The eosinophiles are rare or absent as the case advances. One often finds many (7-9) nodes in the polymorphonuclears.
Pellagra.—This disease may show a chloranaemia. Some authorities have stated that we have an increase in the percentage of large mononuclears but Hillman found a rather definite increase in the lymphocytes (34%) and a normal large mononuclear percentage.
Yaws.—This disease may show a moderate anaemia with a low color index. The leucocytes are about normal in number with a moderate increase in the percentage of large mononuclears.
Leprosy.—There is, as would be expected, with the progress of the disease, an anaemia which is of the chlorotic type. Leprosy bacilli may be found in the blood, especially during the time of the febrile accessions, but such examinations are of very little value in practical diagnosis and there are so many liabilities to error, as shown in the work with tubercle bacilli in blood, that we should be very conservative in this direction.
There is probably an increase in the percentage of lymphocytes.
Yellow Fever.—The blood findings are usually given as normal although Noc states that at first we have an increase in polymorphonuclear percentage to be followed by an increase in the large mononuclears about the fifth day. He also noted an absence or diminution of eosinophiles.