[Dysentery in 1998].

Since the year 1992 a dramatic decrease of dysentery cases notified every year has been observed in Poland. In 1994 the microbiological examination of diarrhoea stool specimens stopped to be free of charge. Dysentery started to be recognised only in the cases suspected as foodborne disease outbreak investigated for epidemiological reason. This practise influenced the change in the epidemiological feature of dysentery in 1998: increase of cases due to S. flexneri infection (all together 36% of cases) mostly serological type 4a, and decrease of cases due to S. sonnei infection (from 90% to 60%). There were no more summer-autumn seasonal increase in number of monthly registered dysentery cases in July-September but spring increase March-May was observed that is rather unusual in Poland. We suggest that free of charge microbiological examination of diarrhoea stool specimens should be reintroduced due to epidemiological interest--surveillance of infectious diseases.