The Japanese had delivered almost 30,000 army troops to Guadalcanal since the campaign began, but by December only about 20,000 of that number were still alive; of those, only around 12,000 remained more or less fit for combat duty, with the rest incapacitated by battle wounds, disease, or malnutrition.
Japanerne havde overført næsten 30.000 tropper til Guadalcanal, siden slaget var begyndt, men i december var kun omkring 20.000 af dem i live, og kun omkring 12.000 var mere eller mindre klar til kamp, mens resten var sat ud af spillet, fordi de var sårede, syge eller fejlernærede.