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following symptoms of pain, diarrhoea and vomiting.
Investigations made at the home revealed nothing conclusive
as to the source of infection. The remaining nine members
of the family were not affected and faeces specimens submitted
by them all proved negative.
(b) Clostridium Welchii. This outbreak occurred at a
school, where 22 members of the staff of 35 were affected. All
sufferers reported pain and diarrhoea which lasted for
approximately 12 hours. No children were affected.
Faeces specimens submitted by certain members of the
staff showed the presence of heat resistant Clostridium
welchii, an organism often associated with the practice of
cooking, cooling and reheating meat.
Investigations showed that a joint of beef had been
steamed for five hours on one day and left to cool overnight.
The following day the joint was sliced, warmed at hotplate
temperature only and served to the staff. On this day, the
children had a minced beef dish, which had been cooked at a
high temperature.
The attention of the school authorities was drawn to
certain aspects of this outbreak and action was taken to
secure improvements at this school kitchen.
None of the cases in this outbreak was formally notified.
Outbreaks due to unidentified agents. (a) Two persons
from different addresses in Kensington were admitted to
hospital following severe symptoms of pain, diarrhoea,
vomiting and fever, and were notified as suffering from food
poisoning. These symptoms lasted for 48 hours. Specimens
from these patients were examined in hospital but no
organisms of pathogenic significance were found. Specimens
submitted by family contacts were also examined with negative
results.
Investigations revealed that both these patients had
attended the same wedding reception in Mitcham earlier on the
day of the onset of symptoms. At this reception a meal was
served consisting of cold tongue, ham or beef followed by
custard and trifle. The circumstances were reported to the
Medical Officer of Health for Mitcham, and it is understood
that of the 26 guests at the reception, 11. had had symptoms
similar to those experienced by the two Kensington cases.
(b) A husband and wife living in South Kensington were
notified as suffering from food poisoning following symptoms
of pain and diarrhoea. However, the bacteriological
examination of faeces specimens from these two patients
showed negative results, and investigations made at the home
did not reveal any definite source of infection.
Single cases. In addition to the outbreaks mentioned
above, there were 17 single cases of food poisoning notified.
In 7 of these, no agent was identified. Of the remaining
10 cases, 9 were due to salmonella typhi-murium and one to
salmonella heidelburg.
INFECTIOUS DISEASE
Smallpox
No case of smallpox was notified in the borough during
the year 1950. Many persons came to Kensington from places