London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972

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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London

Battersea 1948

[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Battersea Borough]

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Table: Infectious Diseases. The following table shows the number of cases notified during 1948 and, for the purposes of comparison, the average number of cases notified annually in the five years, 1943-47 :—

Infectious Diseases. The following table shows the number of cases notified during 1948 and, for the purposes of comparison, the average number of cases notified annually in the five years, 1943-47 :—

Notified 1948Average 1943/7
Diphtheria1740
Erysipelas3140
Scarlet Fever227201
Enteric Fever21
Puerperal Fever33†
Puerperal Pyrexia1010
Meningococcal Meningitis68
Ophthalmia Neonatorum1315
Polio-myelitis, etc.56
Encephalitis Lethargica—-
Malaria—5
Dysentery1013
Pneumonia (Acute Influenzal)1230
(Acute Primary)137118
Whooping Cough588405
Measles1,470859
Tuberculosis (all forms)213201
Scabies94578*
Total2,8382,533

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* Scabies became notifiable on 1st August, 1943; equivalent annual
rate.
† Puerperal Fever became notifiable as Puerperal Pyrexia as
from 1st September, 1948.
In the aggregate, there was a considerable increase in the number
of cases of infectious disease notified in 1948 as compared with those
of 1947, caused mainly by a periodic outbreak of Measles. Notified
cases of Measles rose from 583 in 1947 to 1,470 in 1948. Scarlet Fever
also showed an increase.
Notifications of Scabies decreased considerably, there being
94 notifications in 1948 as against 219 in 1947.
Polio-myelitis decreased from 23 cases in 1947 to 5 cases in 1948.
One death was recorded as due to this disease.