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NON-NOTIFIABLE INFECTIOUS DISEASE.
The group of non-notifiable Infectious Disease resulted in deaths
from measles (1), diarrhoea (4 under 2 years, only 2 of which were
probably due to infections), and influenza (9), the latter being less than
one-half of the number of deaths from that cause in 1937.
Apart from the death returns, the only information as to the presence
of outbreaks of non-notifiable Infectious Disease are the returns from the
public elementary schools.
As judged by these, the incidence of these diseases was as follows:—
MEASLES.—A number of cases occurred during the first three months
of the year, viz., January, 27, February, 116, and March, 87, the areas most
affected being, Chipstead Valley (90), Kenley (57), Old Coulsdon (38), Purley
(26) and Sanderstead (16). Only a few cases (17) occurred during the remainder
of the year.
GERMAN MEASLES.—Very few cases were notified.
WHOOPING COUGH.—Nine cases occurred during January and February,
8 of which came from Old Coulsdon; the following three months produced
38 cases, of which 34 occurred in Coulsdon, while during the remainder of
the year only 2 cases were notified.
MUMPS.—Altogether 187 cases were notified, chiefly during the first
seven months of the year, the area chiefly affected being Selsdon with 122
cases, the remainder being scattered throughout the District.
CHICKEN POX.—123 cases were notified during the year, of which
48 occurred in Selsdon during March and April, and 53 in Coulsdon during
June and July. The remainder of the cases were scattered over the District
and throughout the year.
Home visitation and exclusion from school are still the two chief
methods relied upon to postpone the onset until the most favourable
age is reached to stand the disease, but the possibility of modifying
measles on a wider scale by an injection shortly after exposure to infection
is becoming more practicable each year.
Treatment in hospital is provided for a limited number of cases,
and 4 cases of measles and 1 of rubella were admitted to the Isolation
Hospital during the year under this arrangement, social or physical
complications being present. Occasionally in addition cases are admitted
to the County Hospitals.
Since the beginning of the year the practice of sending a weekly
statement of the number of cases of infectious disease to all general
practitioners serving the District has been resumed, the statement now
including an indication of the Ward in which the disease has occurred,
and also including the chief non-notifiable infectious diseases.
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