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

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Shoreditch 1911

[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Shoreditch]

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88
(iii.) Deaths from Epidemic Diarrhoea.
I enquired into the circumstances preceding the deaths of 65 infants under
eight months from epidemic diarrhoea. These enquiries covered a period from
July 15th to September 16th. Forty-four satisfactory records were obtained ; in
the remaining cases the parents had removed, or were out at work, and so no information
worth recording was obtainable.

The main points of the records thus obtainable are shown in the following table:—

Condition of Home.Method of Feeding.Proper Food Storage.Mother out at work.
Clean and Fairly Clean.Very Dirty.Natural.Natural and Artificial.Artificial.
271731031118

With reference to the three deaths in the above table in connection with
which it was stated that the infants had been naturally fed, the type of home in
which they lived suggested that, though possibly no regular bottle meals were
given, the infants were fed with "bits of food," and given dummy teats, which
had been dipped into dirty milk or sugar.
(iv.) Ophthalmia Neonatorum.
Since this disease was made notifiable in March, 1911, 35 cases have been
certified, 32 under § 55 of the Public Health (London) Act, 1891, and three by
the London County Council Inspectors of Midwives.
Of the whole 35 notifications—
Two referred to children aged respectively fourteen weeks and eight months.
These are not included in the Report given below, which relates to
cases amongst the newly-born.
One referred to an infant not ordinarily resident in the Borough, and 110
information respecting the attendance at birth was obtainable.
Of the 32 remaining cases (five of which were admitted to hospitals)—
Seventeen occurred in the practice of doctors, inclusive of five occurring
in the lying-in wards of public institutions. Cases attended by doctors
only are not visited until after the tenth day, when the patient is
ordinarily not under a doctor's care. Very few in this Borough care
to entail the expense of retaining the doctor's services after that date,
and my advice is then of some service to the mother, especially as,
although the baby's eyes have been well looked after by the doctor,
the mother, as a rule, has received no information as to the nature of
the disease, and requires education on this point.