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106
As far as the notifiable infectious diseases in school
children are concerned, 1956 was. with the exception of poliomyelitis
an uneventful year. The outbreak of poliomyelitis in Tottenham
is referred to elsewhere but it should be notedhere that 15 cases
occurred in school children of whom six were at Lancasterian School
and the Nursery Classes at this school were in fact closed from
the 3rd July until the summer vacation. One of the children
concerned was left with a paralysed arm and has been admitted
since to Vale Road School for Physically Handicapped Children.
Two others were not yet fit to return to school at the end of the
year and may require to attend at a special school when discharged.
One case of diphtheria, rather unusually, of the ear, occurred
in an immunised school child but this case was extremely mild and
made an entirely satisfactory recovery. There were no outbreaks
of food poisoning or of dysentery in the schools of either borough
during 1956.
Tuberculosis in Schools
Notifications of tuberculosis (all forms1 in school children
during 1956 were seven in number compared with 14 in 1955. These
cases were discussed with the appropriate chest physicians and
where the child was infectious, or where no source of infection
was found in the home, epidemiological investigation was carried
out at the school. In 1956 this was necessary in only one case,
when a boy at South Grove Secondary Modern School was discovered
to have tuberculous pleurisy. As no contact could be found in
the home, epidemiological investigations were carried out at the
school. One boy was found to have tuberculosis of the right lung
and has been admitted to Highwood Hospital. The School Meals
staff have been x rayed and all x-rays were found to be negative.
Nine of the teaching staff were x-rayed and found to be negative,
Tuberculin testing undoubtedly proved its value in this case
bringing to light an adolescent with active tuberculosis.
Mantoux testing at another school as part of the B C G
vaccination programme revealed an unusually high number of strong
positives. An epidemiological investigation had been carried out
during the previous year at this school as the result of the
discovery of a case of tuberculosis in a school child. Nevertheless
after consultation withthechest physici an i t was thought desirable
to recommend that all the teachers be x-rayed and this was done.
Fortunately all were found to be healthy.