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MATERNAL MORTALITY No death occurred due to causes associated with pregnancy
and childbirth Maternal deaths are usually divided into those due to septic
infection and those due to diseases and other conditions associated with pregnancy
and labour and the local trend of deaths from these two causes is shown below-

INFECTIOUS DISEASE
Notification to the Medical Officer of Health is the essential preliminary to
the control of infectious disease. The diseases required by statute to be notified:smallpox,
cholera diphtheria membranous croup erysipelas, scarlet fever typhus
fever, typhoid fever paratyphoid fever, relapsing fever, plague poliomyelitis,
tuberculosis, malaria, dysentery, puerperal pyrexia ophthalmia neonatorum acute
primary pneumonia acute influenzal pneumonia whooping cough measles acute encephalitis,
meningococcal infection and food poisoning It is known that all cases
are not notified, but there are no grounds for suspecting that the level of notification
varies to any great extent from year to year Persons travelling overseas
may be required to produce evidence of recent vaccination against smallpox or inoculation
against yellow fever, cholera and typhoid fever Such certificates require to
be endorsed by the Medical Officer of Health, and during the year 463 were so endorsed.
INCIDENCE OF NOTIFIABLE DISEASE The number of cases notified during the year
is shown in Table VI and the trend of infectious diseases during the last 20 years
in Table VII
SMALLPOX No case of smallpox occurred in the Borough during 1956 Persons
arriving in the Borough from parts of the world where smallpox is prevalent, are kept
under observation till any chance of their developing the disease is over
Freedom from smallpox has resulted in a neglect of infant vaccination. According
to the returns 570 children under the age of one year were vaccinated in 1956 as
compared with 375 in 1955 Modern travel is such that the risk of importing smallpox
is ever present.
SCARLET FEVER The continuing mildness of this disease is tending to make
parents and possibly doctors careless about home isolation and other measures to
prevent the spread of infection of the 67 cases which occurred during the year, 14
were admitted to hospital No death from this disease has occurred in the Borough
since 1937.
DIPHTHERIA The Borough's freedom from diphtheria was maintained during the
year. The number of children under the age of one year who were immunised during
1956 was 699 as compared with 525 in 1955
ERYSIPELAS The number of notifications was 12, but no death was due to this
disease
PNEUMONIA • Notifications of pneumonia were 27. as compared with 50 in 1955. Of
the total pneumonia deaths 70 per cent occurred at age 65 and over
MENINGOCOCCAL INFECTION - One case was notified during the year.
EPIDEMIC ENCEPHALITIS - One notification was received during the year The
patient was admitted to hospital but died
POST-INFECTIVE ENCEPHALITIS - Encephalitis is known to occur as a complication
of other infectious diseases but no such case was notified during 1956.
POLIOMYELITIS During the year 5 cases were notified. Of these 1 showed no
paralysis and of the others 1 was transferred to an orthopaedic hospital and 2 to
orthopaedic departments for further treatment.
Inoculation against poliomyelitis was started during the year. The British
type of vaccine was used and at the end of the year 330 children had received two
injections and 30 children one injection No reaction following any of these injections
was reported
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