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
Islington 1897
Forty-second annual report on the health and sanitary condition of the Parish of St. Mary, Islington
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ENTERIC FEVER.
The 256 cases, which were entered under this heading, were equal
to a case-rate of 0.75 per 1,000.
They were 28 above the corrected average of the preceding six years, the returns for which are as follows :—
| 1891 | 189 cases | 0.59 per 1,000 inhabitants. |
| 1892 | 219 „ | 0.08 „ |
| 1893 | 251 „ | 0.77 „ |
| 1894 | 245 „ | 0.74 „ |
| 1895 | 184 „ | 0.55 „ |
| 1896 | 229 „ | 0.68 „ |
| Corrected Mean | 228 „ | 0.69 „ |
| 1897 | 256 „ | 0.75 „ |
The present return is higher than that of any previous year. The
increase seems to have been distributed over each quarter, for it is seen
on the chart that on seven occasions in the first quarter, on five occasions
in the second quarter, on six occasions in the third quarter, and on six
occasions in the fourth quarter, the weekly returns exceeded the mean
of the preceding years. It is noticeable when the mean number
for the week was more than the notifications that it was generally very
small, whereas when the latter exceeded the former the increase was
more or less substantial. (Vide Chart).
The Islington Workhouse Schools were responsible for nine cases,
the source of which was the use by the boys as a urinal of a water-safe
tray placed under a water tap. Now this tray had been connected to the
drain by means of a 4 inch pipe, which for some reason had been disconnected
from the drain and sealed off at its junction. It was not, however,
disconnected from the tray, and consequently when the latter was used
as described, the pipe some 25 feet long became charged with urine, so
that in time gases were given off from the decomposing urine, and
as this took place on the staircase near the dormitories it can be understood
that the boys were most favourably placed for attack. Under