View report page

Measles was the direct cause of 109 deaths, a smaller
number than in 1901. This year again the disease was most
fatal in Peckham, nearly half the deaths having occurred in
that district.
The mortality from hooping cough was greater than
my previous report has shown, there being 97 deaths, the
three more thickly populated districts showing about equal
numbers.
The actual numbers do not, however, show to the full
extent the baleful influence of these two diseases, for tuberculosis
not infrequently follows them both with sometimes a
rapid course, while on the other hand bronchitis and pneumonia
are often the sequela of these two diseases.
The mortality from smallpox was unusually heavy, and
except as regards the Dulwich district it was nearly uniformly
distributed. The subject has been already dealt with in my
special report on the epidemic; but I cannot forbear calling
attention to the fact that Camberwell, Peckham and St. George's
were all nearly equally involved, and the disease was by no
means specially prevalent in the least sanitary districts.
The total number of notifications received by me was
3,033. Excluding duplicates, this number represents 2,789
actual cases. The chicken-pox notifications, which amounted
to 1,493, are not included in the above total, for the reason
that no disinfection was carried out after their occurrence
and that their inclusion in the list was a special circumstance.
I visited the majority of them, and although, as
set out in my report, some of them were found to be
smallpox the greater majority were true cases of varicella,
although certain other maladies were confounded with this.
Of scarlet fever there were 1,306, compared with
1,443 in 1901; 1,126 of these were of persons over one year old
but under 15. Beyond a slightly increased prevalence in St.
George's, there is no great difference from 1901, at . the same
time the mortality showed a slight decline from that year.
The diphtheria notifications were nearly 200 less than
last year, all the districts sharing in the reduction, while the
deaths fell from 110 to 77, the drop being especially noticeable
in Peckham, which still, however, had the greatest number of
fatalities.