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13
Scarlet Fever.—Apart from an outbreak of this disease in the Duke
of York's Royal Military School in April and May, 1903, scarlet fever
was less prevalent in the Borough than it has been for many years past.
Excluding the Duke of York's School cases, the case-rate per 10,000 of
the population was only 16.9, as against 27.6 in 1902. The case-rate
for 1903, including the Duke of York's School cases, was 27.9 per
10,000. Eighty-two cases of scarlet fever were removed to the M.A.B.
hospitals from the Duke of York's School in April and May, and the
School was broken up at the latter end of May and transferred
temporarily to the country in consequence of the outbreak. The disease
was of a mild type, no deaths resulting, and the average duration of
the stay in hospital of the School cases was 54 days.
There was no autumnal increase in the prevalence of this disease
in Chelsea in 1903. The number of cases notified in the first quarter
of the year being 40, in the second quarter 117 (82 Duke of York's
School cases), in the third quarter 30, and in the fourth quarter 20.
The number of cases notified in North Chelsea was 56, and in South
Chelsea, exclusive of the Duke of York's School cases, 69. The percentage
of cases of sohool age (3 to 13 years) in the whole Borough
was 76 per cent. The average duration of the stay in hospital of 165
cases, of which records are to hand, was 63 days. Six cases admitted
to the M.A.B. hospitals were subsequently certified by the Medioal
Superintendents of those Institutions not to be suffering from scarlet
fever, or any other notifiable disease. The average duration of the
stay in hospital of these 6 cases was 23 days.
Diphtheria.—The case-rate of this disease in Chelsea for 1903 was
13*4 per 10,000 of the population, which is considerably lower than the
case-rate for 1902 (17.7). In the first quarter of the year 39 cases were
notified (including 8 from the Duke of York's School at the end of
March), in tho second quarter 22, in the third quarter 19, and in the
fourth quarter 20. The percentage of cases of school age (3 to 13) for
the whole Borough was 68 per cent. With the exception of 9 cases of
the disease from the Duke of York's School in March and April, most of
which preceded the scarlet fever outbreak in the same Institution, there
were no outbreaks in the course of the year specially attributable to
sohool infection. In North Chelsea 43 cases were notified, in Sonth
Chelsea 56. There was no autumnal increase in prevalence of the
disease. During a period of 6 weeks from the early part of April until
the latter end of May, only one case of diphtheria was notified in the
whole Borough—such an occurrence being probably unprecedented.
The average duration of the stay in hospital of 60 cases, of whioh the
records are to hand, was 54 days. Fifteen cases admitted to the
M.A.B. hospitals were subsequently certified by the Medical Superintendents
of these Institutions not to be suffering from diphtheria or
any other notifiable disease. This proportion of mistaken diagnoses (15
per cent.) is rather larger than in 1902 (6 per cent.). The average
duration of the stay in hospital of these 15 cases was 14 days.