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14
ENTERIC FEVER.
Excluding duplicates, the number of notifications of enteric fever was 41, of which 22 belonged
to St. Giles and Bloomsbury and 19 to the Holborn District. The average number of notifications for
the preceding decennium was 48, 26 in St. Giles and Bloomsbury and 22 in the Holborn District.
All but four of the cases were removed to hospital, and I had information that as many as ten
of the cases were not enteric fever.
Of the remaining 31 cases four were not contracted in the Borough, and four others probably
not contracted in the Borough. One a boy aged 10 years, contracted the disease by eating raw cockles
whilst staying at Whitstable, and another youth age 16, probably contracted the disease from eating
raw mussels; one case was probably contracted from eating oysters, two cases from fried fish and one
from watercress.
Of the 31 patients four died.
MEASLES.
Measles was very prevalent during the year. We had information from various sources,
principally from the schools, of as many as 444 cases after excluding those subsequently found not to
be measles; 199 belonged to St. Giles and Bloomsbury and 245 to the Holborn Division.
There were a few cases in January which rapidly increased in February, and attained a
maximum in the month of March, when half the total cases occurred. During the last three months of
the year there were no cases.
There were 43 deaths from measles registered during the year, of these 12 belonged to St.
Giles and Bloomsbury and 31 to the Holborn Division. All but one were young children under five
years of age. In the year 1903 there were only 17 deaths from measles in the Borough and the
decennial average is 37.
All the 444 cases were investigated and reported upon, the large majority viz., 399 by Miss
Lovibond.
Of the 399 cases, 219 or 55 per cent. attended school; 23 or about 6 per cent. were under one
year of age; 253 or about 63 per cent. were one year and under five years of age; 117 or about 29
per cent. were over five and under seven years of age; five were seven and under fourteen years and one
was 22 years of age. Thus there were 276 under five years of age, i.e., under the age of compulsory
school attendance and in 211 of these the infection was due to school, that is in over three-fourths of
the children under five years of age the infection was due directly to schools. Moreover, many other
children although not themselves suffering from measles have to be excluded on account of measles in
the house. We had information of as many as 602 such cases. In many of the schools there was a very
large reduction in the attendance, especially in the Infants' Departments. On this account I advised
that several of the Infant Departments of schools should be closed.
St. Giles National School, Infants' Department, was closed from the 5th March until after Easter,
and there was only one subsequent case.
St. Mary's, Gate Street, Infants' Department, was closed from 9th March to the 9th April,
inclusive, with only one subsequent case.
Great Wild Street, Babies' class only, was closed from 17th March until after Easter, and there
was no subsequent case.
Laystall Street, Infants' Department, was closed from the 19th May until the 2nd June, and
there was also no subsequent case.
All the schools were closed for the Easter holidays from the afternoon of the 31st March till the
10th April inclusive.