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36
BACTERIOLOGICAL DIAGNOSIS.
"Where children residing in infected houses in the Borough attend schools in outlying districts,
the Medical Officer of Health has in each case been duly advised. Similar information has been
received from outlying districts. During the year 116 cases were thus reported to the Department,
viz., 114 from Willesden and 2 from Kensington.
The subject of school attendance has also been examined in another way, by grouping the eases
according to the schools attended by the patients, or, if the patient did not attend school, by the
school attended by the children of the family. Each case is thus allocated to one school only, and
does not appear in the resulting tabulation more than once. This has, however, been done only for
diphtheria cases at a few schools.

BACTERIOLOGICAL DIAGNOSIS.

In addition, one rat which had been found dead in the sewers was examined for the plague bacillus,
and an unrecorded number of cats have also been examined post mortem for the B. diphtheria.
Hitherto no arrangements have been made for the examination of sputum in cases of suspected
tubercular disease of the lung. Having regard to the highly infective character of tuberculous
sputum, and to the excellent results which attend certain lines of treatment, if adopted early in tlxe
disease, it would be desirable to undertake the work. Tuberculosis of the lungs can often be
verified by bacteriological examination before the emaciation, which is so unfavourable an association
of the disease, sets in—in fact, at a time when what is known as sanatorium treatment is to be
expected to do most good.
DEATHS.
The deaths registered within the Borough during the 52 weeks numbered 2,163 in all, equal to
a death-rate of 15.00 per 1,000 persons, being nearly 3 (2.91 exactly) below the decennial mean rate.
(See Table I., Appendix.) No comparison can be made between the actual number recorded and
the decennial average number, as the uncorrected returns for North-West Paddington are not
available.
Of the deceased persons, 1,071 were males and 1,092 females. There were 484 deaths at ages
under one year, equal to an infantile mortality of 144 per 1,000 births in the whole Borough, as
compared with a decennial average of 156 for the Old Parish. The chief causes of death were:—
Measles 9
Scarlet Fever 2
Whooping Cough 52
Diphtheria 30
Enteric Fever 8
Epidemic Influenza 38
Diarrhoea 94
Epidemic Enteritis 50
Puerperal Fever 5
Other Septic Diseases 26
Phthisis 139
Other Tubercular Diseases 82
Cancer147
Bronchitis 192
Pneumonia 186
Accidents and Violence 100
Suicides 21