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13
INSECTS AND VERMIN
During the year there were 115 attendances at the
Disinfecting Station by persons requiring treatment for
louse infestation. Apart from 7 cases of body-louse
infestation (in males), the head louse was responsible,
and as usual the majority of those affected were children
24 boys and 66 girls. Although there has been a marked
fall in cases of pediculosis during the past ten years
(from 694 in 1954 to 115 in 1963) it is to be deplored
that this condition continues to exist at all in present
day society in this country. Not only should standards
of personal cleanliness and health knowledge make it
impossible for any but occasional cases to occur, but
unlike the old days when methods of treatment were not
always satisfactory, the modern insecticides of which
D.D.T. was the first, are fully effective. They have the
Particular advantage of being persistent in their action.
The head louse very soon spreads in families with poor
health habits, and adults may reinfest children who have
been detected at school and treated. Sharing of brushes
and combs and, of course, infrequent washing of the hair
contribute to this. It is hoped that there will be a
rapid fall in cases in the near future. Body louse
infestation, formerly a common complaint among vagrants,
is fortunately seldom met with nowadays, but those
affected are still those of no fixed abode. For these,
the method of dusting with a persistent insecticide
powder is efficacious.
The need to treat a small number of cases of scabies
each year continues and there is nothing to suggest that
the incidence is decreasing. During the five years, 1959
to 1963 the average was 119; in the period 1954 to 1958
the average was 118. Scabies is another 'family complaint'
with half the cases occurring in children. This is
another condition which should have been eliminated ere
now. Early diagnosis and prompt treatment are essential.
Other Infestations
An important part of the work of a public health
department is concerned with the investigation and abatement
of complaints of household nuisances from insects
and other pests. During the year 557 rooms were disinfected
following complaints of this nature. Apart from
Dugs and fleas (which thanks to the modern insecticides
are now far less frequent causes of annoyance than