London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
Kensington 1925
The annual report on the health of the Borough for the year1925
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| Four Weeks ending | Scarlet Fever | Diphtheria. | Enteric Fever. | Erysipelas. | Ophthalmia Neonatorum. | Puerperal Fever. | Pneumonia. | Malaria. | Encephalitis Le. thargica. | Maits & Polio-Encephalitis. | Smallpox. | Cerebro spinal Meningitis. | Dysentery. | Enteritis. | Total. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January 31 | 21 | 17 | 5 | 6 | - | - | 18 | - | 3 | 1 | - | 2 | 1 | - | 74 |
| February 28 | 10 | 7 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 22 | - | 3 | — | — | 1 | — | 3 | 54 |
| March 28 | 24 | 14 | — | 5 | 1 | 1 | 11 | - | 2 | — | — | — | - | 3 | 61 |
| April 25 | 26 | 18 | — | 4 | - | — | 9 | - | 1 | — | — | 1 | — | 5 | 64 |
| May 23 | 23 | 13 | 2 | 7 | - | 1 | 9 | - | - | — | — | 2 | — | 6 | 63 |
| June 20 | 9 | 15 | 1 | 2 | - | — | 7 | - | - | — | — | — | — | 6 | 40 |
| July 18 | 16 | 18 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 10 | 2 | - | — | — | - | - | 5 | 60 |
| August 15 | 17 | 20 | 2 | 5 | 1 | — | 3 | — | - | — | - - | - | - | 5 | 58 |
| Sept. 12 | 11 | 14 | — | 2 | 2 | — | 3 | — | - | — | — | 1 | — | 35 | 68 |
| October 10 | 24 | 29 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | — | 1 | — | — | 1 | — | 30 | 90 |
| November 7 | 16 | 34 | 3 | 6 | 2 | — | 14 | — | 1 | — | — | — | — | 18 | 94 |
| December 5 | 16 | 29 | 1 | 4 | 2 | — | 13 | — | 1 | — | _ | - | — | 1 | 67 |
| January 2 | 11 | 31 | 5 | 4 | 2 | - | 18 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 4 | 76 |
| Totals - | 224 | 259 | 25 | 53 | 14 | 5 | 1.38 | 2 | J 2 | 1 | 8 | 1 | 122 | 864 |
Cases of mistaken diagnosis are excluded from the above Table.
Small Pox.—No case of small pox occurred in the Borough during the year. There were,
however, eleven cases in Bethnal Green and two in Lambeth. A number of persons who had been
in contact with cases of smallpox in various parts of the country or on board ship came into
the Borough during the period in which they might possibly have been incubating the disease. In
every case these contacts were visited at once and urged to be vaccinated if this precautionary
measure had not already been adopted. Daily visits were continued to these persons until the
extreme possible period of incubation had expired. The object of the visits is to secure prompt
isolation before the patient becomes infectious in the event of any suspicious illness developing.
Scarlet Fever—The number of cases notified during the year was 265, of which 239 were
removed to hospital.
The following table shows the number of cases notified in the various wards in each four-weekly period during 1925.
| District. | Period No. 1. | Period No. 2. | Period No. 3. | Period No. 4. | Period No. 5. | Period No. 6. | Period No. 7. | Period No. 8. | Period No. 9 | Period No. 10 | Period No. 11 | Period No. 12. | Period No. 13. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| London | 873 | 811 | 739 | 834 | 855 | 803 | 978 | 798 | 782 | 1313 | 1318 | 1208 | 976 |
| The Borough | 25 | 17 | 22 | 36 | 27 | 12 | 18 | 16 | 11 | 27 | 19 | 25 | 10 |
| North Kensington | 16 | 6 | 17 | 28 | 19 | 9 | 13 | 14 | 10 | 22 | 16 | 12 | 9 |
| South Kensington | 9 | 11 | 5 | 8 | 8 | 3 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 3 | 13 | 1 |
| Wards. | |||||||||||||
| St. Charles | 5 | 1 | 11 | 17 | 6 | 4 | 7 | 8 | 4 | 7 | 8 | - | 4 |
| Golborne | 3 | 1 | 2 | 7 | 7 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 2 |
| Norland | 2 | — | 1 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 3 | — | — | 9 | 3 | 3 | 1 |
| Pembridge | 6 | 4 | 3 | — | 3 | 1 | — | 2 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 2 |
| Holland | 3 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 2 | - | 1 | 1 | 6 | 1 |
| Earl's Court | 1 | 8 | 2 | 5 | 3 | — | 1 | — | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | — |
| Queen's Gate | 1 | — | 1 | — | 1 | 1 | — | — | — | 1 | 1 | 4 | — |
| Redcliffe | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | — | 1 | — | — | 1 | — | — | — |
| Brompton. | 1 | - | - | - | - | 1 | - | — | — | - | - | 2 | - |
Cases of mistaken diagnosis are not excluded from the above Table
Forty-one cases notified as suffering from scarlet fever were found, after admission to hospital,
not to be suffering from any infectious disease at all, with the result that they were returned home.