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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 1937
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Kensington Borough]
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69
APPENDIX I.
TENTH ANNUAL REPORT
on
THE KENSINGTON RHEUMATISM SCHEME
(1st October, 1936—30th September, 1937)
by
JAMES FENTON, M.D., M.R.C.P., D.P.H., and JANET K. AITKEN, M.D., M.R.C.P.
PART I.
General
by JAMES FENTON, M.D., M.R.C.P., D.P.H.
The tenth year of work at the rheumatism centre of the Royal Borough of Kensington was completed on
the 30th September, 1937.
The functions of this centre are to assist in the early diagnosis of rheumatism in children (the early treatment
of this disease being of paramount importance), and also to compile statistics with a view to determining
etiological factors and thereby assist in the prevention of rheumatism.
In 1927, the Minister of Health made regulations under which acute rheumatism became a notifiable disease
in Kensington for a period of three years ; similar regulations were made in 1930 and 1933. On the 1st October,
1936, the Minister of Health made new regulations for a further period of three years. The regulations define
acute rheumatism as denoting the following conditions, occurring separately or together, in a child under the
age of sixteen years :—
(a) Rheumatic pains or arthritis, if accompanied by a rise in temperature;
(b) Rheumatic chorea;
(e) Rheumatic carditis.
| Year. | NUMBER OF NOTIFICATIONS BY— | Total number of notifications. | Total number of patients notified during the year who attended the rheumatism supervisory centre. | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Medical officers at rheumatism supervisory centre. | Private practitioners. | School medical officers. | Hospitals and other institutions. | |||
| 1927-28 | 32 | 53 | 28 | 46 | 159 | 95 |
| 1928-29 | 37 | 40 | 1 | 27 | 105 | 70 |
| 1929-30 | 12 | 33 | 10 | 26 | 81 | 48 |
| 1930-31 | 9 | 28 | 12 | 17 | 66 | 40 |
| 1931-32 | 12 | 21 | 1 | 7 | 41 | 24 |
| 1932-33 | 6 | 43 | 2 | 7 | 58 | 24 |
| 1933-34 | 11 | 43 | 6 | 3 | 63 | 32 |
| 1934-35 | 4 | 22 | 4 | 1 | 31 | 17 |
| 1935-36 | 9 | 19 | 3 | 4 | 35 | 25 |
| 1936-37 | 10 | 27 | 8 | 12 | 57 | 30 |
| Totals | 142 | 329 | 75 | 150 | 696 | 405 |
Incidence of the disease.
It will be seen from the above table, that there has been a marked increase in the number of notifications
received during the past year, compared with that for the preceding two years, but a study of the table will show
that this increase has occurred at regular three-yearly intervals over the ten-year period. It coincides with the
years in which new regulations have been made by the Minister of Health and may be attributed to the fact that
in these years reminders in regard to notification have been sent to all medical practitioners in the borough.
These reminders invariably result in increased notification, particularly from school medical officers and from
medical officers of institutions to whom these local regulations are not familiar.