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
Finsbury 1953
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Finsbury Borough]
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41
SECTION F.
Infectious Diseases.
General.
There was a big increase in the number of cases of whooping
cough during the year, and the incidence of measles also remained
high.
All cases notified were visited by the Infectious Diseases
Nurse/Visitor and energetic measures taken wherever indicated to
ensure adequate minimization of danger of infection to others.
Number of visits by Infectious Disease Visitor 2,761
The following table shows the cases of notifiable diseases of which information by notification or otherwise was received in the several age periods set out:—
| AllAges | Un-1 yr. | 1-4yrs. | 5-14yrs. | 15-24 yrs. | 25-44 yrs. | 45-64 yrs. | 65 + | Cases treated in Hos. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Acute Pneumonia | 61 | 7 | 15 | 6 | 2 | 7 | 16 | 8 | 50 |
| Dysentery | 51 | 3 | 17 | 13 | 4 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 32 |
| Erysipelas | 7 | — | — | — | — | 2 | 5 | — | 5 |
| Food Poisoning | 28 | — | 5 | 4 | 2 | 13 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| Gastro enteritis (under 2 yrs.) | 24 | 19 | 5 | — | — | — | — | — | 21 |
| Measles | 461 | 35 | 301 | 116 | 6 | 2 | 1 | — | 63 |
| Whooping Cough | 364 | 56 | 197 | 107 | 3 | 1 | — | — | 117 |
| Ophthalmia Neonatorum | 6 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 6 |
| Puerperal Pyrexia | 5 | — | — | — | 2 | 3 | — | — | 5 |
| Scabies | 10 | — | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | — | — | — |
| Scarlet Fever | 67 | — | 33 | 31 | 3 | — | — | — | 61 |
| Tuberculosis (Pulmonary) | 80 | — | 4 | 6 | 11 | 30 | 21 | 8 | — |
| Tuberculosis (Non-Pulmonary) | 10 | — | 1 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | — | — |
| Poliomyelitis (Non-Paralytic) | 1 | — | — | — | 1 | — | — | — | 1 |
| Malaria | 1 | — | — | — | 1 | — | — | — | 1 |
| 1,176 | 126 | 581 | 289 | 40 | 69 | 50 | 21 | 366 |
Incidence Rates.
The rates per thousand of the population are set out below,
together with the corresponding rates for England and Wales, the
larger towns, the smaller towns, and London as a whole for
comparison:-