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Tuberculosis
Hammersmith Chest Clinic 1970.
Patient attendances remained similar to those of recent years: total
23,236, new patients 843,
There has been a marked fall in the tuberculosis notifications (see
graph), largely accounted for by the lower incidence of disease in the
immigrant population during the year. Whilst extremely encouraging, great
caution should be exercised in the interpretation of these figures: with
such small numbers involved, a continued trend cannot be assumed.
The origins of the patients involved were as follows:-
Great Britain 21
Asia 7
West Indies 7
Ireland 4
Europe 4
China 2
South Africa 1
46
Thus immigrants still provide 54% of the notifications in the Borough.
Happily the results of carefully supervised outpatient treatment are
excellent, in spite of the disease often being more florid and extensive in
such patients.
The diseases due to cigarette smoking have, naturally, not shown the
same gratifying fall: new lung cancer diagnoses remained similar at 67
and the bronchitis figure rose from 159 in 1969 to 175 this year. The
great tragedy of the lung cancer patients is not only that the diagnosis
usually means death within two years, but that the disease is largely
avoidable.
Sincere thanks are due to the Clinic staff for their continued loyal
and cheerful work during the year.
T.B. Register (31.12.70)
Pulmonary 792
Non-pulmonary 247
Total 1039
T.B. Notifications
Pulmonary 33
Non-pulmonary 13
Total 46
T.B. Deaths 1
C .15