London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972

View report page

Holborn 1931

[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Holborn Borough]

This page requires JavaScript

50
Diphtheria in Children Treated with Immunising Injections.
Up to the end of the year 1931 nine cases of diphtheria occurred in children
who had been found positive on Schick test and treated with three immunising
injections; the details of these are given in Table III.
Diphtheria was also notified as having ocourrcd in ten other children who had completed
their course of inoculation, but the diagnosis in these cares was eventually not confirmed.
Two of these (brother and sister) were removed to hospital as suffering from diphtheria,
but they were diagnosed as suffering from rubella and "carrying" diphtheria
bacilli but not as suffering from diphtheria. A third child was removed with diphtheria and
found to have measles. A fourth removed with diphtheria was returned as a case of coryza,
not diphtheria, and a fifth was removed with faucial diphtheria, but the diagnosis was not
confirmed. All these children had been found negative to the retest some time previously.
Three others were removed to M.A.B. hospitals as suffering from diphtheria, but were shortly
afterwards discharged as not cases; neither had been re-Schicked since being inoculated; ono
case after his return from hospital gave a negative reaction to the re-Schick test. Tho
ninth waa notified as suffering from scarlet fever and diphtheria, but was later diagnosed
as suffering from scarlet fever only; the tenth, also removed to licspital with diphtheria was
returned as a case of catarrhal sore throat and not diphtheria.
Immunisation of Nursing Staff at the London Homoeopathic Hospital.
The arrangements made in June, 1930, with the authorities of the London
Homoeopathic Hospital for the Medical Officer of the Council's Immunisation Clinic
to Schick test and immunise the nursing staff was continued during 1931.
At this hospital Schick testing of all newcomers and immunisation of positives
is now compulsory.
From June, 1930, till the end of December, 1931, 91 nurses were tested, 40 of
these were tested for the first time in 1931, 28 of these were positive (all of these
were immunised) and 12 were negative.

Less Diphtheria in Holborn than in London. The following table shows the diphtheria notification rates in England and Wales, London, and Holborn during the nine years 1922-30. As the Schick test and immunisation against diphtheria were started in Holborn in the early part of 1922 the figures are of interest:— Diphtheria—Notification rate per 1,000 population.

England and WalesLondonHolborn
19221.373.372.52
19231.052.272.25
19241.072.311.58
19251.232.731.75
19261.312.961.69
19271.332.711.28
19281.552.751.45
19291.592.681.88
19301.843.032.08

The figures for England and Wales and London are taken from the Registrar-General's
Statistical Reviews for the years 1922-30.