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
Lewisham 1968
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Lewisham Borough]
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Under the Health Services and Public Health Act, 1968, and the Public Health (Infectious Diseases) Regulations, 1968, which came into operation on 1st October 1968 the following diseases are now to be notified to the Medical Officer of Health:—
| Acute encephalitis | Measles | |
| Acute meningitis | Opthalmia neonatorum | |
| Acute poliomyelitis | Paratyphoid fever | |
| Anthrax | Plague | |
| Cholera | Relapsing fever | |
| Diphtheria | Scarlet fever | |
| Dysentery (amoebic or bacillary) | Smallpox | |
| Food poisoning | Tetanus | |
| Infective jaundice | T uberculosis | |
| Leprosy | Typhoid fever | |
| Leptospirosis | Typhus | |
| Malaria | Whooping Cough | |
| Yellow Fever | ||
(Corrected for revised diagnosis) during the year 1968 with comparative figures for the previous six years.
| Diseases | Cases notified | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1968 | 1967 | 1966 | 1965 | 1964 | 1963 | 1962 | |
| Anthrax | — | 1 | — | 1 | — | — | 1 |
| Diphtheria | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Dysentery | 46 | 90 | 152 | 159 | 226 | 870 | 234 |
| Encephalitis (acute) | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Enteric or typhoid fever | 2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 12 | 4 |
| Erysipelas (To 30.9.68) | 4 | 16 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 7 | 2 |
| Infectivejaundice (From 15.6.68) | 21 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Food poisoning | 20 | 22 | 34 | 20 | 19 | 13 | 19 |
| Malaria | 1 | — | — | — | 1 | — | 2 |
| Measles | 799 | 2,561 | 2,017 | 3,014 | 1,553 | 3,186 | 544 |
| Meningococcal infection | 16 | — | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 |
| Ophthalmia neonatorum | 1 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 1 |
| Pneumonia (To 30.9.68) | 20 | 43 | 35 | 37 | 35 | 75 | 36 |
| Poliomyelitis (acute) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Puerperal pyrexia (To 30-9.68) | 11 | 67 | 36 | 75 | 55 | 47 | 74 |
| Scarlet fever | 105 | 174 | 82 | 161 | 197 | 103 | 71 |
| Tuberculosis | 132 | 116 | 148 | 157 | 203 | 210 | 191 |
| Whooping cough | 146 | 130 | 169 | 108 | 190 | 258 | 54 |
| TOTALS | 1,325 | 3,228 | 2,698 | 3,753 | 2,503 | 4,806 | 1,249 |