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SUSPECTED CASE OF SMALLPOX
On Saturday 30 July 1972 a general practitioner reported to the duty
medical officer a case of chicken-pox where owing to the unusual
distribution of the rash he wished to exclude the possibility of
smallpox. Visits were made to the patient, a West Indian, by two
members of the Health Department medical staff, and it was decided
to call in the Area Smallpox Consultant.
The patient had come to this country in 1959 and had not left it
since. He had been vaccinated against smallpox in childhood, and
probably also in 1959. There was no known contact with any recent
arrivals from endemic areas abroad, nor with any cases of
chickenpox.
Specimens were taken by the Consultant for investigation at
Colindale Public Health Laboratory, but it was felt that the case
was probably one of chickenpox, and no other measures were taken,
apart from confining the patient and his wife to the house. Early
test results 36 hours later indicated that the case was not smallpox,
and this was confirmed five days later.
SUSPECTED FOOD POISONING IN A SCHOOL
A sudden outbreak of an illness characterised by bouts of
abdominal pain, vomiting and in some cases diarrhoea, occurred at
Downderry Infants School, Downham, over the period 22 to 27 March 1972,
The head teacher, three other teachers, seventy-six children and one
school meals worker were affected, of whom fifty-six children and
the four members of the teaching staff were taken ill during the
night of 22/23 March, the remaining cases occurring in decreasing
frequency over the next four days. The illness was comparatively
mild and of short duration, lasting for twenty-four hours or less
and in no case was hospital admission necessary.
In view of the sudden onset of a large number of cases at one time,
it was first necessary to exclude the possibility of a food or waterborne
outbreak. Investigation failed to show any conclusive
pattern in this respect and no single meal or item of food or drink
appeared to be common to all patients; many of the children did not
have their meals at school and of the staff who had a school dinner
on 22 March, some had chosen a different meal from the menu from
that served to the children. The meals for Downderry Infants School
are prepared at the main kitchens at Churchdown School, which also
provide meals for Churchdown School itself and for Downderry Junior
School, as well as other schools in the area; no similar outbreaks
occurred at these establishments. The kitchens were inspected and
the staff questioned regarding recent illness etc., but no
significant factors emerged.
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