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
Paddington 1903
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Paddington, Metropolitan Borough of]
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28 measles.
The remaining 193 cases represent secondary attacks in households, cases reported by
persons other than school teachers, and those discovered on registration of death. There
is reason to believe that the sudden rise in the last quarter was attributable to the epidemic
of the disease which had prevailed in Willesden since the summer. The 921) cases known
to the Department were distributed among the Wards as below:—
Queen's Park 50 Maida Vale 113 Church 321 Lancaster Gate (East) 11
Harrow Road 185 Westbourne 221 Lancaster Gate (West) 10 Hyde Park 18
The cases occurred in 491 houses, viz.:—
242 houses with 1 case each.
141 „ 2 cases „
60 „ 3 „ „
30 ,, 4 ,, ,,
10 houses with 5 cases each.
3 „ 6
3 ,, 7 ,,
2 ,, 8 ,,
The sex and age distribution of cases and deaths is indicated in Table 21.
TABLE 21. Measles, 1903.
| Registration Sub-Districts. | 0— | 1— | 2— | 3— | 4— | 5— | 13— | 15— | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| m. | f. | m. | f. | m. | f. | m. | f. | m. | f. | m. | f. | m. | F. | m. | f. | ||
| St. Mary | Cases | 24 | 27 | 62 | 00 | 55 | 45 | 66 | 77 | 96 | 78 | 106 | 131 | 1 | 1 | 5 | o o |
| Deaths | 2 | 2 | 12 | 4 | 9 | 4 | — | — | — | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| St. John | Cases | — | 2 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 3 | o o | 7 | 10 | — | — | 1 | 1 |
| Dentils | — | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| North-West Paddington | Cases | 4 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 9 | 3 | 2 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | — |
| Deaths | — | 1 | 1 | 1 | — | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
It is difficult to frame any idea as to the proportion of total cases which comes to the
knowledge of the department. It is, however, believed that nearly all the cases occurring
in families sending children to the public elementary schools are reported, when such cases
occur during term time or shortly before, but, of course, some remain unknown owing to the
holidays. Moreover, compulsory closure of a school or any part of it involves the loss of
information of cases among the children normally attending the school. Under School
Attendance will be found a new table showing the number of attacks in families sending
children to the various schools.
With the present information it is profitless to calculate the fatality rates, but attention
ma}' be directed to the special incidence of death at ages of one and two years. It is a
well-known fact that the fatality of the disease decreases rapidly with the age of the patient.
Hence it is desirable to make every effort to prevent voung children becoming infected.
Although it is not inevitable that every child should have measles, yet with the (almost)
contemptuous disregard which is paid at present to the disease, it is rare for a child to
escape. Until last year there was no legal restriction to the spread of infection. Now the
Order of the County Council, which came into effect on April 1st, 1903, makes the exposure
of infected persons or articles in public places a penal offence, and places the question
of disinfection of rooms and articles in the same position as that of notified diseases, such as
scarlet fever. Difficulties have already been experienced in carrying out the Order from