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ADMINISTRATIVE WORK. 73
Kilburn Lane School.—At the end of January cases began to be reported somewhat
freely, but a special inspection was not thought necessary until March 4th, when the Girls' and
Infants' Departments were inspected and 16 children swabbed, 1 yielding a "positive" and
11 "suspicious" cultures. Fourteen children were swabbed out of school, equal numbers of
"positive " and "suspicious" cultures being obtained.
The routine followed was to exclude all children from whom either " positive" or
"suspicious" cultures were obtained and all members of their families. No child absent
from school on account of "sore throat" between January and April was allowed to return
without a medical certificate based on bacteriological examination. All the children yielding
"suspicious" cultures remained at home, and their parents were urged to obtain medical treatment
for them. Where "positive" cultures were obtained a letter was addressed to the medical
attendant informing him of the bacteriological examination. A good many of these children
were sent to the Asylums Board's hospitals, some of the children having definite attacks of
clinical diphtheria while there.
The total number of school children swabbed* during the year on account of "sore throat"
was—
In Schools130, yielding 13 "positive" and 36 "suspicious" cultures.
Out of School 49, „ 26 „ „ 23 „ „
In all, 212 swabs were taken from children attending at the Town Hall.
The proportions (per cent, of children examined) of "positive" and "suspicious" results
obtained from swabs taken in and out of school were strikingly different.
Of the swabs taken at school inspections—
10 per cent, gave "positive" cultures, and
27.6 „ „ "suspicious" ,,
Of the swabs taken out of school—
53.0 per cent, gave "positive" cultures, and
46.9 „ ,, "suspicious" „
Of the total 212 swabs taken at the Town Hall during the year—
15 0 per cent, gave "positive" cultures, and
23.2 „ „ "suspicious" „
The swabs taken at school inspections were obtained by the use of a platinum loop,
which was used to stroke the tonsils and nostrils, inoculation of the nutrient medium following
at once. In the swabbing done out of school swabs of sterilised cotton-wool were used to mop
over the tonsils, throat, and nose.
Ringworm.— During the year 287 reports were received, the actual cases numbering 290.
In 1911 the known cases numbered 188. Of the cases known last year 71 were still under
observation at the end of the year. The largest number of cases from any individual school
was reported from Essendine Road (62), but, in proportion to the number of children, more
cases were found in St. Luke. Of the 219 cases reported and completed during the year,
135 were attenders at Provided Schools (equal to approximately 13 per 1,000 children in such
schools), 79 at Non-Provided (under 1 per 1,000). It is somewhat difficult to explain so striking
a difference. Twenty-five of the children resided outside the Borough. There was very little
difference in the distribution according to sex—112 boys, 107 girls. Taking 8 years as the usual
age for transfer from the infants' to one of the senior departments, it would appear that in the
junior departments—or at the younger ages of life—boys are more subject to the disease than
* A special inspection, with swabbing, was made of the children in the Infants' Department of St. Saviour's
School on October 23rd. All the cultures proved "negative," but as the numbers of children inspected and
swabbed are not known the figures have not been included in the totals given above.
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