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 1914
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Paddington, Metropolitan Borough of]
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16
diphtheria.
The distribution of the multiple cases (after elimination of "errors") is shown below.
Diphtheria: 1914.
Distribution of Cases.
(After correction.)
Houses with 2 cases 17 Families with 2 cases 15
„ 3 „ 2 3 „ 2
„ 4 „ 1
Bacteriological tests were known to have been applied in respect of 117 of the cases notified.
In 114 instances the Klebs-Loffler bacillus was present, while in three it could not be found,
although the clinical symptoms were those of diphtheria.
Of the 289 notified cases, 269 were removed to hospital, equal to 93.1 per cent. of the total
notifications, as compared with 94.9 per cent. in 1913, and an average of 933. (See Tables 15
and 16.)
There were 20 deaths among the notified cases, 14 of which occurred in hospital. After
deducting the death of a patient who was subsequently found not to be suffering from diphtheria,
the fatality per 100 definite cases was 6.9, as compared with 4.2 in 1913, and an average
(1909-13) of 5.9. (See Table 16.)
TABLE 15.
| Wards, &c. | Diphtheria. | Scarlet Fever. | Enteric Fever. | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cases. | Deaths. | Cases. | Deaths. | Cases. | Deaths. | |||||||
| Totals Reported. | Removed to Hospital. | At Home. | In Hospital. | Totals Reported. | Removed to Hospital. | At Home. | In Hospital. | Totals Reported. | Removed to Hospital. | At Home. | In Hospital. | |
| Queen's Park | 39 (4) | 39 (4) | - | 2 | 162 (7) | 153 (6) | 2 | 1 | - | - | - | - |
| Harrow Road | 60 (-) | 56 (-) | 2 | 8 | 173 (6) | 166 (6) | - | 1 | 1 | 1 | - | - |
| Maida Vale | 56 (4) | 50 (4) | - | - | 87 (5) | 74 (4) | - | - | 2 (1) | 2 (1) | - | 1 |
| Westbourne | 39 (3) | 35 (3) | 2 | 2 (1) | 70 (6) | 66 (5) | - | - | 4 (1) | 2 | 1 (1) | - |
| Church | 62 (3) | 61 (3) | 2 | 1 | 165 (13) | 163 (12) | - | 4 | 3 (1) | 3 (1) | - | 1 (1) |
| Lancaster Gate, West | 7 (-) | 6 (-) | - | - | 19 (-) | 18 (-) | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| East | 9 (-) | 7 (-) | - | - | 11 (-) | 8 (-) | - | - | 1 | - | 1 | - |
| Hyde Park | 17 (2) | 15 (2) | - | 1 | 51 (-) | 47 (-) | - | - | 1 | 1 | - | - |
| Borough 1914 | 289 (16) | 269 (16) | 6 | 14 (1) | 738 (37) | 695 (33) | 2 | 6 | 12 (3) | 9 (2) | 2(1) | 2 (1) |
| „ 1913 | 296 (37) | 281 (36) | 1 | 14 (4) | 484 (26) | 464 (22) | - | 7 (1) | 25 (6) | 24 (6) | - | 8 (2) |
| Note.—The figures in parentheses indicate the numbers of "errors of diagnosis." | ||||||||||||
TABLE 16.
| Diphtheria. | Scarlet Fever. | Enteric Fever. | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1914. | 1913. | 1909-13. | 1914. | 1913. | 1909-13. | 1914. | 1913. | 1909-13. | |
| Removed to Hospital (1) | 93.1 | 94.9 | 9.42 | 95.9 | 75.0 | 96.0 | |||
| Fatality (2)—Total | 6.9 | 4.2 | 1.1 | 1.5 | 22.2 | 31.5 | |||
| At Home | 30.0 | 7.1 | 5.1 | — | — | 50.0 | — | ||
| In Hospital | 4.3 | 4.1 | 0.9 | 1.6 | 14.4 | 33.3 | |||
| Mortality (3) | 0.13 | 0.09 | 0.05 | 0.04 | 0.01 | 0.04 | |||
| (1) Per cent. of reported cases. (2) Per cent. of cases corrected for errors of diagnosis. (3) Per 1,000 persons of all ages. | |||||||||