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B. Communicable Diseases.
(1) Compulsorily Notifiable Diseases.
During the 52 weeks of 1903, 772 notifications of infectious disease
were received by me. The details respecting them are set out in the
Local Government Board's Return (Table XIV.), which also shows the
number treated in hospital as well as the number of deaths.
The number of cases of each disease notified in London since 1890
are shown in Table XII., together with cases notified during the same
period in the different divisions which, with some modifications, now
form the City. These figures are exclusive of chicken-pox, of which
there were 741 cases in 1902 and 5 in 1903, and exclusive of duplicate
notifications.
A comparison is made of the various years and of the ten-year's
average (1892-1901).
. The chart on p. 24 indicates the number of notifications of
scarlet fever, diphtheria, enteric fever, erysipelas, and small-pox in
each week.
Four persons notified as suffering from small-pox, nine from scarlet
fever, seventeen from diphtheria, and one from enteric fever, were
eventually stated not to be suffering from the disease notified, but there
is an element of doubt in connection with a number of scarlet fever and
diphtheria cases, from the mild type which these diseases may assume.
In addition, two cases of small-pox, one of puerperal fever, one of
diphtheria, and one of enteric fever, were not notified.
Two medical men were cautioned for delaying to notify cases, and
one was summoned for failing to notify, and was fined £1 and 5s. 7d.
costs.
Several persons were cautioned for moving patients to hospitals
after they had been informed of the nature of the case. Most of the
persons were foreigners, with an imperfect knowledge of English, and in
one case the patient was moved with the intention of preventing it
being known that the case had occurred in a tailor's workroom.