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
City of Westminster 1925
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Westminster, City of]
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21
PREVALENCE OF AND CONTROL OVER INFECTIOUS
DISEASES.
The following table shows the number of cases of infectious disease
which came to the notice of the department during the period 1921-1925.
Details respecting the notifications of infectious disease received are
set out on the adjoining page.
Table XIX.
| 1921 | 1922 | 1923 | 1924 | 1923 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Smallpox | — | — | 1 | 1 | — |
| Diphtheria | 248 | 285 | 91 | 237 | 286 |
| Erysipelas | 53 | 37 | 34 | 29 | 44 |
| Scarlet Fever | 681 | 261 | 129 | 226 | 214 |
| Enteric Fever | 10 | 12 | 18 | 15 | 17 |
| Continued Fever | — | — | — | — | — |
| Puerperal Fever | 10 | 7 | 3 | 10 | 6 |
| Cerebro-spinal Meningitis | — | 4 | 1 | 3 | 3 |
| Encephalitis lethargica | — | 2 | 2 | 15 | 7 |
| Polio-myelitis | — | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| Ophthalmia neonatorum | 25 | 25 | 32 | 23 | 21 |
| Measles | 26 | 591 | 131 | 852 | 117 |
| German Measles | 9 | 11 | 42 | 34 | 117 |
| Pneumonia | 62 | 48 | 60 | 92 | 58 |
| Malaria | 1 | — | — | 1 | 1 |
| Dysentery | — | — | — | — | 3 |
| Anthrax | — | 1 | — | 1 | — |
| Chicken-pox | 119 | 178 | 169 | 89 | 149 |
| Mumps | 278 | 25 | 95 | 147 | 120 |
| Whooping-cough | 133 | 67 | 35 | 97 | 255 |
Smallpox—No cases of this disease were notified in Westminster
during the year. Information was received from the various Port Sanitary
Authorities of 146 contacts. Some of these were direct contacts.
All, however, were visited directly on arrival in the City and every precaution
taken. On several occasions the assistance of the Medical
Officer of Health was asked for by Medical Practitioners in cases where a
doubt existed as to the nature of the disease. The majority of these
contacts were people coming to this Country on holiday, and who had been
in contact with a fellow passenger or member of the crew, stricken with
this disease ; and a large number were officers and men of H.M. Forces
who were coming home on leave to this Country from some foreign station
where smallpox is usually prevalent.
Vaccination.—The Vaccination Officer informs me that the following
number of persons were vaccinated by the Public Vaccinators during the
year
Primary 1,278
Secondary 37