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Typhus Fever, Continued Fever, Cholera, Dysentery,
Relapsing Fever, Trench Fever, Cerebro-Spinal Fever.—There
were no cases of these diseases notified.
Diphtheria.—There were only 40 cases of this disease notified
during 1924, compared to 123 cases in the previous year. This
is a welcome reduction, and corresponds to an attack-rate of
only 4.5 per 10,000 population, which is a record low rate such
as the Borough has never had before. None of the cases were
related to the milk supply. The disease is spread by personal
contact and often by a mild and missed case. Modern science
has invented a safe and certain method of immunising people
against diphtheria: this method consists in injecting a mixture
of the diphtheria poison together with its antidote, and the immunity
conferred lasts apparently for many years and perhaps
indeed throughout life. The education of the public can alone
popularise this method, which in other countries, and notably
in the United States, has been employed for several years past
with undoubted success.
Scarlet Fever.—During the year 215 cases of Scarlet Fever
were notified. The disease is now-a-days of a mild type, and
only one death occurred. Some of the private schools in the
Borough were infected, and the arrangements were made by
me for the Heads of all the Private Schools to notify me of
such cases in the future and to give me an opportunity, if they
so desired, of visiting the school and of inspecting the scholars.
Several visits were made under this arrangement during the
year, and resulted on more than one occasion in a prompt cessation
of these cases of infection.
Erysipelas was notified on 26 occasions.
Enteric Fever.—During the year 3 cases were notified, of
which only 2 proved to be enteric fever. In both instances the
infection appears to have been acquired outside the Borough.
Pneumonia.—Sixty-one notifications of Pneumonia were
received. This infectious disease is one of the common causes
of death in children and old people. As in former years, a
mixed vaccine for use in the prevention of pneumonia and
similar catarrhal conditions was isued by the Health Department
to those doctors practising in Hornsey who wished to use it.
The general opinion of those practising and of their patients