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130
Special reference may be made to a case, in which the
father, sister, and 2 brothers died of the complaint; and of another
in which the father, 3 uncles, 2 aunts, 2 sisters, and a greatgrandfather
had fallen victims to the disease.
It was found that the period during which the various
individuals notified had been suffering from the disease varied
considerably; from two or three weeks, to as long as fourteen
years in 1 case. It is impossible to even approximately define
the period in a large number of cases, so insidious is the disease
in its early stages, when it is commonly regarded as nothing
more than a cough. Probably 41 patients had suffered from the
disease for less than twelve months. In 13 cases the duration
of the disease had exceeded two years. Four of the patients had
previously been in Sanatoria, I in Hospital, and I in a Poor LawInfirmary.
The most frequent causes of the disease, in the opinion of
the patients themselves, were exposure to dampness, wet and
cold, influenza, repeated and neglected colds, pleurisy, pneumonia,
and winter coughs. It was frequently in evidence that overwork,
confinement at work, shortage of food, worry, or alcoholism,
played a part in determining the onset of the disease. Contact
with a previous case (a husband) was alleged to have been the
source of infection in 1 case.
The occupations of the persons notified were very various.
Indeed, almost all kinds of industrial employment are entered
upon the inquiry forms; and there is no indication of any special
prevalence of the disease in any particular form of such occupation,
when one bears in mind the relative proportions in which different
occupations attract the working-class population.
The compulsory notification of the disease has disclosed two
instances, during the year, in which the patients had not been
informed by the doctor notifying the disease that they were
suffering from it. It is unfair to place the onus of conveying this