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condition in young children a condition which needs special nursing and care.
I think that we must thank parents and general practitioners for the happy state
ment that in 1955 despite over 1½ thousand cases of measles, there was not one
death.
Diphtheria
Not one case of diphtheria was notified during the year It is difficult for
me to estimate the percentage of children in the Borough who have been immunised,
but I am satisfied that it is very high It is our practice during the year to
co-operate with the health visitors of the London County Council, and to
consider individually every child under five and to ascertain whether or not it
has been immunised I should like to express my appreciation of the work of the
health visitors, through whose efforts it has been possible to secure a very
high percentage of immunity to diphtheria in the children of the Borough.
Tuberculosis
The number of notified cases on the register at the end of the year was
1,578 compared with 1,493 at the end of 1954 The new notifications amounted
to 323 This number of new notifications has remained more or less constant for
the past fifteen years It does not mean however, that the fight against
tuberculosis is failing on the other hand, most of us can see a time when
tuberculosis will be well controlled General practitioners are quick now to
appreciate the significance of the signs and symptoms of incipient tuberculosis,
and this fact together with mass x ray, is bringing to our notice a large number
of cases in the very early stages of the disease stages when the condition is
curable. This is reflected in the fact that there were only 34 deaths from
tuberculosis during 1955. Between the years 1939 and 1949 the average number of
deaths was 121 Between the years 1950 and 1955 this average number had dropped
to 51 I would repeat a remark I have made previously, to the effect that many
persons diagnosed as suffering from tuberculosis who would have been given
months to live some years ago are now being cured Admittedly the time of cure
is still prolonged, but the outlook is certainly one of optimism.
Poliomyelitis

The total 44 includes 4 cases of Polioencephalitis
II