London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972

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London County Council 1899

[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London County Council]

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69
sporogenes, or, it may be, to anaerobic micro-organisms of the malignant oedema group. These results
would seem to indicate that the pathogenic effect of sewage and sewage effluents is not usually or
primarily due to micro-organisms present in spore form, since a much larger dose is required
when the liquid has been previously heated to 80° C.; unless, indeed, these microbes possess an
increased pathogenic power in the presence of other germs not present as spores.
VI.—If the crude sewage or effluent be filtered through a sterilised Pasteur's filter, very
large doses of the filtrate fail to produce a pathogenic effect. This would seem to prove that it is
not the extra-cellular products of the bacteria which by themselves produce the pathogenic result.
But it is conceivable that filtration under the above conditions may render the bacterial products
harmless where before they were noxious.
It is not proposed to give in detail the numerous experiments which have been carried out
on animals; but a few experiments may be given by way of illustration.
February '22nd, 1899.
(а) 1 c.c. Barking crude sewage injected subcutaneously in guinea-pig (called g.p. i).
(b) 1 c.c. effluent from Barking fine ragstone-bed injected subcutaneously in guinea-pig
(called g.p. ii).
(c) 1 c.c. effluent from Barking fine coke-bed injected subcutaneously in guinea-pig (called
g.p. iii).
February 23rd—g.p. i poorly, with swollen belly; g.p. ii and iii fairly lively, with less
abdominal swelling.
February 24th—g.p. i, moribund; g.p. ii and iii, in about the same condition as on the
preceding day.
February 25th—g.p. i dead. On post-mortem examination, showed thickening of abdominal
wall and oedema, but not much sanguineous exudation.
March 1st—g.p. ii and iii quite lively and well, except that g.p. ii had some abdominal
ulceration.
The animals (g.p. ii and iii) eventually recovered completely from the effects of the injection.
March 1st, 1899.
(a) 1 c.c. Crossness crude sewage injected intra-peritoneally in guinea-pig (called g.p. i).
(b) 1 c.c. Crossness effluent from B single coke-bed injected intra-peritoneally in guinea-pig
(called g.p. ii).
March 2nd—g.p. ii moribund, so killed.
March 3rd—g.p. i dead.
March 29th, 1899.
(a) 1 c.c. Barking effluent coarse ragstone-bed injected subcutaneously in guinea-pig (called
g.p. i).
(b) 1 c.c. Barking effluent coarse coke-bed injected subcutaneously in guinea-pig (called
g.p. ii).
(c) 1 c.c. Barking effluent fine ragstone-bed injected subcutaneously in guinea-pig (called
g.p. iii).
(d) 1 c.c. Barking effluent fine coke-bed injected subcutaneously in guinea-pig (called g.p. iv).
(e) 1 c.c. Crossness effluent 13 ft. coke-bed injected subcutaneously in guinea-pig (called g.p. v).
April 1st—g.p. i and g.p. iv dead.
April 3rd—g.p. iii dead.
April 4th—g.p. ii and g.p. v apparently quite recovered from effects of the inoculation.
April 27th, 1899.
(а) 1 c.c. Crossness crude sewage injected subcutaneously in guinea-pig (called g.p. i).
(b) 1 c.c. Crossness effluent from 13 ft. coke-bed injected intra-peritoneally in guinea-pig
(called g.p. ii).
(c) 1 c.c. Crossness crude sewage injected intra-peritoneally in guinea-pig (called g.p. iii).
(d) 1 c.c. Crossness effluent from 13 ft. coke-bed injected subcutaneously in guinea-pig
(called g.p. iv).
April 29th—g.p. i dead.
May 1st—g.p. iii dead.
May 4th—g.p. iv. dead, g.p. ii apparently quite recovered from the effects of injection.
November 28th, 1899.
(a) Barking effluent from B 1 coke-bed, heated 80° C. for ten minutes. Two c.c. injected
subcutaneously in guinea-pig (called g.p. i). The animal remained apparently unaffected.
December 1st, 1899.
(а) 3 c.c. Barking crude sewage injected subcutaneously in guinea-pig (called g.p. i).
(b) Same as (a), but crude sewage previously heated to 80° C. for ten minutes (called g.p. ii)
The dose was apparently too large, as both g.p. i and g.p. ii died, but the former died first.
December 12th, 1899.
(а) 1 c.c. Barking crude sewage injected subcutaneously in guinea-pig (called g.p. i).
(b) Same as (a), but sewage previously heated to 80° C. for ten minutes, and 2 c.c. injected
(called g.p. ii).
(c) Same as (a), but sewage previously heated to 100° C. for one hour, and 4 c.c. injected
(called g.p. iii).
(d) Same as (a), bat sewage first filtered through a sterilised Pasteur's filter, and 10 c.c. of
the filtrate injected.
All the animals recovered from the effects of the injection except g.p. i.