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
London County Council 1904
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London County Council]
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26
It is thus seen that in London generally methods of disinfection are being employed after many
cases of measles, both in respect of premises and bedding and clothing, and effort has been made to
educate the public to recognise the danger attending measles infection.
With respect to Westminster, from the medical officer of which no reply was received, reference
to his annual report shows that disinfection was carried out after 23 cases, presumably those cases in
which death occurred. It would also appear that effort is being made by lady inspectors and other
health visitors to ensure that proper care is taken by parents of children who are attacked, and especially
of these children at a time when the rash has disappeared.
Scarlet Fever.
The cases of scarlet fever notified in the administrative county of London during 1904 (52 weeks)
numbered 13,439, compared with 12,531 in 1903. The number of deaths registered from this cause was
365 in the vear 1904, compared with 361 in 1903.
The London rates for 1904 and preceding periods are shown in the following table :-
| Period. | Death-rate per 1,000 persons living. | Case-rate per 1,000 persons living. | Caso mortality per cent. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1861-70 | 1.13 | -3 | |
| 1871-80 | 0.60 | ||
| 1881-90 | 0.33 | ||
| 1891-1900 | 0.191 | 4.8 | 3.9 |
| 1901 | 0.131 | 4.1 | 3.2 |
| 1902 | 0.121 | 3.9 | 3.1 |
| 1903 | 0.081 | 2.7 | 2.9 |
| 1904 | 0.081 | 2.9 | 2.7 |
The death-rate in each year since 1858 in relation to the mean death-rate of the period 18591904
will be seen on reference to diagram VI. The monthly case-rate and case-mortality in each of
the years 1891-1904 in relation to the mean of the whole period is shown in diagram VIII.
It will be seen from the following table that in the decennium 1894-1903 the London scarlet fever
death-rate was exceeded by the death-rates of all the undermentioned English towns, except Bristol,
West Ham, and Newcastle, and in 1904 was exceeded by the death-rates of all except Hull and Leicester :—
| Towns. | 1894-1903. | 1904. | Towns. | 1893-1903. | 1904. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| London | 0.142 | Bradford | 0.18 | 0.15 | |
| Liverpool | 0.30 | 0.20 | West Ham | 0.13 | 0.14 |
| Manchester | 0.22 | 0.15 | Hull | 0.15 | 0.05 |
| Birmingham | 0.23 | 0.12 | Nottingham | 0.16 | 0.11 |
| Leeds | 0.18 | 0.13 | Salford | 0.37 | 0.25 |
| Sheffield | 0.18 | 0.20 | Newcastle | 0.14 | 0.11 |
| Bristol | 0.11 | 0.11 | Leicester | 0.16 | 0.02 |
The following table shows that the London scarlet fever death-rate was, in the decennium 1894-1903, lower than the death-rates of the undermentioned foreign towns, except Paris, Brussels, Amsterdam, and Rome, and in 1904 was exceeded by the death-rates of Stockholm, St. Petersburg, Berlin and New York:—
| Towns. | 1894-1903. | 1904. | Towns. | 1894-1903. | 1904. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| London | 0.142 | 0.081 | St. Petersburg | 0.56 | 0.45 |
| Paris | 0.06 | 0.03 | Berlin | 0.25 | 0.22 |
| Brussels | 0.04 | 0.00 | Vienna | 0.19 | 0.04 |
| Amsterdam | 0.03 | 0.02 | Rome | 0.01 | 0.02 |
| Copenhagen | 0.18 | 0.06 | New York | 0.22 | 0.25 |
| Stockholm | 0.15 | 0.12 |
The following table shows the scarlet fever cases, deaths, case rates, and death-rates for the year
1904, the case rates for the decennium 1894-1903, and the death-rates for the period 1901-3 in the several
sanitary districts of the County :—
1 See footnote (') page 7.
2 See footnote (-) page 7.
3 The Infectious Desease (Notification) Act came into force in 1889.