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 1906
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London County Council]
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" suffering from diphtheria or sore throat until they have obtained a medical certificate of freedom from
" infection, based on a bacteriological examination. We are informed that such certificate can be given
" either by general practitioners or by the medical officer of health, and would be free from the dan"
gerous errors of medical certificates given merely on the inspection of the children. We recommend—
" That the Education Committee be authorised to refuse, during the presence of diphtheria in
" any district, re-admission to school of children excluded on account of diphtheria or sore
" throat until such children shall have obtained a medical certificate of freedom from
" infection, based on a bacteriological examination."
Proportion of cases of diphtheria removed to hospital.
It will be seen from diagram XII. that the proportion of cases of diphtheria removed to the
hospitals of the Metropolitan Asylums Board was about the same as that in the preceding year.
Diphtheria—Age and sex distribution.
The following table shows the notified cases, deaths, case-rates, death-rates, and fatality of diphtheria
at the several ages and for each sex in London during the year 1906. The incidence of attack at " all
ages " was, as in preceding years, greater on females than on males, while both the incidence of
death and the fatality was higher among the latter. In the age groups adopted for the purpose of
this table the greatest incidence of attack was upon males of three and upon females of four years of age ;
the greatest incidence of death was upon males of one and upon females of three years of age. The
fatality was greatest among males of under one and among females of age 55 and upwards.
| Age-period. | Males. | Females. | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Notified Cases. | Deaths. | Case mortality per cent. | Rates per 100,00 living. | Notified Cases. | Deaths. | Case mortality per cent. | Rates per 100, 000 living. | |||
| Cases. | Deaths. | Cases. | Deaths. | |||||||
| — | — | — | — | — | _ | |||||
| — | — | — | ||||||||
' - Whooping-cough.
The deaths from whooping-cough in the Administrative County of London in the year 1906
(52 weeks) numbered 1,226, as compared with 1,487 in 1905.
The death-rates from this disease in 1906 and preceding periods have been as follows :—
| Period. | Death rate per 1,000 persons living | Period. | Death rate per 1,000 persons living |
|---|---|---|---|
In view of the fall of the birth-rate it is desirable that the whooping-cough death-rate of children
under five years of age should be stated. The following are the death-rates of children under five
years of age. The steady fall of the death-rate during these periods is conspicuous:—
1 See footnote (1) page 32. 2 See footnote (2) page 7.