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
Marylebone 1950
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for St. Marylebone, Metropolitan Borough]
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20
Unsound Food.—Some 23 tons of food condemned as unfit for human consumption included the
following: meat, 5 tons, 12 cwts., 2 qtrs., 11 lbs.; bacon, 8 tons, 1 cwt., 6 lbs.; poultry and rabbits,
13 cwts., 7 lbs.; sausages, 2 cwts., 1 qtr., 4 lbs.; fish, 2 cwts., 1 qtr., 5 lbs.; fruit, 17 cwts., 1 qtr., 6 lbs.;
cereals, 17 cwts.; tea, 4 cwts., 1 qtr., 2 lbs.; confectionery, 2 cwts., 1 qtr., 18 lbs.; canned goods,
15,043 tins. A large proportion of this unsound food was salvaged and used for animal feeding.
SECTION F.—PREVALENCE OF, AND CONTROL OVER, INFECTIOUS
AND OTHER DISEASES.
Infectious and other diseases notifiable in St. Marylebone are listed in Table 7, which gives also
information regarding notifications received during 1950. Enquiries relating to cases of infectious
disease were carried out by one of the women sanitary inspectors who paid 1,093 visits in this
connection during the year.
TABLE 7.—Notifiable Diseases and Notifications.
| *Notifiable Disease | Cases notified in whole Borough | Cases removed to hospital | Cases isolated at home | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| At all ages | At ages—years | ||||||||||||||
| -1 | 1— | 2— | 3— | 4- | 5— | 10— | 15— | 20— | 35— | 45— | 65- | ||||
| Ophthalmia neonatorum | 1 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1 |
| Erysipelas | 10 | - | - | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 7 |
| Scarlet fever | 65 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 40 | 4 | 3 | 3 | — | — | — | 30 | 35 |
| Puerperal pyrexia | 3 | - | - | — | — | — | — | - | — | 2 | 1 | — | _ | 3 | — |
| Poliomyelitis— | |||||||||||||||
| Paralytic | 4 | - | — | — | — | — | 1 | — | — | 3 | — | — | — | 4 | — |
| Non-paralytic | 3 | - | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 3 | — | — | — | 3 | — |
| Pneumonia | 41 | 2 | 2 | 1 | — | 1 | 3 | 2 | — | 6 | 5 | 13 | 6 | 11 | 30 |
| Dysentery | 12 | 1 | — | 2 | 1 | — | 2 | — | 1 | 2 | 2 | — | 1 | 6 | 6 |
| Measles | 323 | 14 | 26 | 45 | 42 | 43 | 134 | 8 | 2 | 8 | 1 | - | — | 26 | 297 |
| Whooping cough | 170 | 10 | 18 | 22 | 27 | 22 | 66 | 3 | — | 1 | — | 1 | — | 19 | 151 |
| Scabies | 16 | — | — | — | — | - | 2 | - | 1 | 8 | - | 4 | 1 | - | 16 |
| Meningococcal infection | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1 | — |
| Paratyphoid fever | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1 | — |
| Tuberculosis— | |||||||||||||||
| Pulmonary | 82 | - | - | 1 | — | — | 2 | — | 11 | 33 | 19 | 12 | 4 | 28 | 54 |
| Non-pulmonary | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | 3 | — | 2 | - | 5 | 1 |
| Food poisoning | 11 | — | 2 | — | — | — | 2 | 1 | — | 1 | 3 | - | 2 | 2 | 9 |
| Totals | 749 | 29 | 50 | 74 | 75 | 70 | 254 | 18 | 20 | 74 | 33 | 35 | 17 | 142 | 607 |
* There were no cases of the following diseases, which are also notifiable in the Borough: Smallpox,
diphtheria, cholera, typhus fever, relapsing fever, continued fever, plague, glanders, farcy, anthrax,
induced malaria, malaria, acute encephalitis (infective or post-infectious), typhoid fever, enteric fever,
membranous croup.
International Certificates of Vaccination and Inoculation.—In accordance with the request of the
Ministry of Health, arrangements were made for the authentication by the Medical Officer of Health
of certificates of vaccination and inoculation issued by medical practitioners in St. Marylebone in
respect of persons proceeding abroad.
Smallpox.—St. Marylebone, fortunately, was not actually affected by the Glasgow outbreak, which
was started by a seaman from the R.M.S. "Chitral" on the 5th March, 1950, and led to 21 cases
of smallpox of a severe type. It was reported by the Medical Officer of Health of Rugby that he
had examined, at a reception centre, two men who were tramping from the Glasgow area to London.
These men were found to be quite fit, but had refused vaccination. They were said to be proceeding
to a common lodging house in the Borough, and although a close check was maintained on the
premises for the necessary period the men failed to arrive. Numerous requests for vaccination were
received in the Department from persons proceeding to Glasgow on business or holiday, and they
were referred to the Vaccination Clinic in the Town Hall Extension.
At Aden on the 19th June, 1950, the S.S. "Strathnaver" landed a Goanese seaman who was
diagnosed as suffering from chicken-pox but was subsequently considered by the port health
authorities at Aden to be a mild case of smallpox. The ship arrived at Tilbury on the 2nd July, 1950,
and of the passengers who disembarked, 64 proceeded to addresses in this Borough. All these contacts
had been vaccinated, and the usual surveillance was maintained during the incubation period but
no further cases were reported.