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19
NOTIFICATION OF INFECTIOUS DISEASES.
The following notifications of Infectious Diseases were
received:—
Diphtheria 83 Enteric Fever 14
Erysipelas 35 Purperal Fever 1
Scarlet Fever 484 Phthisis 3
On Table III will be found the age incidence and the ward
distribution of the above diseases, together with the number of cases
removed to Hospital.
SCARLET FEVER.
During the past two years, Scarlet Fever has prevailed in much
greater degree than in the immediately preceeding years. 484 cases
were notified in 1908, and this figure represents the highest number
yet recorded in the district. The cases notified are equal to a rate
of 8.8 per 1,000 inhabitants.
Fifteen deaths were registered as due to the disease giving a
case fatality of 3.1 per cent. With the exception of 1906, the case
fatality of 1908 was higher than in that of recent years, but this bare
fact is not a sufficient criterion that the disease generally was of a
more severe type The vast majority of the cases in the district
were of a mild character, but on some occasions, a group of cases
exhibited symptoms of a most severe type, and usually the primary
case of this latter group had contracted the disease outside the
district. One instance of this might be given. On October 12th,
W.H. aged 18, was notified of Scarlet Fever. He contracted the
disease outside. A second case was notified from the same house
on October 26th, and a third on October 30th. On October 25th,
a girl L.F, of Antrobus Road, called to see the case notified on
October 26th, and on October 30th, L. F. and her brother were
notified of the disease. Altogether five cases occurred, and two
deaths resulted.
It was the mild type of the disease which was one of the factors
in its perpetuation. Instances of "missed" cases are given on a
later page.
The outbreak assumed serious proportions towards the end of
September, 1907, and continued with remissions and exacerbations