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

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Barking 1926

[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Barking]

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The following particulars are appended of vaccinations during 1926:—

Certificates of successful vaccinations304
Postponed4
Conscientious objections463
Left District16

The vaccination rate per 1,000 births was therefore 371.6, compared
with 394.8 for the preceding year
(c) Diphtheria.—55 cases were notified, compared with 75
the preceding year. Of cases notified, 52 were removed and treated
in hospital. Two deaths from diphtheria occurred, one in hospital
and the other in an outside institution. A child admitted the
previous year diagnosed as diphtheria died in January, 1926 from
Tuberculous Broncho-Pneumonia. The average stay of clinical
diphtheria in hospital was 35.2 days, the longest stay being 76 and
the shortest 16 days. Two cases of laryngeal diphtheria were
admitted to hospital, in both instances tracheotomy being necessary.
One patient died four days after admission, while the other made
a satisfactory recovery.

The type of diptheria present on examination was as follows

Faucial28
Naso-Pharyngeal8
Laryngeal2

Eight admissions were on purely bacteriological grounds.

Of cases notified as diphtheria and removed to hospital six on examination were found to be mistaken diagnosis, as follows:—

Tonsilitis4
Nil Diagnosed2

Twenty cases of diptheria admitted to hospital developed complications, as follows:—

Adenitis9Albuminuria & Neuritis1
Adenitis & Myocarditis1Albuminuria & Adenitis1
Boils5Abscesses—Various2
Otorrhoea, Adenitis & Rhinorrhœa1