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57
Exclusion of contacts, except in the case of school children, is
not a routine automatic procedure and a number of rather difficult
decisions on the necessity or otherwise for this action had to be
made during the year, especially in view of the number of cases
arising which were often the subject of quite considerable delay
before a definite diagnosis of acute poliomyelitis could be confirmed.
One further feature to which attention should be drawn, is that
of the thirteen cases confirmed, eleven referred to children of school
age, and only two to persons of over 18 years of age. This is rather
contrary to national experience where the tendency is for the disease
to attack the adult to a greater extent, thus making the designation
of "infantile paralysis " somewhat of a misnomer.
Diphtheria.
No notifications of this disease were received during the year.
The present position with regard to immunisation against
diphtheria is summarised in the following figures which have been
supplied by the County Medical Officer.
Of the children resident in the area who were born since 1941,
a total of 1,053 received primary inoculations and 1,310 received
reinforcing inoculations during 1955.
A total of 15,051 children under the age of 15 years have
completed a course of immunisation at some time prior to 31st
December, 1955.
Dysentery.
This disease continues to be endemic and although generally
of a mild type, two cases out of the eighteen notified were sufficiently
bad to necessitate admission to hospital.
A number of unconfirmed cases were also investigated and
pathological specimens were submitted by the department in addition
to those taken by the patient's own doctor.
The cases were mainly sporadic and for the most part not
inter-connected.