Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Coulsdon]
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available against measles and it remains one of the commonest
diseases of childhood.
WHOOPING COUGH
Only 24 cases were notified, none being admitted to hospital.
This continues the downwards trend in this disease since 1956 and
indicates that the immunisation scheme introduced in 1953 is
proving effective.
The number of children immunised against this disease was
993 and 311 were given reinforcing injections.
ERYSIPELAS
Five cases occurred during the year.
DYSENTERY
Only 19 cases of dysentery occurred, well below the average
for recent years. Only six school children were affected, most of
the patients being adults.
FOOD POISONING
Fifteen cases of food poisoning occurred. There were three
outbreaks, two of them, comprising three and five cases were due
to salmonella typhi murium and one of four cases was due to
salmonella heidelberg. One case was associated with an outbreak
due to salmonella typhi murium in another district.
There were two single cases, one due to typhi murium and
one due to salmonella bareilly.
ACUTE POLIOMYELITIS
One case of paralytic poliomyelitis occurred. The patient,
a girl of five years, became ill on 11th October, 1960 and was
admitted to hospital as a case of paralytic poliomyelitis, subsequently
found to be due to poliovirus type 1. On receipt of the
notification the child's home and school were visited. It was found
that her brother had been ill with fever and headache two days
after the onset of his sister's illness and had been excluded from
school. His symptoms suggested an abortive attack of poliomyelitis
and he was subsequently found to be excreting poliovirus type 1.
Neither the patient nor her brother had been vaccinated against
poliomyelitis.
School Contacts
At the school it was found that the patient was one of a class
of 42 children of whom 39 had been vaccinated. One child, later
found not to be excreting poliovirus, was absent with upper
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