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 Croydon]
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the incidence fell rapidly and remained low until the beginning
of a new wave in November. In 1933 the incidence remained
fairly steady throughout the year. In 1934 there were two peaks
of incidence, the first and smaller came in the second week in
March following a steady rise from the beginning of the year;
the incidence then dropped rapidly and remained constant until
the second peak was reached, following a rapid rise, the third
week in November. Throughout 1935 there was a steady incidence
with no epidemic waves, and this continued during
1936. September and October had the lowest incidence of cases,
and May the highest.
Scarlet Fever showed a gradual rise throughout the year 1937,
with a remission during August until November, when the incidence
commenced to decline. The highest number of cases
notified in a week was the week ending October 23rd, when 43
cases were notified. The average weekly number of cases was 11.7.
Diphtheria.—During 1924 there was a small but steady incidence
throughout the year; in 1925 a trough occurred in the curve
and very few cases were notified, but towards the end of the year
the notifications began to increase steadily, the curve reaching
its apex in November and December, 1926; the curve then
declined through 1927 until the last quarter, when the trend
became upwards once more, reaching its apex in January, 1928;
this was followed by a slight fall, followed by a slight rise until
December, 1928, when another fall commenced, reaching its
minimum in July, 1929, from when the curve rose steadily to its
maximum in November. In 1930 Diphtheria was not troublesome,
though there was a small rise in the number of cases in
October, reaching a maximum of 22 during the week ending
October 18th. In 1931 the highest number of cases arose in
February and the last two weeks of March. In 1932 there was a
slight rise in March and again in mid-September and the end of
November. During 1933, there was a steady upward trend in
incidence as the year advanced, with only a slight remission
during April and May; a small wave of increased incidence
spread over the first half of the year and was succeeded by a more
intense wave covering October, November and December. In
1934, there was a minor wave of increased incidence during
February, March and April, with a minimum incidence at the end
of July. A fairly sharp rise took place during October, November
and December, and persisted until the end of the year. In 1935
the incidence was low throughout the year and there were no
pronounced waves of incidence. During 1936 the incidence