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5.— PREVALENCE OF, AND CONTROL OVER,
INFECTIOUS AND OTHER DISEASES
(i) Notifiable Diseases.
As before, I have not recorded those notifications where the
diagnosis has been altered after a period of observation, unless the
amended diagnosis proved the condition to be one of another type
of infection which is notifiable, when the case has been appropriately
recorded.
(a) Acute Anterior Poliomyelitis.
Owing to the press publicity which has, for two or three years,
been given to this condition, it is now unnecessary for me to remind
you that this is the technical term for infantile paralysis. 1950 was
again an epidemic year throughout the country, and, as far as residents
in Romford were concerned, there were altogether seventeen
cases. Two of these, however, occurred in the month of January,
when the condition was quiescent in the district. The other cases
occurred when the disease was prevalent in the country. Of the
total cases, nine showed evidence of paralysis, four showed no
evidence of paralysis, and four were stated to be abortive. One
patient, unfortunately, died. All were removed to hospital, as also
a number of other patients thought to be suffering from poliomyelitis
but which eventually proved not to be the case.
The same generally accepted precautionary measures were
adopted.
When paralysis is manifest it is more easy to be relatively sure
of the diagnosis, especially during an epidemic period, but when
there is no paralysis, diagnosis, to a large extent, rests on the
examination of the cerebro spinal fluid. In these latter, if there is
no clinical evidence of meningeal irritation, it is customary to
diagnose the condition as "abortive," but where there is evidence
of meningeal irritation, the case is diagnosed as "non-paralytic."
Full particulars of each case were again forwarded to the
Ministry of Health for statistical purposes.
(b) Acute Infective Hepatitis.
This continues to be notifiable throughout the Eastern Region,
and there were twenty-four notifications. These were again forwarded
to the Regional Medical Officer at Cambridge for research
purposes.
(c) Diphtheria.
During 1950, there was only one case of diphtheria, but, as this
patient came from abroad, and was ill on arrival, and admitted to
the isolation hospital almost immediately, it would appear that the
infection was not contracted in this country.