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63
DIPHTHERIA.
One case—in an adult—was notified during the year and
removed to hospital. The source of infection in this instance did
not originate in this area.
DIPHTHERIA IMMUNISATION.
During the year 1950, a total of 544 children received Primary
Inoculations and 499 Reinforcing Inoculations. (Figures for 1949
were 1,103 Primary and 1,427 Reinforcing Inoculations.)
A total of 9,609 children under the age of 15 years had
completed a course of immunisation (since 1st January, 1936),
at the 31st December, 1950. This is equivalent to approximately
76'/? of the population under 15 years of age.
TYPHOID FEVER.
One case was notified, and was home nursed. This was an
isolated case and no secondary cases occurred.
PUERPERAL PYREXIA.
Twenty-one cases, all of which were institutionally treated,
were notified during 1950. This represents an attack rate of
23 per 1,000 total births. There was no mortality from this
disease.
OPHTHALMIA NEONATORUM.
Two cases of this disease were notified during the year. Both
of these were institutionally treated and made full recovery.
PEMPHIGUS NEONATORUM.
No cases were notified during 1950.
MEASLES.
Three hundred and sixty-eight cases occurred in the Borough
during 1950, as against three hundred and fifty-eight cases for
1949, giving an attack rate of 5.7 per 1,000 population.
Five of these cases were admitted to hospital and the
remainder were home nursed.
The distribution of the cases occurring was fairly even
throughout the area.
The incidence of this disease almost invariably follows a
predictable course, for being so very infectious, the great majority
of those not immunised by a previous attack, develop it in a time
of epidemic. Thus, after a large outbreak we expect to be
relatively free until the next lot of susceptible children become
exposed to the risk of infection when they also will contract
measles, thus providing the next epidemic. The inter-epidemic
cases are made up from the susceptibles who somehow missed