London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
Shoreditch 1931
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Shoreditch]
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32
Scarlet Fever.
The cases certified numbered 298, of which 35 or 117 per cent were
subsequently not regarded as Scarlet Fever. The actual number of cases
was accordingly 263, which gives an attack rate of 2 7 per 1,000 inhabitants.
table on page 26. There were no fatal cases. The number of cases and the attack rates in the Borough and Wards are given in the subjoined table :—
(See also table on page 26).
| Ward. | No. of cases. | Fatal Cases. | Rates per 1,000 Population. | Case Mortality. Deaths per 100 cases. | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Male. | Fein ale. | Total. | Male. | Female. | Total. | ||||
| Attack | Death | ||||||||
| Moorfields ... | 2 | 6 | 8 | 2.0 | |||||
| Church | 21 | 25 | 46 | 2.8 | |||||
| Hoxton | 20 | 27 | 47 | 2.9 | |||||
| Wenlock | 15 | 20 | 35 | 2.2 | |||||
| Whitmore | 15 | 19 | 34 | 2.2 | |||||
| Kingsland | 15 | 17 | 32 | 3.3 | |||||
| Haggerston | 13 | 27 | 40 | 4.0 | |||||
| Acton | 3 | 18 | 21 | 1.9 | ... | ||||
| Total | 104 | 159 | 263 | 2.7 | ... | ||||
| London | 12,105 | 63 | 2.8 | 0.02 | 0.52 | ||||
The number of cases in Shoreditch was less than in 1930, in which year
there were 384 cases with an attack rate of 3 9.
The measures taken to control the disease are as follows : —
Isolation of patient. With the exception of two cases all those
certified were removed to Hospital.
Disinfection of home and of articles likely to spread infection.
Advice to those exposed as to early symptoms and importance of
seeking medical aid.
Search for source of infection. It is sometimes found that there
is a missed case in the house still in the infectious stage.
As is the case with Diphtheria, susceptibility to Scarlet Fever
can now be ascertained by a simple test and persons who are liable
to contract the disease can be immunized. There is no clinic for this
purpose in Shoreditch, and no case of artificial Scarlet Fever immunization
came to the knowledge of the Public Health Department.