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 1934
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Shoreditch]
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The following table gives the age distribution of cases and deaths for the whole period of the measles epidemic, viz., from 1st November, 1933, to 31st August, 1934.
| Ages | Under 1 | 1 and under 2 | 2 and under 3 | 3 and under 4 | 4 and under 5 | 5 and under 6 | 6 and under 7 | 7 and under 8 | 8 and under 14 | 14 and over | Total. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. of cases | 64 | 159 | 106 | 237 | 237 | 239 | 199 | 92 | 37 | 6 | 1,174 |
| No. of deaths | 7 | 18 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 2 | — | — | — | — | 34 |
The following table gives the number of cases which occurred week by week from January to May.
| Week ending— | Week ending— | Week ending— | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan. 5 | 5 | Mar. 2 | 70 | May 4 | 21 |
| „ 12 | 22 | „ 9 | 81 | „ 11 | 28 |
| „ 19 | 35 | „ 16 | 73 | „ 18 | 28 |
| „ 26 | 35 | „ 23 | 102 | „ 25 | 14 |
| „ 30 | 81 | ||||
| Feb. 2 | 45 | Apr. 6 | 26 | ||
| ,, 9 | 55 | „ 13 | 63 | ||
| „ 16 | 77 | „ 20 | 42 | ||
| „ 23 | 63 | „ 27 | 23 | ||
Arrangements were made with the District Nursing Association for the visiting
of all cases in which nursing was requested by the practitioner who was in attendance.
200 visits were paid to 21 patients, the average number of visits per patient being
9.5. School exclusion was practised to a considerable extent. The total number
of children was 252, and about 21 per cent,. of the total measles cases.
During 1935 arrangements were made for the notification of measles in the
Borough, and at the time of writing the Ministry of Health have sanctioned the
notification of all first cases of measles in any household, provided these are under
the age of five years. Further particulars regarding these regulations will be given
in the next annual report.
Whooping Cough.
As this disease is not notifiable in Shoreditch the actual number of cases cannot
be ascertained. It is apparent, however, from the number of deaths, viz., 12, that
there was a considerable outbreak of the disease in the Borough. The deaths occurred
between January and November, 1934.