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49
EPIDEMIC DISEASES OF THE CENTRAL NERVOUS
SYSTEM.
Cerebro Spinal Fever.
In May a girl of thirteen contracted this infection. Treated
at an isolation hospital, she made a complete recovery. A male
infant of 8 months died of meningococcal meningitis in December.
Encephalitis Lethargica.
No cases of encephalitis lethargica were notified during the
year, but past infection by this disease was a contributory cause
of death of two adult women, one of whom was an in-patient at a
mental institution.
Acute Anterior Poliomyelitis.
Six cases of this infection were notified during the year, in
one of which, however, the diagnosis was revised to rheumatism.
In three of the cases the onsets of illness were within a few days
one of the other, but the patients had apparently had no communication,
nor was there any common source of infection. The cases
were all relatively mild, some slight paresis being left. Early in
November a girl of eighteen suffered from a mild attack, and later
in the month a boy of six years of age.
Two cases were removed to an isolation hospital, and one to
a general hospital.
NON-NOTIFIABLE INFECTIONS.
Measles.
It was anticipated that this would be a year of higher incidence
of infection with measles in this district. Except for a number of
cases in one school, however, the district was practically free from
the disease during January. This school was more heavily affected
in February, after which it enjoyed relative freedom. In this
month, however, the infection entered and severely attacked
another school, which suffered again for the next month, after
which it was free. Infection started in two other schools in March
and began to be general throughout almost every school in the
district in April, though it was not until May that the brunt of the
attack was felt. Apart from a few odd cases, most schools were
free by June.
Information of infection in the schools is received from the
heads of the elementary schools, the total number of notifications
received being 1,641. Acting on this information the Health
Visitors visited the homes and advised the mothers, particularly
on the necessity of endeavouring to avoid the spread of infection
to children of pre-school age. 808 home visits were paid to measles
cases and 912 to other cases of infectious disease.
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