London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
View report page
Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
Harrow 1947
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Harrow]
This page requires JavaScript
34
VERMIN INFESTATION.
Scabies.
There was a further marked falling off in the number of patients
who attended for treatment, only 457 this year as compared with 801
in 1946, and 1,714 in 1945. Thirty-five were children under five, 152
children of school age, and 260 adults of whom 157 were women. The
attendances varied most erratically throughout the year. From the
60 in January the numbers fell to 14 in April, to rise to 54 in July.
Smaller attendances in the next two months were followed by a rise to
68 cases in November, but only 22 attended in December.
| New Cases | Deaths | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Primary Notifications | Brought to notice other than by Form A | Pulmonary | Non-pulmonary | |||||||||
| Pulmonary | Non-pulmonary | Pulmonary | Non-pulmonary | |||||||||
| M | F | M | F | M | F | M | F | M | F | M | F | |
| Under 1 | 1 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 2 | 1 |
| 1-4 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 3 | — | — | 1 | — | 1 | — | — | — |
| 5-9 | 5 | 6 | — | – | 1 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | 1 |
| 10-14 | 3 | 1 | — | — | 1 | 1 | 1 | – | — | — | — | — |
| 15-19 | 24 | 21 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | – | 1 | 2 | 1 | — |
| 20-24 | 20 | 27 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 4 | — | 1 | 1 | 2 | — | 1 |
| 25-34 | 30 | 32 | 5 | 3 | 14 | 19 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 6 | — | 1 |
| 35-44 | 24 | 16 | 6 | 6 | 12 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 13 | 7 | — | — |
| 45-54 | 19 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | — | — | 11 | 7 | — | — |
| 55-64 | 14 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | — | — | — | 7 | 3 | — | — |
| 65 & up | 9 | 1 | — | 1 | — | — | — | — | 5 | 2 | — | — |
| 155 | 115 | 17 | 22 | 36 | 36 | 6 | 4 | 40 | 29 | 3 | 4 | |
There was a further rise in the number of pulmonary cases first
learned of during the year, 342 against 308 in 1946, which figure was
itself a rise on the 261 of 1945. Of this year's figures 18 were of persons
in whom the disease was first diagnosed while they were in the Services.
Of those of whom particulars are known 116 were notified in other
districts before they came here, having already contracted the infection
before transfer. This leaves 208 who presumably contracted the infection
while living here. In 40 cases there was a family history of
tuberculosis.
The 49 notifications of non-pulmonary disease is a marked increase
on the figure for the previous year. In 10 instances the onset of the
disease preceded the transfer of the patient to the district. In only 3 of
the cases that presumably contracted the infection while living here was
there a family history of tuberculosis.