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68
The notification figures for the three years from 1949 were 439, 370
and 358. Those for 1952 were 271.
Of the pulmonary cases, 50 were already suffering from the disease
before they moved into the district. Eight men were recognised to be
suffering from the disease while they were serving in the forces.
Of the 75 males who contracted pulmonary tuberculosis while living
in the district, 15 gave a family history of tuberculosis, this being a
percentage of 20. The corresponding figures for females were 32, four
and 12 5.
Of the 22 persons notified to be suffering from non-pulmonary tuberculosis,
at least four contracted the infection before coming to live here.
Of those who were living here and presumably contracted the infection
here, four gave a history of a pulmonary case living in the home.
Register.
Under the 1930 Regulations, the Medical Officer of Health was
required to keep a register which was to include particulars of every
person notified as suffering from tuberculosis, particulars of those who
transferred to the district of whom he was advised by the Medical Officer
of Health of the district the sufferer lived in before transfer and " of any
person who normally resided in the district and whose death from tuberculosis
has come to his knowledge but who has not been notified to him
as suffering from tuberculosis."
The regulations required the Medical Officer of Health, from time
to time and not less often than once a quarter, to revise the register by
removing from it entries relating to notifications which have been withdrawn,
entries relating to persons who have recovered, and entries relating
to persons who have died, have ceased to live in the district or who
after adequate search cannot be found resident in the district. Possibly
the greatest inaccuracy in the register arose because of the removals
out of the district of persons whose names were on the register. To try
to keep the local register accurate, towards the end of each year, home
visits have been paid to those about whom no information up to then in
that year had been received.
Under the new regulations it is no longer obligatory on the Medical
Officer of Health to keep the register. But " In the Minister's view he
may naturally be expected to do so, and the Minister would urge that he
should, in the same way that he keeps a record for his own purposes and
without any legal requirement of notification of other diseases." The
register is being kept in the same way as it used to. But according to
circular 6/52, the essential Tuberculosis Registers will in future be those
kept at the Chest Clinics. It may well be then that the published information
of the numbers of those on the registers will be lower than in
the past. If so, the smaller number of names on the register will not
necessarily be due entirely to there being a smaller number of sufferers
in the district.