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
Brentford and Chiswick 1938
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Brentford and Chiswick]
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Return Cases. Of the 364 cases discharged during the year 11
gave rise to " return " cases of scarlet fever. This gives a return
case rate of 3.0 per cent.
Duration of Stay.— The average duration of stay in hospital
of all cases of scarlet fever was 33.6 days.
Deaths—There was one death from scarlet fever. An infant
aged nine months was admitted to hospital with a moderately
severe attack of scarlet fever but developed meningitis and died
on the sixth day after admission.
Diphtheria.— The number of cases admitted as diphtheria
was 226, 98 from Brentford and Chiswick and 128 from Ealing.
This is 23 more than in the previous year. Of the total number,
44 were ultimately diagnosed as follows:—
Tonsillitis 36, scarlet fever 1, rhinitis 1, rhinitis and
impetigo 1, rhiuorrhoea 1, peri-tonsillar abscess 1, catarrhal
laryngitis 1, no apparent disease 2.
Two cases were found to have another disease in addition
to diphtheria, one having rubella and one scabies.
The incidence of the actual cases of diphtheria in the various age-groups was as follows:—
| 1-5 yrs. | 5-10 yrs. | 10-15 yrs. | 15-25 yrs. | 25-45 yrs. | over 45 yrs. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 45 | 88 | 24 | 12 | 13 | — |
The following complications were observed:—
Palatal paresis 15
Ocular paresis 3
Pharyngeal paresis 2
Lower limb paresis 1
Carditis 9
Cardiac irregularity 8
Tachycardia 2
Otitis media and otorrlioea 3
Mastoiditis 1
Septic Sores 4
Cervical adenitis 4
Nephritis 2