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4.
PREVALENCE AND CONTROL OF INFECTIOUS AND
OTHER DISEASES
Acute Poliomyelitis
No case of acute poliomyelitis was notified during the year.
This was in accordance with the trend of the disease throughout the
country as a whole. Concurrent with the general reduction in the
number of cases notified during the past few years has been a steady
increase in the number of persons protected against the disease by
vaccination. It is still too early to measure the full effect of
vaccination but there are surely good grounds for guarded optimism.
Protection has now been offered to all persons up to the age of forty
and also to certain other persons who are exposed to undue risk of
infection. By the end of the year approximately 60% of the eligible
population had been vaccinated.
Diphtheria
The following statistics refer to immunisation carried out
during the year:-
Number of children immunised during the year
(pre-school 673, school 140) 813
Number of children receiving reinforcing doses 1,475
The efforts made to ensure a high degree of immunity to diphtheria
in the community by means of immunisation have perhaps been deprived of
some of their force by the poliomyelitis vaccination campaign. The
recent occurrence of small isolated outbreaks of diphtheria throughout
the country has pointed once again to the continued need for immunisation
of all children at an early age and the maintenance of effective protection
by reinforcing injections at intervals throughout their school life. Not
all parents are aware of this need and during 1960 a sustained attempt
was made to improve the acceptance of immunisation with particular stress
on the need for reinforcing injections.
For the 13th year in succession the district was completely
free from this disease, the last case having been notified in April, 1947.
Under the National Health Service Act all medical practitioners
providing general medical services in the area are given an opportunity
to provide services in the scheme. This has resulted in a number of
children being immunised otherwise than at schools or clinics.
Whooping Cough
The number of cases of whooping cough notified was 41. No
deaths occurred.