View report page

DIPHTHERIA.
The number of cases of this disease notified during the year
was 271 as compared with 456 cases during the previous year.
Although there was this very material decrease in prevalence,
the type of the disease was in many cases of a very severe
character. The number of deaths was 24, which gives a deathrate
of 8.8 per cent, as compared with 65 deaths and a djathrate
of 14.25 per cent, in the previous year.
The Wards in which the disease was most prevalent were
Central West, Central East and Manor Park. In the first
named Ward a number of the cases were in connection with
children attending Hartley Avenue School. Many visits were
paid to this school and a large number of children were
examined before all the sources of infection were discovered.
The difficulty of dealing with outbreaks of this disease in a
school, is due to the fact, that children, especially those with
adenoids or large tonsils, may harbour the Diphtheria germs in
the throat or nose for long periods without having any symptoms
of illness. Yet these apparently healthy children can,aud
often do infect others with a severe form of the disease. The
cases can only be recognized by a Bacteriological examination
and the Borough Bacteriological Laboratory was of course invaluab'e
in connection with the discovery of these cases, in fact
without its assistance it would probably have been necessary to
close the school, and when this is done, it is impracticable to
maintain that close supervision over the children which is
necessary at such a time.