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Notifiable Infectious Diseases.
27
gravity as it results only too often in partial loss of sight or complete
blindness. Ophthalmia Neonatorum is the cause of the
blindness of over 40 per cent. of the inmates of our Institutions for
the Blind. In consequence of its importance the disease was made
notifiable by doctors and midwives in 1914. I am convinced that a
certain proportion of these cases are not notified in accordance
with the requirements of the Public Health (Ophthalmia Neonatorum)
Regulations, 1914, and in the event of any such cases of
non-compliance with the Regulations coming to light I shall advise
the Council to institute proceedings against the person failing to
notify.
TUBERCULOSIS.
During the year 52 cases of Pulmonary Tuberculosis and 10
cases of Non-pulmonary Tuberculosis were notified, representing
an incidence-rate (cases per 1,000 of population) of 1.53 for
Pulmonary Tuberculosis and of 182 for all forms of the disease.
The number of notifications from this disease during the previous
10 years is shown in the table on page 17.
The number of deaths assignable to this district, after correction
for transferable deaths, from Tuberculosis was 30 (27 being due
to the pulmonary form of the disease and 3 to the non-pulmonary
form), representing a death-rate of 0.85 per thousand of population
for all forms of Tuberculosis, and of 0.77 per 1,000 of population for
Pulmonary Tuberculosis.
Notification of Tuberculosis.
Of the 30 deaths from Tuberculosis assignable to this District
during 1922, in 7 of them the case had not been notified as one of
Tuberculosis during the patient's lifetime, giving a ratio of nonnotified
tuberculosis deaths to total tuberculosis deaths of 23 per
cent. Of the 7 non-notified deaths 5 were "Inward Transfers,"
these deaths from tuberculosis having occurred outside the District;
inquiries from the Medical Officer of Health of the districts in
which the deaths took place showed that the cases had not been
notified in those districts. Two of the non-notified deaths were
those of residents whose death actually took place in the District.