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11
Infectious Diseases.
INFECTIOUS DISEASES.
GENERAL REMARKS. THE INFLUENZA EPIDEMICS.
This pandemic disease broke out in this district in July and
October. Details of the deaths are set out below. As the disease
is not notifiable there is no information as to the number of
individuals attacked, but it was very considerable. The school
children alone numbered 525 cases. In several cases girls lost
their hair after the illness.
The influenza germ attacked first, and this was followed by the
pneumonia germ, and then other septic or blood poisoning germs
gained an entrance into the lungs and blood streams.
The causes of the high rate of mortality were increased
virulence on the part of the germ and lowered resistance on the
victim. In round numbers 100,000 deaths were caused in Great
Britain, and 6,000,000 deaths in the world generally.
The Public Health Committee recommended the Council to
make provision in the hospital for cases of Pneumonia, to obtain
help of the Health Visitors in the homes and to make Influenzal
Pneumonia notifiable, and this was done and confirmed by the
Local Government Board, which expressed its satisfaction as to the
measures taken.
By order of the L.G.B. children from schools closed for
Influenza are forbidden to attend picture palaces or other places of
amusement. These places, moreover, are to be well flushed with
fresh air at intervals of four hours.
Large posters were circulated in the district giving advice on
Influenza, and the doctors were asked to notify cases complicated
by pneumonia.
All schools were closed both in July and October, and the
senior school children addressed by the M.O. H. before breaking up.
When the next outbreak occurs, the whole population should have
learnt what to do.