[Report 1913] / Medical Officer of Health, Somerset County Council.

  • Somerset Council
Date:
1913
Catalogue details

Licence: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

Credit: [Report 1913] / Medical Officer of Health, Somerset County Council. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    21/122 (page 19)
    male 15 ^ « weeks. N the cases. ’eai’s old, died in three days ; (e) a female, aged hS, who \vas ill for three o (‘onlirmation of the diagnosis by f)athological (^\a]ninati(')n made in any of The lionses were disinfected and the contacts kept inifler ohservnition. Acute Poliomyelitis. Ten cases were notified during the year—five in Urban and five in Rural Districts. They were distributed as follows :— Bridgwater. One case. A visitor to the town. Fatal. Taunton. One case. Jn a Public Institution. C'ame from outside the Borough. Weston-super-Mare. Three cases. There was no traceable connection between any of the cases although all three were in June. They were all sent to and treated in the General Hospital while the other children in the house were investigated and those of school age kept from school for a week and their noses and throats douched with dis¬ infectants. The houses and bedding were disinfected. One of the rural cases was in the Wincanton Rural District. No particulars given. The remaining four rural district cases were in Axbridge Rural. Dr. Leche gives the following particulars in regard to these cases. ‘‘ Four cases of acute poliomyelitis were notified ; three were evidently of a mild type and the neuritis and weakness rapidly cleared up. One case was a woman of 25, one a lad of eight of doubtful tubercular history, and one a man of 32 ; in none of these cases was there any actual paralysis, only excessive weakness of a limb, soon clearing up. The fourth case a boy of five lived in a low damp district and in poor circumstances. He had extensive paralysis and gradually died of exhaustion. x411 the cases lived many miles apart and had no communication with each other. The preventive measures were those adopted in diphtheria, regarding the discharges as a j)0ssible means of spreading the malady. These were disinfected or burnt, particular care being enjoined as to the nasal and oral secretions, avoidance of kissing, mouth toys, pencils, etc., and orders given to boil all cups, spoons, and feeding utensils after use, and to burn rag or paper handkerchiefs.” Ophthalmia Neonatorum. This disease was only voluntarily notifiable in about half the districts in the County. Ten cases were notified, distributed as follows :—One each in Frome Urban and Taunton Borough, two at Shepton Mallet and three at Yeovil, making seven in the Urban Districts ; one in Axbridge and two in Taunton Rural amongst Rural Districts. Tuberculosis. The Somerset Scheme for dealing with tuberculosis, as accepted by the County Council in July, 1913, is set out in a sj)ecial report dated .June, 1913. It is not, therefore, necessary to deal with the Scheme in detail, and i will coniine my remarks to dealing with the