Report of the Medical Officer of Health on the public health and sanitary circumstances of Johannesburg.

  • Johannesburg
Date:
[1962]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Report of the Medical Officer of Health on the public health and sanitary circumstances of Johannesburg. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    24/140 (page 8)
    1. NOTIFIED CASES OF PREVENTABLE DISEASES. Details of the number of cases of preventable diseases noti¬ fied during the year are given in the following table LOCAL CASES 1 1 _ | IMPORTED CASES E C 1) A I TOTAL j E C U A TOTAL Diphtheria 3 4 60 l 68 | 2 2 Scarlet Fever 175 1 176 ] 3 3 Typhoid Cerebro-Spinal 5 6 25 36 | 4 7 11 Meningitis 10 10 68 88 I Erysipelas 2 2 | Puerperal Sepsis 2 2 33 37| Pemphigus Neonatorum 12 3 1 16! Ophthalmia Neonatorum 1 1 26 28 | Poliomyelitis 1 5 6 1 2 2 Malaria 1 1 4 1 17 1 23 Leprosy 3 3 1 38 1 39 Encephalitis 29 29 ! 1 1 Trachoma 1 5 &! 15 15 Relapsing Fever 1 1 2 2 Trypanosomiasis II II 1 1 Insecticide Poisoning 1 1 2 11 ^ 11 Lead Poisoning 13 13 11 J 11 11 TOTAL 241 29 239 I 11 5101| 12 n 1 84 2 99 Tuberculosis II II II Pulmonary 14 2 236 3,049 60 3,487!’ 23 17 2,546 5 2,591 Other Forms 15 18 196 1 230 J| 1 1 20 1 23 ALL DISEASES 398 283 3,484 62 1 4,227 1 36 19 2,650 8 2,713 The prevalence of local cases of notifiable disease (except tuberculosis and kwashiorkor) shows a remarkable reduction as compared with the previous year, being 510 as compared with 753. Kwashiorkor. This disease was made notifiable for the first time as from 14th September 1962. After eliminating duplication, 977 notifications were received between that date and 31st December 1962, Of these 530 (54,25fo) were definitely local residents and 43 (4.4fo) from other areas. The domicile of the remaining 404 (41,35^) was unknown, i.e. they could not be traced or investigated because they had moved to an unknown address, were unknown at the address given, wrong address given etc. It is reasonable to assume that the majority of these were temporary residents from other areas. Kwashiorkor is a difficult disease to diagnose. It was not practicable to check the diagnosis at the time of notification. Where all the accepted criteria for a definite diagnosis are present the case is one of quite advanced protein deficiency. For every such frank case there is a much larger number where the protein deficiency is less / severe