Report of the Board of Health on plague in New South Wales.

  • New South Wales. Board of Health.
Date:
1906
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: Report of the Board of Health on plague in New South Wales. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    Case C. E.O’R., f., eet. 44, widow, laundress. No former attack ; not inoculated ; no communication with any previous case. Residence, 40, Bathurst-street, city ; employment, Tyne Laundry, Manly, a suburb 7 miles from residence, reached by water ; last employed, 4th April. Attack, felt ill 3rd April, but went to work ; went also on 4th, but could hardly work ; 5th, was too ill to get up; on 6th a slightly enlarged left femoral gland was present ; smears positive ; no lesions of drainage area. Notified by Dr. G. H. Taylor, 6th April, 2°30 p.m. ; visited (R.J.M.), 3 p.m.; admitted Coast Hospital, 6 p.m.; discharged to the general division of the hospital, 19th May ; duration of illness, 46 days. Rats.—One plague-infected mouse at residence, which was next door to a 12-stall stable, where dead rats and mice were found. Connected cases.—See Case G. Case D. A.P., m., et. 22, single, wharf-labourer. No former attack ; not inoculated ; no communication with any previous case. Residence, 8, Starling-street, Rozelle; employment, various wharfs on Darling Harbour ; last there (Grafton Wharf), 24th March ; attack at 10 a.m. on that date, but finished his work ; not notified as plague ; admitted to Coast Hospital in ordinary course, 28th March, 7:30 p.m.; died, 20th April; duration, 27 days. Cultures and inoculation made from a boil just below a carbuncle on left upper arm, positive ; there were many other boils elsewhere. Plague was not suspected on admission in this case, which seemed to be one of septic infection, till a large glandular swelling made appearance on right side of neck 9th day of illness, and a smaller swelling on left side; but material taken from the former yielded only streptococci and staphylococci, and a guinea-pig inoculated with it remained well ; afterwards, the skin manifestation, which had first appeared 30th March, was examined, with the positive result mentioned. Rats.—At residence, none ; slight traces of mice. At Grafton Wharf no plague rats were found ; ‘but patient had not been exclusively employed there, and his history could not be completely ascertained. (See Plan.) Connected cases.—None. Case E. J.A., m., et. 48, single, Departmental rat-catcher. Former attack 13th July, 1900 ; was inoculated (Haffkine) 10th Aug., 1903; conveyed Case B to Sydney Hospital as friend, 3rd April. Residence, 133, Dowling-street, Woolloomooloo ; employment, various infected places ; has brought in several plague rats ; last employed, night of 7th April. Admitted Coast Hospital, 8th April, discharged 16th May, duration 40 days. Attacked 6th April, slight pain left groin; 7th morning felt unwell and was examined (R.J.M.) while delivering his rats ; T. 100, otherwise normal, but left femoral gland slightly enlarged and tender; a very definite track of lymphangitis was traced back to a small suppurating sore on lower third of the leg, said to be of two or three days standing. Was again examined 8th April, morning, T. 102-4, P. 114; the sore then presented a small vesicle, in which no &. pestis were found by direct examination. Cultures and inoculations made with it yielded positive results, as also did material from the bubo, both taken 8th April. Rats.—During the twelve days, 27th March to 7th April, patient had handed in plague rats or mice on nine of them ; the last, a mouse, on 6th April; the last rat on 3rd April. Connected cases.— Was associated with Case B at night, 3rd April. CasE F. A.L., m., et. 11. No former attack; not inoculated ; no communication with any previous case. Residence, 253, Kent-street, City; attends Fort-street State School; also sells newspapers, chiefly on local steamboats, and thus frequents wharfs at Darling Harbour. Notified by Dr. G. A. Marshall, 10th April, 3 p.m.; visited (R. J. M.) 3°45; admitted to Coast Hospital 9 p.m.; died 23rd April; duration 14 days. Attack, 9th April, 3 p.m. ; first symptoms, headache and pain in left femoral region, where bubo material taken 10th, culture positive. Lesion of drainage-area ; a hyperemic spot on left patella. fats.—At residence none found ; six rat-holes ; some rooms infested with bugs and fleas. Connected cases.— None. CasE G, J. O’R., m., et. 15, street-cleaner, employed by City Council. No former attack ; not inoculated ; son of E. O’R., Case C, with whom he lived till her admission to hospital. Residence, 14, Steam Mill street, Darling Harbour ; employment, in streets ; last employed about 1st April. Notified by Dr. Corbin from Sydney Hospital on 13th April, where he had been admitted same day ; visited (R.J.M.) 14th, 9°30 a.m.,; not removed; discharged 25th April; duration about 17 days. Attack: about Ist April, while living in Bathurst-street, where his mother was attacked 3rd April; had severe ear-ache, which was soon relieved, but deafness remained ; on 6th was first employed as street-cleaner ; on 8th noticed pain in right side of neck; on 13th was admitted to Sydney Hospital, with T. 101, P. 100, R. 24, but all were normal next morning. On examination, he did not seem ill; in posterior triangle of neck, right side, were several slightly enlarged and tender glands, the largest being the size of a small marble and situated under the trapezius. Material taken from it showed nothing in film ; culture of it on agar yielded an involuted bacillus which did not morphologically resemble B. pestis ; an agar subculture from this yielded no growth, but a serum subculture yielded a fairly copious growth identical with that from which it was made. A guinea-pig inoculated from the culture died on the 5th day, and exhibited typical lesions of plague ; films made from internal organs showed enormous numbers of #. pestis, and the latter was recovered from them by cultivation. This result was attained on 25th April ; on inquiry at the hospital it was found the patient had been discharged well that morning. Rats.—At residence (40, Bathurst-street.) See Case C. Connected cases.—See Case C.
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