Report on the progress of vaccination in the Madras Presidency / by the Medical Board ; together with the annual return of vaccination for the year 1852.
- Madras (India : Presidency). Medical Board.
- Date:
- 1853
Licence: Public Domain Mark
Credit: Report on the progress of vaccination in the Madras Presidency / by the Medical Board ; together with the annual return of vaccination for the year 1852. Source: Wellcome Collection.
Provider: This material has been provided by The Royal College of Surgeons of England. The original may be consulted at The Royal College of Surgeons of England.
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![sj 3> K) <T> ^ o 2 ^ 2 ^ ON ctq ^ a> oc § C/3 1—1 u 3- o S3' -o o- l-t E3 CD c/3 c/3 “T3 b: ^ re 3 n 3 on P O- o t No. ID (Sirsi) a60038 c <u E CL • ■» to e> L 7 ] 18. With regard to the supply of lymph from England received during the course of the year under review, the Board regret to have to record that with the exception of three or four instances, the glasses, ivory points, and crusts, proved to be wholly inert; the successful cases however fortunately occurred in the Northern Division, and in Malabar and Cariara, where a renewal of the lymph was reported to be most required, and so far it has been of use. The cause of failure in the first supplies was evidently bad package, as reported to Government at the time of receipt; the latter packets were well secured in every respect, but the results were unfortunately not attended with success. The Board respectfully solicit another supply of one thousand charges in glass tubing hermetically sealed, for the purpose of being distributed to the Northern Division, Malabar and Canara, Ceded Districts, and also for transmission to Kampteeand Saugor, where difficulty is often experienced in obtaining supplies of lymph. The Board would wish this supply to be sent out by the Mail which leaves England in the early part of October; it would thereby reach this country at a most favourable season of the year. 19. As bearing upon the nature of the lymph now in use over the greater part of this Presidency as already said, it is looked upon as good and genuine, with the exception of certain parts in Malabar, and the experience of the Native Army shews this to be the fact—this large body of men continue, and have been for years past almost entirely free from small pox; and yet they are often much exposed to the disease. Yet as there is a tendency to degeneration of the lymph on the Malabar Coast and in other places, Mercara and Coorg, and probably also in certain parts of the Northern Division, the Board would re- commend that a supply of (say 1000) charges may be sent out annually by the first mail of October. This would be beneficial not simply as an additional supply, but as insuring a genuine undeteriorated virus, which the Board would be enabled to transmit to any part of the Presidency, and more especially to Kamptee, Saugor, and parts of the Northern Division, where such numerous failures have occurred. <( From an aggregate strength of 6,68,403, the admissions from small pox were 415, and the deaths re- corded 42; or in the ratio of 0-730 of at- tacks per thou- sand, and 0-073 of deaths; consi- derably under one case in the thousand, and the mortality is under one tenth of a unit*” 20. With regard to vaccination the course of the affection in this part of India I am desired to observe that in the Native the pustule is never so large, nor is the surrounding inflammatory circle so conspicuous or extensive as in Europe, while at the same time it is important to notice that in European children vaccinated from a Native subject in India, the pustule is as large and the areola also as in Britain ; and as to the power of protection, in the Native Army (the only records available that bear on this point) the instances of va- rioloid disease would certainly appear to be more frequent in India after vacci- nation, than in Europe—but still, with all this, the Board taking into consider- ation the many causes and sources of failure as regards vaccination in India,](https://iiif.wellcomecollection.org/image/b22400606_0011.jp2/full/800%2C/0/default.jpg)
