Report of the Principal Civil Medical Officer and Inspector-General of Hospitals / [Ceylon].

  • Ceylon. Civil Medical Department.
Date:
[1901]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Report of the Principal Civil Medical Officer and Inspector-General of Hospitals / [Ceylon]. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    49/124 (page 23)
    # among the more populated villages, by preventing the formation, and the filling up, of stagnant pools and hollows, the clearing of a sufficient space around the villages of all low jungle, and the timely treatment by quinine of those affected. We may reasonably hope that some good results may follow the adoption of these measures. Parangi.—This disease comes next in the order of prevalence. It has been reported from every district in the Province, and affects, as far as I can see, all classes and nationalities, and does not spare even the fairly well-to-do sections of the various communities. Perhaps the type of disease is noted to be more severe in the interior or “ vannam,” which is chiefly populated by the Sinhalese. The disease is kept up and allowed to spread, as the people appear to be quite indifferent. The healthy mix freely with the sick, they bathe in the same pools, which also provide them with their supply of drinking water, their clothes are all washed in common, very often in the only tank, where also the cattle are watered ; more attention to sanitation, an improved water supply, better food with more variety, and attention to segregation of the sick should be the measures adopted to check the spread of this disease. Dysentery and Diarrhoea prevailed generally, but did not at any time assume an epidemic form. These complaints are probably due to the unwholesome food and impure water during the dry months, and to climatic changes during the wet. Catarrhal Affections. — These prevail during the wet months, but during the year did not assume large proportions, nor were they of a severe type. Leprosy.—This loathsome disease is very prevalent in the Kalmunai District, but cases are reported from Batticaloa and some of the neighbouring villages as well. The Medical Officer, Kalmunai, is of opinion that the disease is spreading, judging from the number of cases reported to him. The total number in the district is said.to be 94, but it is possible that there may be even more, as the anfesthetic type may not have been readily recognized. Dr. Nicholas is of opinion that the “disease in some of the cases has been contracted from other than relatives, and that there is no trace of the disease in their own families or among the close relations.” The following table gives the number of cases of malarial fever and parangi treated at the various institutions in 1901 :— Total treated at Hospitals and Dispensaries. Full Total treated. Malaria. Parangi. Nindur • • • • • • 3,902 3,782 • • • — Trincomalee • • • 5,291 754 • • • 15 Batticaloa 7,924 13,035 3,278 • • • 234 Kalmunai • • • 3,680 ... 426 Toppur • • • • • • 900 200 48 Muttur • • • 2,878 750 159 Akkaraipattu 3,806 1,451 • • • 485 Eravur 18,700 6,819 • •• 042 Tamblegam • • • 1,781 459 • • • 11 Pottuvil • • • 6,785 2,040 • • • 182 Kiniyai 900 138 ... 42 ' Nilaveli • •• • • « 401 108 • • • 2 Kadraveli • • • • • • 898 107 8 . • 192 Vallaichchena 12,393 4,965 • • • 838 Paddiruppu ... • • • 4,998 043 • • • 444 Kattankudi • • • 12,094 6,774 • • • 202 Kokoticholai 1,454 515 • • • 472 Maha-oya 2,408 747 ... 405 Padiyatalawa ,k. 296 145 16 Nadukadu 895 166 411 Tirukovil • • • Total • * • 522 103,593 211 37,798 22 5,248 Relative Mortality in different Seasons. I regret I am unable to say anything positive about the relative mortality in different seasons, as I have no reliable data to go upon, but judging from the prevalence of disease I should say the death-rate was higher during the rainy seasons. Meteorological Conditions and their effect on Public Health. There are two distinct seasons in the Province, the hot and dry from March to October, and the rainy season from October to March. The rainfall during the latter period is generally very heavy, and the country is flooded in many parts. During the months of January and February there is, besides, a heavy fall of dew. It is during this time that malarial fevers and chest affections chiefly prevail. The dry months are undoubtedly the healthiest. Remarks on Particular Diseases. Cholera.—Not a single case, I am glad to say, occurred in any part of the Province, although in the previous year it prevailed in an epidemic form in Batticaloa. Smallpox.—One case was reported as such from Tamblegam, but proved on inspection to be a case of chickenpox. Other Infectious Diseases.—Chickenpox and measles, as in previous years, wore reported from different stations during the last quarter, but these diseases did not prevail to any great extent. General Sanitary Condition of the Towns and Districts. The general sanitary condition of the district is far from satisfactory. There are vast tracts of low-lying lands, and marshes and stagnant pools and swamps are formed in the neighbourhood of villages during the rains. The country being generally flat, the drainage is very defective every-