On the statistics of the recent epidemic of typhus in Aberdeen, showing its probable cause and cost / by R. Beveridge, M.D.

  • Beveridge, Robert.
Date:
1868
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Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: On the statistics of the recent epidemic of typhus in Aberdeen, showing its probable cause and cost / by R. Beveridge, M.D. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The University of Glasgow Library. The original may be consulted at The University of Glasgow Library.

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    ON THE STATISTICS OF THE I RECENT EPIDEMIC OF TYPHUS IN ABEEDEEN. OR almost three years Aberdeen has been the seat of an epidemic ; of typhus, which, although the relative mortality has not been high, has yet been wide-spread. I propose to trace, as far as prac- ticable, the history of this epidemic, and to endeavour to ascertain what conclusions are fairly deducible therefrom, especially in the view of approximating to its probable cause and cost ; and in order to avoid those sources of error which unreliable or only partially reliable data necessarily give rise to, I shall, in the first place, confine myself to the statistics of those cases admitted into the Royal Infirmary, the facts connected with which are absolutely known. During the prevalence of the epidemic very few cases of other febrile diseases were admitted into the infirmary; still a few cases of typhoid fever did occur along with a small but remarkably uniform number of cases of small-pox. There also occurred occasional mild cases of fever, unattended with eruption, which are recorded in the hospital books as febricula ; but the following observations apply solely to the cases of pure typhus, the others having been carefully separated. Before proceeding to the details of these I may premise that by pure typhus I understand a febrile disease marked by the appearance of a dark mulberry- coloured rash, coming out after the disease lias lasted a day or two, and continuing out till the disease is over, and by the prominent symptoms referring to disturbed function of the brain. In all the cases now to be referred to, the characteristic rash was present.