[Report 1907] / Medical Officer of Health, Bilston U.D.C.

  • Bilston (England). Urban District Council.
Date:
1907
Catalogue details

Licence: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

Credit: [Report 1907] / Medical Officer of Health, Bilston U.D.C. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    In all cases it was also recommended that the building's be cleansed and disinfected ; and where there were Sunday Schools that they too should be closed. In one instance, I regret to say, the X'Mcar absolutely declined to allow this. In October last, at the request of the Local Government Board I prepared a special Report on the recent prevalence of Measles, part of which, for permanence of record, is here introduced : — III June of last year, at the request of the Local Governnieut Board, I prejiared a special Rej)ort on the prevalence of Measles in the District, and many of the comments then made, e.g. as to the methods of spread of such a disease in a district like this, need not be repeated. In the earlier part of the year Measles 'n'as known to exist in the imme- diately surrounding districts, and it again easily invaded this town. The first death occurred on May 2(ith in a young baby only 13 months old living in Free Street ; 4 more deaths were registered in June, all in the same neighbourhood and all in infants of 1 year or less : in the quarter July 1st to September 30th, the period now specially under review, 19 more deaths were registered from this disease, 8 of which were in infants only 1 year or less in age, 7 in children from 1 to 2 jmars, 3 in children of 2 years and un- der 5, and only 1 above the latter, a child 0 5'ears of age. Thus 12 of the deaths, that is half the total number, were in infants of 1 j’ear and under, and 8 more under 2 years. Eighteen of the deaths were specially attributed to Bronchitis or Pneumonia superceding on Measles, and 3 others to Convulsions. The majority, too, occurred in the New Town Ward,—that in-which the first death occurred, and the one also in which the incidence was greatest in the epidemic of the preceding year. It is impossible to give the number,—undoubtably a large one,—of children affected, as Measles is not a notifiable disease; and ihe mortality rate therefore cannot be calculated. That it should spread rapidly in this district, and even prevail for a prolonged period, is not surpri.sing when it is remembered with what indifference it is usually regarded. In the great proportion of cases no medical man is called in, at least until, and unless, a fatal termination is apjtrehended (and then frequently only at the last moinent) and no attempt whatever is made to isolate the patient; that so manj' too of the very young who are seized with this complaint should die is obvious, for often no trouble is taken to keep them in bed or specially warm. A recent instance—^one among many—within mj^ own ])ersonal knowledge may suffice to illustrate this. —In one house I found a child, only 4 years of age, sitting in a kitchen full}* dressed, with a door opening directly to the yard, and two vouuger children ))laying with it. The father was sitting besitle the child, having his dinner, before returning to work, to join a large number of other employees, old and young of both sexes, in a large factor}’’. The face and body of this child were covered with a rash, yet no attempt was made to keep it particularly warm, least of all to place it in bed, and at the moment of my visit the mother was in her neighbour’s house where other children were as.sembled. The fact that these cases are infect- ious also before the rash appears, adds to the ease and rapidity of their dissemination.