Statistical report on the Edinburgh epidemic fever of 1843-44 / by A. Halliday Douglas, M.D.

  • Douglas, A. Halliday (Andrew Halliday), 1819-1908.
Date:
[©1844?]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Statistical report on the Edinburgh epidemic fever of 1843-44 / by A. Halliday Douglas, 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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    titute, 13 men and 10 women. With regard to the terms “ indifferent ” and “ destitute/’ I may explain, that though the former presented a less degree of wretchedness than the latter, yet assuredly they were to be classed together as being equally, so far as their circumstances in life were concerned, predisposed to the effects of contagion. Accordingly, from this return it appears, that of 186 persons in fever, 103 were in a state of po- verty amounting to destitution, while 30, or l-6th of the whole number, were in a state of utter wretchedness.* Of these 103 destitute cases, 53 were women; 30 of whom were married. 3d, Habits.-—The habits of the patients, as regards temper- ance, were reported intemperate in 18, and drunken in 9,—27 cases in all, of which 5 died. These facts are in the mean time merely stated; the influence of irregular habits on the progress and result of the disease will be noticed more in detail here- after. 4th, Previous Health.—The health of the patients appears to have been impaired for a longer or shorter period in about 34 of the cases. The disorder of the health was in many of these cases trivial, and of only a few days’ standing—consisting in an attack of cynanche or catarrh. In about 12 cases the disordered health was chronic, and the majority of these suffered from bronchitis, which became troublesome during the progress of the attack, with cough and expectoration. Of the 34 cases, 2 proved fatal, the one being affected with chronic disease of the liver; the other was, after death, reported to have been long subject to attacks of violent diarrhoea, a recurrence of which was the immediate cause of the fatal event. 5th, Former attacks of Fever.—Of the 220 cases, 71 were stated to have suffered from former attacks of fever, exclusive of 4 who were affected with both the epidemic relapsing fever and typhus during their stay in the hospital. Hence, rather more than a third of the cases were suffering from fever for the second time. These former attacks of fever had occurred within five years in 30 cases, of which 12 were within two years and 6 within one year.f 6th, Source.—Among 213 cases in which this question was carefully investigated, 45 were unable to ascribe their attack to any cause ; 18 attributed their illness to exposure, fatigue, &c.; and 150 were satisfactorily proved to have been exposed to sources of contagion. 1th, Stage when first reported.—This is stated in our returns * These facts corroborate, on extended data, the statement of Dr Alison, made on my authority, at p. 8 of his pamphlet. •f Of 25 cases of typhus which came under my charge, during the same period as the above cases, 5 reported former attacks of fever, that is, a fifth of the whole number,—one only of these was satisfactorily made out to have occurred within two years.