[Report 1913] / Medical Officer of Health, St Albans Urban Sanitary District.

  • St. Albans (England). Urban Sanitary District.
Date:
1913
Catalogue details

Licence: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

Credit: [Report 1913] / Medical Officer of Health, St Albans Urban Sanitary District. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    If primary abdominal tuberculosis were excluded, probably 90 to 95 per cent, of all cases of human tuberculosis is due to the human type of tubercle bacillus, and most of the tuber¬ culosis found in the human subject, which is due to the Bovine Tubercle bacillus, is found in children. The two chief modes of infection, that is routes by which the bacillus can enter the body, are :— 1. Inhalation. 2. Ingestion. The relative importance of these two methods of entry has been much debated, but most authorities agree that inhalation is by far the most important of the two. As I have stated before, by far the greater bulk of tuber¬ culosis in man, whether it be in the lung or in other parts of the body, is due to the Human Tubercle Bacillus, and the principle or almost exclusive source of pulmonary tuberculosis, is the inhalation of bacilli from sputum which has dried and become mixed with dust and is then air borne. One word with reference to the congenital origin of tuber¬ culosis. Though it cannot be denied that a mother may transmit this disease to her child, it is admittedly very rare. But what a parent, that is either father or mother, may and frequently does transmit to their offspring is the predisposition, that is the child has a low resisting power, and when exposed to infection easily falls a prey to the disease. Much can be done in preventing the spread of Consumption by educating the patient as to the nature of the disease and the importance of care in many details. The spit, which is highly' infectious, should always be expectorated either into a suitable vessel which can be effec-