ADDITIONAL PARALYSIS PATIENTS

Bay of Plenty Times, Volume LXXVI, Issue 14638, 6 April 1948, Page 6

ADDITIONAL PARALYSIS PATIENTS

HOKIANGA COUNTY AREA Outbreaks In Isolated Maori Settlement Auckland Doctor. Contracts Poliomyelitis With the notification of three fresh cases of infantile paralysis in the Hokianga county the number in this area is now nine out of a predominantly Maori population of 8,000. This represents a higher percentage of cases than in any other part of New Zealand. The three recent cases are from Motuti, an isolated Maori settlement on the western side of the Hokianga Harbour. About ten days ago a native child from this settlement was admitted to the Hokianga Hospital at Rawcnc with the disease.

Another three cases were discovered by Dr J. McHaffie, of the Hokianga special health service, when he was examining people in the area. Although they are all from different homes the three new patients live within a mile of one another and include two girls, aged four and six respectively, and a boy aged 16. The patients are being nursed in their" own homes at present. All contacts with them hr.vc been isolated.

Another suspect case of the disease was admitted to the Auckland Hospital yesterday. The patient is a boy agecL seven from Pukekohe. There arc now 50 positive and three suspected cases in hospital. Two positive and four suspected cases of infantile paralysis were reported in the South Auckland health district yesterday. The positive cases were a boy aged nine, from To Hoc. and a girl aged 13, from Benneydale. Both were admitted to the Waikato Hospital as suspects on Sunday. The new suspects arc a youth aged 19, from Kawhia, a girl agccl 20, from Hamilton, a girl aged five, from Mangapehi, and a girl aged three, from Benneydale. The total number of positive cases for the district now stands at 77. A resident doctor on the staff of the Auckland Hospital, who was formerly in charge of infantile paralysis patients, contracted the disease himself. This was reported to the Auckland Hospital Board last night, when it was stated that, following a positive diagnosis, the doctor had received physiotherapy treatment and had now been discharged from hospital.