INFLUENZA IN ENGLAND.

Press, Volume LXIX, Issue 20757, 18 January 1933, Page 11

INFLUENZA IN ENGLAND.

#1 THOUGHT SERIOUS

«gftU> TO NEW ZEALAND UNLIKELY.

Tie epWe«» ic of i " fluen/ ;' in Great ftluiß u not vet regarded as senous ♦L licaltb authorities id New Ze.i----j The Medical Officer of Health for "* B , „ DrtT. Fletcher Telford, *rt»fcrdav that as influenza was 1* notifiable disease in England the Ija P«M« hed in re, '° nt C, l b " ,e -" *£ could only be considered a, esuand in relation to the popula- : of Great Britain were not dau«*cai!«r big"- , . fil figures did not. he thought, miLe »u epidemic of really widespread a«d he had as yet receive,; formation from the Department ,n ttffiuton aboutthe outbreak. In New fehutd the disease in its simple and form wai not notifiable. Ouly .Wrt* rarieties of influenza, fulminant, Lutoonic, and septicemic, must 1..! Jjifed io the authorities, and so lar -en ':ad iiees m unusua{ Increase '" Xt 6WEI* r of notifications throughout ('■ulerfcanr. or, so far as he knew. irtßghout New Zealand. I-atil the 191S-11* epidemic a go. ,J f Ji of doubt existed as to the prec><Tiaje „f tlie disease, and it was not !Ttfl *oo» years after that outbreak •tot » «■» gazetted in New Zealand iwtiiuiHe disease m the three forms Lrfioe*] above. Kvcn now although SeMeni of diagnosis liave been moiv M-ies6B*Uleu. little is known as to tlujctoai cause ot influeuza. Origin of Disease Doubtful. (•Bill IPIS it was generally accepted -H ir vsa» caused by a well-known fZrat of bacillus, but later researches. tirtieu&rlv at the Rockefeller lust .- ine a*'d ' n London, have thrown a c9Bd deal 0l doubt on tin* theor;,. B'ltil* it 'S admitted that the influenza yaaHus is present in almost ail cases tt the illriCiJ. recent discoveries have 4 usc-d doi'ht whether it, and not som<ism of ultra-microscopic and filter- j MSStJig rims not yet isolated, is the | atrirs cau-e. ifoytrer- since 191b. thanks to tht> rateable experience gained during thai mi later and smaller epidemics, great sinaass have been made in methods oi Setting the disease on the side of fieldwrfkt quarantine regulations, and the itk»..U w confidently believed hv faeajia authorities the world over that mother outbreak of influenza would stw far less chance of reaching the pjtMortwns of. say, the 1918 outbreak. if the improved methods of conEn! that would be brought into force v» 4gbt it. War Conditions Aided Spread. Before 191*5 there had been almost m fCriti'i* epidemic of influenza in f>gtimd since 1890, and the authorities •era caught iumwares amidst the char* of «r renditions. Tlic disease spread trt& extraordinary rapidity through !■* itrg-J bodies of men grouped aero—fegrqs* snd through the civilian popuiiOsas butb in England and on the Cfttunent. tl» existence ot war conditions ai ;S#U«iaflf the outbreak, and the con,9|Bßrt diflicutty of isolating infected cuw *sd infected areas, is generally asudered to nave been one of the meeipal factors contributing to its exis*t» seriousness. Under peaee-thne :smiitiaHS .Mich as exist at present nfflHk *ah';riiic* are in a position to at*fe?ai>T outbreak with greater *4tif«p««d to devote all the resource* i«t*WUßtrv to stamping it out. Htt for Fighting Epidemic. Vittn interviewed yesterday. Dr. Tefefd iljoaed tlie reporter a detailed ft?«3BBH» prepared in conjuuetion *i« iifce Pnblie Utilities Conmiittee in describing the steps to be ciiftifin t3ie occurrence «>f any major {aiiMrjji the City, such as tire, flood. wnqustke. or serious epidemic. Ll>emxtk® dOTOie<l to the plan ol batchkrikziia£ with an epidemic had been jMMT«d with the aid of lending *r,iea*4Sa ttubiic health throughout the icaMLasd contained the fullc*t intszmi&B for the guidance of whoever ejjjfrt be iB charge when such au enier|»aey tame into being. l3stß» for isolation of cases, for nurs itg,t&t f<»d and milk supply, proposals fer dealing with the uninfected part «f ffce population, the maintenance of etKSlicl wrvice*, the prevention paSik gatherings at which infection weald be lik'v to spread, and details «f Htktt ateps to be taken to prevent '**9« ad of infection are set out in tun xapiasKe, which can be brought into spenttios at a moment's notice in the ll *at ftf as epidemic breaking out i" Ossterborr. Iftuikely to Beach New Zealand. J* Tulford, however, was hopeful Stoit tie epidemic in England would not "»4 Sew Iceland. There were, o? **wte r ie said, problems connected with *? apxead of influenza that did not f«»t «Hli other infectious diseases, or • tfa« a o t as marfced. For example, fWB wio bad suffered from tho **•«■» eould. though they had appar**S/eampletely recovered from it, act W w «aarjers." and this fact could only w&corered by a bacteriological test. *«*» plaiuly impossible to prevent *» eatering the country, Dr. Telford : * , Stdffid, though every precaution b* saken at ports and in couwith the Health Section of tho T*S** of Nations, to prevent,the carinfection. ■i«*®^* r ' B^oi " ia f ion ' R received by ; *9 Health Depßrtment in Wellington, *wa ?seent mild outbreak of smallpox ,*" CaJwnbo showed, of all epi- , -»Pfei abroad, and ' precautionary ?** HB *» affecting shipping are taken with these reports. No jTr** *f tie epidemic in England con,:r*** w increases, steps will be taken ■' mi t in New Zealand to tkere is an even more thorough ~j * ™'**atM>a of overseas vessels than is ;'i*W)*joUtat]jr: -nt. That a good deal ",'j?* *• done by this means to check -f£i»k of infection was shown even " v "ner a of strict quarantine = a part of the outbreak. ; V Isolated by Sea. ; Jty?**?* a P af t from the risk of the ;;| Eg* °f iofeetion by "carriers," New •'ri'3*" I **.** in a fortuji-*e position, since wolated by at least three days '&«,«** ? * Ma « e f *r<"n all other greal ">f Population. As the Dominion '^SSL*** otiier parts ot tlie Britisi ' 1 WeJII as witll tljp United 'H'sis&-!f * fl m atters affecting health, '"-4-lS i?' aay of an y i« feete d passen- :!■ pern-ii ted to sail for New _'!? j2JJ* » wall. On the other hand I" t w2"J 'a'ected hot not yet show-t'^-W^L 9 ** 9 at the time of sa i ,sn « US*" it clearly by the time they IrLSa?* Xew Zealand* port and could rfT2?J»*iitined. pf 4jJ^ e *"f ea J»ay rest assured, first, fef *a- Jff.*P'demic of the magnitude of '"* J <mtt,rekk is unlikelv to oceui IS I** 1 ** w»dcni venditions; second, jff **•* ac epidemic did break out P*f th« great centres of populaSr* r * ** a Teasonable expectation never reach New Zealand; gw», Hiat if it did spread to the. !■?■» adequate preparations have P?* ,w *ghtJ-j it.