SECOND DEATH AT DUNEDIN

Press, Volume LXXII, Issue 21972, 22 December 1936, Page 12

SECOND DEATH AT DUNEDIN

HOLIDAYS BEING CANCELLED

TREATMENT IN AMERICA

TWO POSITIVE CASES NOTIFIED YESTERDAY SMALLEST NUMBER FOR SOME TIME (press association telegham.) DUNEDIN, December 21. The second death from infantile paralysis occurred this morning. The victim was a 15£ year old boy who had previously been admitted to the Dunedin Hospital suffering from severe respiratory paralysis. The number of cases notified between the hours of 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. to-day was smaller than for some time, only two patients being admitted to hosDital. Both these cases—a boy of four years and a boy of 14—were, however, positive ones, the elder child showing some paralysis and the younger no signs of paralysis at all. The Medical Officer of Health, Dr. T. McKibbin, stated that a girl of four years of age, who had been admitted on December 15 as a positive case was now showing signs of paralysis, but as a rule few positive cases without paralysis developed paralysis later.

SPREAD OF THE EPIDEMIC

A CASE AT TIMARU GIRL ADMITTED TO HOSPITAL The admission of a positive case of infantile paralysis to the Timaru Public Hospital has been reported to the Medical Officer of Health for the Can-terbury-Westland district, Dr. T. Fletcher Telford. The patient, a girl, aged 18 years, was admitted to the hospital at a late hour on Sunday night, and Dr. Telford said yesterday that the case had been diagnosed as being positive. Restrictions on children in the district are being tightened and increased precautions are being observed generally. The Town Clerk, Mr E. A. S. Killick, yesterday notified the managers of picture theatres in Timaru that children under the age of 12 years were not to be admitted to entertainments.

The camps which were to have been held by the South Canterbury Health Camp Committee in Waimate and Timaru soon have been abandoned, but it is possible that camps will be held early in the New Year if the epidemic has subsided by that time. The Timaru branch of the Plunket Society has requested mothers not to take children over the age of 13 months to the Plunket rooms until advised to do so, and in the meantime these children will be visited in their homes.

All the juvenile events usually held on the beach during the Bay Carnival between Christmas and New Year have been cancelled by the Caroline Bay Association.

A WARNING TO PARENTS

USE OF SUGGESTED REMEDIES DOUBT ABOUT EFFICACY OF SERUM (i'KESS ASSOCI.)TIOV TELEGJRAM.) WELLINGTON, December 21. A warning to parents not to use any suggested remedies for infantile paralysis without taking medical advice was issued by Dr. M. H. Watt, Director-General of Health, to-day. He advised parents to isolate themselves as much as possible in their own homes.

It had to be remembered, Dr. Watt said, that adults as well as children could carry and spread the disease. The suggestion that children should be prevented from leaving Dunedin would be ineffective if adults were allowed to travel. Dr. Watt said all the information at the disposal of the department was being incorporated in a bulletin for circulation to doctors. The department had a quantity of convalescent serum available for distribution, but opinion was divided regarding its efficacy. "The Government is acting on medical opinion, and is closely watching the situation," said the Prime Minister (the Rt. Hon. M. J. Savage) to-day. Whatever action was recommended by the medical authorities would be carried out.

A special committee comprising a physician, a pathologist, an orthopaedic surgeon, and the senior resident medical officer, has been set up.

LOSS OF REVENUE ON TRAMS

Because of the' precautions being taken by parents it is estimated that the revenue of the Christchurch tramways has decreased by about £SO a day. This estimate was given to "The Press" last night by the manager, Mr H. E. Jarman, who attributed the decrease not only to the smaller number of children being carried, but also to.the greater precautions being taken by many parents. Many parents, it is thought, are themselves refraining from using the trams, being' afraid of becoming carriers of the virus, and so taking the disease into their own homes.

The special concession introduced on the tramways for the conveyance of children to the beaches was very popular until a few days ago, but since then few parents have allowed their children to go even to the beaches by that means of transport. . It is thought that the present decrease noted in the tramway revenue may become even more pronounced as increasing numbers of parents realise the necessity for all precautions.

ADVICE TO TIMARU COUNCIL

Tennis Championships To Continue EXCLUSION OF CHILDREN FROM GATHERINGS [THE PRESS Special Service.] TIMARU, December 21. The Timaru Borough Council met this evening to consider whether or not open-air gatherings during the Christmas holidays, such as the Bay Carnival and the Caledonian Society's sports, should be abandoned in view of the epidemic of infantile paralysis.

The Medical Officer of Health for Canterbury (Dr. T. Fletcher Telford) had been consulted earlier in the day on the matter and also about what, steps the council's inspector should take about children congregating in buildings, as it was felt that children were better in the open air, provided that they were not gathering in crowds. Dr. Telford telegraphed that if the council could guarantee to exclude children under 16 he would agree to the Bay carnival and all open-air sports meetings being held. He continued: "Please instruct your sanitary inspector that children under 13 years are to be excluded from picture shows, libraries, Woolworths, McKenzie's and other stores, also Father Christmas and Christmas tree gatherings in shops." The council passed the following resolution: "That the instruction contained in the Health Department's telegram be put into effect; that in the absence of further instructions from the Health Department, the Bay carnival sports and tennis championships be allowed to continue for people over 16 years of age; that extra inspectors be appointed to see that the depart ment's instructions are followed; and that the town clerk, with the sanitary inspector, appoint such extra inspectors as may be necessary in the circumstances." It was also resolved that the swimming baths be closed to children under 16 years of age, including the bathing facilities at Caroline Bay.

HOTELS AND BOARDINGHOUSES AFFECTED Many hotel and boarding-house proprietors who were looking forward to a fairly busy Christmas, with many country visitors to the city and seaside resorts, will be disappointed, for many letters cancelling accommodation previously reserved are being received. These are mostly from country residents who had intended to bring their children to the city or the beaches for the Christmas week, but with the outbreak of the epidemic the children are being kept in the country. Hotel proprietors also say that many North Island residents who had intended visiting Christchurch in the next few weeks with children are cancelling their reservations. Cancellations of reservations have also been received by the railway offices, and it is said that many who intend making camping tours are altering their itineraries to keep them well away from the larger towns. Some who had intended going south are mapping new itineraries in the north. I AUCKLAND PRECAUTIONS ' (MESS ASSOCIATION TELEGRAM.) AUCKLAND, December 21. Although no cases of infantile paralysis have been reported in Auckland, the hospital authorities have their organisation complete should any cases occur. A ward isolated from the main building has been appropriated for use if necessary, and a special committee of medical men has been estab-' lished to act in any emergency.

AN EPIDEMIC IN ALABAMA PICRIC ACID SOLUTION USED A successful attack against an epidemic of infantile paralysis in Alabama by the use of a solution of picric acid applied through the nose is described in a recent article in the "Literary Digest." Two doctors, according to the article, discovered the value of picric acid when experimenting on a monkey, "The virus or germ of infantile paralysis enters the human body through the nose, boring into the olfactory- nerve and riding it like a broad highway to the brain," the article states. "There the disease seizes control, inflames the hind brain, attacks the spinal cord and produces paralysis, fever, and sometimes death. Doctors have tried to fight paralysis with serum made from the blood of people who recovered from the disease, they have gone after it with vaccines made from the spinal cords of diseased monkeys. They might as well have used water.-

"A year ago, however, Dr. Armstrong and Dr. W. T. Harrison discovered that a solution of picric acid squirted into a monkey's nose prevented the animal from contracting paralysis. Groping toward other mixtures, they found the best solution to be picric acid and sodium alum dissolved in mild salt water. Any druggist can mix the solution, following these directions:—

"Solution A: Dissolve one gramme of picric acid in 100 cubic centimetres of physiological salt solution (0,85 per cent). Warming facilitates solution of picric acid. Solution B: Dissolve one gramme of sodium-aluminium sulphate (sodium alum) in 100 cubic centimetres of physiological salt solution (0.85 per cent.). Any turbidity in this solution should be removed by filtering one or more times through the same filter paper. Mix solutions A and B in equal amounts. The resulting mixed solution,, which contains 0.5 per cent, picric acid and 0.5 per cent, alum, is sufficiently antiseptic to prevent the growth of organisms, and is ready for use as a spray. Home-made concoction are not favoured.

''An ordinary nasal spray, or even a perfume atomiser, can be used. The spray tip should be pointed upward and backward in each nostril, and the spraying should be thorough enough to reach the pharynx. A bitter taste is the, signal. Public health doctors cannot say how the spray works; possibly it kills the virus as it enters; perhaps it toughens the nasal membrane to put up a stiffer resistance. But the epidemic in Alabama continued to subside."

ALL PKECAUTIONS NECESSARY.

EPIDEMIC MAY LAST MONTHS MEDICAL OFFICER GIVES ADVICE "If this epidemic spreads through the Canterbury-Westland health district it will not be a matter of a week or so; it will take from three to live months to stamp out, and for that reason the people must realise their responsibility in acquainting themselves with the necessary precautions to retard the spread of the disease." This statement was made by the Medical Officer for Health, Dr. T. Fletcher Telford, yesterday, when he gave advice on precautions and symptoms. Parents, he said, would be well advised to save the clipping from the newspaper for reference. Patients and human carriers of the virus were the sources of infection, he said, and the mode of spread was by direct contact with infected persons, including carriers of the virus, or indirectly by contact with articles freshly soiled with nose, throat, or bowel discharges of such persons. The time elapsing between infection and development of the first symptoms was usually from four to 14 days. The usual symrtoms referred to by Dr. Telford were a mild gastro-intes-tinal disturbance, headache, moderate fever, and vomiting, associaled with stiffness of the neck and spine, and a coarse tremor. The throat might be sore and there might be a temporary flushing of the face and abnormal sweating. This stage uually lasted for three or four days, and might be followed by paralysis or muscle weakness. If a child presented any combination of those symptoms a medicdl practitioner should be called -immediately to give .is opinion of the case. The precautions which the public is advised to take are: —

Keep children at home in the open air as much as possible. If a motorcar is available take them occasionally for a run in the country, but do not go to any place where they may come in contact with others. Do not encourage visitors to the house, particularly from the infected areas.

If any one of the children becomes sick, isolate that child immediately and seek medical advice. Disinfect the hand immediately after any act of soiling by the patient. Let each child use a separate towel and handkerchief. MINISTER'S STATEMENT FULL POWERS OF ACT MAY BE ENFORCED GREYMOUTH. December 21. The Hon. P. Fraser, Minister for Health, said to-night that everything possible by the Health Department to limit the scope of the infantile paralysis epidemic had been done. If necessary the full powers of the Health Act would t>e enforced, but there had been a great amount of co-operation by those interested, such as picture theatre proprietors and others, and it had not been necessary to invoke the compulsory clauses. IJ was hoped that the scope of the disease would be confined to the area already affected, but this required the co-operation of all citizens, particularly parents and others entrusted with the care of children. Some slight difference of opinion regarding the closing of schools, the postponing of health camps, and the prevention of children congregating had arisen, but the disease was so disastrous to its victims in its violent form, that no possible means of limiting the epidemic could be Ignored. No case has yet been reported on the West Coast. CRICKET TOUR POSTPONED OTAGO WOMEN'S TEAM The tour of the Otago women's cricket team, which included matches against Canterbury and Wellington, has now been postponed, according to advice received by telegram last evening by Miss E. Harris, chairwoman of the Canterbury Association and honorary secretary of the New Zealand Women's Cricket Council. Miss Harris said that although she had not yet received any definite reason for the postponement of the tour, she presumed it was because of the infantile paralysis epidemic at present in Dunedin. Had the tour not been cancelled, continued Miss Harris, there might have been difficulty in billeting the girls in private homes as has been done in past seasons. The Otago team was to have played Wellington for the Hallyburton-John-son Shield and on its return was to have played the Canterbury team on January 6 and 7 for the Mary Machin Shield.

THE MAYOR'S PRESENTS

The distribution of the Christmas presents given by the Mayor and Mrs J. W. Beanland for the children of parents in poor circumstances was originally to have been made at a children's party in the Choral Hall, Owing to the restrictions on children's gatherings the presents will now be distributed at the City Council Chambers, to those who have tickets, this afternoon.