INFANTILE PARALYSIS

Southland Times, Issue 17657, 15 February 1916, Page 6

INFANTILE PARALYSIS

TEX AIORE CASES. (Per United Press Association.) AUCKLAND, February It. , Ten additional cases of infantile paralysis were reported to-day. This makes a total of 160. 171 CASES TO DATE. LATER CASES LESS SERIOUS. AUCKLAND. February 11. Fifteen cases of infantile paralysis \\ ere reported to-day. Five were notitlod from the city and 10 from the country. The total number of cases has now readied 171. The health authorities consider that there are indications that the ■'seriousness of the cases now being reported is decreasing. Only one dealli has occurred among the last 50 cases reported, whereas the death rate among the cases notified in the earlier stages of tile epidemic was considerably heavier. Infantile paralysis, said an officer of the Health Department to a Wellington Post reporter on Saturday, was always associated with hot weather. It affected, mainly, children under ten years of age. Children of from one to three years old were particularly liable to it, and often it attacked the strong and robust little ones. The early symptoms were not particularly characteristic. The child had a temperature, and was generally out of sorts. Sometimes there were no symptoms at all prior to the appearance of the paralysis, which usually affected the legs or arms. -There are certain precautions that parents should take at the present time," said the officer. "The children should be kept in the fresh air as much as possible, and kept away from dust. They should not be taken into places where there is an aggregation of adults. Kissing should be absolutely forbidden. Children should not he exposed to the bites of insects of any character. All domestic animals should be kept away from the children. The adult members of the family should gargle their throats daily with some mild antiseptic fluid, and should use antiseptic tablets from time to time. Eucalyptus can bo inhaled with advantage. All food, and especially milk, should be carefully protected from flics.” "The method of spreading is not definitely known,” said another doctor, "but from experiment it is probable tl’.at healthy adult carriers play an important part in the diffusion of the organism, while domestic animals, biting insects, flies and dust are also under suspicion. A predisposing factor which has come prominently under notice is sudden changes of temperature, causing a chill. The disease affects the central nervous system, causing an acute infiltration of the tissues, with damage or destruction of the motor nerve cells. This leads to paralysis and wasting of the muscles. The early symptoms are not characteristic; usually the child appears out of sorts, restless, refuses food, and is found to have a temperature of 100 to 103. It may vomit and have convulsions. There may be catarrh, headache, and stiffness of the neck. In some cases no early symptoms are observed. Paralysis, usually of the limbs, occasionally of the trunk, occurs within a day or so and the child is unable to move the affected part. There may be some pain and tenderness, when the paralysis supervenes, but this is usually slight, and all constitutional disturbances disappear rapidly. Unless the case takes a serious turn some improvement can be expected in a week or two, but this varies, and in 75 per certt. of cases there is more or less permanent paralysis.” -