11.—31
14
Last year particularly the control and treatment of scarlet fever has entailed great cost to the Department, to Hospital Boards, and to parents. The value of notification and the strict isolation of scarlet-fever cases lies in the belief that rapid spread among susceptible individuals exalts the virulence of the disease. In 1903 there were 3,400 notifications received, 131 deaths occurred, and those who remember that epidemic will recollect that many who recovered suffered severely and serious after-effects remained. In 1928 there were 6,127 notifications, 55 deaths occurred, and the serious cases and sequel® were comparatively few in number. Whooping-cough, 26 ; Measles, 12. The year 1928 was a light one for both whooping-cough and measles. Epidemics of these two diseases tend to recur every few years, but the death-rate over the last fifty years has reduced greatly. Typhoid or Enteric Fever, 16. The position as regards this disease for the period 1924-28 is shown in the table below : —
Enteric Fever in New Zealand, 1924-28.
It is also of interest to state that the death-rate from typhoid fever (average) for the last five years was approximately forty times less than a similar average taken fifty years ago. SECTION 3. Infant Mobtality, 984. The infant-mortality rate for 1928 was 36-18 per 1,000 births. This constitutes a low record for New Zealand and also for the world.
Infant Mortality in New Zealand, 1900-28 (per 1,000 Live Births).
. — ■ - * : : ~ « _____ Notifications. Deaths. , [ Rate per 10,000 Kate per 10,000 dumber. of Mean Population. - um r - of Mean Population 1924 .. .. .. 354 2-73 19 0-15 1925 278 2-09 16 0-12 1926 ,. .. .. 302 2-23 19 0-14 1927 .. .. .. 270 1-96 11 0-08 1928 .. .. .. 290 2-09 16 0-12
_ _ — — Under One Month and Total under Under One Month and Totalunder Year. Q ne ; un^ nt J Te Twelve Months. 1 ' One Month. Months Twelve Months. 1900 .. 31-1 44-1 75-2 1915 .. 29-2 20-8 50-0 190] . 29-8 41-6 71-4 1916 .. 27-0 23-7 50-7 1902 .. 32-2 50-7 82-9 1917 .. 27-9 20-3 48-2 1903 . 31-7 49-4 81-1 1918 .. 26-7 21-7 48-4 1904 .. 29-4 41-6 71-0 1919 .. 28-4 16-9 45-3 1905 30-1 37-4 67-5 1920 .. 30-8 19-7 50-5 1906 .. 29-6 32-5 62-1 1921 .. 30-7 17-1 47-8 1907 .. 30-4 58-4 88-8 1922 .. 27-2 14-7 41-9 1908 .. 31-2 36-7 67-9 1923 .. 29-1 14-7 43-8 1909 29-9 31-7 61-6 1924 .. 24-0 16-3 40-3 1910 30-2 37-5 67-7 1925 .. 26-4 13-5 39-9 1911 28-5 27-8 56-3 1926 .. 25-46 14-3 39-76 1912 .. 30-1 21-1 51-2 1927 .. 25-83 12-91 38-74 1913 .. 29-7 29-5 59-2 1928 .. 25-41 10-77 36-18 1914 .. 28-9 _ 28-5 _ 514 ! It will be seen from the above table that the greatest decline in the infant-death rate applies to infants aged one month and over and not to the new-born.