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DIVISION OF TUBERCULOSIS The general activities of the Division exercised in previous years have been continued. It is felt that the notification by general practitioners of all forms of the disease has improved, and in particular for the non-pulmonary forms. Planning of hospital and sanatorium accommodation again has occupied much time. Tuberculin testing of presumably healthy groups in industry has been extended in Auckland. The medical staffing position has improved, but there is still an acute shortage of nurses to attend tuberculous patients in sanatoria. In collaboration with the Vital Statistician, additional activities were undertaken by the Division in respect to standardizing general hospital records. The Director visited the United Kingdom and Scandinavia in June to October, and in a special report has advised the Government on the methods of prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and control of tuberculosis used in the various countries visited. Several recommendations submitted in this report are under active consideration. As tuberculosis is a long-term family epidemic and out of its right place under the infectious-disease section of the Health Act, 1920, much time has been spent in submitting proposals for special legislation to control this disease. The returns for the year 1947 as obtained from the notifications from general practitioners, hospital clinics, and the Department's case-finding scheme disclose the known position as at 31st December, 1947, as under : Stated morbidity of tuberculosis, all forms, Maori and European, in New Zealand as at 31st December, 1947, compared with previous years :

The increase in morbidity in both Islands, particularly of the non-pulmonary cases, is due to more accurate notification than to a marked increase in prevalence. New cases (actual or suspected) notified during 1946 numbered : Maori, 481; European, 1,693; total, 2,174. Of this total, pulmonary cases numbered 1,809 (Europeans, 1,397 ; Maoris, 442) and non-pulmonary 365 (Europeans, 296 ; Maoris, 69). The yearly trend suggests that there is a decline in the notification of the pulmonary forms of the disease in both Islands. The known incidence rates for all forms of tuberculosis are : European, 4-36 per 1,000 ; Maoris, 23-31 per 1,000; and combined races, 5-47. Of the 9,821 cases on the register at 31st December, 1947, 3,261 were returned as being in the " active," " infectious," or " potentially infectious " state. This latter figure is a slight reduction on the previous year.

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North Island. South Island. New Zealand Totals. Year. Pulmonary. Non-' pulmonary. Totals. Pulmonary. Nonpulmonary. Totals. 1944 1945 1946 1947 5,038 (5,116 6,356 6,196 507 546 531 673 5,545 6,662 6,887 6,869 1,722 2,055 2,315 2,479 i 259 360 415 473 1,891 2,415 2,730 2,952 7,526 9,077 9,617 9,821* * Maoris included in this total = 2,463.