Dr. S.W. Wheaton's report to the Local Government Board on enteric fever among hop pickers in Staffordshire and Worcestershire in 1909.

  • Wheaton, S.W. (Samuel Walton)
Date:
1910
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: Dr. S.W. Wheaton's report to the Local Government Board on enteric fever among hop pickers in Staffordshire and Worcestershire in 1909. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine Library & Archives Service. The original may be consulted at London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine Library & Archives Service.

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    id satisfactory surroundings of these wells it is possible that the fever may have been due to a temporary pollution of the water by the discharges of some specifically infected person. If this occurred it must have been towards the end of September, in order to explain the date of onset of illness of the affected persons, and, as has been suggested in the case of the Moor Farm, it would probably be brought about by the heavy rainfall which occurred at this time. In the case of the well in the cowshed, the water in the trough may have become polluted by persons dipping infected utensils in it, by washing clothes in it, and in many other possible ways. In the case of the farmhouse well at the Pigeon House, which was the most unsatisfactory of the wells, as shown by the results of chemical analysis, it is noteworthy that of the eight people attacked at this farm six came from Dudley Borough and slept in a brick building which was much nearer to the well in ques- tion than to the orchard well. There would appear to have been altogether between 30 and 40 people from Dudley sleeping in this building. The water of this well may have become specifi- cally polluted by the rainfall washing excreta from the surface down the side of the barrel of the pump, or by persons washing infected clothing or utensils under the pump, so that infective matter might pass into the well. At the same time it seemed somewhat unlikely that if the water became polluted by infective material eight persons only, so far as is known, out of 30 or 40 in the nearest building, or a total of about 150 at the farm, should be attacked; but I was informed that the pickers were prohibited, as far as possible, from using the water from this well, so that only a limited number, and those mostly living nearest to it, may have partaken of the water. Inquiry showed that there had been cases of illness among the pickers at this farm, and in particular, that a woman sleeping in the building with the Dudley people was, on September 24th or thereabouts, attacked with illness, the chief symptom of which was diarrhoea. This woman was removed to Martley Workhouse on September 26th and remained there some weeks, but Dr. Dykes, the medical officer to the workhouse, in- formed me that the woman was suffering from inanition and debility from exposure and presented no signs of enteric fever. It is noteworthy that among the six casse in Dudley people was a girl who was notified as suffering from enteric fever at Dudley on February 8th, 1909, was admitted in the fever hospital there, and regarded as an ordinary case of enteric fever. This girl was again notified as suffering from enteric fever on October 24tli, having returned home from the farm on September 7th and being attacked with illness on October 14th. Unfor- tunately no notes or even temperature records were kept at the Dudley Fever Hospital up to the date of my visit, so that I have no definite information as to the clinical features and cause of the illnesses from which this girl suffered. The blood of this girl was examined on December 10th, 1909, by Mr. J. C. G. Ledingliam, of the Lister Institute of Preventive Medicine, and the Widal reaction was obtained. Examination of the fseces and urine failed to show the presence of the typhoid bacillus.