NOTES AND STATISTICS ON VACCINATION IN BURMA FOR THE YEAR 1921-22.
3
Tharrawaddy districts, which returned 99.87, 99.85, and 99.83 per cent. respectively.
Pegu Division as a whole with a ratio of 99.30, gave the highest percentage of
successful primary cases, and the Shan States the lowest with 96.36 per cent.
Mergui, as in last year, returned a low primary success ratio of 83.44 per cent.
The Civil Surgeon states that owing to the difficulty of communications it has
been impossible on many occasions to use the lymph within the prescribed period.
The highest percentage of successful re-vaccinations was returned by
Kyauksè with 90.35 per cent. Upper and Lower Chindwin gave returns of 84.62
and 83.51 respectively.
6. Vaccination in Towns .—In 60 towns in which vaccination has been made
compulsory 41,110 primary and 46,208 re-vaccinations were performed during the
year, an increase over last year's figures of 5,158 in the case of the former opera-
tion and 9,992 in the case of the latter. The percentages of successful primary
operations and re-vaccinations were respectively 98.64 and 59.46 as against 98.42
and 54.24 respectively in 1920-21. Twenty towns show a decrease in primary
work, the most conspicuous being Myaungmya with 191 against 683, Kawkareik
with 188 against 767, Kyaikto with 86 against 299 and Bassein with 1,122
against 1,765.
7. Infant Vaccination in Towns.—Among towns in which a large number
of infants remained unprotected at the end of the year were Kyaikto with 56.6
per cent., Kyaukpyu with 60.3 per cent., Sandoway with 61.1 per cent., Wakèma
with 70.4 per cent., Kawkareik with 50.4 per cent. There is evidence in the recent
census returns that in many towns only about half of the children born are regis-
tered, the intercensal increase corresponding to a birth-rate averaging about 50.00
per mille, while the registered birth-rate averages 25.00, and it must therefore be
assumed that the actual state of infant vaccination in some of these towns is
even worse than the above figures indicate.
8. Dispensary Vaccination.—The total number vaccinated in dispensaries
amounted to 5,810, representing an increase of 1,585 in primary operations and a
decrease of 18 in re-vaccinations. No dispensary vaccination was performed in
the following districts : Akyab, Sandoway, Pegu, Pyapôn, Toungoo, Thatôn, Tavoy,
Mergui, Bhamo, Putao, Yamèthin, Kyauksè Myingyan, Lower Chindwin and
Thayetmyo. Kyaukpyu district shows an increase of 290 dispensary operations;
Tharrawaddy district of 815 primary and 989 re-vaccinations ; and in Myitkyina
district the increase was 677 total operations. All districts in Magwe Division
and all except Shwebo in Sagaing Division show a falling off in dispensary
vaccination.
9. Vaccination in Fails.—In Jails and Jail Hospitals 7,000 primary opera-
tions and 25,652 re-vaccinations were performed in an average population of
17,194. The percentage of successes in the case of primary operations was 53.59
and of re-vaccinations 55.24 per cent. It is probable that nearly all so-called
primary operations were performed on previously protected persons.
10. Vaccination by Private Practitioners.—Private practitioners performed
7,294 operations, of which 3,589 were primary cases with 91.53 per cent. of
successes. The results of 227 primary operations and 2,549 re-vaccinations were
unknown.
11. Steamer Vaccination.— In the port of Rangoon 18,366 passengers on
arrival by steamer from the various Indian ports were vaccinated, but, with the
exception of two, the results of none of these cases could be verified. The Civil
Surgeon, Akyab, states that immigrants and crews who arrived at the port by
three ships with cases of small-pox on board were vaccinated.
12. Verification of results.—Of a total of 655,829 persons vaccinated during
the year, the Civil Surgeons and Health Officers claim to have inspected the
results of 54,162 or 10.94 per cent. primary cases, and 19,411 or 12.06 per cent.
re-vaccination cases ; while the Supervisors of Vaccination verified 276,121 or
55.80 per cent. primary, and 71,603 or 44.48 per cent. re-vaccinations. The amount
of verification work performed by the former class of officers was almost the same
as in the previous year ; the Civil Surgeon, Lower Chindwin district, heads the list
with 59.49 per cent. verified primary and 42.88 per cent. verified re-vaccination
cases to his credit. Other Civil Surgeons who have done a creditable amount of
inspection work were those of Meiktila (46.75 per cent.), Kyauksè (38.41 per cent.),
Tavoy (37.28 per cent), and Yamèthin (30.86 per cent.), all primary cases. The
Civil Surgeon, Thayetmyo, did not inspect a single case of vaccination during the
year. Supervisors of Vaccination who report having done the highest amount of
verification work are those of the Southern Shan States (91.41), Tavoy (85.09),
Insein (83.81), Meiktila (83.60), Rangoon (81.98), and Pyapôn (81.38).