4
13. Sickness.—The health of the inmates of Lunatic Asylums was not
satisfactory during the triennium, the daily average number of. sick having
been 94.30, 107.78 and 116.29 in 1918, 1919 and 1920, respectively.
In
1918 Chicken-pox broke out in the Berhampore Lunatic Asylum and an
epidemic of Influenza visited both this and the Dacca Lunatic Asylum. The
admissions into hospital rose in that year to 511 from 397 in 1917. In the
following year they were equally high, viz., 501, owing to the re-appearance
of Influenza in a severe form and an outbreak of Dysentery in both these
asylums. Last year there was a greater prevalence of Dysentery in the
Berhampore Lunatic Asylum and of Influenza at Dacca and also a large
increase in the number of Malaria cases at the former institution. The
admission into hospital consequently rose to 612.
The health of the lunatics at the time of admission was generally very
poor in all the three years. There were 29 deaths among the admissions
of 1918, 21 in 1919 and 24 last year.
Small-pox and Cholera.—Small-pox and Cholera were conspicuous by
their absence, except for a solitary case of the former at the Berhampore
Lunatic Asylum in 1919, which was cured.
Fever.—In spite of the regular administration of quinine as a prophy-
lactic, there were 50 cases of fever in the Berhampore Lunatic Asylum in
1918, and 2 deaths, 61 in 1919 with 3 deaths, and 158 in 1920 with 7 deaths.
Dacca Asylum was almost free from fever, there having been only
5 admissions for that disease in 1918, 1 in 1919 and none last year, with no
deaths. No prophylactics were issued here.
Influenza.—The Berhampore Lunatic Asylum had 45 cases in 1918 with
2 deaths, 105 in 1919 with 16 deaths, and 1 in 1920 with 2 deaths, and
Dacca 46, 45 and 68 cases, respectively, in the 3 years with only 1 death in
1920.
Dysentery.—This disease was endemic in both the Asylums throughout
the triennium, there having been 14, 22 and 38 cases in the Berhampore
Lunatic Asylum in 1918, 1919 and 1920 with 3, 7 and 8 deaths, and 18, 22 and
12 cases at Dacca with 2 deaths, 1 each in 1919 and 1920. Dysentery cases
were as usual treated with Emetine or Salines according to their nature. At
Berhampore the excreta of Dysentery patients are burnt in an incinerator.
Tuberculosis.—Although the number of cases of Tubercle of Lungs in the
Berhampore Lunatic Asylum showed an increase of 6 in 1920, the actual
admissions and deaths, including general Tuberculosis, showed a tendency
towards gradual decrease, there having been 36, 21 and 16 admissions in
1918, 1919 and 1920 and 29, 24 and 16 deaths. The Dacca Lunatic Asylum
was better off with 8 and 2 admissions in 1918 and 1919 and none in 1920
and only 6, 3 and 1 deaths in the 3 years. At Berhampore some cases were
diagnosed by Von Pirquet's Tuberculin test and treated with Sodium
Morhuate.
14. Accidents and injuries.—There was only one case of simple
fracture of the thigh in the Dacca Lunatic Asylum last year, caused by an
accidental fall. At Berhampore a case of accidental injury occurred last
year, viz., that of simple fracture of the clavicle, caused by a fall in a drain.
Two cases of serious injury also took place there, in one of which a male
patient put himself in an oven after smearing his body with ghee and got
severely burnt and in another a patient hanged himself to death on a bar of
his cell with a rope made out of his janghia.
15. Deaths.—The number of deaths among the lunatics was almost the
same in the past 3 years, having been 104 in 1918, 100 in 1919 and 102 in
1920, which is 9.63, 10.03 and 10.55 per cent. to daily average strength of
the respective years. The mean death-rate for the triennium was 10.07 as
compared with 8.95 of the preceding 3 years.
Of the deaths in 1920, twelve were from Phthisis, 11 of them taking
place at the Berhampore Lunatic Asylum, 12 from Anæmia (10 at Berhampore
and 2 at Dacca), 9 from Dysentery (viz., 8 at Berhampore and 1 at Dacca),
an equal number from Pneumonia (7 at Dacca and 2 at Berhampore) and
7 from Fever (all at Berhampore). As stated above, a case of suicide by
hanging occurred last year at Berhampore.