( 9 )
taken before the Magistrate, out of whom only 14 were discharged, the rest receiving various
punishments according to statement given below :—
MONTHS.
N u m b e r .
S e n t t o j a i l .
FINED
W a r n e d a n d d i s c h a r g e d .
REMAKS.
Sums varying from, inclusive—
Rs.
20 to 50
Rs.
10 to 20
Rs.
5 to 10
Rs.
2 to 5
As. 8
to Rs. 2
January
..
. .
6
2
. .
..
1
3
..
..
February ..
. .
11
10
. .
. .
. .
1
. .
. .
March
..
. .
5
2
. .
. .
. .
3
. .
. .
April
..
. .
13
2
. .
. .
. .
..
9
2
May. .
. .
5
. .
. .
.
..
2
2
1
June
..
. .
19
2
1
2
4
5
1
4
July
..
10
. .
1
. .
6
2
1
..
August..
..
6
. .
1
1
1
. .
. .
3
September ..
. .
11
. .
2
3
. .
3
..
3
October
..
. .
2
. .
. .
2
. .
. .
. .
..
November ..
..
12
3
1
3
3
1
..
1
December ..
. .
3
. .
2
. .
. .
1
. .
..
Total ..
103
21
8
11
15
21
13
14
Many women who are absent from the examinations plead the excuse of sickness : this
should only be accepted on rare occasions, unless accompanied by a medical certificate,
which might be obtained from any Hospital Assistant or from the hospital. I am sure
that women frequently stay away from examinations and make this excuse to avoid being
admitted. Leave should also only be given to prostitutes after medical examination.
IX.—What are the arrangements for examining and treating the women of the town and cantonment.
The women are examined personally by the Medical Officer, and, when afflicted with
venereal, are admitted to hospital. During the early part of the year it was found that
prostitutes frequently excused themselves from being examined on the score of being
unfit owing to menstruation. This practice was put a stop to by detaining in hospital women
till they were fit to be examined. When the number of in-patients increased so largely, it
had to be stopped, after which any women who pleaded the excuse of unfitness, and were
subsequently discovered to be ill, were punished, at the discretion of the Medical Officer.
There were 756 women found diseased at the periodical examinations, and admitted to
hospital.
There have been 941 admissions during the year, which, with 69 remaining from 1877,
gives a total of 1,010 patients treated in hospital,—the daily average number of sick (112.45)
being somewhat more than last year. I may here observe that these 941 admissions include,
not only those admitted at the periodical examinations, 756 in number, but also 205 admitted
at other periods. The Deputy Surgeon-General, in his remarks on last year's report,
commented on the numbers admitted at the periodical examinations not coinciding with
the total number of admissions in a large hospital like the Rangoon Lock-hospital. Such
is not the case, as many women are admitted at other times. From the following table it
will be seen that primary syphilis has undergone a slight decrease, while secondary syphilis
has largely increased at the expense of gonorrhœa. This is due to the fact that latterly
I have been in the habit of admitting, under the head of "secondary syphilis," all those who
exhibit old symptoms of constitutional disease, such as eruptions combined with scars of
chancers whenever they have been affected with a discharge of any kind, gonorrhœal or
not. These cases were formerly admitted for gonorrhœa. My reasons for adopting this
course are that I believe that every discharge or abrasion in a woman who has been
seriously affected with constitutional disease is liable to reproduce syphilis, and therefore
I think that attention should be more directed to the serious constitutional disease than to
the less important local one :—
Diseases.
Years.
1874.
1875.
1876.
1877.
1878.
Primary syphilis
..
. .
. .
. .
. .
249
317
287
600
562
Secondary syphilis
..
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
3
18
33
175
Gonorrhœa .. ..
. .
. .
. .
. .
100
149
203
310
200
Other syphilitic affections
. .
. .
. .
. .
3
8
10
7
4
Total
..
352
477
518
950
941