110
MEDICAL AND SANITARY REPORT OF THE NATIVE ARMY OF BENGAL,
Sickness,
mortality and
invaliding.
XV. Sickness, mortality and invaliding.—Strength of the regiment :—
Present
. .
.
. . . . 409.27
Absent
. .
.
.
.
. .
. .
53.73
Total
463.00
PERIOD.
Strength.
TOTAL NUMBER
OF
Daily
average number of sick.
PER CENT. OF STRENGTH
PER ANNUM.
STATION.
From.
T o .
Admis-
sions. Deaths.
Admis-
sions. Deaths.
Daily
average sick.
Head-quarters atMeenn Meer. 1st Jan. 1878 31st Dec. 1878 383.48 548
9 16.60 142.9 2.34 4 . 3 2
Detachment at Ferozepore.
Ditto. 25th Sep. „
25.
5 ...
.17 27.24 ...
.68
Ditto on escort duty
with Lieutenant-General
D. M. Stewart, C.B.
23rd Nov. „ 31st Dec. ,,
65.33
4
...
1.1 57.25 ... 1.68
TOTAL .
. . .
. . .
409.27 557
9 16.85 136.09 2.10 4.11
Number of deaths in hospital 9; out of hospital 4; total
13; per cent. of total strength . .
2.8
„ invalided.
. . . . . .
7 ; ,, ,,
1.51
,,
Sent on sick leave
. . . . .
2; „
,,
.43
„ of days spent in hospital 6,152; per admission . 11.04; per man of total strength . . 1 3 . 2 8
,, ,,
on sick leave 259; per man
. 129 5; ,,
,,
. .
.56
Total temporary loss of service per man of total strength
. . 13.84
Pincipal
causes of
sickness.
Principal
causes of
mortality.
Vacination.
Special
observations
and remarks
XVI. Principal causes of sickness.—Ague has given rise to nearly half the total number
of admissions. There can be no doubt that the admissions from this disease would have been
much more numerous, but for the fact of the regiment being ordered on service towards the
end of September. The excitement occasioned by the prospect of active service, and the
exertion which the men were of necessity compelled to make, enabled them to shake off the
fever. There was one severe case of diabetes, in the course of which both of the man's eyes
became affected with diabetic cataract so as to render him perfectly blind. Having served too
Short a time to entitle him to any gratuity, he voluntarily took his discharge.
Diseases of the respiratory system.— T h e a d m i s s i o n s i n t h i s c l a s s h a v e b e e n n u m e r o u s , a n d
above the average of other years. Those for pneumonia and pleurisy were the most important.
Diseases of the digestive system. —The cases under this head have also been numerous, of
which dysentery and diarrhœa were the most important.
Cutaneous diseases.—Although not giving rise to admissions into hospital, chapped hands
and feet were a great source of discomfort and annoyance to the men in December. The dry,.
Cold atmosphere first hardened and thickened the skin, which then readily broke and. gave rise
to fissures, particularly at the bends of the joints.
XVII. Principal causes of mortality. —There have been 13 deaths, 9 of which took place
in the regimental hospital and 4 elsewhere. If the man who died whilst on furlough, the
cause of whose death from the description given of his symptoms was probably pneumonia;
be included, then 6 or nearly half of all the deaths were from this disease. Most of the men Who.
died from pneumonia had suffered before from serious disease, either pleurisy, enlarged spleen,
or repeated attacks of fever, and one at least of them was decidedly intemperate, and in addition
to the above diseases had suffered from jaundice. The only other death calling for remark
was one from hydrophobia, which was a most painful one to witness, and as usual in this disease
no remedies were of any avail. This man was bitten by a stray dog on the right wrist on the
evening of 27th February in the regimental lines, but did not then go to hospital or have any
proper treatment of the wound; he was admitted into hospital with decided symptoms of
hydrophobia at 5 P.M. on 5th May, and died in great suffering at 1-30 A.M. on. May 7th. His
case seems to show the necessity of diminishing the number of useless dogs with which so
many cantonments, as well as towns and villages, in India are infested.
XIX. Vaccination.—One recruit found to be unprotected and 41 children living in the
lines were vaccinated at the early part of the year. It is believed that all the men at present
in the regiment are well protected.
XXI. Special observations and remarks.—There was a great deal of pneumonia amongst the.
followers in camp in November and December, and 8 of them died in December,—all from pneu-
monia. Although 4 kahars were supposed to carry a dandy, it was found necessary to put.6
men ou those in which the sick were carried; indeed, on the long marches it would have been
quite impossible for 4 men to have kept up with the regiment. The Punjabee kahars appeared
to be better than those from Oudh ; they are more active and energetic, and stand the cold better.
When going through heavy sand, the kahars were unable to carry the dandies with their native