52
MEDICAL AND SANITARY REPORT OF THE NATIVE ARMY OF BENGAL,
Principal
causes of
mortality.
Epidemics.
Vaccination.
Special
observations
and remarks.
Weight of
men, &c.
They were all accidental, and with one or two exceptions were more or less connected with the
duties of the men, resulting from falls or kicks or bites from horses
In the " Lines sick " list, from January 1st to 12th September, there was a total number
of admissions of 380, representing 2,067 days spent " Line sick." Thus there was a total
number treated at head-quarters of 750, representing 6,006 days spent sick.
XVII. Principal causes of mortality. —Four cases died in hospital : one from (528, 2 a.)
chronic Bright's disease in a resaldar, who for some years had suffered from the gouty diathesis
and from renal concretions. He had been under treatment from calculus in the urethra and
was re-admitted under chronic albumenuria. Death arose from the combined effects of exhaus-
tion and anæmia. A second was the result of disease of the internal ear (200), leading to cerebral
symptoms, from which the man died. No post-mortem was allowed. The third occurred in a
patient who had suffered from dysentery on several occasions. For this disease he was under
treatment. While at stool during the night, perforation of the large intestine took place,
and he died from peritonitis (531) at 5-30 A.M. the next morning. In the fourth case the sowar
was out in a most malarious part of the district on grass duty, where, strange to say, he was
seized with cholera last year. On the 13th September he was seized with ague of fresh
quotidian type, which continued to increase in severity until the 16th, when hæmorrhage from
the bowels came on. He was admitted on the 19th in a semi-moribund condition, with a
weak but regular pulse, and a most marked animal semi-putrescent odour of the body and
of the excretions. There was no abdominal pain or tenderness, nor any enlargement of the
viscera. Nor were there scorbutic patches or purpuric spots on the body. The bowels were
frequently moved. The stools consisting at times of a fluid closely resembling liquor
sanguinis, and at others of a dark tawny substance with a most gangrenous odour. Treatment
appeared to be of no avail ; the malaria continued, the insensibility gradually became more
complete, and the man died early on the morning of the 21st. A post-mortem was not permitted.
Of the deaths out of hospital, one resulted from chronic Bright's disease (53 a, 2a ) in a sowar,
who had been sent on sick leave ; it took place at Mainpuri. Another from ( 16 ) remittent
fever, while the man was on furlough, took place in the regimental hospital of the 26th Punjab
Native Infantry at Umritsur. A third occurred while the sowar was on escort duty with the
Political Assistant in Bundelcund, between Bhopal arid Hoshungabad, and was caused by (466)
dysentery. While the fourth took place at Udankeri (said to have been from ague a. ) when
the man was on command.
Epidemics.—There have been none.
XIX. Vaccination.— Four recruits and 47 children of the " lines " were vaccinated suc-
cessfully during the year. The regiment is considered well protected, most of the men having
either had small-pox, or been successfully vaccinated.
XXI. Special observations and remarks.— The intermittent fever, which, as already stated,
was prevalent during the latter part of the year, began soon after the cessation of the " rains "
in September, reached its maximum in the third week of October, from which time it
gradually abated. It was mainly of a quotidian type. Few of the men of the regiment
escaped, many were attacked twice, while some represent three or four admissions from this
cause. The disease was also very common among the people of the surrounding districts,
and appeared to affect them much more severely than it did the men of the regiment.
This was no doubt greatly the result of inattention to treatment at the onset, and this is also
borne out by the fact that the most persistent cases, which came under observation at the
regimental hospital, occurred in men who had just returned from command and away from
all medical supervision. The cause of the disease must, 1 think, be looked for in the previous
year being one of comparative drought. Ample opportunities were given for a fair trial of
the cinchona febrifuge, which given in five or ten grain doses with citric acid, in the majority
of instances, sufficed to cure. Quinine was also used hypodermically with marked benefit and
at a lessened expenditure of the drug. Only in two cases did small abscesses result from its
injection. Five men who had been rendered very anæmie and weak by the fever it was
found necessary to send on medical certificate.
Sickness in relation to race. —With regard to sickness in its relations to race. Of the 375
admissions. into hospitals, 118 were Mahomedans, or 37. per cent. of their number ; while 252
were Hindoos, or 79. per cent. of their number. The latter, therefore, suffered rather than the
former. The remaining five were Christians:
Camp-followers.— The health of the camp-followers, except during the prevalence of the
intermittent fever, has been good.
Weight of men and accoutrements. —The following data of the weights, &c., of different
troops, for which I am indebted to the Adjutant, may be of some interest in comparison with
British Cavalry and that of other countries:—
1st Troop, average weight of 74 sowars stripped of arms and accoutrements
.
.
lbs.
135.66
2nd
„
, ,
73
,,
, ,
.
.
.
137.
3rd
„
, ,
8 0
, ,
, ,
.
.
.
141.5
4th
„
„
64
„
, ,
.
.
.
133.25
5th
„
, ,
75
, ,
, ,
.
.
.
131.66
6th
„
, ,
71
, ,
, ,
.
.
.
139.71
Regimental average weight of 437
,,
, ,
.
.
. 136.58