Remittent
Fever.
Diarrhoea.
Dysentery.
Syphilis and
Gonorrhœa.
Itch.
60
MEDICAL AND SANITARY REPORT OF THE NATIVE ARMY OF MADRAS.
Nights in bed
Vaccination.
Nights in bed .—Six.
Vaccination.—All unprotected recruits have been vaccinated, and efforts have been
made to introduce vaccination among the families with some success. Although small-pox
was epidemic in the town for some months, not a single case occurred in the lines.
Vaccinated.
Successful.
Unsuccessful.
Total.
.
Sepoys
30
30
Families
20
129
General Sum.
¬ m a r y — A v e r ¬
age Strength.
General Summary—Average Strength .—The average strength of the regiment during
t he year was 689. 33, 106. 41 i n excess of t he previ ous year. The recrui t i ng part y from
Vellore joined on 15th March 1872 : there were no other detachments.
There were
—
13 Invalids
31 On sick leave.
3 Died.
47 Recruits joined.
Disease and
Mortality.
Intermittent.
Disease and M ortaity.—One-third of the admissions was for ague, but the total, 208, was
29 below the previous year. Dysentery and diarrhœa only furnished 32 admissions,
while 49 were due to diseases of the respiratory system. There were seven cases of disease
of the heart, two of which proved fatal ; there was only one case of primary syphilis and
one of gonorrhœa. There were 13 cases of secondary syphilis, but the disease occurred
in five men only, who were frequently in hospital. The rest of the admissions were due
to abscess, ulcers, wounds, and other causes. The total admitted was 607, of these three
died in the previous year ; with a much lower strength there were 634 admissions and six
deaths.
The causes of mortality were
...
Pericarditis
1
Aneurism of aorta
1
...
Dysentery
1
The total deaths to strength was 4.351 per 1,000. There has been no epidemic among
the troops.
There were no remarkable specialities in the types of disease to be noticed.
Diseases of Zymotic Class .
Intermittent fever, or ague, is the most prevalent disease both among the troops and
in the district. There were 208 admissions for this disease out of a total of 607 treated.
There were no deaths from this cause. The disease is generally of a mild type, very amena-
ble to treatment, though occasionally obstinate cases are met with.
Remittent Fever .— There were only three cases of this disease, the particulars of which
will be given further on.
Diarrhœa.—There were 14 admissions from this disease, all of them mild cases, arising
from errors of diet or exposure to cold, with one exception to be noticed, and readily cured.
Dysentery .—There were 18 cases of dysentery and one death. The disease does not
appear to be so prevalent here as in many stations in the plains, and is readily amenable
to treatment with ipecac and opium. Three cases were treated with calcic quinoviate,
which appears to have some influence in checking the disease. A special. report has
been made upon the effects of this drug, The death was that of an old man who had
been long in hospital during the previous year, and was waiting for his pension.
Syphilis and Gonorrhœa .—There was a total of 15 of the former and one of the latter.
There was only one case of primary syphilis. The cases of secondary syphilis all occurred
in five men, who have been recommended for discharge or pension.
Itch .—There were 63 admissions against 74 in the previous year. As this disease
is generally the result of want of cleanliness, the Officer Commanding has, at my recommen-
dation, ordered extra parades for men admitted with this ailment, which I hope will have
the effect of diminishing the disease and the number of admissions.
Rheumatism.
Rheumatism.—There were 17 cases of rheumatism, all of a mild form,
Foot lame
¬ness.
Foot lameness .—There were 17 cases of blister of feet caused by badly fitting boots
and the want of socks, against 22 in the previous year. Besides this, several cases of
lameness are caused by wounds from thorns, glass, stones, &c., which come under the head
of wounds and abscess.
Cause of dis
¬ease.
Cause of Disease .—The position of file station is well chosen, but the same cannot be
said for the lines, which, being in a valley containing a swamp, are at night frequently
wrapped in chilly mists bearing malarious matter. To this cause is to be attributed the pre-
valence of ague. It must be admitted, however, that the difficulties of finding a suitable
site are, in this country of abrupt hills and deep valleys, very great.