MEDICAL AND SANITARY REPORT OF THE NATIVE ARMY OF BENGAL.
Sickness,
mortality and
Invaliding.
XV. Sickness. mortality and invaliding— Strength of the regiment :—
Present . . .
654.90
Absent . . .
54.09
Total . . .
708.99
STATION.
P E R I O D S .
Strength.
TOTAL NUMBER
OF
Daily aver-
age num-
ber of sick.
PER CENT. OF STRENGTH
PER ANNUM.
From
T O
Admis-
sions. Deaths.
Admis-
s i o n s . Deaths.
Daily
average sick.
Head-Quarters at Bakloh
and Camp of Exercise 1st Jan., 1875 31st Dec., 1875 514.16 598
7 22.19 116.2 1.36 4.31
Simla Detachment . . .
5th Mar., 1875 15th Nov., 1875 172.33 147
2
3.24 122.8 1.66 1.89
Bakloh Depôt . . .
20th Oct., 1875 31st Dec., 1875 102.73
37
1
1.47 182.5 4.94 1.43
TOTAL . . .
. . .
. . .
654.90 782
10 26.90 119.50 1.52 4.10
Number of deaths in hospital 10; out of hospital 2; total 12; per cent. of total strength . . .
1.69
„" invalided . . .46; " " . . .
6.48
" sent on sick leave . . . 1; " " . . .
.14
" of days spent in hospital 9,820; per admission 12.55; per man of total strength . . . 13.85
" " on sick leave . . . 92; per man . . . 92; " " . . .
. 1 2
Total temporary loss of service per man of total strength . . . 13.97
Principal
causes of
ck ness.
Principal
causes of
mortality
XVI. Principal causes of sickness.— The amount of sickness under treatment during
1875 has been greater than in any year since 1872 (the year that the regiment; returned
from the Lushai Expedition, in which year 1,034 men were admitted to hospital), the admissions
having been 584 in 1873, 587 in 1874, and 782 in 1875. The year was, as far as I know, an
unusually sickly one throughout the Punjab, and although there was more than usual sickness
in the regiment, as compared with the last two years, the men suffered very much less than
the surrounding population, and even the Simla Detachment, for a considerable period exposed
to a severe epidemic of cholera, did not suffer as much from this cause as the other popula-
tion of Simla
.
As usual, a large proportion of admissions for paroxysmal fevers occurred; 270 men were
admitted for this group of diseases, 252 being cases of quotidian, 8 of tertian, and 10 of
quartan ague, the admissions in 1873 and 1874 having been 210 and 154. The state of
country through which the regiment marched in October and November, as described in para-
graph XIII, will, however, I think, fully account for this increase, which I do not think has
anything to do with the climate of Bakloh, or the sanitary condition of the barracks or lines
of the regiment. Next in order of numbers admitted comes the category of injuries, amount-
ing altogether to 190, including one case of gun-shot wound accidentally self-inflicted, neces
-
sitating amputation through the forearm, and a case of lightning strike, which occurred a
few days before the regiment marched for Delhi. With exception of these two cases already
detailed in weekly returns, there is nothing of interest to remark about the class, which
included almost every possible description of trivial injury. The foregoing accounts for nearly
60 per cent. of the admissions of the year. Sixty-three cases of rheumatism, which, however,
have very seriously increased the daily average number of sick in proportion, have been treated;
these mostly in men who have lately completed the term of service qualifying for pension. I
find that from the 1st January to the date on which the detail of men to appear before the
Annual Invaliding Committee left Bakloh, about 18th March, over 50 per cent. of the total
sick are shown under this head; that no possible treatment improves their condition, which,
however, sensibly improves from the day they pass the board.
Venereal diseases have never been, at least in their primary stages, rife in this regiment.
They occur, as might be expected, most frequently in the Simla Detachment. The total number
treated has been 30, viz., syphilis 16 and gonorrhœa and sequelæ 14. Ophthalmia occurs every
year at Bakloh, first from glare in the hot weather, this turning to catarrhal ophthalmia in
the rains. Twenty-four cases were admitted. This is rather under the average, and none of
them were severe.
Diseases of the respiratory system, some of a very severe type, were present to an un
-
usual extent during the spring months. Forty-two cases were admitted, including 3 of acute
bronchitis, 5 of severe pneumonia, and 9 of acute pleurisy.
Diseases of the digestive system gave in all 91 admissions. The only diseases deserving
attention were dysentery and diarrhœa. Of the former no severe cases were under observation,
and all the cases of diarrhœa occurred either at Simla during the cholera epidemic there, or
else just after arrival of the regiment at Delhi, from excess of diet or drinking brackish water;
none of the latter lasted much over a day.
XVII. Principal causes of mortality.— Twelve cases proved fatal during the year, 10
d y i n g i n h o s p i t a l a n d 2 a t t h e i r h o m e s o n f u r l o u g h . O f t h e f o r m e r , 6 d i e d i n h e a d - q u a r t e r s
r e g i m e n t a l h o s p i t a l ; 2 a t d e t a c h m e n t h o s p i t a l , a t S i m l a , o f c h o l e r a d u r i n g t h e e p i d e m i c ; 1 i n
the Bakloh depôt hospital, subsequent to the regiment's march to Delhi, and one in the
General Hospital, Native Troops, at Hindoo Rao's house. Of the 6 casualties in regimental.
head-quarters' hospital, the first was a naik, who had been sent before the Annual Invaliding
Committee of 1874 for discharge on account of chronic pleurisy, and was rejected as fit for
service. He-returned to the regiment, remained nearly a year, constantly in hospital, and died