Dyspepsia.
Chest affec-
tions.
PRESIDENCY DISTRICT.
15
consists of a long room, equal in size to the two ground rooms. The floor is boarded ; at either
end of it is a small room, one for infectious cases, and the other occupied by the hospital
assistants. The ventilation in the wards is regulated by means of large Opposite doors pro-
-vided with glass and venetian shutters, six on either side of the ground floor, and the same
number on the first floor. The ventilation is always abundant, and can be regulated as required.
The fresh river breeze in the hot season blows directly into the hospital. The superficial area
of the large wards is 3,347 square feet, and the cubic space of the same 37,085 cubic feet; or
an average of 247 square feet of superficial area and 2,747 cubic feet of space for each patient
during the year, which is a very abundant allowance. At no time was the hospital over--
crowded. The building is in good repair, and has been recently sand-rubbed and painted. At
night the wards are lighted by two lamps. One of these lights being required frequently in
the latrine, an extra lamp was asked for, but not sanctioned.
XV. Sickness, mortality and invaliding.—Strength of the Wing—
Present
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
. 212.92
Absent .
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
. 104.34
TOTAL
.
317.26
Sickn ess,
mortality
and
invalid-ing.
S T A T I O N .
P E R I O D .
Strength.
TOTAL NUMBER
O F
Daily
average
number
o f sick.
PER CENT OF STRENGTH
P E R A N N U M .
From
To
A d m i s -
sions.
D e a t h s .
'
Admis-
-
sions.
Deaths.
Daily
average
sick.
Left Wing at Dacca .
.
6th Jan. 1876 31st Dec. 1876
212.92
331
10
13.81 105.78 3.19
4.35
Number of deaths in hospital, 10; out of hospital, 22; total
32; per cent. of total strength
.
10.08
„
invalided
.
.
.
. . . . . 7 ;
„
,,,
.
2.20
„
sent on sick leave .
.
.
9 ;
„ „
2.83
„
of days spent in hospital
4,653; per admission . 14.05; per man of total strength
.
14.66
„
,,
on sick leave 1,130 ; per man
. 125.55 ;
„
„
.
3.56
Total temporary loss of service per man of total strength
.
.
.
18.22
XVI. Principal causes of sickness.—When I took over charge of the Wing at Calcutta
in January, the health of the men was in a very shattered condition. Not only was the
number of sick in hospital great, but there was scarcely a man in the ranks that did not
carry with him signs of disease. The chief ailments from which the men suffered were general
debility (from which nearly all suffered), bowel complaints, fever, and scurvy : what the cause
of this sickness was, I am not in a position to say ; but I believe the medical officer,
Dr. Duncan, who was in charge of the regiment at Barrackpore, where the sickness first
appeared, was of opinion that it originated in under-feeding. After arriving at Dacca on 10th
January, the condition of the men began to improve rapidly. An appreciable change for the
better was noticed at every weekly inspection, and improvement continued steadily, till, in the
course of a few months, they had recovered completely. In the same healthy state they
continued till the end. of the year,—a result no doubt to be attributable to the change of air,
the light duty required of the men here, as compared with that at Barrackpore, the dry and
well-ventilated barracks in which they are quartered, and strict attention to the amount and
quality of the food.
1. Ague furnished the greatest number of admissions, viz., ague (a) 96, and ague (b)
13 ; 109 cases in all. It was, generally speaking, of a mild form, and amenable to treatment.
This affection, together with enlargement of the spleen, the men brought with them from
Calcutta. Shortly after coming here, a great reduction took place in the number of admissions
from these affections, and throughout the remainder of the year the disease was never
very
prevale nt.
2. Dysentery furnished seventy-three admissions. Like fever, this disease was most preva-
lent in the early part of the year, at the period when-the general health of the men was so very
weak and bad From February till October there were very few admissions ; but in September
the disease again increased and continued moderately high till the end of the year.
3. Diarrhœa furnished twenty-three admissions. The disease was chiefly of a chronic
kind, and connected with dyspepsia. It was most prevalent in the beginning and end of the
year, its chief cause being, I believe, impure drinking water.
4. Dyspepsia gave twenty-one admissions. There was nothing peculiar about the disease.
One man was discharged from the service while suffering from the complaint ; but his health
was otherwise affected.
5. Chest affections furnished twenty admissions. Ten of these were cases of chronic bron-
chitis, one of which was sent on sick leave. Eight were cases of bronchial catarrh, all of which
speedily recovered. These affections were most prevalent in January ; during the remainder of
the year, there were very few admissions.
6. Blisters of the feet come next in frequency. The total admissions under this head
were nine, and among them was not a single severe case. The men generally seek relief in
hospital early, and consequently a speedy cure is usually effected. There were no heavy
Principal
causes of
sickness.
Ague.
Dysentery.
Diarrhoea.
Blistered. feet.