Causes of
mortality.
Epidemics.
Vaccination,
174
MEDICAL AND SANITARY REPORT OF THE NATIVE ARMY OF BENGAL. .
Sickness, mor
tality and
invaliding.
XV. Sickness, mortality and invaliding.—Strength of the regiment : present 580'3 ;
absent 148 . 44; total 728.7.
STATION.
PERIOD.
.-7-1
1:4
el,
..;_ -. ,
In
TOTAL NUM-
BEE or
, .*
a) R..)
!=' , E 74"
0.,
0
,'
. - 9,
t-, g
';:::: 7-.-'
P '
r, PER CENT. OF STRENGTH
PER ANNUM.
From .
To
.
.
Admis-
sions.
t i/
7-'2
4
Admis-
sions.
,
—
5
4
-
<1.)
:- .-., be
— ,-;. , ..:
e ,
E?' .2
:- .'
Head-quarters
at
Ed-
wardesabad
... 1st January 9th January 661
38
...
87-60 233'19
...
13-25
Head-quarters at Panialah
- marching there
and
back
...
... 10th
„
.
4th February 386'11
32
1
8.2
116'37
3'63
2'12
Head-quarters
at
Ed-
wardesabad
... 5th February 31st Dec. ... 534'78
898
9
33'53 185'73
1 . 86
6'27
Detachment at Edwardes-
abad
...
... 10th Jany.
4th February 275
52
1
69'20 265'32
5'05
25'16
Detachment
at
Jani
Khel
...
... 9th February 2nd March
3
"
. . .
0..
.00
Of .
...
Detachment
at
Jani
Khel
...
... 2nd April ... 3rd May ...
35
2
...
1'73
65.17
...
4'94
Detachment
at
Jani
Khel
...
... 3rd June ... 2nd July ...
35
. . .
...
...
...
...
Detachment
at Sheikh
Boodeen ...
... 20th „
... 12th October
54'68
10
...
1'70
58 . 64
...
.
. .
3'1
Detachment
at
Jani
Kheyl
...
... 2nd August 2nd Sept. ...
35
4
...
'45 130'34
...
.
1'28
Detachment
at
Jani
Khel
...
... 2nd October 4th Nov. ...
35
10
...
1'92 289'91
...
5.4g
Detachment
at
Jani
Khel
...
.., 2nd Dec.
31st Deer—.
35
4
...
-38 139'02
...
1-08
TOTAL
...
580'3
1050
—
1.1
—
39'4
180'04
---
1'89
6.78
Number of deaths in hospital, 11; out of hospital, 0 ; total 11; per cent. of total strength
... 1'50
„
invalided
..
32 ;
...
.-.
11
13
...
4'39
„
sent on sick leave
29 ; ...
...
J1
11
1
...
3'97
„
of days spent in hospital, 14,381; per admission, 13'69 ; per man
...
... 19'73
11
„
„
on sick leave 4,242 ; per man
146-31 ;
„
,
. . .
... 5'82
Total temporary loss of service per man of total strength'
...
... 25-55
Principal
diseases.
Fevers,
Types.
Bowel affec-
tions.
Lung diseases
X VI. Principal causes of sickness.,--Of the diseases which caused the greatest number
of admissions into hospital, 64e2 per cent. are due to fever, 6 . 8 to bowel complaints, 4 . 8 to chest
disorders, 3 . 1 to rheumatic affections, 3 . 5 to contusions, and 2 . 8 to boils. On the subject of
fever, there is little to add to the remarks made in former reports. The disease is endemic in
Bannu, and no race or class seems to be more exempt from it than another ; but the recruits,
whether it be from their being underfed, or not, having undergone a process of acclimatization,
are the greatest sufferers by far. Commencing about the middle of September as a mild
quotidian intermittent, it lasts until the end of December : during the latter month, the remit-
tent type, with pneumonia as a complication, becomes very frequent, and causes the greater
part of the mortality. But although fresh admissions for fever become more rare at the latter
end of December, the hospital remains crowded with patients—men whose constitutions have
become so debilitated with repeated attacks that they are utterly unable to resume their duty,
and remain either in hospital or on the convalescent list until the returning warmth of spring
infuses fresh vigour into their systems. Towards the end of the fever season the tertian and
quartan types become prevalent, and are exceedingly obstinate in yielding to treatment. Neither
quinine nor arsenic seem to be of much good, and change of air is the only efficient remedy ;
most of these cases are the subjects of enlarged spleens. Bowel complaints give the next
highest number of admissions, but, as a rule, are very amenable to treatment. I find few cases
of dysentery in this climate which will not, readily yield to small doses of castor oil, 30 to 60
drops, repeated every second or third hour, and continued until the motions are entirely
free from blood and mucus and voided without pain. This treatment has the advantage over
that by ipecacuanha of not being attended by nausea, but whether it would be equally efficaci-
ous in the severer forms of the disease which prevail in the southern parts of India I have
not the experience to tell. As might be surmised from the nature of the Bunnu climate,
diseases of the lungs are frequent : :30 men were admitted for bronchitis and 20 for pneumonia.
This latter disease seems to be in some way connected with intermittent fever ; for three cases,
two of which proved fatal, occurred in men who had been in hospital under treatment for
quotidian fever for several days previous to being‘ attacked by pneumonia.
X[11-. Causes of wirtality.—Eleven deaths have occurred in hospital; of these 2 are
due to remittent fever, 5 to pneumonia, 1 to bronchitis, 1 to erysipelas of the head and face,
1 to encenhaloid cancer of the frenum, and 1 to cirrhosis of the liver.
X VIII. Epidemics.—None.
XIX. Vaccination.—None. Nearly every man has had the small-pox, either naturally or
artificially, by inoculation ; only one man has had small-pox in the regiment during the last
nine years, and he bore the marks of a previous attack.