61
CENTRAL INDIA.
XV.—Sickness, mortality and invaliding .—Strengt of the regiment—present 25.106 ;
absent 240.71; total 491.77.
Sickness,
mortality and
invaliding.
PERIOD.
Strength.
TOTAL NUM-
BER OF
D a i l y a v e r a g e n u m b e r o f s i c k .
PER CENT. OF
STRENGTH PER AN-
NUM.
From
To
Admis-
sions.
D e a t h s .
Admis-
sions.
D e a t h s .
Da i l y a v e r a g e s i c k .
Head-quarters at Augur . . . 1st January
31st Dec.
224.11
116
. . .
5.85
51.76
. . .
2.61
Detachment at Indore . . . 1st January
31st Dec.
23.58
3 2 . . .
.85
135.7
. . . 3.56
Detachment with camp of
Agent, Governor General,
Central India . . . 1st January 23rd January
29.2
. . .
. . .
. . .
. . .
. . .
. . .
Ditto . . . 28th Nov.
11th Dec.
40.5
. . .
. . .
. . .
. . .
. . .
. . .
Total . . .
. . .
. . .
251.06
148
. . .
6.7
58.95
. . . 2.66
Number of deaths in hospital, none ; out of hospital, 2; total 2 per cent. of total strength
.40
"
invalided,
36 ; " " " . . .
7.3
" sent on sick leave, 2; " " " . . .
.40
"
of days spent in hospital, 2,577; per admission, 17.41 ; per man of " " . . .
5.24
"
"
"
ons i c k
l e a v e , 3 9 0 ; p e rm
a n , 1 9 5 ; p e r m a n o f " " . . .
.79
Total temporary loss of service per man of t o t a l s t r e n g t h . . .
6.03
XVI.—Principal causes of sickness .—The total number of admissions into hospital during
the year at head-quarters and amongst the detachment stationed at Indore amounted to
148. Ague caused 61 admissions, dysentery 9, catarrhal ophthalmia 10, conjunctivitis 7,
contusions 7, and syphilis and gonorrhœa combined, 7. One case of small-pox was admitted
into hospital during the year. Thirty-two out of a total of one hundred and forty-eight
admissions took place among the detachment stationed at Indore. Catarrhal ophthalmia and
conjunctivitis, as is usually the case, occurred most frequently during the rainy season.
XVII.—Principal causes of ,mortality .—No deaths occurred during the year either at
head-quarters or in the Indore detachment. Two men died during the year whilst on fur
- l o u g h . I n o n e c a s e t h e c a u s e o f d e a t h w a s r e p o r t e d a s p a r a p l e g i a , i n t h e o t h e r r e m i t t e n t
fever was assigned as the cause.
Prevalent
diseases.
Deaths.
XVIII.—Epidemics .—In the annual report for 1873, I noticed the occurrence of an
epidemic of small-pox among the camp followers of the regiment during the month of
December. The disease ceased altogether in January and for the greater part of February,
when it broke out again. Between the end of February and end of March, six cases occurred
amongst the camp followers and inhabitants generally of cantonments. On the disease
manifesting itself, these cases were immediately removed to the small-pox shed situated on the
confines of the station. All the cases were treated by the external application of a liniment
composed of common oil and carbolic acid, in the proportion of 20 of the former to one of the
latter. All the cases did well ; one man of the regiment whilst engaged on escort duty in the
district during the month of June was attacked with small-pox. He was carried into the
station on the 14th of that month, and was subjected to the carbolic acid and oil plan of
treatment, and made an excellent recovery, although the case was a rather severe one. During
the first quarter of the year vaccination was carried on vigorously among the camp followers
of the regiment and inhabitants of cantonments generally.
Epidemics.
Small-pox.
Treatment.
XIX—Vaccination.—356 Vaccinations were performed during the year amongst the
children of the regiment and camp followers, 289 of which were perfectly successful. All
recruits not bearing marks of small-pox were vaccinated. The regiment is now well protected
against small-pox.
XXI.—Special observations and remarks .—Every rainy season for the last six years,
catarrhal ophthalmia of a type which rapidly proceeds to the purulent form of this disease, if
early treatment be not adopted, has occurred amongst the men and women, children. and camp
followers generally of the regiment. Nor is the disease confined to the regiment, it being
very prevalent amongst the civil population in and around both Augur and Goonah at this
season of the year. The almost invariable treatment I have adopted for this disease has been
the application of a pencil, consisting of equal parts of nitrate of silver and nitrate of potash
fused together, to the conjunctiva of both upper and lower eyelids. One or two applications
of this "pencil" have in nearly all cases been sufficient for the cure of the disease. If the
disease has not been seen sufficiently early, and has proceeded to the purulent stage, scarification
of the conjunctiva of the eyelids is first performed, and, when all bleeding has ceased, the pencil
of "eye-caustic" is freely applied to the conjunctiva of both lids. If any ulceration of the
cornea has set in, a solution of atropine is dropt into the eye an hour subsequently to the
Vaccination.
Prevalence of
catarrhal
ophthalmia.
Treatment.