Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1877-11-28
DyPHTHERIA.
Means by which the Prevailing Sconrge
May be Ayer;ed.
Kew Hayen Register.

New Haven Register.
/ At a meeting Of the board of health
last evening, Health Officer Lindsey, in
accordance with the suggestions Of the
/ board at a previous meeting, submitted
I the following paper. 1t will be printed
III pamphlet form for general crcula
1 ton:
! Diphtheria is both a contagious and
/ an infectious disease; it is, moreover
pre-eminently one of the class Of filth
/ diseases-that is, it occurs most fire.
quently and in the most malignant and
fatal form where dampness and dirt do
most prevail. The means Of protection
I therefore, obviously lie in avoidance Of
exposure to its presence and in the most
scrupulous attention to cleanliness. Alb
solute isolation Of the sick, the most
rigid purity of surroundings aided by
dlsinfectiOn when required would prob
/ ably eXterminate the disease. The vet
eran, sanitarian, DR.. +. NJ. Snow, of
Providence, says that where there is
abundant sunlight, dryness, cleanness,
and pure air. diphtheria cannot prevail.
The same conditions will protect almost
as ehectually from most other danger
Gus diseases. Such being the truth,
neither individuals nor communities can
afford to ignore the fact that they are in
Il great degree responsible for their own
( health.
When case occurs III any family, the
sick person should be placed in room
apart from the other inmates Of the
house, and should be nursed as far as
possible by one person only The sick
chamber should be well warmed, well
aired, and exposed to sunlight; its furni-
ture should be such as can be cleansed
without injury, and all superfluous
things as window and table drapery,
wooden carpets, and the like, should be
removed. The family should not min
gle with other people Visitors should
be warned Of the presence of conta-
gious disease, and children should not be
admitted to the house.
All clothing removed from the patient
should be at once placed i'll boiling wa
ter; instead of handkcrchefs, soft pieces
of linen and cotton cloth should be used
and Immediately burned Disinfectants
should be placed in all the vessels which
receive the eXpectoration or other dis
charges from the patient. Disinfectants
should also be freely used III the sick
room. Those which destroy bad odorS
without causing others are best, such as
solutions Of nitrate of lead and chloride
OF zinc.
The sick person should not minglc
with others until fully recovered, and in
cases Of scarlet fever until all roughness
of the skin, due to the disease, has dis
. appeared, because the eXfOliatcd skin is
especially infectious.
The disinfection of the sick room
should bc thorough. The walls
should bc dry-rubber and the cloths
used burned without shaking, the cell
ing should be scraped and lime-washed.
The floor and woodwork should he
washed with soap and water. The
clothing or bedding used by the patient
or nurse should be purified by boiling
for at least one hour and should al
ways be cleaned by themselves, and
under no circumstances should they be
sent to Il laundry. In case of death the
body should be placed as early as prac-
ticablc III the coffin, with disinfcctantS,
and the coffin tightly closed.
Children certainly, and III most case.
adults, should not attend Il funeral from
Il house in which death from diph-
iberia or scarlet fever has occurred.
But with suitable precautions it is not
necessary that the burial should be
strictly private, provided that the corpse
I be not III amy way exposed.
Because children are especially liable
to take and to spread these diseases and
because schools afford II free oppor-
tunity for this; every child from amy
family in which case of these diseases
has occurred should be excluded from
school and be rcadmittcd not sooner
than one month from the beginning OF
the disease, except upon the certificate
of some competent physician that il
will be safe
All the above precautions concern the
dangers of contagion. But the con-
tinued prevalence of these diseases in
amy community Is probable evidence
of insanitary surroundings, and OF
sources of sickness, partially or wholly
prcycntablc. The most exemplary
housewife, whose home is the very
model of neatncss and order, may have
all her efforts defeated in sanitary
sense 10y defective sink-trap or a leaky
drain-pipe or an overlooking cesspool
or an underlined cellcr, or even 10y a
heap of decaying garbage in her neigh
boris yard.
Therefore, look well to the surround,
ingS. Abolish filth, remove dampnes>
and all sources of foul air, especially
rom living and sleeping rooms, Disin
feet thoroughly all suspected places in
yards and neglected corners.
The following dislnfectant is hotl
very cheap and efficient.