The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1904-10-31
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Much Diphtheria and Scarlet
Fever I'm Kansas.
Doesn't Augur Well for the
Winter Months.
TOPEKA AT THE TOP.
Had 81 Cases of Diphtheria and
Five Deaths.
Report of the State Board of
Health.
TOPEKA AT THE TOP.

According to the quarterly report OF
DR.. S. ]. Crumbine, secretary of the
state board of health, there is an un-
usual prevalence of scarlet fever anC
diphtheria in Kansas, and the state Is
not beginning the winter very auspici-
ously from a health standpoint. Nine
teen counties out OF 20 reporting show
epidemic or sporadic cases of diphthe-
ria, and "a Of the 20 counties report
scarlet fever. These reports are for
the three months ending September so
This is unprecedented for the mid
summer MONTHS said DR.. Crumbine
and does not augur well for the COM
ing winter. For the past year scarlet
fever has been doing continuous ser
vice IN the majority of the counties OF
the state. at some period during the
year, with occasional association OF
dtphtheria- That the irritation of the
throat remaining after an attack of
scarlet fever or even common sore
throat is most fertile field for the
development of the bacilli of G1phthe-
<la tnere can be no doubt, and indeed
the diseases of scarlet fever and diph-
iberia are often associated together in
q so-called mixed infection
The city of Topeka reported more
cases of diphtheria than any other To-
cality by far Thirty-one of the SO
cases in the state were in Topeka, and
ave OF the "A deaths i'll the state were
A&1 4OpCA6- wichita reported SIX cases
with three deaths, and Leavenwortn
reported four cases with one death. La
bette county had nine cases, Sedgwick
had eight, and Bourbon, Crawford, and
counties in which diphtheria existed
were AtchiSon. Cherokee, Cloud, Cow
ley, Doniphan. Douglas, Greenwood.
Harvey. jackson. Jefferson. Lyon. Mar
shall Usage. and Washington.
Topeka also reported 81 cases of
scarlet fever, but there were only 3
deaths from the disease. The only
other deaths from scarlet fever in the
I in Lyon, in Rice, and L in Wich-
1ta. Jackson had 10 cases. Mitchell
Is, and Ottawa 16. but all without
deaths. The total number of cases
fatal The disease existed in Barton,
Cloud. Cowley, Crawford, Doniphan,
Graham, Harvey, Jackson, Jefferson,
Kingman, Labette, Lane, Leavenworth,
Lyon Marshall, Meade, Mitchell, Ne
maha, Usage. Ottawa, Reno, Rice,
Sedgwick and Sumner counties, and
Topeka and Wichita
Since the close of the quarter on
September 80, Secretary CruAbine has
received notice that epidemics of diph-
iberia have broken out in Labette,
Lyon, Jewell and some other counties.
There were 355 cases of typhoid
fever during the quarter, of which 81
were fatal. Topeka reported only six
cases, but all six resulted in deaths.
Sedgwick county reported As cases
with 4 deaths, and Wichita reported
FL cases with deaths Cherokee
county reported 8 cases and deaths.
and Rawlins county IA cases with
deaths. Crawford county had 20 cases,
and 5 OF them were fatal Other
counties reporting 10 or more cases
but with few deaths were: Barton,
~; Butler, IL; Cheyenne, %; Decatur,
1c; JEFFERSON, 81; Mcpherson, II;
Neosho. a; Pawnee. 10; Pratt. "a;
Gunner. IS.
OF the 123 cases of smallpox report
ed in the state, 1913 of them were in
Elk county, where there was an cpl
demic, but not a single death was re-
ported of all that number. The only
deaths were in Ottawa county where
the three cases reported were fatal.
Topeka reported 8 cases.
In making public these figures DR..
Crumbine says:
IT conceive it the duty of this board
no make public the quarterly collec-
tion of vital statistics and contagious
and infectious diseases, not that 1t may
occasion alarm among the people, but
that it may serve a warning and ex-
cite caution on the part of parents,
school teachers and physicians. Indf-
cations at present point to a general
and wide spread epidemic of scarlet
fever, and that more dangerous disease,
diphthertl, the coming winter, unless
unusual caution and strict quarantine
be observed. The present situation en-
inspection at stated and frequent inter
walls, also the frequent fumigation of
school houses and other places of public
assemble. Physicians are urged to have
\ fresh supply of anti-diphtheritic
serum on hand, as time is an important
factor in the treatment of the disease
The most rigid quarantine should be
practiced in cases of these two diseases.
which should be sufficiently prolonged
as to be certain there is no doubt as to
complete recovery and the absence of
conmunicability to the well.
''It should be noticed that smallpox
and typhoid fever are quite prevalent.
These are among the preventable dis
eases and such precautionary meas
ures should be taken as to insure i'm
naunity therefrom- A recent and sue
cessful vaccination can confidently be
relied upon to secure immunity from
smallpox, and the boiling of drinking
water, the proper cleansing and cook
ing of vegetables, the rejection of
overripe or bruised fruit that might
be infected by insects, and the effective
screening of the house against flies,
mosquitoes and other insects, to pre-
vent the infection of foods and drinks
will ordinarily be sufficient to protec-
pne from typhoid fever"
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