Evening star., 1935-10-31

the twentieth year the frequency of ILL
ness due to the teeth again rises, but it
declines gradually from the thirtieth
year to the end of life.
The incidence of jaundice is highest
in childhood. Other diseases of the liver
are practically absent and tend to in
crease to their maXima in the oldest
ages. Appendicitis is relatively rare
under 5 and above As. The peak is from
Is to l9. Stomach ulcers are most fire.
quent from 40 to so years. Below the
twentieth year they are practically un-
heard Of
Nearly an the affections of the skin
are highest at the earliest ages. Eczema
and rash are highest among children
under 5. Impetigo declines markedly
after 10 years, but scabieS is relatively
high from to 20, after which there is
a marked drop in the rate. BoilS and
carbuncles definitely increase to about
the twentieth year, after which the rate
declines to the end of life.
Different kinds Of accidents, the study
shows, have quite diverse age curves.
Injuries due to falls are highest among
children and old people. Burns are
more frequent under than at any other
age. Ivy and other plant poisonings are
high from 5 to IS years, after which
there is sharp drop to low level which
is maintained for the rest of life Other
poiSoningS are highest under years,
declining from that point until adoles-
cence, when there is considerable in
crease. Eye accidents have a definite
peak at 80 years, probably due to in
dustrial hazards. Automobile accidents
are lower among children than adults,
but there is small peak between the
fifth and ninth years which probably
represents the age when children are
playing on the streets and are too young
to keep out of the path of cars. After
Is there is little variation with age in
the frequency of injury from automo-
bile accidents Infected wounds are
slightly more frequent at adolescence
than at other ages.
Interesting age curves are shown by
those diseases which chiefly affect the
organs of ocomotion-Such as rheuma-
tism, neuralgia, lumbago and other mus
cular pains, backache and affections of
the muscles and related tissues. The
incidence of all these aches, pains and
affections of the muscles and nerves
rises with age, but the oldest group,
SIS and over, has lower rate than the
preceding ages.
The curves for nervousness and neu-
rasthenia, headache, anemia and dis
eases of the thyroid gland are all SINH
lar. With the exception of headache,
which has a secondary peak at from
10 to IA years, these ailments are rare
in childhood, increase gradually to about
80 years, and then remain approximately
the same to the end of life. There
seems to be a slight decline in the fire.
quency Of headaches after IS.
The peak appears earlier in whooping
cough than in any Of the other diseases,
the maximum incidence being at years
with a small secondary peak at 6.
Measles shows double peak, the first
at years and the second at and 6.
The latter peak presumably is associated
with school entrance. Chicken pox,
mumps and scarlet fever all remain rela-
lively low in the pre-school period, with
peaks between the sixth and seventh
years. Diptheria reaches peak at about
the same age as scarlet fever. The peak
incidence of German measels appears
to come at definitely later age, the
rates from 10 to IA and from Is to 10
being the highest, and approximately
the same.