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Table 3. CASES OF SPECIFIED DISEASES: SELECTED CITIES FOR WEEK ENDED
AUGUST 15, 1953-Continued

(Numbers after diseases are category numbers of the Sixth Revision of the International Lists, 1948)

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The chart shows the number of deaths reported for 106 major cities of the United States by week for the current year, and, for comparison, the median of the number of deaths reported for the corresponding weeks of the three previous calendar years. (The median is the central one of the three values arranged in order of magnitude.) If a report is not received from a city in time to be included in the total for the current week, an estimate is made to maintain comparability for graphic presentation.

The figures reported represent the number of death certifi cates received in the vital statistics offices during the week indicated, for deaths occurring in that city. Figures compiled in this way, by week of receipt, usually approximate closely the number of deaths occurring during the week. However, differences are to be expected because of variations in the interval

between death and receipt of the certificate.

While week-to-week changes in the total number of deaths reported for all major cities generally represent a change in mortality conditions, this may not be true for variations in weekly figures for each city. For example, in a city where 50 deaths are the weekly average, the number of deaths occurring in a week may be expected to vary by chance alone from 36 to 64 (d ± 2√d, where d represents the average number of deaths per week).

The number of deaths in cities of the same size may also differ because of variations in the age, race, and sex composition of their populations, and because some cities are hospital centers serving the surrounding areas. Changes from year to year in the number of deaths may be due in part to population increases or decreases.

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August 28, 1953

Washington 25, D. C.

Vol. 2, No. 33

Provisional Information on Selected Notifiable Diseases in the United States for
Week Ended August 22. 1953

The number of cases of poliomyelitis reported for the current week is 2,253 which is 13 percent above that (1,997) for the previous week. This number is 35 percent below the figure (3,501) for the same week last year. The cumulative total since the seasonal low week is 14,464 as compared with 18,637 for the same period in 1952. The cumulative total for the calendar year is 15,978 which is also substantially less than the total (19,830) for the same period last year.

The percentage increase in cases for the current week over the previous week was as follows: New England States, 50 percent; Middle Atlantic, 6; East North Central, 26; West North Central, 6; Mountain, 40; and Pacific, 10. The South Atlantic States remained the same, and the South Central States showed a decrease. Twenty-eight deaths were reported as follows: New York City, 1; Ohio, 4; Illinois, 1; Michigan, 7; Minnesota, 7; Virginia, 2; Oklahoma, 3; Colorado, 1; and California, 2.

A local health officer in Northern California has advised the State health department that in the past 5 weeks 2 cases of nonparalytic poliomyelitis were diagnosed. In the same area 200 persons were affected with headache, fever, and some with gastrointestinal or respiratory symptoms. Stiff neck was noted in a few cases. Cell counts of the spinal fluid were normal for 6 of 9 persons, and the remaining 3 showed a slight increase in cells. The 2 cases diagnosed as nonparalytic poliomyelitis had spinal fluid cell counts of 400 and 700, respectively.

EPIDEMIOLOGICAL REPORTS

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Psittacosis

Dr. H. T. Fuerst, New York City Department of Health, reports a case of psittacosis in a 53-year-old man. During the latter part of June he complained of fever, malaise, muscle aching, and abdominal pain. A chest X-ray showed slight haziness at the base of his left lung and a tentative diagnosis of pneumonia was made. The complement fixation on the first specimen was negative, but a specimen taken about 2 weeks after onset was positive in a dilution of 1:32. The patient had purchased a parakeet from a department store in October of 1952. This bird became ill on May 30, 1953, and died a week later. Another bird was purchased from the same store early in June. It died 14 days after purchase without prior signs of illness. Records at the department store show tha: birds were bought from an aviary in a southern State during October 1952 and June 1953, and from an aviary in a midwestern State during the first 2 weeks of June.

Anthrax in animals

According to the monthly report from the Department of Agriculture there were 202 outbreaks of anthrax in animals during July in 9 States. Of the total outbreaks, 184 were in Illinois where widespread outbreaks occurred in 2 counties in the southern part of the State. No outbreaks have been previously reported from these counties. There were 109 animals (37 cattle, 43 swine, 5 horses, and 24 sheep) lost in the 2 counties. The source of infection was not determined. In the other 8 States 87 cattle were lost. In 12 of the outbreaks the infection was traced to infected soil. Thirty-five States, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico reported no outbreaks during July.

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The above chart shows the number of cases of poliomyelitis in certain counties where mass immunization with gamma globulin was administered. Arrows indicate the week when mass immunization, limited to children under 10 years of age, was given. Final conclusions regarding the efficacy of this measure cannot be drawn until additional detailed data have been collected and studied. Similar data for other areas by week of onset will be shown in a subsequent issue.

It is to be noted that a shift in age distribution of cases from younger to older ages has been found in the progress of other outbreaks, including an observation by Frost in 1916.

Infectious encephalitis

Dr. W. L. Halverson, California Director of Public Health, reports that during the past 2 weeks, 3 cases of encephalitis have been typed as Western equine. The first one was in a Mexican "wetback," and there was 1 each in Imperial and Sacramento Counties.

Scarlet fever and acute nephritis

Dr. H. Kleinman, Red Lake Indian Hospital, Minnesota, reports that 5 cases of scarlet fever occurred in children on the reservation in July and that the disease is more frequent than usual. A surprisingly large number of cases of glomerulo nephritis have also been seen during the past 2 months. Many have shown "marked pyodermatous lesions." Bacteriological studies have not yet been carried out.

Infectious hepatitis

Dr. A. M. Washburn, Arkansas State Board of Health, reports an outbreak of infectious hepatitis which occurred in 2 schools during April and May 1953. Although the schools were 7 miles apart they used the same bus service. Of 232 children attending these schools, 16 were affected. An investigation showed that the first case had onset in November of 1952, a second case occurred in March, and all the others were in April

and May. After information of the outbreak was received, gamma globulin was recommended and given to 152 children on a voluntary basis. Only 1 subsequent case has appeared. This was apparently in the incubation period prior to the administration of gamma globulin since illness began 9 days later.

Chemical food poisoning

Dr. W. L. Halverson, Director, California Department of Public Health, gives the final report on the poisoning listed under gastro-enteritis for the week ended June 13. Of 62 persons interviewed, 22 became ill within 15 minutes following the consumption of grape punch and cookies. Grape punch was suspected to be the vehicle of infection since no illness occurred in 8 persons interviewed who did not drink the punch. The punch was prepared in 2 batches, the last of which was stored in the refrigerator for 24 hours in a 20 gallon galvanized can of the type ordinarily used for garbage. No punch was available for laboratory analysis but preparation of punch was simulated under the same conditions and tests revealed a pH of 2.5 and a zinc concentration in the punch of 819.5 parts per million. It was concluded that during the preparation of the punch, which had been stored in a galvanized can metal, principally zinc, entered the punch in concentration high enough to cause a mild illness, and that the outbreak was probably caused by chemical contamination.

Table 1. COMPARATIVE DATA FOR CASES OF SPECIFIED NOTIFIABLE DISEASES: UNITED STATES
(Numbers after diseases are category numbers of the Sixth Revision of the International Lists, 1948)

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Not computed.

2Addition: New Mexico, week ended August 15, 1 case. 3Addition: Connecticut, week ended August 15, 3 cases. *Deductions: Georgia, weeks ended August 8 and 15, 1 case each; Indiana and Nebraska, week ended July 18, 1 case each. tion: New Jersey, week ended August 15, 1 case. Svirginia and Mississippi, 1 case each.

"Deduction: Oklahoma, week ended August 15, 4 cases.

SOURCE AND NATURE OF DATA

These provisional data are based on reports from State and territorial health departments to the Public Health Service. They give the total number of cases of certain communicable diseases reported during the week usually ended the preceding

Addi

Saturday. When the diseases which rarely occur (cholera, dengue, plague, typhus fever-epidemic, and yellow fever) are reported, they will be noted under the table above.

Symbols.-1 dash [-]: no cases reported; asterisk [•]: disease stated not notifiable; parentheses, in total; 3 dashes [---]: data not available.

: data not included

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