Læknablaðið - 01.08.1923, Blaðsíða 142

240
LÆKNABLAÐIÐ
mætti fyrirskipa slíkar skolanir profylaktiskt á stærri eöa smærri svæö-
um í héraöinu. Allir heimilismenn gæti auövitaö hins ýtrasta hreinlætis
í hvívetna.
Hvenær heföi svo mátt aflétta sóttbanni á þessum f j rsta sýkta bæ ?
Því er fljótsvaraö: Eftir aö nákvæm og vandvirknislega gerð sóttkveikju-
rannsókn hjá ö 1 1 u m heimilismönnum heföi reynst neikvæö i
3 skifti meö io—14 daga millibili og fariö hefði fram mjög nákvæm
lokasótthreinsun, undir eftirliti læknis. Og þetta eru aðalatrið-
i n, Erfið verk til sveita, en þó framkvæmanleg.
Allar nauðsynjar, t. d. úr kaupstaö, skyldi færa heimilinu því aö kostn-
aðarlausu, og sömuleiðis bæta það vinnutjón, er þaö heföi oröiö fyri’’
af sóttvörninni.
Alt öðru máli er aö gegna, er veikin er oröin útbreidd. Þá veröa þess-
ar ströngu reglur gagnsminni og jafnframt varla framkvæmanlegar.
Enn vaknat ein spurning. Nú er létt barnaveiki oröin útbreidd eöa
stingur sér niöur til og frá í héraðinu. Sótthreinsanir, þær venjulegu, sýn-
ast gagnslitlar, en kosta á hinn bóginn töluvert fé. Á þá að sleppa þeim?
Nei, venjulega mundi það vera rangt, vildi eg segja. Sé þaö rétt, að
sýking og útlæiösla veröi oft eöa oftast á óbeinan hátt, svo sem nokk-
urar líkur hafa veriö færöar fyrir, þá liggur í augum uppi, aö samvisku-
samlega framkvæmd sótthreinsun getur unnið ómetanlegt gagn.
Summary.
In the Thistilfjord district there was an epidemic of diphtheria in 1909,
and again in 1916, when four children contracted the disease which had
been brought there by a fishing vessel from the Faroe Islands. After that
there was no diphtheria in the district until 1921. Qn May ioth a child
became ill 011 a certain farm which for a long time had communicated.
with only the uninfected neigbouring farm, except that on May 4th a
man in perfect health passed the night there. He had previosly called
at a farm in Vopnafjord adjacent to a farm where there had been diphtheria
the year before. This same man was for a long period liefore and atter
May 4th in homes where there were children without any infection oc-
curring.
After this diphtheria prevailed in the district until April 1923, and the
local doctor saw 43 patients, 7 of whom had croup.
This case and various other incidents of the epidemic the author inter-
pretes as indicating that the bac. dipht. may as well be carried bv inanimate
olijects as by regular carrires of the bac. diphtheriae.
The population of the district is 1000, of whom 409 are under 16, and
of these 36, or 8.8%, contracted the disease. Of 604 persons under 30
vears 41, or 6.8%, took the disease. Morbidity for the age 16—30 was
close upon 2.6%. Diphtheria may go about as a stubborn and protracted
epidemic. The author eniphasizes the importance of strict quarantine
measures in the rural districts. isolatiou of houses, which should be main-
tained until after all the inmates have repeatedly been subjected to bac-
terial tests with negative results.