INFANTILE PARALYSIS.

Press, Volume LXI, Issue 18365, 24 April 1925, Page 18

INFANTILE PARALYSIS.

RESTRICTIONS TO BE LIFTED TO-MORROW.

REASSURING REPORT REQUIRED

FROM CANTERBURY.

(rM9.<; issoeiwios tslboram.) WELLINGTON, April 23. The Minister of Health stated today that it had been decided to lift all precautionary epidemic restrictions from Saturday. The release of the restrictions, he added, would apply to all districts in the Dominion, but in the case of Canterbury, a. reassuring report from the District Health Officer would first be necessary. The Health Department received notification of only throe oases of infantile paralysis for the 24 hours ending 9 a.m. to-day:—Te Fuko 1, "Whacgarei 1, and Westport 1. LOCAL NOTIFICATIONS. Since 10 p.m. on Wednesday until noon yesterday, one notification was received by the Department of Health. The particulars of the case are: Man, aged 23 years, Racecourse road, New Brighton. SUSPECTED CASE AT FAIRLIE. (SPZCIAL TO m lKt_ PBBSS."> TIMABU, April 23. Notification was received • yesterday of a suspected case of infantile paralysis, a little girl aged two years, from Fairlie. Tho patients at present in hospital show steady progress.

THE RESTRICTIONS.

According to advice received from the police, if the epidemic restrictions are officially lifted to-morrow, their removal will not be'operative till Sunday.

NOT A MYSTERIOUS DISEASE. INTERVAL BETWEEN EPIDEMICS. An interesting lecture on infantile paralysis was delivered by Dr. W. S. Rdbertton, of the Wellington Public Hospital, at Wellington this week. The Son. Dr. W. E. Collins, C.M.G., presided. Dr. Eobertson said that an impression was current that infantile paralysis was a mysterious disease, but such was not the case, as the niedioal profession knew as much about it as it did about measles. It was not by any means a modern disease. There had been some 150 epidemics since 1900, and the disease had been very carefully studied. The only mysterious part about it was tho causative agent, which had not been definitely isolated. Tho disease was evidently duo to some germ, but it had only been isolated in colbfliesv The individual germ was so minute that it passed through the finest filter, and could riot bo discernod by the most powerful microscope. ' Infantile paralysis was toot considered highly infectious, but was contagious, being carried' by contact. One aspect of the disease was that not everyone would contract it, and therewas a high rate of natural immunity. That immunity did not prevent people ■acting as carriers, which acoouivU/i for isolated, cases that sometimes occurred in remote districts. No Age Exempt. Seventy per cent.. of the . cases occurred in children between the ages of two and 1 &vfi, * l but a three weeks old baby had been known to contract the disease, . and porsons over the age of 60 had been affected. An outstanding feature of the present epidemic was the fact .that the big majority of cases were sturdy, fair-haired children—the flaxen-haired, blue-eyed type. It was hard ; to explain why the weedy child —the "gutteranipe"—»rarely rontracteil the disease. The child reared in a poor environment was evidently more open to all forms of disease, and therefore acquired greater immunity than the child that was pampered at home.

Some fears Before Next' Epidemic. Epidemics occurred every three or fivo years in most parte of the world. At the present tirno most of the children in New Zealand must have had infantile paralysis in one form or another—often so slight as to be regarded .as a mild attack of influenza—or had. acquired immunity in some other manner. The result was that tho disease had now little or nothing to work 6n t arid it would be some years before conditions became favourable for another opidemie. In concluding his remarks, Dr. Robertson said that there was no limit to the improvement that could occur under twelve months. Even, when paralysis was present after two or three years it was very rare that Bomo of tho muscles did not function.

Speaking at a lecure given under the ausoices of the Red Cross last ni'/.ht.. tho Hon. Dr. W. E M Collins. C.M.G., quoted some figures supplied hv Dr. Wait of the Health Department. Up te the end of March 989 cases had been reported to the Department. Of these eases, 146 terminated fatally, and in 403 eases the patient was left paralysed or otherwise in a serious condition.