302 



PATHOGENIC BACTERIA IN MILK 



Circumstances implicating the milk 

 supply. — The occupier of one of the 

 dairy farms supplying the milk was 

 suffering from scarlet fever. Although 

 the cases were scattered over a wide 

 district they had this common milk 

 supply. Besides the cases diagnosed 

 there were many cases of sore throat 

 in infected families and otherwise. 

 The medical officer thinks these were 

 of scarlatinal origin. Throughout the 

 epidemic adults and children over 

 school age were chiefly attacked, and 

 the disease was of an extremely mild 

 character. 



Probable exciting cause. — Human 

 source. 



Reporter and reference. — Dr J. H. 

 Godson (Med. Off. of Health). Annual 

 Rep., 1900. 



Crewe, 1900 {July). 



Total number of cases . . 17 

 Number of cases amongst 



drinkers of suspected milk . 1 1 



Number of polluted milk sources i 



Number of milkmen . . . i 



Circumstances implicating the milk 

 supply. — At the farm supplying the 

 milk used by the retailer it was found 

 that a lad employed as a milker had 

 a sore throat a month previously and 

 did not stay away from his work. 

 Five members of this family had mild 

 attacks of scarlet fever, and contamin- 

 ated the milk supply which infected 

 the cases. On the cessation of this 

 milk supply the outbreak ceased. 



Probable exciting cause. — Human 

 source. 



Reporter and referente. — Dr Green- 

 wood (Med. Off. of Health). Annual 

 Rep., 1900. 



London, 1901 [2t,th April-\\th May). 

 (Bethnal Green, Shoreditch, Fins- 

 bury, Islington, St Pancras.) 

 Total number of cases . . 293 



Number of polluted milk sources i 

 Number of milkmen a large number 



Circumstances implicating the milk 

 supply. — This outbreak occurred on 

 delivery course of a certain contractor 

 in London. He obtained milk from 

 38 farms. On one of these farms there 

 were 4 cases of scarlet fever, the 

 farmer, his wife, son, and daughter. 

 The cows (29) were healthy and there 

 was no marked evidence of cow disease 

 (Klein). 



The cases were chiefly in Bethnal 

 Green and Shoreditch, but there were 

 two dozen in Finsbury, and several in 

 Islington and St Pancras — all trace- 

 able to milk from the churns arriving 

 from the implicated farm. Even in 

 cases where milk from these churns 

 became subdivided, or delivered a day 

 or two later, scarlet fever occurred. 

 When the implicated milk was stopped 

 the epidemic ceased. The incubation 

 period was in many cases very short. 

 A large number of adults were attacked, 

 which marked out the epidemic as 

 different from ordinary outbreaks of 

 scarlet fever in Shoreditch and Bethnal 

 Green. After the ordinary distribution 

 had been stopped the contractor sent 

 the milk to other customers, who then 

 contracted scarlet fever. 



Probable exciting cause. — Human 

 source. 



Reporter and reference. — Dr Shirley 

 F. Murphy and the Medical Officers 

 of the districts involved (Bate, Byrett, 

 -Newman). London County Council 

 Special Rep., No. 548, 1901. 



Beverley and Salem, 1901. 



Number of cases . . .60 

 Number of deaths . . .11 

 Number of implicated farms . i 



Circumstances implicating the milk 

 snpply. — The dairyman in this out- 

 break produced 5 cans of milk him- 

 self daily, and obtained 14 other cans 

 from three neighbours. At one of these 



