Howrah Hospital Report for 1846. 509 



The above amount of mortality is rather that of disease in a tropi- 

 cal climate, allowed to run on unchecked, than of disease under 

 regular and ordinary treatment. 



Independently of the usual great mortality from cholera, 1 5 cases 

 in all out of the 50, of dysentery, fever, hepatitis, delirium tremens, 

 pneumonia, were admitted in a stage of advanced progress of the 

 ultimate morbid results of these several diseases, and beyond hope of 

 relief. 



Fever. — There have been 179 admissions of fever, all, with 

 two or three exceptions, of the remittent type, and of a very 

 mild character. The greatest number of fever cases have 

 occurred during the hot and rainy months of May, June, July, 

 August and September. 



The average length of the fever state, from the commence- 

 ment out of hospital to its cessation in hospital after treat- 

 ment, has been during these months eight days, whereas 

 the length of the fever symptoms in the total of the cases 

 throughout the twelve months (calculated with some care) has 

 been upon an average seven days. The relative liability of 

 different ages to fever is seen (upon a very small scale) in the 

 table. The duration of fever symptoms strictly is intended 

 above, not the length of time from the commencement of the 

 disease until discharge from hospital, for several days are 

 always allowed in hospital for recruiting the strength. No 

 one of the three cases in which death took place came fairly 

 under treatment. The mischief had been done in all before 

 admission. In two out of the three death followed in the 

 course of a few hours ; in one the accession of a violent 

 paroxysm of fever seemed to carry off the patient. He had 

 been sick on board-ship for three weeks, and had been admit- 

 ted in the morning without any great heat of surface. It now 

 and then happens, that a single paroxysm of fever is fatal 

 in this country; the disease striking violently, as it were, 

 at the vital powers and annihilating them. The following 

 is a short account of the fatal paroxysm. 



