Influenza : $b An epidemiologic studyVaughan, Warren T. (Warren Taylor)
History
Influenza : $b An epidemiologic study
Vaughan, Warren T. (Warren Taylor)
Influenza
The housing methods in the cantonments and even in the tent camps
resulted in a degree of congestion and close physical contact among
individuals that was attained in no civil communities with the possible
exception of some institutions. In cantonments the number of men in
individual rooms ranged from 30 to 100 and even under the best
circumstances there was very evident close crowding. An individual in
any of these large rooms contracting a contagious disease had
opportunities to spread it by contact and by droplet infection not only
to one or two others, as in the case of the average family, but to a
large group of the men in the same room. A vicious circle was thus
formed which tended to propagate the disease throughout any camp with
utmost rapidity. Brewer has compared the influenza incidence rate in the
principal white organizations at Camp Humphreys with the floor space
allowed each man in the respective organizations, and concludes that,
“It is not proper or just to attribute the differences shown, alone to
the amount of floor space allowed each organization, but it certainly
points very strongly to the fact that the incidence of the disease
varied with the density of the population, although not with
mathematical regularity.” Brewer cites regiments which although housed
alike showed definite variation in the influenza incidence. This merely
shows that other factors also play a part. Thus, in one instance, the
difference in the two regiments was in length of service. Brewer also
found that among the white troops the incidence of pneumonia appears to
vary with the density of the population.
V. C. Vaughan has reported on the relationship between incidence in
tents and in barracks at Camp Custer. From this one observation it would
appear that the incidence is little changed under the two conditions.
“During September and October, 1918, a study was made on the
relationship, if any, of influenza to methods of living. Of the command,
3,633 were in tents. The morbidity per thousand in these was 129. There
were in barracks 36,055. The morbidity per thousand among those was 275.
At first glance the lower morbidity of those in tents is striking, but
going further into the matter it was found that the entire morbidity of
the Quartermaster Corps was very low. Of the Depot Brigade 2,881 were in
tents, with a morbidity of 128 per thousand, while 3,824 were in
barracks, with a morbidity of 134 per thousand.”
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