Page 93 - Bahrain Gov Annual Reports (III)_Neat

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Venereal Disease.
972 fresh patients were seen and 237 cases of the infectious type were admitted, 113 were
Syphilis, and 124 Gonorrhoea, 1819 injections of N.A.B. and Bismuth were given and several thousands
of " 693
Opthalmia.
This is our most important work, especially in the schools; 263 patients (22%) were admitted,
and 292 operations performed. The total of new cases seen all over Bahrain was 3594, 12-5% of all
patients. Trachoma with all its sequelae accounted for 2016 of these cases.
Dysentery.
Endemic amoebic dysentery showed its usual high figure especially during the fly seasons of
early summer and late autumn. This year, however, bacillary dysentery cases were much more
numerous and almost an epidemic broke out in November. An added factor appeared to be the
change over to the wheat and barley diet. It is thought that a certain amount of gut inflammation
was produced lighting up a latent dysentery. Many of the patients were old men suffering also from
malnutrition. In Manama 492 cases were seen compared to 234 last year.
The people do not yet realise how flies disseminate this disease so a small anti-fly campaign
was started in the autumn using fly traps in the hospital, the fort, the markets and the Shaikh's Palace
at Rafa. A quarter mile area around the hospital was flycontrolled using phenyle and oil, with
exceedingly beneficial results.

Malaria.
Figures showed a slight increase and were 10*5% over the whole year in Manama compared
to 10% in 1942 : and 18% during the worst May—June period compared to 16% in 1942. Only
routine work, on which 100 men were employed, was attempted as lack of transport affected the
supervision and distribution of oil. Garden channels, house wells and drinking pots proved the most
fruitful sources of breeding. About half a million channels and pits were oiled and fish applied and
re-applied to eleven thousand wells. The gardens in the Zinj area are now at last under control.
A meeting of the General Anti-Malaria Committee, under the chairmanship of Shaikh Mohamed bin
Essa, took place at the end of the year. Questions of quinine supply, house well control and concen­
tration of the work in the towns, were discussed. Present supplies of quinine are sufficient for 1944,
but the chief anti-malaria aids were again stressed namely, the co-operation of house owners in making
weekly inspections of their own water sources.
Malnutritions! Complications.
This entity was divided into :—
Cured. Not cured. Died.
Starvation .. Total 37. 16 10 11
Malnutrition Oedema Total 33. 8 15 10
These figures only represent the male inpatients of one hospital in the Island. Total statistics
are not known as there is not yet any registration of births and deaths in Bahrain but in some villages
it was reported later that large numbers of persons died of starvation, a case in point was the small
village of Dair on Muharraq Island where it was said that over fifty people died within a short period.

The treatment of these cases was bafflingly difficult. A terrible apathy predominated, and
mental persuasion to .will these people to live was exerted. A good mixed diet with milk and stimulants
and sometimes Vitamin B only gave very slow results. Those not cured were relieved only for the
time being, fortunately most of them were old men. As already mentioned this condition was quipkly
righted and by the end of the hot weather it had passed away.
The Service*.
Outpatients are now attended to in the camps of the Forces concerned, at Muharraq, Jufair
Naval Base, and the Army camp near Awali. Only the more serious cases are now dealt with at the
Government Hospital. During the year 388 in-patients were admitted, and 140 of these were in the