Good Statistics

The Public Health Service's final figures on the 1957 rate of incidence of disease, published last week, showed a generally good picture.

While the Salk vaccine proved to be "60% to 90% effective," polio remained, by shifting targets, a major problem. It used to be primarily a disease of the oft-diapered, well-scrubbed upper-income groups, whose infants were protected against the mild (often undetectable) infections that give immunity against later and more serious attacks. Things were different with the infants of the poor, who lived amid filth, got an infection in their first few months while still protected by passive immunity from inherited antibodies. Now the better-heeled families are dutifully getting Salk shots early and often. The people at the bottom of the economic ladder have learned enough about health protection to get their babies up out of the yard filth, but not enough to have their youngsters vaccinated. As a result, paralytic polio (2,499) struck hardest at children from low-income groups.

Other figures:

DIPHTHERIA. Steadily on the decline since 1946, the disease struck 23% fewer victims last year than the year before. Of the 1,211 total, Michigan accounted for 100 in December alone.

ENCEPHALITIS. Down again in 1957 with 2,135 cases, but still about equal to the 1955 figure.

VENEREAL DISEASES. Of the reported 136,039 cases of syphilis in all stages, Southern California's migrant agricultural workers claimed 10,000. Syphilis was slightly higher; gonorrhea was down 5%.

INFECTIOUS HEPATITIS. 20% lower than 1956, 70% lower than 1954's alltime high of 50,093 cases.

Also on the decline in 1957: brucellosis, malaria, trichinosis, tuberculosis, typhoid.

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