From Measles.—By the rapid onset, absence of cold symptoms of the nose, eyes, and bronchial tubes, blotchy eruptions that occur in measles. There is no strawberry tongue in measles and no coughing at beginning.
Recovery.—The prognosis is favorable in uncomplicated cases. It also depends upon the character of the epidemic type of the disease. In England it varies from thirteen to fourteen per cent. In this country it is sometimes as low as two to four per cent. The kidney trouble is always feared for it may result in uremia and death, or the acute may be followed by chronic nephritis or Bright's disease, which will ultimately prove fatal.
Sanitary Care of Room and Patient.—If you are exposed to this disease what can you do? If a child, it must be put in a room by itself. If several children have been exposed they should be put in separate rooms. These rooms should have no carpet, curtains, rugs, etc., or any unnecessary furniture, for everything must be disinfected afterward, and sometimes destroyed. The clothes worn just before the sickness should be sterilized in steam or boiled and then aired in the sun. Anyone suffering from sore throat who has been about the patient should not be allowed to be near the healthy. All the children must be kept from school. It is well for them to spray their throats with a simple cleansing solution morning and night, with a full teaspoonful of boric acid to a glass full of warm water; or you can use common salt, but not strong enough to irritate the throat, about one teaspoonful to a glass of water. If you have listerine or glyco-thymoline or any such disinfectant use them, one teaspoonful to sixteen spoonfuls of water. Hot water itself is a very good gargle, very healing and cleansing. Anyone who enters the sick room and comes out again should wear a sheet all over him. On coming out, he or she should leave this sheet outside the window of another room. If the person has a beard he should wash his face with a 1 to 2000 solution of corrosive sublimate, and the hands also, before leaving the sick room. The one who waits upon the sick one should remain there, but everyone can not do so. They must stay away from the healthy if possible.
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City and State Supervision.—If you live in the city your physician should notify the health board who will probably send someone to instruct you regarding cautions and some cities have private rules, laws, etc., for them to follow while under quarantine. A copy is usually furnished also to your close neighbors. Also some of the state departments of health have made up pamphlets which are circulated free on request dealing with the sanitary science of infectious and contagious diseases. Some colleges use these same pamphlets in their study of sanitary science. Much valuable information is contained in them. Comparatively few people learn of these pamphlets. For the benefit of those who have not read or seen them we quote from their scarlet fever subjects as follows:
HOW TO AVOID AND PREVENT SCARLET FEVER.
Do not let a child go near a case of scarlet fever. This is especially important to be observed.
Children are in much greater danger of death from scarlet fever than are adults; but adult persons often get and spread the disease, and sometimes die from it. Mild cases in adults may cause fatal cases among children. Unless your services are needed keep away from the disease yourself. If you do visit a case, bathe yourself and change and disinfect your clothing and hair, beard, if any, and hands before you go where there is a child. Do not permit any person or thing or a dog or cat, or other animal to come from a case of scarlet fever to a child. No cat or dog should be permitted to enter the sick room.
Do not permit a child to wear or handle clothing worn by a person during sickness or convalescence from scarlet fever.
Beware of any person who has sore throat. Do not kiss or come near to such a person. Do not drink from the same cup, blow the same whistle, or put his pen or pencil in your mouth. Whenever a child has sore throat and fever, and especially when this is accompanied by a rash on the body, the child and attendant should immediately be isolated until the physician has seen it and determined whether it has scarlet fever. Strict quarantine should be established and maintained throughout the course of the disease. Exposed persons should be isolated until such time has elapsed as may prove that they are not infected. The period of incubation, that is the interval of time between exposure to the contagion of scarlet fever and the first sign of the disease in the person so exposed, varies. In many cases it appears in seven days, in some cases in fourteen days, and in some cases twenty-one days; the average period is about nine days. Quarantine of persons exposed should not be raised under four weeks.