THIS WEEK IN 1971: '˜Killer' liver disease found at city hospital
Medical staff at St Mary's Hospital, Portsmouth, revealed there were four cases of hepatitis B being treated in their infectious diseases ward.
The illness, which can still be life-threatening in adults today had caused the deaths of a number of medical staff at an Edinburgh hospital.
But Dr W O’Driscoll, consultant in infectious diseases, said he did not regard the outbreak as serious and no members of staff were involved.
He also clarified remarks made by Portsmouth Hospital Group secretary K Dryden, who said diseases being treated on the ward included hepatitis and typhoid.
Dr O’Driscoll said: ‘We have one patient who is a typhoid carrier.
‘He is undergoing long-term treatment, but there are no new typhoid cases and there is no question of a typhoid outbreak.’
The confirmation of the four cases of hepatitis B came in the same week it was announced St Mary’s Hospital was to be given £50,000 to improve its facilities for treating infectious diseases.
Mr Dryden said: ‘We are studying plans to upgrade J Ward, an existing block now used for polio cases.’