JOURNAL ARTICLE

Skin diseases in a 19th century English workhouse: analysis of the admission book for the Wakefield Workhouse Infirmary, 1826–1857.

  • Published In: Clinical & Experimental Dermatology, 2023, v. 48, n. 8. P. 916 1 of 3

  • Database: Academic Search Ultimate 2 of 3

  • Authored By: Labbouz, Sofia; Manley, Alice L; Gawkrodger, David J 3 of 3

Abstract

This article examines the medical admissions to the Wakefield Workhouse Infirmary in Yorkshire between 1826 and 1857, focusing on the prevalence of infectious and dermatological diseases. The most common cause of admission was typhus (74.2%), followed by fevers (17.2%), with skin diseases such as scarlet fever and smallpox accounting for a small proportion (3.2%) of cases. The low incidence of smallpox may reflect successful vaccination efforts, while the absence of scabies admissions likely resulted from exclusion policies due to its high infectivity. The study highlights the role of 19th-century workhouses in providing medical care to impoverished populations and notes that stigma and diagnostic limitations influenced recorded disease patterns.

Additional Information

  • Source:Clinical & Experimental Dermatology. 2023/08, Vol. 48, Issue 8, p916
  • Document Type:Article
  • Subject Area:Consumer Health
  • Publication Date:2023
  • ISSN:0307-6938
  • DOI:10.1093/ced/llad140
  • Accession Number:170394570
  • Copyright Statement:Copyright of Clinical & Experimental Dermatology is the property of Oxford University Press / USA and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

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