Distribution, Factors, Response And Impact Of Epidemic Disasters In Jiangsu And Shanghai During The Republican Period

The temporal and spatial distribution,influencing factors,response and social impact of epidemic disasters during the Republican period are important research issues in historical medical geography.In this paper,epidemic frequency was selected as the main index.The cumulative counties of epidemic situation,epidemic breadth,epidemic density and epidemic thickness were four auxiliary indicators.Spatial statistical software and methods were used to analyze the temporal and spatial distribution and change track of epidemic disasters in the Jiangsu-Shanghai region during the Republican period(1912-1949).Quantitative and qualitative analysis methods were used to explore the influencing factors of epidemic.According to historical data,the response measures of the government,social organizations and individuals to the epidemic were sorted out.Finally,the impact of the epidemic on society is summarized.The following conclusions are drawn.Spatial and temporal distribution of epidemic disasters in the Jiangsu-Shanghai region during the Republican period.The annual distribution of epidemic disasters,epidemic outbreaks every year.The interannual change shows a fluctuating trend of two rises and two falls:rising continuously from 1912 to 1932,slightly declining from 1933 to 1940,rising slightly from 1941 to 1946,and declining sharply from 1947 to 1949.In terms of seasonal distribution,epidemic outbreaks showed significant seasonal characteristics,with more occurrences in summer and autumn and fewer occurrences in winter and spring.Overall spatial distribution characteristics:On the regional scale,in terms of counties with accumulated epidemic disasters,the epidemic frequency in the Jiangnan plain is the largest,in the Jiangbei plain is the second,in the Huaibei plain is less,and in the southwestern hills is the least;in terms of the epidemic frequency,in the Jiangnan plain,epidemic outbreaks every year;in the Huaibei plain and the Jiangbei plain,the epidemic frequency increases with the passage of time;and in the southwestern hills,the epidemic frequency experiences the process of first decline and then rise;As far as the epidemic breadth is concerned,during the Republican period,the epidemic breadth in the Jiangbei Plain was the largest,followed by the Jiangnan Plain and Huaibei Plain,with the lowest in the southwest hills;in terms of epidemic density and thickness,the Jiangnan Plain was the highest,followed by the southwest hills,the Huaibei Plain was low,and the Jiangbei Plain was the lowest.At the county level,in the early period of the Republican(1912-1927),the high-value areas of epidemic frequency were located in the south of the Yangtze River,the median areas were located in the West and northwest of the central part of the Jiangsu-Shanghai region,and the low-value areas were located in the East and northeast of the central part of the Jiangsu-Shanghai region.In the mid-period of the the Republican(1928-1937),the high-value areas of epidemic frequency in the south of the Yangtze River expanded,appearing a high-value areas in the north of Jiangsu,the median areas expanded rapidly,and the low-value areas contracted.In the late period of the the Republican(1938-1949),the extreme high value area contracted,the high value area expanded,the number of medium and low frequency epidemic disaster counties is stable,and the distribution area changed locally.During the Republican period,the frequency distribution of epidemic disasters in Jiangsu and Shanghai showed moderate spatial agglomeration,and the degree of agglomeration showed an upward trend.After measuring the center of gravity of the epidemic frequency,it was found that the center of gravity was located in the south-central part of Jiangsu Province.The center of gravity experienced a fine-tuning process to northwest,and then to southeast.Temporal and spatial distribution of major epidemic diseases.The number of counties affected by cholera showed a gentle anti-N trend with the passage of years:from 1912 to 1915,the epidemic situation gradually weakened;Cholera increased rapidly from 1916 to 1947 and weakened in 1948 and 1949.It is popular in summer and autumn,with little or no in winter and spring.The medium and high frequency areas of epidemic disasters are mainly distributed in the area of Jiangsu-Shanghai region south of the Yangtze River,while the low frequency areas are scattered in the southwest of the are and the area north of the Yangtze River.The number of counties affected by smallpox rose wavily with the passage of years,showing a trend of three rises and three falls:rising in 1912-1914 and falling in 1915-1919;rising in 1920-1932 and falling in 1933-1939;rising in 1940-1947 and declining in 1948-1949;the epidemic was most prevalent in spring,followed by winter and the least in summer and autumn.The frequency distribution of smallpox epidemic shows a pattern of high in the north and south,low in the middle.The epidemic of epidemic disease mainly depends on three factors:the breeding environment of pathogen,the transmission route of epidemic disease and the characteristics of susceptible population.The breeding environment of pathogens mainly includes climate,hydrology,biology and hygiene environment.In terms of climate,the higher the extreme minimum temperature and average temperature,the higher the frequency of epidemics;the less precipitation,the greater the probability of cholera epidemic.The dense water system,slow flow and frequent floods provide a hydrological environment for virus breeding and epidemic prevailing.Biologically,the growth environment,survival habits,mode of transmission and the scale of suitable vectors determine the level of disease hazards caused by phytophthora.In terms of sanitary environment,garbage pollution,drinking water pollution,and exposure of drinks and food promote the expansion of the Phytophthora flora and close to the susceptible population.Transportation is the main route for the transmission of epidemic diseases in the Jiangsu-Shanghai region,with waterway(inland river and sea)and land(highway and railway)transmission as the most important.Population characteristics affect the spatial distribution of epidemic diseases.In terms of age structure,infants and young children are susceptible to the epidemic and are most threatened by measles and smallpox,while adults are less likely to die from the epidemic and most threatened by tuberculosis and typhoid fever.In terms of population density,the higher the population density,the higher the frequency of epidemics.In terms of social unrest,epidemics often occur after wars and banditry.In terms of social stratification,the majority of the sick come from the poor,while the middle,and the rich rarely or even not.In terms of local customs,some customs formed in the feudal period not only hindered the development of health and epidemic prevention,but also contributed to the spread of epidemic diseases.The response of the government,social organizations and individuals to the epidemic during the Republican period.In the aspect of government epidemic prevention,the first is to build health departments at all levels from provinces to counties,expand medical and pharmaceutical equipment at all levels;the second is to improve local laws and regulations and improve the epidemic prevention system;the third is to promote health education and improve the health environment;and the fourth is to promote vaccination and encourage medical progress.As for social organizations,one is to organize charitable relief,the other is to carry out epidemic prevention propaganda.In the aspect of individual epidemic prevention,one is elite advice on epidemic prevention,the other is physicians'spontaneous public service diagnosis and treatment,and the third is the public praying for the elimination of disasters through worship.The social impact of epidemics in the Jiangsu-Shanghai region during the Republican period.One is to cause population death and economic losses;the other is to cause psychological panic and social chaos;and the third is to promote the development of public health and medicine.