London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
Deptford 1913
Annual report on the health of the Metropolitan Borough of Deptford
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21
and flies, milk food often becoming acid, and developing bacteria in the
course of a few hours, although there be outwardly no apparent change.
Since the adoption of the Notification of Births Act, 1907, the notice
of the birth of a child is received within two days of the event, and
enables the Lady Health Visitor to pay an early visit to the home and
give advice to the mother as to the proper feeding and management
of the infant, which I feel certain will be attended with the most
encouraging results.
I submit a list of the principal causes of the 350 infantile deaths in
the Borough during 1913, viz.:—
Whooping Cough 22
Measles 10
Diarrhœal Diseases 21
Enteritis and Diseases of Digestive System 54
Bronchitis and Pneumonia 69
Debility and Marasmus 34
Premature Birth 55
Congenital Malformation, Atelectasis, and
Injury at Birth 15
Meningitis 7
Convulsions 20
Suffocation in bed with parents 15
Syphilis 3
Other causes 25
350
Below is a comparative table giving particulars showing the relationship between the temperature, rainfall and diarrhoea mortality in the summer months :—
| No. of Week in Year. | Mean Weekly Temperature of Air. | Mean Weekly Temperature of Earth four feet below surface. | Rainfall. | Deaths from Diarrhœa and Enteritis. | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1912. | 1913. | 1912. | 1913. | 1912. | 1913. | 1912. | 1913. | ||
| º | º | º | º | ins. | ins. | ||||
| 31 | 57.8 | 59.5 | 63.09 | 59.73 | 0.54 | 0.00 | _ | 2 | |
| 32 August | 57.6 | 57.1 | 61.57 | 60.24 | 1.26 | 0.09 | l | 3 | |
| 33 | 56.2 | 60.7 | 60.48 | 60.10 | 0.23 | 0.14 | 2 | 3 | |
| 34 | 57.2 | 60.9 | 60.33 | 60.58 | 1.27 | 0.36 | 3 | 8 | |
| 35 | 56.9 | 62.8 | 59.74 | 60.62 | 1.33 | 0.51 | 2 | 8 | |
| 36 September | 54.8 | 59.1 | 59.08 | 60.63 | 0.21 | 1.43 | 3 | 5 | |
| 37 | 52.4 | 58.0 | 58.01 | 59.96 | 0.02 | 0.06 | — | 8 | |
| 38 | 53.6 | 54.9 | 57.38 | 59.03 | 0.00 | 0.60 | — | 4 | |
| 39 | 51.5 | 60.2 | 56.20 | 58.46 | 0.02 | 0.13 | 1 | 9 | |
| 40 October | 48.8 | 58.5 | 55.11 | 58.75 | 2.30 | 0.22 | 1 | 3 | |
| Weekly Average | 54.7 | 59.2 | 59.09 | 59.81 | 0.72 | 035 | 1 | 5 | |
Note.—The meteorological particulars in the above Table are the results of observations
taken at the Royal Observatory, Greenwich.