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
Paddington 1908
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Paddington, Metropolitan Borough of]
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8 deaths.
After distributing the notifications among the Wards (Table 7) it is found that fewer
cases (all diseases) were reported from Queen's Park, Maida Vale, Lancaster Gate, East, and
Hyde Park Wards. Diphtheria was less prevalent in Queen's Park, Harrow Road and
Church Wards, and that in none of the Wards was there any material increase. Increases in
the numbers of cases of erysipelas were recorded in Westbourne and Church Wards, and of
scarlet fever in all Wards except Maida Vale, Lancaster Gate, East and Hyde Park. The
total morbidity rates for 1908 exceeded the mean rates in all Wards except Lancaster Gate,
East and Hyde Park.
TABLE 7.
Notifications. Ward Distribution.
| Queen's Park. | Harrow Road. | Maida Vale. | Westbourne. | Church. | Lancast West. | er Gate, East. | Hyde Park. | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Smallpox | - (-) | - (-) | - (-) | - (-) | - (-) | - (-) | - (-) | - (-) | |
| Diphtheria | 9(17) | 43(47) | 21 (19) | 26 (23) | 24 (31) | 8(6) | 6(6) | 5(5) | |
| MembranousCroup | 2 (-) | 1 (1) | -(-) | 1 (4) | -(7) | - (-) | - (-) | - (-) | |
| Erysipelas | 9 (76) | 14 (25) | 11 (11) | 23 (17) | 43 (36) | 3(3) | |||
| | Fevers | ( Scarlet | 86 (81) | 215 (172) | 74 (76) | 104 (87) | 152 (100) | 16 (13) | 9 (12) | 25 (38) |
| Enteric | 5 (3) | 5 (7) | 4 (4) | 1 (6) | 6 (7) | 4 (2) | 1 (0) | 5 (4) | |
| Continued | - (-) | 1 (7) | - (-) | - (-) | - (-) | - (-) | |||
| k Puerperal | 1 (7) | 1 (2) | 1 (-) | 1 (1) | - (-) | -(-) | -(-) | ||
| Totals | 113 (119) | 280 (254) | 111 (112) | 156 (137) | 226 (176) | 28 (25) | 19 (22) | 37 (59) | |
| Rates, 1908 | 6.77 | 9.18 | 5.38 | 5.96 | 7.89 | 3.26 | 2.35 | 2.61 | |
| „ 1903-07 | |||||||||
| Figures in parentheses—numbers for 1907. | |||||||||
Facing will be found a diagram giving the annual morbidity rates for each week
of the past year compared with the average (mean) rates for 1898-1907. The maximum rate
from scarlet fever recorded in the Borough during the past year was 13.1 per 1,000 in the
41st week, while the maximum for the whole of London was 6.7 in the 38th week. Last
year's local rates were above the means in the majority of the weeks. In those returns,
three "peaks" stand out prominently, viz., in the 12th, 30th and 41st weeks. In the 12th
week 17 cases were reported, the numbers for the 11th and 13th weeks being 6 and 11
respectively. In the 30th week there were 22 cases, as compared with 7 in the 29th and 11
in the 31st. The 38 cases in the 41st were just double the number in the 40th week and 11
above that in the 42nd. There can be little doubt that school infection had a large share in
the production of those "peaks" and in maintaining the high average prevalence noted
during the year.
The curve for diphtheria shows only one real "peak" in the 42nd week, when 11 cases
were reported as compared with 6 in the preceding and 1 in the following week.
DEATHS.
The deaths registered within the Borough during the 53 weeks of last year (2,079) were
75 fewer than the number recorded during the 52 weeks of 1907 (2,154), and the uncorrected
death-rate (13.58) for last year, 0.82 less than that for the preceding year (14.40). Last
year's total was 182 below the decennial average (2,261) and the rate 1.94 below the mean
(15.52). See Table I., Appendix A.