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
London County Council 1908
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London County Council]
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The death-rates from smallpox in successive periods have been as follows:—
| Period. | Death-rate per 1,000 persons living. | Period. | Death-rate per 1,000 persons living. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1841-50 | 0.402 | 1902 | 0.2821 |
| 1851-60 | 0.280 | 1003 | 0.0031 |
| 1861-70 | 0.276 | 1904 | 0.0051 |
| 1871-80 | 0.457 | 1905 | 0.0021 |
| 1881-90 | 0.142 | 1906 | - |
| 1891-1900 | 0.0091 | 1907 | - |
| 1901 | 0.0511 | 1908 | - |
The small-pox death-rate in each year since 1840 in relation to the mean death-rate during
the period 1841-1908 is shown in diagram VI.
During the complete years in which the notification of infectious diseases has been obligatory,
the number of cases of smallpox (uncorrected for errors in diagnosis) notified to the medical officers of
health in the various sanitary districts comprised in the Administrative County has been as follows:—
| Year. | Cases notified. | Case-rate per 1,000 persons living. |
|---|---|---|
| 1890 | 60 | 0.014 |
| 1891 | 114 | 0.027 |
| 1892 | 425 | 0.100 |
| 1893 | 2,815 | 0.653 |
| 1894 | 1,193 | 0.274 |
| 1895 | 980 | 0.223 |
| 1896 | 225 | 0.050 |
| 1897 | 104 | 0.023 |
| 1898 | 33 | 0.007 |
| 1899 | 29 | 0.006 |
| 1900 | 86 | 0.019 |
| 1901 | 1,700 | 0.375 |
| 1902 | 7,796 | 1.675 |
| 1903 | 416 | 0.090 |
| 1904 | 489 | 0.105 |
| 1905 | 74 | 0.016 |
| 1906 | 31 | 0.007 |
| 1907 | 8 | 0.002 |
| 1908 | 42 | 0.001 |
If the London smallpox death-rate be compared with the death-rates of the following large
English towns, it will be seen that in the decennium 1898-1907 the London death-rate was higher than
that of any, except Liverpool, West Ham and Hull; in 1908 there were no deaths from smallpox
in any of these towns.
| Town. | 1898-1907. | 1908. | Town. | 1893-1907. | 1908. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Ham | 0.06 | - | |||
| Liverpool | 0.03 | - | Bradford | 0.01 | - |
| Manchester | 0.01 | - | Newcastle-on-Tyne | 0.01 | - |
| Birmingham | 0.00 | - | Hull | 0.08 | - |
| Leeds | 0.01 | - | Nottingham | 0.01 | - |
| Sheffield | 0.00 | - | Salford | 0.00 | - |
| Bristol | 0.00 | - | Leicester | 0.01 | - |
In this table 0.00 indicates that the deaths were too few to give a rate of 0.005; where no death occurred — is
inserted.
1 See footnote (1), page 8.
2 In each of these cases the diagnosis of smallpox was not subsequently confirmed.