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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26
The mortality from measles in the several districts is in a large degree determined by the social
condition of the population. If London districts be grouped in relation to overcrowding, it is found
that the groups having the largest proportion of their population "overcrowded" have the
highest death-rates from measles. The following table shows the measles mortality under five years
of age in five groups of districts, arranged in order, according to the proportion of their population
living more than two in a room in tenements of less than five rooms:—
| Proportion of overcrowding1 in groups of sanitary areas. | Measles death-rate at ages 0-5 per 1,000 living 1901-8. |
|---|---|
| Under 7.5 per cent. | 2.12 |
| 7.5 to 12.5 per cent. | 3.34 |
| 12.5 to 20.0 per cent. | 3.84 |
| 20.0 to 27.5 per cent. | 4.31 |
| Over 27.5 per cent. | 4.57 |
If the London measles 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 exceeded
by the death-rates of Liverpool, Manchester, Sheffield, West Ham, Hull and Salford, and in the year
1908, was lower than that of any of these towns, except Birmingham, Sheffield. Bristol, Bradford,
Newcastle and Nottingham.
| Town. | 1898-1907. | 1908. | Town. | 1898-1907. | 1908. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Ham | 0.53 | 0.71 | |||
| Liverpool | 0.49 | 0.34 | Bradford | 0.31 | 0.24 |
| Manchester | 0.62 | 0.56 | Newcastle-on-Tyne | 0.39 | 0.11 |
| Birmingham | 0.41 | 0.11 | Hull | 0.50 | 0.35 |
| Leeds | 0.45 | 0.37 | Nottingham | 0.40 | 0.12 |
| Sheffield | 0.55 | 0.23 | Salford | 0.65 | 0.69 |
| Bristol | 0.43 | 0.26 | Leicester | 0.32 | 0.73 |
The following table shows that the London measles death-rate in the decennium 18981907
was higher than that of any of the undermentioned foreign towns, except St. Petersburg,
but in 1908 it was exceeded by those of Amsterdam, St. Petersburg, Vienna and Rome:—
| Town. | 1898-1907. | 1908. | Town. | 1898-1907. | 1908. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Petersburg | 0.64 | 1.02 | |||
| Paris | 0.24 | 0.18 | Berlin | 0.22 | 0.14 |
| Brussels | 0.16 | 0.26 | Vienna | 0.38 | 0.46 |
| Amsterdam | 0.39 | 0.32 | Rome | 0.30 | 1.00 |
| Copenhagen | 0.18 | 0.08 | New York | 0.19 | 0.22 |
| Stockholm | 0.14 | 0.04 |
The following table shows the number of deaths from measles at the several age-periods in each
of the sanitary areas. For the purposes of this table deaths occurring in public institutions belonging
to London have been distributed to the sanitary areas in which the deceased had previously resided.
(See footnote1, page 8).
1 See footnote (1), page 18.
2 See footnote (1), page 8.