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 1909
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London County Council]
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51*
Diarrhœa.
The deaths within the Administrative County of London during 1909 (52 weeks) attributed to
epidemic diarrhoea and infective enteritis numbered 941, while 8321 deaths were attributed to diarrhœa
and dysentery. The corresponding figures for 1908 (53 weeks) were 1,577 and 1,081 respectively.
The age-distribution of the fully corrected deaths in 1909 was as follows:—
| Disease. | Under 1 year. | 1-5. | 5-20. | 20-40. | 40-60. | 60-80. | 80 and upwards | All ages |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Epidemic diarrhoea, infective enteritis | 602 | 140 | 14 | 7 | 12 | 5 | 1 | 781 |
| Diarrhœ and dysentery | 562 | 110 | 7 | 14 | 36 | 46 | 21 | 796 |
| Total | 1,164 | 250 | 21 | 21 | 48 | 51 | 22 | 1,577 |
No accurate comparison can be made of the deaths from epidemic diarrhoea for a long series
of years in London, owing to changes made in methods of classification; diagram XX., however, shows
the death-rate from cholera, dysentery and diarrhoea combined, in each year since 1840 in relation
to the mean death-rate of the period 1841-1909.
The following table shows that the London diarrhoea death-rate was in the quinquennium 1904-8
lower than the death-rate of any of the undermentioned large English towns, except Bristol, Bradford
and Newcastle-on-Tyne, and in 1909 was lower than that of any except Leeds, Bristol, Bradford and
Newcastle-on-Tyne.
| Town. | 1904-8. | 1909. | Town. | 1904-8. | 1909. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| London | 0.713 | 0.332 | West Ham | 1.44 | 0.65 |
| Liverpool | 1.45 | 0.70 | Bradford | 0.62 | 0.16 |
| Manchester | 1.09 | 0.43 | Newcastle-on-Tyne | 0.54 | 0.20 |
| Birmingham | 1.08 | 0.45 | Hul | 1.34 | 0.57 |
| Leeds | 0.76 | 0.23 | Nottingham | 0.98 | 0.69 |
| Sheffield | 1.29 | 0.55 | Salford | 1.15 | 0.50 |
| Bristol | 0.41 | 0.27 | Leicester | 0.84 | 0.43 |
The deaths and death-rates from diarrhoea for the year 1909, and the death-rates for the period 1904-8 in each of the sanitary areas of London, are shown in the following table:—
| Sanitary area. | Deaths, 1909 (52 weeks). | Death-rate per 1,000 persons liying. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1904-8. | 1909. | ||
| Paddington | 36 | 0.58 | 0.24 |
| Kensington | 49 | 0.56 | 0.27 |
| Hammersmith | 44 | 0.71 | 0.35 |
| Fulham | 99 | 1.08 | 0.56 |
| Chelsea | 15 | 0.52 | 0.20 |
| Westminster, City of | 16 | 0.33 | 0.10 |
| St. Marylebone | 29 | 0.47 | 0.23 |
| Hampstead | 4 | 0.17 | 0.04 |
| St. Pancras | 45 | 0.51 | 0.19 |
| Islington | 69 | 0.49 | 0.20 |
| Stoke Newington | 4 | 0.41 | 0.07 |
| Hackney | 77 | 0.80 | 0.32 |
| Holborn | 9 | 0.49 | 0.17 |
| Finsbury | 60 | 0.97 | 0.63 |
| London, City of | 2 | 0.18 | 0.11 |
| Shoreditch | 89 | 1.22 | 0.78 |
| Bethnal Green | 95 | 0.92 | 0.73 |
| Stepney | 137 | 1.05 | 0.44 |
| Poplar | 109 | 1.18 | 0.64 |
| Southwark | 113 | 094 | 0.54 |
| Bermondsey | 67 | 1.03 | 0.53 |
| Lambeth | 103 | 0.66 | 0.32 |
| Battersea | 49 | 0.69 | 0.26 |
| Wandsworth | 58 | 0.58 | 0.20 |
| Camberwell | 84 | 0.61 | 0.30 |
| Deptford | 31 | 0.78 | 0.26 |
| Greenwich | 36 | 0.68 | 0.33 |
| Lewisham | 29 | 0.52 | 0.18 |
| Woolwich | 19 | 0.65 | 0.14 |
| London | 1,577 | 0.71 | 0.33 |
1 See footnote (2), page 45.
? See footnote (2), page 6.