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Infant Mortality
Infant mortality and the stillbirth rate in Willesden showed a slight reduction compared with 1952.
(see table 1).
Sixty infants under the age of one year died in 1953, more than two out of three (43) in the first
four weeks of life (the neo-natal period). Prematurity caused the highest number of deaths (21) and was
associated with other causes in 7 (table 2).
Ten deaths were from respiratory diseases, and 7 from diarrhoea and gastro-enteritis (four in the
neo-natal period) (table 3).
Congenital malformations caused 11 deaths in the neo-natal period and one in the age group 1—12
months (table 4).
There were three deaths under "other causes"; 1 from sub-arachnoid haemorrhage and 2 from
intestinal obstruction in the 1—12 months age group; the third infant died during the neo-natal period of
kernicterus.
There is a greater number of deaths in first-born infants (table 5).
An analysis into the 23 deaths occuring in first-born infants shows prematurity, congenital malformation
and birth injury as the main causes in the neo-natal period (table 6).
Five of the six babies who died of birth injuries were delivered in hospital (table 7).
Details of the abnormal deliveries are given in table 8; the four infant deaths which were associated
with maternal toxaemia occurred in the neo-natal period.
Some of these deaths appear to have been avoidable: an analysis of 52 infant deaths by social
class and home environment shows that a large proporton occur in the lower social levels.