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
Wimbledon 1944
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Wimbledon]
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The crude death rate is, strictly speaking, not comparable with
the figure for England and Wales, In order to provide for this the
Registrar-General introduced some years ago an areal comparability
factor. This factor, however, is not available this year, but assuming
it to be the same as for 1940, the last year for which it is
available, the adjusted death rate for Wimbledon would be 13.21 per
thousand of the population as compared with a figure of 11.6 per
thousand for England and Wales.
CAUSES OF DEATH.
| Males | Females | Total | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Typhoid ana paratyphoid fevers | - | - | - |
| 2. | Cerebro-spinal fever | - | - | - |
| 3. | Scarlet Fever | - | - | - |
| 4. | Whooping Cough | - | 1 | 1 |
| 5. | Diphtheria | - | - | - |
| 6. | Tuberculosis of respiratory system | 12 | 14 | 26 |
| 7. | Other forms of tuberculosis | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| 8. | Syphilitic diseases | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 9. | Influenza | - | 6 | 6 |
| 10. | Measles | - | - | - |
| 11. | Acute poliomyelitis and polioencephalitis | - | - | - |
| 12. | Acute infectious encephalitis | - | - | - |
| 13. | M.Cancer of buccal cavity and oesophagus (males only) | 5 | - | 5 |
| 13. | F.Cancer of uterus | - | 2 | 2 |
| 14. | Cancer of stomach and duodenum | 10 | 9 | 19 |
| 15. | Cancer of breast | - | 13 | 13 |
| 16. | cancer of all other sites | 36 | 39 | 75 |
| 17. | Diabetes | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| 18. | Intra-cranial vascular lesions | 30 | 36 | 66 |
| 19. | Heart disease | 92 | 100 | 192 |
| 20. | Other diseases of the circulatory system | 12 | 10 | 22 |
| 21. | Bronchitis | 22 | 9 | 31 |
| 22. | Pneumonia | 16 | 13 | 29 |
| 23. | Other respiratory diseases | 9 | 2 | 11 |
| 24. | Ulcer of the stomach or duodenum | 6 | 3 | 9 |
| 25. | Diarrhoea (under 2 years of age) | 3 | 3 | 6 |
| 26. | Appendicitis | 1 | - | 1 |
| 27. | Other digestive diseases | 7 | 8 | 15 |
| 28. | Nephritis | 5 | 6 | 11 |
| 29. | Puerperal and post-abortive sepsis | - | 2 | 2 |
| 30. | Other maternal causes | - | - | - |
| 31. | Premature birth | 4 | 2 | 6 |
| 32. | Congenital malformations, birth injury, infantile diseases | 7 | 4 | 11 |
| 33. | Suicide | 4 | 1 | 5 |
| 34. | Road traffic accidents | 6 | 1 | 7 |
| 35. | Other violent causes | 20 | 42 | 62 |
| 36. | All other causes | 31 | 32 | 63 |
| Totals | 342 | 363 | 705 | |
Over half the total deaths which occurred amongst Wimbledon
residents in 1944 were again due to cancer, diseases of the heart and
circulation, and diseases of the respiratory system.
Infant Mortality.
There were twenty-six. infant deaths (including transferable deaths)
giving an Infantile Mortality Rate of 37.14 per thousand live births,
compared with a figure of 50.17 per thousand in the previous year.
During 1944 the Infantile Mortality Rate for England and Wales was fortysix.
The following table shows the causes of, and ages at, death,
together with the Ward distribution.
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