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Inquests. Inquests were held on 26 deaths occurring in the
district, 16 of which were in respect of residents. The verdicts
returned were as follows:—
(1) Accidental Deaths—
Collision with motor vehicles 5
Fall at home 7
Fall from train 1
Coal Gas poisoning 2
Inhalation of stomach contents following
anaesthesia 1
— 16
(2) Suicide by—
Aspirin poisoning 1
Barbituric acid poisoning 2
Coal Gas poisoning 5
Collision with train 1
Seconal Sodium poisoning 1
— 10
26
The total number of inquests held were four more than in
the year before. Road accidents were responsible for five of
the total accidental deaths, compared with five for the previous
year.
CAUSES OF DEATH.
There were 709 deaths during the year 1950 in Merton and
Morden, of whom 361 were males and 348 females. Disease of the
heart, comprising the three groups directly attributable to that
organ, viz., coronary disease and angina, hypertension and other
heart disease, total 223 deaths, the largest number of deaths from
any single cause in the list in Table VI. If we add vascular
disease of the nervous system and other circulatory disease the
deaths from vascular disease reached the total of 316, or 45%
of the total from all causes.
The next largest single cause is Cancer, which is responsible
for 151 deaths. These two groups — vascular disease and
Cancer — account for two-thirds of the total deaths. Cancer
is perhaps the most important as it is incontestably due to a
pathological process, whereas hidden among these deaths from
Heart Disease are probably quite a large number of deaths from
degenerative processes associated with age.
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