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
Heston and Isleworth 1956
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Heston and Isleworth]
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DEATHS The deaths of residents of the Borough during 1956 were 1,135 (640
male, 495 female) This represents a death rate for the Borough of 10.8 per 1,000
population- The deaths in any area are influenced by the sex and age distribution
of the population. and to permit of a true comparison the Registrar-General calculates
for each local sanitary authority area what is called an area comparability
factor. When this is applied to the above Borough rate, the result is 11,4 as compared
with a death rate of 11,7 per 1,000 population for England and Wales,
The Registrar General has classified the deaths registered during the year, and
the details are given in Tables II III and IV The cause of death was certified
by the Coroner in 242 cases.
A progressive change is taking place in the percentage age distribution of deaths, and this is shown in the following table:=
| 1910-14 | 1945-49 | 1950-54 | 1956 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Under 1 year | 21.8 | 5.3 | 2.4 | 1.9 |
| 1-4 years | 8.4 | 0.8 | 0.5 | 0.4 |
| 5*14 years | 3.8 | 2.1 | 0.4 | 0.5 |
| 15-24 years | 3.7 | 2.1 | 0.8 | 0.5 |
| 25-64 years | 30.8 | 33.0 | 31.6 | 29.4 |
| 65 years and over | 31.5 | 56. 7 | 64.3 | 67.3 |
The chief causes of death in males were heart and circulatory diseases, cancer,
bronchitis and pneumonia cerebral haemorrhage In females, the chief causes of
death were heart and circulatory disease cerebral haemorrhage, cancer, bronchitis
and pneumonia
The Secretary of the Road Safety Committee informs me that during 1956 there
were 667 road accidents which resulted in 15 deaths serious injury to 145 persons
and slight injury to 670 persons.
The number of deaths from motor vehicle and other accidents in Borough residents during the last ten years is shown below
| Motor Vehicle Accidents | Other Accidents | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Age in years | -All ages | Age in years | All ages | ||||||
| 0-4 | 5 14 | 15 64 | 65- | 0 4 | 5 14 | 15-64 | 65- | |||
| 1947 | - | - | 10 | 2 | 12 | 1 | - | 12 | 20 | 33 |
| 1948 | - | - | 8 | 2 | 10 | 2 | 2 | 10 | 14 | 28 |
| 1949 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 5 | 14 | 2 | - | 9 | 8 | 19 |
| 1950 | 2 | 3 | 8 | 7 | 20 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 17 | 26 |
| 1951 | - | - | 9 | 3 | 12 | - | 1 | 4 | 13 | 18 |
| 1952 | - | 1 | 3 | 7 | 11 | - | - | 3 | 12 | 15 |
| 1953 | - | - | 9 | 8 | 17 | - | - | 5 | 15 | 20 |
| 1954 | - | 1 | 9 | 3 | 13 | 1 | - | 9 | 13 | 23 |
| 1955 | - | 7 | 7 | 14 | - | 1 | 4 | 13 | 18 | |
| 1956 | - | 2 | 9 | 6 | 17 | - | - | 11 | 8 | 19 |
| Total | 3 | 9 | 78 | 50 | 140 | 8 | 5 | 73 | 133 | 219 |
Below is a table showing the causes of accidental deaths (other than motor vehicles) in males and females for the years 1952 56:-
| 0-4 yrs. | 5-14 yrs. | 15-24 yrs. | 25-44 yrs. | 45-64 yrs. | 65-74 yrs. | 75 yrs. & over. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MALE | |||||||
| Fall in hospital, institution etc. | - | - | - | - | - | 1 | 8 |
| Fall at home | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | 6 |
| Fall in street or outdoors | - | - | - | - | 3 | - | - |
| Drowning | _ | - | - | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Choking (food, vomit etc) | - | - | - | 1 | 2 | - | - |
| Coal gas poisoning | - | - | - | 2 | 1 | - | 3 |
| Railway Accidents | - | - | - | - | 3 | 1 | - |
| Pedal cycle accident | - | - | 1 | - | 1 | - | - |
| Burns | - | 1 | - | - | - | - | 1 |
| Caught in machinery | - | - | - | 2 | - | - | - |