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15
Infantile Mortality.
The extremely high rate of infantile mortality during the year is the
most serious fact to which attention has to be drawn in this Report. The
total number 'of deaths of infants under 12 months of age was 167, giving
an infantile mortality rate of 167.8 per 1000 births. (These figures are for
residents only. The official infantile mortality rate, as given in Table 1,
169 3, is calculated on the total births and infant deaths registered during
the year).
Several deaths were registered as occurring at the age of 12 months
exactly, and these by the instructions of the Registrar are excluded from
the number of infant deaths. The rate this year is the highest on record
for the district, with the exception of the year 1898, and is much above the
average for the last 10 years. It is 70.73 above the rate for last year.
The infantile mortality rate for each of the quarters is shown in the
following table:—
1st quarter157 per 1000 births
2nd „ 110.6 „
3rd „ 294.3 „
4th ,, 134.0 ,,
These quarterly infant mortality rates are not calculated to equal annual
rates, but are based on actual numbers of infant deaths and births during
each quarter.
In the Report of the Medical Officer of Health for the third quarter of
the year the following statement was made:—
"The numbers of the infantile deaths in the two previous quarters
of this year were respectively 36 and 28, making a total for the nine
months of 131. It is a general experience that more infantile deaths
take place during the third quarter of the year than at any other time,
but even allowing for this, the number registered during the past three
months in this district is out of all proportion.
In considering the causes of deaths as notified to the Registrar on
the certificates, I have carefully excluded all these where it may be