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
Chelsea 1898
Annual report for 1898 of the Medical Officer of Health
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The slightly higher mortality in Chelsea in 1898, as compared
with 1897, is attributable to a greater prevalence of measles in the past
year. As in 1897, there was an excessive prevalence of infantile
diarrhoea in the summer (August and September), which raised the
general death-rate. The past year is the first year on record in which
the general death-rate of the home district has been below that of
Kensal Town. All the diseases of the zymotic class appear to have
been more prevalent in Kensal Town than in the home district, but
especially diphtheria, measles, and summer diarrhoea.
The high death-rates in Chelsea of the years 1891, 1892, 1893,
and 1895, wero largely duo to the prevalence of epidemic influenza in
those years.
Zymotic death-rate.—The death-rate in Chelsea from the seven
principal zymotic diseases was 3*39 per 1,000 in 1898, the corresponding
rate for London beiug 2-8 per 1,000. In 1897 the zymotic doath-rato
in Chelsea was 3*11 per 1,000.
Table IV.—For the year 1898.
| Zymotic death-rate. | Diarrhoea death-rate. | Phthisis death-rate. | Other tubercular diseases death-rate. | Respiratory diseases death-rate. | Deaths under 1 year to 1,000 births. | Percentage of deaths under 5 to total deaths. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ilome District | 2.87 | 1.26 | 1.91 | 0 53 | 3.44 | 161 | 34.0 |
| Kensal Town | 5.23 | 2.12 | 1.37 | 0.80 | 3.10 | 222 | 52.5 |
| Chelsea | 3.39 | 1.45 | 1.79 | 0 59 | 3.38 | 176 | 38.2 |
| London | 2.80 | 1.56 | 1.78 | 0.71 | 3.28 | 167 | 40.8 |
The above Table shows that during the past year there has been
an exceptional prevalence of fatal infantile diseases in Kensal Town, as
shown by the high zymotic and diarrhoea death.rates, the excessive
mortality of infants under one year of age in proportion to births, and
the high percentage of deaths under five years of age to total deaths.
In 1897 also, Kensal Town suffered severely from summer diarrhoea,
the zymotic death.rate being 4.3 per 1,000, the diarrhoea death.rate
2"49 per 1,000, there being 190 deaths of infants under one year to
every 1,000 births, and 46 per cent, of tho total deaths being of children
under five years of age.
Small.pox.—Thero were no deaths from small.pox in 1898; and as
in 1896 and 1897, not a single case of the disease occurred in the
parish r
_ Measles.—This disease caused 92 deaths in 1898, as compared with
18 deaths in 1897, and 109 deaths in 1896. Sixty.four of the deaths