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
Finsbury 1902
Report on the public health of 1902
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21
The causes of death amongst aged persons will naturally be those
attributable to strain and exhaustion. The number of deaths, over
65 per 1,000 of the population, will also depend to a considerable
degree upon the social status of the majority of the population.
In an industrial community there will naturally be fewer lives
attaining old age. Senility, Heart Disease, Pneumonia, Cerebral
Diseases, Paralysis, etc., are common causes of death.
DEATHS FROM ZYMOTIC OR INFECTIOUS
DISEASES.
The deaths from Zymotic Diseases occurring in the Borough (intra-parochial and extra-parochial) during the year numbered 337, and were caused as follows:—
| Small-pox | Scarlet Fever | Diphtheria and Membranous Croup | Enteric Fever | Puerperal Fever | Erysipelas | Measles | Whooping Cough | Diarrhœa | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1901 | 10 | 19 | 36 | 11 | 4 | 4 | 49 | 37 | 95 | 265 |
| 1902 | 30 | 15 | 37 | 9 | 6 | 5 | 83 | 68 | 84 | 337 |
These returns yield a Zymotic death rate of 3.35 per 1000. The
amount paid to Medical Practitioners for furnishing Notification
Certificates was £175 16s. 6d. The Local Authority is recouped for
this expenditure by the Metropolitan Asylums Board. The fees paid
for Voluntary Notification of Phthisis amounted to £7 3s.