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
Battersea 1937
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Battersea Borough]
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15
On page 131 the causes of the 151 deaths of infants are set out
in detail, and a close examination of this table and comparison with
the similar tables of previous years indicate the diseases to which
most of the increase is due. On the average rates for the 10 years
1927 to 1936 the number of infant deaths which might have been
anticipated in 1937 among 2,144 births was 125, or 26 less than
actually occurred. Using the same average rates the number of
deaths assigned to those causes usually termed "developmental"
would have been 58 instead of 72, while diarrhoea and enteritis
would have accounted for 16 instead of 29 deaths. These two
causes, therefore, in the main account for the higher infantile
mortality rate during the year.
Among the developmental diseases, while "prematurity" has
less than the average rate, "congenital malformations" show
considerably more deaths than would be expected. The deaths
from developmental diseases were 72 as compared with 61 in 1936.
Of the 151 infant deaths 76 per cent. occurred in hospital, and
in the case of those babies who died from diarrhoea and enteritis no
less than 28 out of 29 died in hospital.
It is interesting to note that, although the death rate for infants
under one year was so high, deaths of children under 5 years of age
(including the infants) were less by eight than might have been
anticipated from the rate which prevailed in the previous 10 years.
There were 62 deaths of infants during the first four weeks of
life (or 41.1 per cent. of the total infant deaths) as compared with
61 deaths (or 48·4 per cent.) in 1936 and a percentage for the
quinquennium 1932-1936 of 44·3.
Table showing Deaths of Infants under 1 day, under 1 week and under 4 wekks from 1932 to 1937.
| Year. | Under 24 hrs. | 1 to 7 days. | 1 to 4 weeks. | Total under 4 weeks. | Percentage deaths under 4 weeks of total infant deaths |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1932 | 16 | 20 | 16 | 52 | 38·8 |
| 1933 | 21 | 11 | 13 | 45 | 40·2 |
| 1934 | 25 | 15 | 13 | 53 | 40·2 |
| 1935 | 38 | 26 | 9 | 73 | 53·3 |
| 1936 | 18 | 22 | 21 | 61 | 48·4 |
| Mean | 23·6 | 18·8 | 14·4 | 56·8 | 44·3 |
| 1937 | 23 | 23 | 16 | 62 | 41·1 |
The causes of the 151 infant deaths are shown in detail in the
appendix, pages 129-131.
The number of infant deaths in each quarter of the year is
shown in the table on page 13.
Deaths of Illegitimate Infants.
The death-rate amongst illegitimate children during 1937 was
69·77 per 1,000 births, as compared with 57·5 in 1936, 160·9 in
1935, 134·8 in 1934, and 69·3 in 1933. The corresponding deathrate
of legitimate children in 1937 was 70·46, the ratio of mortality
rate of illegitimate infants to that of legitimate being 99 to 100.