View report page

42
An investigation of stillbirths occurring to Greenwich residents
during 1966 reveals that the majority of stillbirths resulted from
placental insufficiency, congenital malformations and accidental
haemorrhage. A full analysis of causes of stillbirths is given in the
following table:—
Abruptio placentae 2
Accidental haemorrhage 7
„ „ (essential
hypertension) 1
Ante partum haemorrhage 1
Asphyxia 1
„ (by umbilical cord) 2
Congenital malformation 9
„ „ (maternal age) 1
Early rupture of membranes 1
Fulminating termination of
pregnancy I
Hydrocephalus 1
Hypertension I
Macerated foetus (hydramnios) 5
Placental infarction 2
Placental insufficiency 10
„ „ (maternal
hypertension) 3
Postmaturity 1
Precipitate labour 1
Pre-eclampsia 4
Rhesus incompatability 2
Vasa praevia 1
Unknown 2
Deaths
Populations are not similarly constituted and their crude Death
Rates therefore fail as true comparative mortality indexes in that
their variations are not due to mortality alone, but arise also from
differences in their population constitution. For instance, a town
with a population consisting of aged persons would register more
deaths than one composed entirely of young and vigorous adults.
Again a town containing a larger number of males than females
records more deaths with a consequent higher Death Rate than one
in which females preponderate.
To overcome this difficulty the Registrar-General has worked
out for each area in the country an adjusting factor which is termed
the area comparability factor and is based on the last census population
figure. The factor for Greenwich, viz. 1.07, may be regarded
as the population handicap to be applied which, when multiplied
by the crude Death Rate for the year, modifies the latter so as to
make it comparable with the country as a whole or with any similarly
adjusted area.
The net number of Greenwich deaths registered during 1966
was 2,560, of which 1,332 were males and 1,228 females, compared
with last year's total of 2,544. This gives a crude Death Rate for the
Borough of 11.09 per 1,000 of the population, representing an
increase of 0.08 over that calculated for the previous year. When the
area comparability factor is taken into account the rate is increased
to 11.87 for comparative purposes.
The Death Rates for Greater London and for England and
Wales are 11.1 and 11.7 respectively.
The inset table showing the causes of deaths at all ages has been
supplied by the Registrar-General and is included in accordance
with the Ministry of Health's request.