London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
View report page
Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
Islington 1954
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Islington Borough]
This page requires JavaScript
Continued from previous page...
| Age distribution : | Under 1 yr. | 1— | 5— | 15— | 25 and over | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1954 | — | 7 | 2 | 1 | 2 | |
| 1953 | — | 6 | 5 | 3 | 3 | |
| 1952 | — | 1 | 5 | 4 | 5 | |
| 1951 | — | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | |
| 1950 | 1 | 11 | 12 | 4 | 3 | |
| 1949 | 3 | 35 | 17 | 2 | 5 | |
| 1948 | — | 2 | 5 | 1 | 1 | |
| 1947 | 1 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 3 | |
Deaths—1954—1 (27 years).
1953—3 (4 years ; 15 years ; 24 years).
1952—Nil.
1951—Nil.
1950—2 (6 years ; 12 years). The onset of the disease of the 6-year-old was in
1949.
1949—2 (2 years ; 26 years).
1948—Nil.
1947—4.
Diphtheria Cases and Deaths—1927—1954
| Year | Notified Cases | Deaths | Year | Notified Cases | Deaths | Year | Notified Cases | Confirmed Cases | Deaths |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1927 | 720 | 25 | 1936 | 583 | 31 | 1945 | 86 | 45 | 3 |
| 1928 | 760 | 25 | 1937 | 623 | 20 | 1946 | 137 | 50 | — |
| 1929 | 1,008 | 34 | 1938 | 595 | 23 | 1947 | 72 | 19 | 1 |
| 1930 | 1,248 | 42 | 1939 | 254 | 10 | 1948 | 44 | 7 | — |
| 1931 | 714 | 15 | 1940 | 101 | 2 | 1949 | 55 | 17 | 2 |
| 1932 | 601 | 20 | 1941 | 174 | 11 | 1950 | 50 | 19 | 1 |
| 1933 | 551 | 33 | 1942 | 201 | 2 | 1951 | 43 | 17 | 1 |
| 1934 | 815 | 32 | 1943 | 188 | 9 | 1952 | 23 | — | — |
| 1935 | 760 | 13 | 1944 | 94 | 2 | 1953 | 12 | 1 | — |
| 1954 | 6 | 1 | - |
Corrected Notifications
| Year | England and Wales | London | Islington |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1944 | 23,199 | 758 | 38 |
| 1945 | 18,596 | 801 | 45 |
| 1946 | 11,986 | 747 | 50 |
| 1947 | 5,609 | 451 | 19 |
| 1948 | 3,575 | 335 | 7 |
| 1949 | 1,881 | 221 | 17 |
| 1950 | 962 | 81 | 19 |
| 1951 | 699 | 30 | 17 |
| 1952 | 101 | 5 | — |
| 1953 | 267 | 13 | 1 |
| 1954 | 176 | 8 | 1 |
It will be seen from the above tables that there was no confirmed case of
diphtheria in the Borough in 1952, and the 1953 case included was, strictly speaking,
not a clinical case but a contact who was a carrier and who remained in good health.
The single confirmed case in 1954, however, was a true case of diphtheria.