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
Paddington 1911
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Paddington, Metropolitan Borough of]
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57
mortality in childhood.
latter. Prima facie, therefore, the mortality during the "summer" of 1911 ought to have been
higher than that of 1899. Actually the ratio was 100 :113.8, a difference of just on 14 in favour
of the last year, affording further confirmation of the view that the excess of diarrhcea was not
commensurate with the excess of heat of the summer.
TABLE 35. Diarrhœa. Mortality Rates per 1,000 children aged 0—2 years.
| Year. | "Summer." | Year. | "Summer." | Year. | "Summer." | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1911. | 1906-1910. | 1911. | 1906-1910. | 1911. | 1906-1910. | 1911. | 1906-1910. | 1911. | 1906-1910. | 1911. | 1906-1910. | |||
| Paddington | 27.56 | 14.52 | 50.44 | 51.78 | Holborn | 22.55 | 13.78 | 74.51 | 39.05 | Southwark | 32.50 | 18.15 | 109.58 | 65.38 |
| Kensington | 28.33 | 16.21 | 85.00 | 59.59 | Finsbury | 34.68 | 20.31 | 117.45 | 60.84 | Bermondsey | 32.81 | 17.50 | 104.27 | 61.70 |
| Hammersmith | 37.04 | 15.50 | 113.10 | 58.17 | City | 27.37 | 8.16 | 86.31 | 24.76 | Lambeth | 28.11 | 10.27 | 90.30 | 56.39 |
| Fulham | 30.22 | 20.15 | 131.39 | 76.67 | Battersea | 29.49 | 12.28 | 90.24 | 52.21 | |||||
| Chelsea | 25.62 | 15.54 | 78.09 | 46.22 | Central Districts | Wandsworth | 24 10 | 10-49 | 68'27 | 43 87 | ||||
| Westminster | 16 53 | 10-78 | 49 59 | 31-72 | 31.07 | 14.17 | 104.96 | 52.69 | Camberwell | 24.65 | 12.57 | 81.63 | 47.50 | |
| Deptford | 34 20 | 15-57 1 i | 112.20 | 55.21 | ||||||||||
| Western | Greenwich | 35.81 | 13.64 | 115.31 | 54.50 | |||||||||
| Districts | 28.36 | 15.94 | 88.01 | 56.63 | Shoreditch | 40.57 | 22.70 | 128.19 | 80.83 | Lewisham | 20 05 | 10.92 | 67.77 | 37.19 |
| Bethnal Green | 38.04 | 16.60 | 129.02 | 56.34 | Woolwich | 20.59 | 10.56 | 70.10 | 44.21 | |||||
| Stepney | 33.67 | 18.89 | 108.62 | 60.19 | ||||||||||
| St. Marylebone | 2382 | 12.04 | 64.26 | 45.30 | Poplar | 38.31 | 22.94 | 136.93 | 81.97 | Southern Districts | 27.74 | 13.53 | 88.81 | 51.79 |
| Hampstead | 9.70 | 5.77 | 29.48 | 16.47 | ||||||||||
| St. Pancras | 22.55 | 10.27 | 75.98 | 40.93 | Eastern Districts | 36.58 | 19.54 | 122.27 | 67.52 | |||||
| Islington | 26.60 | 9.69 | 85.51 | 33.71 | County of London | 28.57 | 14.57 | 92.25 | 54.38 | |||||
| Stoke Newington | 16.13 | 8.75 | 57.77 | 34.85 | ||||||||||
| Hackney | 21.73 | 15.14 | 71.36 | 36.64 | ||||||||||
| Northern Districts | 22.60 | 10.98 | 73.51 | 40.94 | ||||||||||
According to the results included in Table 35 the mortality experienced in the Borough
during the year was 27.56, 13 04 above the mean rate. The annual rate based on the deaths
during the " summer " (50.44) was the only one in the whole County which was less than the
mean rate, but lower rates obtained in Westminster (49 59) and Hampstead (29 48). Such rates
are in striking contrast with those of 136.93 and 128.19 recorded in Poplar and Shoreditch
respectively.
As in previous years, arrangements were made for securing information of cases of diarrhœa
treated in the out-patients' departments of the local hospitals and by the Poor Law Medical
Officers. All cases so reported during life were visited by the Women Inspectors. A search
through the case papers at the Infirmary was also made at the end of the year and notes taken
of all cases treated there during the summer months.
The "Diarrhoea Register" was opened on June 12th and closed on November 25th, thus
including a period of twenty-four weeks. During that time 359 cases of diarrhoea in children
under two years of age were recorded. The examination of the case papers at the Infirmary
brought to light 28 other cases, making the total number of known attacks 387. At ages over
two years there were 34 known cases outside the Infirmary and 10 inside. During the twentyfour
weeks there were 69 deaths from diarrhœa in patients whose cases were not brought to the
knowledge of the Department, and in addition thereto there were 57 deaths (not all, however,
being certified as due to diarrhoea) among the known cases.
The largest numbers of cases were reported during the four weeks ending August 12th (32),
19th (53), 26th (80), and September 2nd (31). When the dates of onset are considered (Table 36),
the highest numbers fall in the weeks ended August 12th (63) and 19th (64). The disease was
acutely epidemic for a period of (approximately) eight weeks—from the week ending August 5th
to that ending September 23rd. Fifty-four of the children had relapses (or second attacks), the
greater proportion of the cases with relapses occurring after August 5th.
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