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
London County Council 1903
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London County Council]
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| Towns. | 1893.1902. | 1903. | Towns. | 1893.1902. | 1903. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| London | 0.451 | 0.351 | Bradford | 0.32 | 0.32 |
| Liverpool | 0.53 | 0.4,3 | West Ham | 0.49 | 0.59 |
| Manchester | 0.50 | 0.39 | Hull | 0.38 | 0.09 |
| Birmingham | 0.50 | 0.17 | Nottingham | 0.33 | 0.39 |
| Leeds | 0.39 | 0.27 | Salford | 0.61 | 0.42 |
| Sheffield | 0.41 | 0.61 | Newcastle | 0.45 | 0.23 |
| Bristol | 0.39 | 0.20 | Leicester | 0.32 | 0.16 |
The following table shows that the London whooping-cough death-rate both in the period
1893.1902 and in 1903 considerably exceeded that of any of the undermentioned foreign towns—
| Towns. | 1893.1902. | 1903. | Towns. | 1893.1902. | 1903. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| London | 0.451 | 0.351 | St. Petersburg | 0.22 | 0.28 |
| Paris | 0.14 | 0.08 | Berlin | 0.29 | 0.23 |
| Brussels | 0.14 | 0.11 | Vienna | 0.09 | 0.13 |
| Amsterdam | 0.27 | 0.13 | Rome | 0.06 | 0.09 |
| Copenhagen | 0.34 | 0.13 | New York | 0.18 | 0.09 |
| Stockholm | 0.20 | 0.12 |
The following table shows the deaths from whooping cough and the death-rates in the
several metropolitan boroughs during the year 1903—
| Metropolitan borough. | Deaths in 1903. | death-rate per 1,000 living, 1903. | Metropolitan borough. | Deaths in 1903. | death-rate per 1,000 living, 1903. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paddington | 54 | 0.37 | Shoreditch | 44 | 0.38 |
| Kensington | 90 | 0.51 | Bethnal-green | 42 | 0.32 |
| Hammersmith | 30 | 0.26 | Stepney | 108 | 0.36 |
| Fulham | 46 | 0.31 | Poplar | 80 | 0.47 |
| Chelsea | 29 | 0.39 | Southwark | 68 | 0.33 |
| Westminster, City of | 34 | 0.19 | Bermondsey | 41 | 0.32 |
| St. Marylebone | 56 | 0.43 | Lambeth | 126 | 0.41 |
| Hampstead | 16 | 0.19 | Battersea | 81 | 0.47 |
| St. Pancras | 91 | 0.39 | Wandsworth | 89 | 0.36 |
| Islington | 153 | 0.45 | Camberwell | 72 | 0.27 |
| Stoke Newington | 19 | 0.37 | Deptford | 45 | 0.40 |
| Hackney | 67 | 0.30 | Greenwich | 37 | 0.37 |
| Holborn | 18 | 0.31 | Lewisham | 6 | 0.04 |
| Finsbury | 54 | 0.54 | Woolwich | 27 | 0.22 |
| London, City of | 4 | 0.16 | London | 1,627 | 0.352 |
It will be seen from the foregoing table that the whooping-cough death-rate was highest
in Finsbury (0.54) and lowest in Lewisham (0.04). The whooping-cough death-rate in London
in each of the four quarters of the year 1903 were as follows—First quarter, 0.66; second quarter,
0.39; third quarter, 0.19; and fourth quarter 0.18 per 1,000 living.
Typhus.
Three deaths from typhus in the administrative county of London occurred during the year
1903. The death-rates from this disease in 1903 and previous periods were as follows—
| Period. | death-rate per 1,000 living. | Period. | death-rate per 1,000 living. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1871-80 | .055 | 1897 | .0002 |
| 1881-90 | .008 | 1898 | .0012 |
| 1891 | .0022 | 1899 | .0002 |
| 1892 | .0032 | 1900 | .0002 |
| 1893 | .0012 | 1901 | .0012 |
| 1894 | .0012 | 1902 | — |
| 1895 | .0012 | 1903 | .0012 |
| 1896 | .0012 |
III this table .000 indicates that the deaths were too few to give a rate of .0005; where — is inserted no death occurred.
1 See footnote (2), page 7.
2 See footnote (1), page 7.