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 1910
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London County Council]
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Report of the. Medical Officer of Health.
41
Information concerning the number of specimens examined for diphtheria bacilli at the expense of the sanitary authorities is contained in the reports relating to the following districts :—
| Metropolitan borough. | Number of specimens examined. | Number found positive. | Metropolitan borough. | Number of specimens examined. | Number found positive. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paddington | 114 | 28 | Shoreditch | 45 | 18 |
| Kensington | 43 | 10 | Bethnal Green | 87 | 25 |
| Fulham | 336 | 92 | Stepney | 95 | 28 |
| Chelsea | 131 | 37 | Poplar | 81 | 29 |
| Westminster, City of | 184 | 51 | Southwark | 187 | 35 |
| St. Marylebone | 107 | 27 | Bermondsey | 382 | 34 |
| Hampstead | 51 | 18 | Lambeth | 377 | 39 |
| St. Pancras | 91 | 21 | Battersea | 410 | 129 |
| Islington | 401 | 125 | Wandsworth | 289 | 71 |
| Stoke Newington | 104 | 40 | Deptford | 149 | 35 |
| Hackney | 167 | 51 | Greenwich | 984 | 134 |
| Holborn | 26 | 7 | Lewisham | 326 | 79 |
| Finsbury | 69 | 22 | Woolwich | 526 | 73 |
| London, City of | 4 | 3 |
Bacteriological
diagnosis.
Proportion
of cases
admitted to
Hospital.
It will be seen from diagram (a) that the proportion of cases of diphtheria removed to the
hospitals of the Metropolitan Asylums Board was about the same as in the preceding year.
Errors of
diagnosis.
Cases certified to be those of diphtheria and admitted into the hospitals of the Metropolitan Asylums Board, but in which the diagnosis was not subsequently confirmed, constituted the following percentage of total cases admitted in successive years :—
| Year. | Percentage. | Year. | Percentage. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1901 | 12.8 | 1906 | 15.5 |
| 1902 | 13.5 | 1907 | 17.0 |
| 1903 | 14.7 | 1908 | 18.1 |
| 1904 | 16.1 | 1909 | 16.8 |
| 1905 | 18.0 | 1910 | 14.2 |
| Cases certified to be those of diphtheria and admitted into the hospitals of the Metropolitan Asylums Board, but in which the diagnosis was not subsequently confirmed, constituted the following percentage of total cases admitted in successive years :— | |||
| [###]Year. | Percentage. | Year. | Percentage.[###] |
| 1901 | 12.8 | 1906 | 15.5 |
| 1902 | 13.5 | 1907 | 17.0 |
| 1903 | 14.7 | 1908 | 18.1 |
| 1904 | 16.1 | 1909 | 16.8 |
| 1905 | 18.0 | 1910 | 14.2 |
Whooping-cough.
The deaths from whooping-cough in the Administrative County of London during the year 1910
(52 weeks) numbered 1,363, as compared with 1,246 in 1909 (52 weeks).
The death-rates from this disease in 1910 and preceding periods have been as follows :—
| Period. | Death-rate per 1,000 persons living. | Period. | Death-rate per 1,000 persons living. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1841-1850 | 0.87 | 1902 | 0.41a |
| 1851-1860 | 0.88 | 1903 | 0.36a |
| 1861-1870 | 0.88 | 1904 | 0.33a |
| 1871-1880 | 0.81 | 1905 | 0.33a |
| 1881-1890 | 0.69 | 1906 | 0.27a |
| 1891-1900 | 0.50a | 1907 | 0.39a |
| 1901-1910 | 0.32a | 1908 | 0.21a |
| 1909 | 0.27a | ||
| 1901 | 0.35a | 1910 | 0.30a |
The following are the death-rates of children under five years of age.
| Period. | Death-rate per 1,000 children living at ages 0-5. | Period. | Death-rate per 1,000 children living at ages 0-5. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1851-1860 | 6.56 | 1903 | 3.17b |
| 1861-1870 | 6.53 | 1904 ...... | 2.93b |
| 1871-1880 | 6.02 | 1905 ...... | 2.92b |
| 1881-1890 | 5.34 | 1906 ...... | 2.38b |
| 1891-1900 | 4.21b | 1907 ...... | 3.49b |
| 1901-1910 | 2.87b | 1908 ...... | 1.91b |
| 1909 ...... | 2.44b | ||
| 1901 | 3.13b | 1910 ...... | 2.68b |
| 1902 | 3.60b |
(a) See footnote (c), page 8.
(b) Including deaths of Londoners in the Metropolitan Workhouses, Hospitals, and Lunatic Asylums outside
the County, but excluding those of non-Londoners in the London Fever Hospital, the West Ham Union Workhouse
at Hackney, the Metropolitan Asylums Hospitals and the Middlesex County Asylum, within the County of London.
5176 D