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 1932
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London County Council]
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11
Puerperal
fever and
pyrexia.
There were 218 notifications of puerperal fever and 741 notifications of puerperal
pyrexia in 1932 (52 weeks) compared with 291 and 828, respectively, in 1931 (52
weeks).
The deaths from puerperal sepsis numbered 83 and from other accidents of
childbirth 103, the deaths per thousand births being 1-33 and 1-66 respectively.
These give a maternal mortality-rate of 2-99 and both separately and conjointly
are the lowest rates hitherto recorded in London.
The deaths from puerperal fever and other accidents of childbirth per thousand births in each metropolitan borough and in the county of London in the periods 1920 to 1927 and 1928 to 1932, together with the deaths in childbirth in 1932, are shown in the following table:—
| Metropolitan boroughs. | Childbirth deaths per 1,000 births. | Number of deaths in childbirth. | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1920-27. | 1928-32. | 1932. | |||||||
| Puerperal fever. | Other causes. | Total. | Puer. peral fever. | Other causes. | Total. | Puerperal fever. | Other causes. | Total. | |
| 1.6 | |||||||||
| - | - | - | |||||||
| 6 | |||||||||
| 1.9 | |||||||||
| - | |||||||||
| - | - | ||||||||
| - | - | - | - | ||||||
| 1 | |||||||||
| 1 | |||||||||
| 1.0 | |||||||||
| 1.7 | |||||||||
| 1.3 | |||||||||
| 1.1 | |||||||||
| 1.7 | |||||||||
| 1.5 | 1.6 | 3.1 | 1.8 | 1.7 | 3.5 | ||||
The deaths in childbirth in 1932 are shown in the above table but not the deathrates,
as, owing to the smallness of the figures, the rates for a single year may be
misleading. The maternal mortality rates are, however, set out in the table on page 14.