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 1936
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London County Council]
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7
There was a slight increase in the number of fatal street accidents—from 531
in 1935 (52 weeks) to 541 in 1936 (53 weeks). A comparison of the age distribution
for the two years is given in the following table :—
Street
accidents.
Table 4.—County of London—Deaths from street accidents.
| Year | Age-group | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0-5 | 5-15 | 15-25 | 25-45 | 45-65 | 65+ | All ages | |
| 1935 (52 weeks) | 22 | 73 | 85 | 89 | 122 | 140 | 531 |
| 1936 (53 weeks) | 18 | 73 | 73 | 94 | 113 | 170 | 541 |
| Adjusted increase (+ ) or decrease ( —) per cent. | + 3.6 | + 19.1 | + .04 | ||||
The death-rates from all causes and from certain specified causes in each metro
politan borough in 1936 and in London as a whole in 1936 and earlier years will be
found in tables 28 and 30.
The deaths from the principal causes by age and sex during 1936 in London
are shown in table 29.
The deaths under one year of age per thousand live births were 66 compared
with 58 in the preceding year. Apart from the expected epidemic of measles during
1936, the chief factor in the increased mortality-rate over the low figure for 1935
was a high mortality from diarrhœa amounting to 13.79 per 1,000 births, a figure
not exceeded since 1921.
Infant
mortality.
The movement of the death-rates from the principal diseases at ages below one year since 1910 are shown in the following table :— Table 5.
| Cause of death | 1911 to 1914 | 1915 to 1918 | 1919 to 1922 | 1923 to 1926 | 1927 to 1930 | 1931 to 1934 | 1932 | 1933 | 1934 | 1935 | 1936 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Measles | 3.40 | 3.84 | 1.64 | 2.02 | 2.07 | 1.44 | 2.44 | 0.28 | 2.60 | 0.07 | 2.35 |
| Whooping-cough | 3.63 | 4.45 | 2.50 | 2.60 | 3.14 | 2.27 | 2.59 | 2.45 | 1.88 | 1.77 | 2.51 |
| Influenza | 0.27 | 1.10 | 0.81 | 0.38 | 0.48 | 0.40 | 0.39 | 0.46 | 0.30 | 0.18 | 0.27 |
| Tuberculosis | 3.40 | 3.20 | 1.52 | 1.26 | 0.89 | 0.77 | 0.96 | 0.83 | 0.60 | 0.56 | 0.71 |
| Bronchitis | 6.41 | 6.72 | 4.42 | 2.91 | 2.30 | 2.16 | 2.09 | 1.50 | 2.48 | 1.90 | 2.26 |
| Pneumonia | 12.28 | 14.96 | 12.60 | 11.51 | 12.10 | 11.45 | 10.25 | 8.27 | 13.40 | 9.79 | 11.42 |
| Diarrhœa | 24.28 | 16.10 | 12.16 | 9.36 | 8.87 | 10.86 | 11.78 | 10.70 | 12.01 | 10.61 | 13.79 |
| Premature birth | 1816 | 17.42 | 17.00 | 14.74 | 14.17 | 14.91 | 14.51 | 15.23 | 14.65 | 14.11 | 13.13 |
| Congenital defects | 14.69 | 14.66 | 11.26 | 8.39 | 7.38 | 7.22 | 7.58 | 6.84 | 7.81 | 6.88 | 6.97 |
| Other causes | 21.48 | 20.55 | 15.09 | 11 83 | 12.60 | 13.52 | 14.41 | 13.44 | 11.27 | 12.01 | 12.47 |
| All causes | 108 | 103 | 79 | 65 | 64 | 65 | 67 | 60 | 67 | 58 | 66 |