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
Barking 1945
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Barking]
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| Under 1 week | 1-2 weeks | 2-3 weeks | 3-4 weeks | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atelectasis | 3 | — | — | 1 | 4 |
| Bronchitis | — | — | — | 1 | 1 |
| Broncho-Pneumonia | 3 | — | — | 1 | 4 |
| Congenital Debility | 1 | — | — | — | 1 |
| Congenital Malformations | — | 1 | — | 1 | |
| Haemorrhagic Disease of the newly born | 1 | — | — | — | 1 |
| Hydrocephalus and Spina Bifida | — | 1 | — | — | 1 |
| Meningitis | — | 1 | — | — | 1 |
| Meningitis and Spina Bifida | — | — | — | 1 | 1 |
| Prematurity | 9 | — | 1 | — | 10 |
| Spina Bifida | — | 1 | — | — | 1 |
| Totals | 17 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 26 |
It will be seen from the preceding tables that of the
forty-five deaths under the age of one year, no less than
twenty-six were four weeks of age or under, and
prematurity is given as the cause of death in the cases
of ten babies who died within the first four weeks of
life.
The fact that twenty-six died within the first
month, leaving only nineteen deaths for the remaining
eleven months of the first year of life, shows that our
chief problem is still the mortality among the newly
born.
Of the twenty-six babies who died under the age of
one month, no less than seventeen died within the first
week.