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Half of the deaths occurred in the first week of life and most of
these were due to prematurity. Only six of the deaths were certified
as being due to infection.
STILL BIRTHS.
As stated in the opening pages of this Report the Still Birth
rate in the Borough has been steadily rising.
The Still Birth rate for 1945 was 30.63 per 1,000 births,
compared with an average of 37.32 for the five years 1940-1944.
The most convenient way of examining the question of Still
Births is to study the records of the Beckenham and Penge Joint
Maternity Hospital.
In the six years since the new hospital in Stone Park Avenue
was opened there have been 2,791 births in the hospital of which
number 74 were still births.
This gives a still birth rate over the whole period of 26.51 per
1,000 births.
The causes of many of the still births were not known. Of
the 74 registered, 10 were attributed to the Toxaemias of Pregnancy,
20 were due to abnormal conditions developing during labour
and 15 of the infants had congenital malformations which were
incompatible with life. There remain therefore 29 still births for
which no definitely recognisable cause could be found, the records
show that 24 of these infants were dead before the onset of labour.
The records have been examined from two particular aspects
tp see if either of these aspects had any recognisable effect on the
question of Still Birth. These aspects are :—
1. Age and number of pregnancies.
2. Family income.
(1) Age and Number of Pregnancies.
Of the total number of 2,791 births :—
In 55.78% it was the first pregnancy.
In 28.16% there had been one previous pregnancy.
In 10.32% there had been two previous pregnancies.
In 5.72% there had been three or more previous
pregnancies.
The Still Birth rate for each of these groups was as follows :—
First pregnancies ... 30.82 per 1,000 births.
Second „ 8.90 „ „ „
Third „ 34.72 „
Fourth and subsequent
pregnancies 56.25 ,, ,, „
The table shows very striking differences, though it is probable
that in a larger series of cases the divergencies between the various
rates would not be quite so wide. It is well recognised that the
risks of pregnancy ending in a still birth are greater in first pregnancies,
but it is surprising to find the rate rising so sharply in
pregnancies after the second, but as mentioned above, the number
10