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42
SECTION 4.
GENERAL.
SURVEY OF DEATHS, 1952
The death rate for-the year was 9.9 per 1,000 which shows a
satisfactory decline from the 1951 figure of 10.6.
The diseases of the heart and circulation continue to comprise
the main cause of death; and the figures taken as a whole show
little significant change over previous years—a reduction in the
amount of "other heart and circulatory disease "being counterbalanced
by an increase in the number of " strokes."
The number of deaths due to disease of the respiratory system
shows a decline of 35 as compared to 1951—but does not equal
the excellent figures of 1950.
The third most important cause of death is now cancer of
various sites. Over the country as a whole cancer of the lung
has increased alarmingly in incidence in recent years, i.e. from
622 deaths in 1922 to 13,247 in 1951, and a great number of theories
have been put forward as to the possible cause, i.e. road tar,
atmospheric pollution, fumes from gas works or cigarette smoke.
This increase has not been marked in Ealing and this year's figure
of deaths, 52, shows a decline of 17 compared to 1950 and 1951.
The total number of deaths from cancer of all sites in Ealing
in 1952 was 363—a considerable increase from 89 in 1922.
The expectation of life has now risen to 65.8 years at birth
for males, and 70.9 years for females, and it is therefore inevitable
that there will be an increasing number of deaths from the degenerative
diseases and cancer, in the older members of the
population.
It is pleasant to record that there has been no death this
year from Poliomyelitis, Whooping Cough or Diphtheria, and that
the number of deaths from diarrhoea and enteritis fell from 12 in
1951 to 6 in 1952.
The number of deaths from tuberculosis rose to 40 after the
very low figure of 34 in 1951. The number of deaths from nonpulmonary
tuberculosis continues to steadily decline, possibly as
a result of the policy of allowing only designated milk to be sold
in the Borough.
There was one maternal death during the year, associated with
a miscarriage. It is gratifying to learn that no mother has now
died in childbirth in the Borough for several years.