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ANNUAL REPORT
OF THE
Medical Officer of Health
FOR THE YEAR 1952
To the Mayor, Aldermen and Councillors of the
Borough of Hendon.
Mr. Mayor, Ladies and Gentlemen,
I have the honour to submit my Annual Report for the year
1952, this being my twenty-third report as Medical Officer of Health.
It will be seen from the vital statistics that the health conditions
continue to be satisfactory.
The infantile mortality rate was the second lowest in the history
of the Borough and reflects a very high standard of maternal care.
The incidence of Tuberculosis shows a slight decline over the
years but this may be greater than appears as the more precise
methods of diagnosis now employed are probably resulting in the
discovery of an increasing number of early cases of this disease. An
investigation into the efficacy of B.C.G. Vaccine has been carried out
amongst school leavers in the Borough. This is part of a much
wider investigation being conducted by the Medical Research Council,
the results of which will take a considerable time to emerge, but
there appears to be enough evidence from other sources to justify
the giving of B.C.G. Vaccine to children who are known to be home
contacts of infectious cases of Tuberculosis. The Housing Committee
has continued the policy of awarding additional points to housing
applicants where the presence of an infectious case of Pulmonary
Tuberculosis constitutes a danger of infection to children.
No case of Smallpox occurred in the Borough during the year
but it was disappointing to see that a further decline in infant
vaccination has taken place, only 667 children having been vaccinated
out of approximately 2,000 births.
Much of the work of the Sanitary Inspectors has been concerned
with endeavours to maintain housing at a reasonable standard. This
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