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It is especially pleasing to be able to report that only one
maternal death took place during the year, although the pleasure
is modified by the fact that even this single fatality occurred. The
death in question was not due to sepsis and appeared, upon investigation,
to have been entirely non-preventable. The fatal issue
followed a severe abdominal operation for toxæmia during
pregnancy.
The steps outlined in last year's Annual Report to increase
the facilities available to pregnant women within the Borough and
to make the existence of the pre-natal clinic more widely known,
are being continued and extended in an endeavour to carry out an
adequate campaign against the scourge of maternal mortality.
Mortality of "Toddlers"—i.e., children between the ages of
1 and 5 years. Amongst children of 1 to 5 years of age there were
5 deaths during 1936. This represents a corrected death-rate of
0.08 per 1,000 of the total population, and 0.79 per cent. of the
total deaths for the year, at all ages. In 1935 there were 7 deaths,
giving a rate of 0.11 and a percentage of 1.25. It will thus be seen
that the figures show a slight fall.
Mortality of Persons over the age of 65.—It will be observed
from Table II, on page 14, that slightly more than 50 per cent. of
the total deaths occurring during the year took place in persons
over the age of 65 (51.82 per cent.). In this connection, it is interesting
to note that 10 females died at the age of 90 or over, the
oldest being 101 years; while 4 males also died within this age
period, the oldest being 94.
Zymotic Mortality.—This includes the deaths from the seven
principal zymotic diseases, viz. : Smallpox, scarlet fever, diphtheria,
typhoid fever, measles, whooping cough and diarrhoea (in
children under 2 years of age).
There were 7 deaths from the diseases mentioned above, as
follows:—
Diphtheria, 3; typhoid fever, 2; measles, 1; diarrhoea, 1.
The zymotic death-rate for 1936 was therefore 0.11 per 1,000
of the population, as against 0.05 in 1935, with 3 deaths.
The figure for 1936 is high by reason of the fact that the
deaths of three children who had removed from the district to
South Wales were credited to Southgate. These children developed
diphtheria several weeks after having left the district for domestic
reasons, but they were still counted as residing within the Borough.
Had these deaths not been included, the rate would have been practically
the same as that for 1935.
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