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PREFACE
TO THE MAYOR, ALDERMEN AND COUNCILLORS OP THE
ROYAL BOROUGH OF KINGSTON-UPON-THAMES .
ANNUAL REPORT„ 1948
Mr. Mayor, Ladies and Gentlemen,
I have the honour to present the Annual Report for 1948,
which is in similar form to that for 1947, and is confined to
essential matters relating to the Public Health and Social
Medicine.
VITAL STATISTICS.
Population - The Registrar General's estimate of the population
for 1948 is 40,780 which is the same figure as that
for 1947.
Live Births - The number of live births for 1948 is 722
giving a Birth Rate of 17.73 per 1,000 of the population
compared with 870 births and a rate of 20.02 for 1947-a
decline of 148 births from the post war peak of 1947,
Deaths - The number of deaths recorded for 1948 is 455
giving a Death Rate of 11.17 compared with 495 and a Death
Rate of 12.13 for 1947.
Excess of Births over Deaths. The excess of births over
deaths in 1948 is 267 compared with 375 in 1947.
The Infant Mortality Rate - The number of deaths of infants
under one year of age in 1948 is 17, giving a rate per 1,000
total (live and still) births of 23.04 as compared with 19
infant deaths and a rate of 21.84 in 1947.
The Causes of Death-The main conditions causing death
as recorded in the table for 1948 are-Heart disease 135;
Cancer 83; and Intra-Cranial Vascular Lesions 44.
Infectious Disease - The number of notifications of
infectious disease 1948 was 487 as against 345 in 1947. The
increase was due to the high incidence of whooping cough.
There has been a remarkable diminution in the incidence of
infectious disease generally over the last ten years.
In particular, in 1948 for the first time, no cases of
diphtheria were notified throughout the year.
The absence of deaths under 2 years of age from enteritis
and diarrhoea is also recorded with satisfaction.
There was an increase in the number of cases of Respiratory
Tuberculosis notified as also in the number of deaths from the
same cause.
HOUSING.
The need for adequate housing accommodation continues to be
most pressing. The damaging effects of inadequate housing conditions
is still a major factor in many of the health problems which
are brought to our notice. Notwithstanding what has already
been done to rehouse the most urgent cases, the provision of