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51
To begin with the classes of disease which presented a deficiency in St. Giles,
compared with London. Diseases of the joints and bones, and sudden deaths, afford
such small total numbers that inferences must be cautiously derived from them; but
these would appear to be exactly the cases to find their way into hospitals, and hence
not to be registered in St. Giles, though they should occur." Atrophy" is the other
class which, in 1857, contributed less than its share to the mortality of London; but
it is difficult to draw deductions from this circumstance, as the term is so vague that
I have often to hesitate in placing a death to "age," "atrophy," "decay," or
"debility," so that discrepancies may exist between my custom and that of the Registrar
General. It will be noticed that "age" is assigned as the cause of death, with
somewhat more frequency in St. Giles than in the same population elsewhere in
London.
The five classes of disease in which St. Giles presents its excess of mortality,
are:—
The zymotic class; for its population there would have been 276 deaths from
diseases of this class in St. Giles last year, while the actual number was 332, an
excess of about 5 over 4.
Secondly, the tubercular class. Estimated in the same way, the mortality of
1857, from consumption and allied diseases, should have been 208 in St. Giles; the
number of deaths, 267, was therefore 28 per cent. in excess.
Thirdly, diseases of the brain and nerves, of which the mortality calculated for
St. Giles should have been 127 in the year, afforded the high number of 163 deaths ;
again, 28 per cent, above the quota.
Next, diseases of the lungs and breathing apparatus, were in a still larger
excess; while 222 was the number of deaths estimated for St. Giles, 294 were
actually registered; the excess being as 132 over 100, nearly as 4 over 3.
Lastly, premature birth and debility among children. I have placed the
deaths of 55 children under this head, while an equal population in the rest of
London has given only 33. Although I do not doubt that this class is in excess in
St. Giles. I am not sure, for the reason before stated, that the amount of surplus is
exactly represented by these numbers.
But we can get a little nearer to the diseases which produce the great mortality
of St. Giles, and find out what individual maladies, of each group, are those
which were unduly fatal. These are extracted, and placed in the foregoing table.
Of the zymotic class, the diseases chiefly in excess to St. Giles beyond the rest
of London, were whooping cough and measles, and to an inferior degree, diarrhoea.
Of the tuberculous class, comsumption in the lungs and water on the brain, in
children. Of the class of brain diseases, convulsions in children; in adults, too, these
are somewhat more fatal in this district than elsewhere. In the class of diseases of
the respiratory organs, the two chief members, bronchitis and pneumonia, contribute
very largely to the high mortality of St. Giles, the former especially being fatal beyond
the quota derived from the population.
I have before remarked on the large number of children that died in St. Giles,
in 1857. Though I am not in possession of the ages of those who died in London in