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BOROUGH OF BRENTFORD AND CHISWICK
Public Health Department,
Town Hall, Chiswick, W.4.
To the Mayor, Aldermen and Councillors
of the Borough of Brentford and Chiswick.
Mr. Mayor, ladies and Gentlemen,
I have the honour to present the 26th Annual Report on the
Health and Sanitary circumstances of the population of the Borough
of Brentford and Chiswick.
The health of the people continued to be good.
The Birth Sate rose from 14.21 in 1952 to 14.3. in 1953. This
figure had previously continued to fall since 1946 and was this year
again lower than the average for the whole of England and Wales which
was 15.5.
The Death Rate fell from 11.27 in 1952 to 10.16 in 1953. The
corresponding National figure was 11.4.
Infant Mortality rose slightly in 1953 from 17.61 in 1952 to
19.95 per 1,000 live births. As can be seen from the table on
causes of infant deaths, 12 of the 17 infants who died in the first
month of life perished from causes which could be considered preventable,
and it appears that education of expectant mothers in the
care of the new born and prevention of infectious disease is still
a very important matter.
The principal causes of death were again circulatory diseases,
heart disease and cancer.
Infectious Disease notifications rose and were higher by 468
than in 1952. This rise was more than accounted for by the increase
in measles and whooping cough notifications, and it is satisfactory
to be able to report a drop in the figures for Scarlet Fever,
Puerperal Pyrexia and Poliomyelitis. There were no notifications of
Diphtheria, and this has been the case each year since 1948, and
suggests that the immunisation state of the population is being maintained
satisfactorily, additional evidence of this being afforded by
the figures reported from the County Health Department with regard
to the number attending for immunisation during 1953. It is also
noteworthy that the numbers brought for vaccination against Small
Pox have risen very considerably for the first time since 1948.
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