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Health Department,
Town Hall,
Tottenham, N.15.
To His Worshipful the Mayor,
Aldermen and Councillors of the
Borough of Tottenham.
Mr. Mayor, Ladies and Gentlemen,
I have the honour to present my Annual Report on the health of
the Borough and the work of the Public Health Department for the
year ended the 31st December, 1952.
The Statistics as shown in this Report help us to assess past
progress and promote future endeavour in a changing pattern of
health and disease.
The birth rate of 13.24 though lower than the national figure
15.3 (per thousand population) continues, as it has done in the
past three years, to show a stabilising trend towards the level
noted before the last World War. The infantile death rate fell to
20.41 per thousand live births, the lowest ever recorded in this
Borough.
The general death rate showed a slight fall, as spread over
the whole year, from 11.99 to 11.25 per thousand of the population.
There was, however, a sharp rise in the last quarter of the year
of deaths among elderly people, in particular, and associated with
the toxic effects of one of the severest fogs experienced in the
Greater London area. The main causes of death otherwise were
cancer, coronary disease, and other cardio-vascular conditions.
Deaths from Cancer numbered 271 (158 males, 113 females). This
showed a rise over the previous year of 19 in the number of males,
the increase reflecting deaths from cancer of the lungs. Coronary
disease again showed an upward trend, 180 deaths (107 males, 73
females) from this cause.
Deaths from heart disease numbered 422 (214 males, 208 females
showing a decrease on the figure of 467 for the previous year.
Deaths from tuberculosis were the lowest (28) ever recorded in the
Borough, though there was no diminution in the number of new cases
notified to the Department.
Control of infectious disease continued to be satisfactory.
No confirmed case of Diphtheria was notified during the year, and
no death has occurred from this disease during the past seven