London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972

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Hackney 1875

[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Hackney]

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include the mortality from privation, want of breast milk,
excessive drinking, glanders, syphilis, thrush and other affections
which have no apparent relation to one another, but which are
included under Class 1, but in different" orders" by the RegistrarGeneral.
It appears that there were 522 deaths, or 17.7 of the
total deaths from zymotic diseases; 437 or 15.6 per cent. from
"tubercular affections," which include phthisis, scrofula, rickets,
tabes mesenterica and hydrocephalus in children more than 1 year
old The proportion of deaths from these diseases to the mortality
from all causes is a very good criterion of the salubrity of a
district, provided it does not contain an unusually large proportion
of poor residents, or have many of its courts and places
excessively overcrowded. At any rate, a large proportion of
deaths from these causes should cause special inquiry into the
sanitary condition of those portions of the district in which they
most commonly occur. The number of deaths from inflammatory
diseases of the air passages was unusually large in consequence
of the sudden changes and occasional great severity of the
weather, viz., 620, or 21.1 per cent. of the whole; whilst that
from convulsive diseases in infants was less than usual, having
been only 102 against 121 in 1874, although the gross mortality
was greater. The number of deaths from wasting diseases of
infants, under which heading are included the mortality registered
as having been caused by marasmus, atrophy and debility,
want of breast-milk, and premature birth, was in the same proportion
as in 1874. The per-centages of deaths from each of
these groups of disease to 1000 population is given in the Table,
for the especial purpose of comparison with other districts in
which this plan of grouping deaths is adopted. It shows that
there were 36 deaths per 10,000 population from zymotic
diseases, which is rather below the average for all England; 31
from tubercular affections, which is precisely the same as in 1874;
41 from pulmonary affections, which is in excess of the ratio for
1874; 7.2 from convulsive diseases of infants, and 13 from
wasting diseases of infants under 1 year old.